She Can Tell (34 page)

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t very useful today.”

Mike’s hand cupped her jaw. He lifted her chin. Expecting pity, she was surprised by the respect that filled his eyes. “I don’t know many people who could’ve held it together as well as you did.”

She stretched up and touched her mouth to his. This time their lips met with a slow sizzle instead of a blast.

He lifted his head. “I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

Gazing up into those baby blues, something unfurled inside her. Heat. Need. Longing burst forth. Her hands curled in the fabric of his T-shirt. “I need you.”

His eyes darkened. He kissed her again, his tongue sliding through her lips to stroke hers. One of his hands slipped under the blanket and stroked her thigh. She suddenly realized all she was wearing was a tank and panties. His palm settled heavily on her hip. His thumb teased the
elastic waistband of her bikinis. Heat built rapidly under the blanket.

Her hand found the hem of his T-shirt and tugged the fabric up, displaying his rippled abs. Her fingers traced the valley that led into his pants. With a low groan, Mike stood up with her in his arms and carried her into the bedroom. He set her on her feet. The blanket fell to the floor, and cool air rushed over her hot skin.

Why was he still dressed? She yanked his T-shirt over his head and tossed it aside. Her fingers spread over the heavy muscles of his chest.

Mike captured both her busy hands behind her back. “This isn’t a race.”

“Hey, let go,” she protested.

He put his mouth to work on the sensitive skin of her neck, and she stopped squirming. Thoughts of complaining ceased as his lips trailed down to her collarbone. Rachel’s head fell back. Heat and dampness pooled between her legs, where she was empty and aching for him. Only him. This man who could make her muscles tremble, her bones weak, and her heart giddy as a high-schooler. She shifted her hips forward until his erection was lined up in just the right place. All she wanted was to have him inside her. Where he belonged.

A deep groan rumbled through his chest. Panting, he pressed his forehead to hers. “Slow down. You won’t regret it. Trust me.”

“I do.” And she meant it.

He froze for a second, and then his eyes went all sexy and intense, the blue deepening as his eyes darkened with desire.

His hands skimmed up her ribs, taking her tank with them. He eased it over her head and tossed it over his shoulder. When she reached for his pants, he stopped her.

“I want to look at you for a minute. OK?” he asked in a hoarse voice.

“Uhm, sure.”

He switched on the bedside lamp. Soft light filled the room. Like a hot caress, his hungry stare swept over her, lingered on her breasts, and then dropped to her hips. No one would ever accuse her of being overly shy, but she flushed in response. Everywhere his gaze landed, her skin tingled, anticipating his touch.

“I want to see you naked.” Without waiting for her approval, his thumbs hooked in the sides of her string bikinis. On one knee, he slid them down her legs. Gentle hands circled her ankle, lifting her foot. Her panties dropped to the beige carpet. He pressed his lips to the sensitive skin below her navel. The gesture was as affectionate as sensual. Abruptly, she stopped fighting the love that bloomed in her chest and let it have full rein.

Blue eyes looked up at her, full of masculine desire and passion. Mesmerized, Rachel forgot her hurry. She watched him kiss a path from one hip bone to the other. His tongue dipped into her navel. Then lower. The skin of her belly quivered as his lips slid over it. He inhaled and moaned low and deep in his throat. His hands skimmed up the backs of her calves to her thighs, separating her legs and holding her in place as he licked closer to her aching center. The sight of his huge body kneeling at her feet, his head wedged between her thighs, was the most erotic thing she’d ever seen.

Pleasure speared her as the tip of his tongue hit the money spot. He circled, slowly, deliberately, drawing out the sensations, building the tension until her body screamed for release. Every muscle in her body tightened. Her spine arched.

“Oh, yes. Right there. Please.”

The low groan that came from Mike sounded almost like a growl as he obliged. Her hands shot into his hair, the slow caress finally driving her to peak. Instead of an explosion, a chain reaction started deep inside her. Her knees buckled as tension coiled and burst in great waves. His arms wrapped around her thighs, holding her up as the orgasm rolled through her.

He surged to his feet, lifting her limp body as he stood, then laid her gently on the bed. Somewhere between the floor and stretching out on top of her, he’d shed his pants and acquired a condom. Biceps bulged as steely arms supported his body over her. His weight pressed her into the mattress, more comforting than restricting. She wrapped her body around him and let him in. Her breath caught as emotion swelled beneath her ribs and filled the cold, lonely spaces inside her with warmth.

Moving slowly, Mike eased his way inside her tight but oh-so-ready-for-him body. His limbs trembled with the effort of holding back. He felt the subtle change in her body as it relaxed under him. Her acceptance was more than physical. Her soul-deep trust rocked him even more than the response of her body.

He withdrew and thrust again. Her body bowed, and her legs wrapped around his waist. Pleasure built with electric intensity. He looked down into her eyes and discovered he liked them glassy with pleasure even more than fiery with temper. Her body arched and a moan slipped from her lips.

Every stroke of his body in hers brought them both closer to climax. He wasn’t ready for this to be over. Not by a long shot.

But her hands were on his back, the nails digging in, as her body tensed under him. Her spine arched as the climax rolled through her, tightening around him in vibrant pulses. There was nothing Mike could do but go with her. As far as orgasms went, it was nuclear.

Several minutes passed as his heart slowed from all-out sprint to jog, and a few aftershocks passed through the lax body under his. Mike kissed her with all the tenderness that had gathered in his heart. A contented sigh purred in her throat. She stretched, sleek and graceful. Though she seemed content, Mike searched her face for signs of panic.

She raised a brow at him. “Is everything all right?”

“I think so. If I get up to deal with the condom, you’re not going to lock yourself in the bathroom, right?”

She cupped the side of his face and kissed him. “You might regret this, but I’m not going anywhere, He-Man. Except maybe to the kitchen. I’m starving.”

Laughing, Mike ducked into the bathroom. “What time do you need to be home?”

“What time is it?”

“Six.” Sheets rustled in the bedroom, and Mike stifled a pang of regret. He’d like to keep her here, safe—and naked—for the rest of the night.

“No rush, but I can’t stay over.” Rachel yawned. “Brandon said he’d feed the horses tonight, but then he’s leaving with his family. The river is going to crest by morning. Their rental is in the flood zone. They need to stay with relatives for a few days.”

“You’re not going to have a problem, are you?” Mike cleaned up and brushed his teeth while he was in there. When she didn’t answer, he returned to the bedroom.

She was curled up on her side. Her eyes were closed, her face relaxed in a way it never was while she was conscious.
Rachel didn’t stop moving long enough to relax. She looked innocent, vulnerable without her usual guarded expression.

He set the bedside alarm for two hours and climbed back into bed with her, easing an arm over her body. She curled into him. Just a couple of hours. Then they’d get back to trying to find her stalker.

Lt. Pete Winters turned the township SUV into the Lost Lake development project. With a tighter suspension than his cruiser, the unfamiliar vehicle bounced through sloppy ruts. Mud splashed onto the windshield. He turned on the wipers, and a liberal spray of fluid cleared two arches of glass.

Headlights swept the site as he turned into the parking area. Gravel crunched under the truck’s tires. Cluttered with chain-link fences, the yellow carcasses of large equipment, and port-a-johns, the bulldozed acreage slashed like a scar through the forest. Beyond the muddy beach, the overfull lake undulated, black and forbidding, in the darkness.

A man came out of the office trailer and picked his way across the sloppy lot. The wind kicked up the tails of the unbuttoned flannel shirt he wore over his jeans and tee. Recognizing one of the job foremen, Pete got out of the truck. “Hey, Ernie. How’s it going?” He pointed his flashlight at the ground and switched it on to avoid the puddles.

“Quiet so far.” Ernie yawned. “Man, I’m loving the time-and-a-half, but I’m not used to second shift.”

“When do you get off?”

Ernie scratched his belly and yawned. “Midnight. Tonight’s the last night. Harmon hired some hotshot security company. They start tomorrow.”

“Guess they’re tired of all the vandalism.”

“Can’t blame them. The missing dynamite was the last straw.” Ernie reached into his chest pocket and pulled a pack of cigarettes.

“Dynamite?”

“Oh yeah.” He tapped a Marlboro out of a full pack. “You didn’t know? When they said to keep it quiet, I thought they’d told the cops.”

“The chief probably knows.” But doubt was creeping into Pete’s gut. The chief wasn’t the kind of guy to let something like missing explosives slide. But then, Pete never thought the chief would compromise a case either. Maybe he’d handled it on his own. There was only one way to find out.

“I’m sure.” Ernie cupped a match and lit his smoke. The end flared bright orange as he inhaled. Smoke cut across the scents of pine and wet earth.

Pete fingered the button on his flashlight. “Well, if everything is fine here, I have to get back to the station.”

“See ya, Pete.” Ernie dragged on his smoke and backed away from the police vehicle.

Pete navigated the exit and turned back onto the rural road. With no moonlight, the darkness was a solid wall that ended at the reach of his headlights. He pushed the pedal down and high-beamed it all the way back to town. In the dark police station lot, he parked behind the brick building and let himself in. The night dispatcher waved as Pete continued to the chief’s office. After unlocking the door with the key the mayor had given him, he switched on the light, rounded the desk, and sat behind it. The chief’s chair felt too large, and Pete’s short, pudgy frame couldn’t quite fill it.

He rummaged through drawers and files until he located the Lost Lake folder. He flipped pages and scanned reports.
No mention of stolen explosives. He collapsed against the chair’s high leather back. What did it mean?

Had the chief purposefully kept the dynamite theft out of the reports? Doubt lumped in the pit of Pete’s belly. His gaze wandered to the window. At the community center across the street, lights glowed in the windows of the main meeting room. The town council was the only group that would be there this late.

Pete locked up and crossed the street to the old building that housed everything from Weeblos to senior fitness classes. In the main meeting area, Vince and Lawrence Harmon sat at the long table that spanned the room. The rest of the council was conspicuously absent.

Pete walked up the aisle that ran between two banks of folding chairs and stopped in front of the councilman. Annoyance flickered in Vince’s eyes before he blinked it away. He closed the file in front of him. Next to him, Harmon sat back and crossed his arms over his chest.

Vince gestured to the empty chair opposite him. “Pete, have a seat. What can we do for you?” He rested his elbows on the closed folder and steepled his fingers.

Pete stood behind the chair. He grasped the metal back with both hands, the chair and resolve holding him steady. “Why isn’t the missing dynamite in any of the Lost Lake reports?”

Harmon sat up and glanced at Vince. “I told you—”

Vince held up a hand. “Because we don’t want to upset the public, that’s why.” The confident, condescending tone in his voice confirmed everything.

Pete ignored Harmon’s angry glare. “Did the chief know about this?”