Wine and Roses (9 page)

Her smile turned into a yawn. Maybe she was a wee bit tired and could do with a little nap. Her eyes closed. She heard the sound of his voice saying good night—then nothing.

Chapter Eleven

“Well! What the hell do you have for me?”

“Look, it’s not that easy,” his informant said. “The feds are on this now. I couldn’t stall it any more. Once the vic was id’d, things got tight, but chill. I confirmed Simon Blackcat did stash her.”

“Shithead, that much I already knew. You told me as much. Do I have to tell the people I work for what an incompetent you are? Did you get any more info on their exact whereabouts in Montana? Like a fucking address.”

“No, I just need a little more time to get the info.”

“Listen ass. The feds are here, I don’t have much time. The reason people hire me is because I do not get caught.”

“Well, I wasn’t the one who got seen.”

“Don’t piss me off.”

The cop sighed into the phone. “Another day. That’s all I’ll need.”

“That’s all you got.”

***

Eboni opened her eyes; she wasn’t sure why. The room appeared darker. She turned her head to the side but sensed Simon’s absence. Getting out of bed, she spotted his T-shirt on the floor and picked it up holding it to her face. She inhaled, and Simon’s citrusy scent surrounded her. In fact, his scent already lay all over her naked body, and she could feel evidence of him on her thighs, too, from her slight soreness, inside her, also. She couldn’t believe three months had passed since she’d last been with him, and her muscles had gotten a work out. After a quick shower, she dried off and pulled Simon’s T-shirt on. As she left the bathroom, she noticed his shades still rested on the nightstand where he’d left them. He couldn’t have gone far so she went in search of him.

All the lights were off except for a nightlight in the hallway. At least she could see enough to make her way to the living room. The room lay in shadows, and a muted glow came from the kitchen. She moved toward it calling Simon’s name, but got no response. Finding the wall switch, she turned it on and the overhead light fixture illuminated the spotless kitchen. She blinked at the brightness, wishing she could adjust the lighting so it wasn’t too harsh. Two bowls sat on the floor, one with water the other lay empty. Still no sign of Simon or Gunner.

Her stomach rumbled, and she laughed. Heading over to the fridge, she opened it to see what she could find. There were several covered plastic containers. She took one out and opened it. Poached salmon. “Mmmm, now that’s promising.” After placing the plastic on the kitchen table, she went back to check out the rest of the containers. In about ten minutes, she set a lovely meal out on the table of poached salmon, asparagus tips, and garlic mashed potatoes. The other bowls also held a nice assortment of food, and she found a few frozen casseroles in the freezer. All previously made and only requiring heating or microwaving. And enough food to last them a good solid week.

She hesitated to heat anything since, unsure where Simon wondered off to, perhaps to take Gunner for a walk, but having no idea when he’d be back, she decided to wait. A quick glance at the clock on the wall, told her the time, just past ten. She gazed over at the back door in the kitchen and walked over to it, pushed the curtain covering the windowpane aside and couldn’t believe the sight before her eyes.

The silver moon hung low above his shoulder so she could see the stark beauty of him. He emerged from the river naked like some sort of dark water god, raising his hand to brush his wet hair away from his face. He took his time walking up the path leading to the back door. His dog trotted at his side. Too late, she realized the light on in the kitchen had illuminated her standing there watching him. She knew exactly when he saw her. He paused in his step but he never broke stride. Like an idiot, she remained frozen in place waiting for him unable to move if her life depended on it.

Perhaps it did.

She stepped back when he turned the knob on the door and pushed it open, Gunner running right past her. Simon blinked and raised his arm to cover his eyes. “Oh God, I’m sorry.” She’d forgotten all about his sensitivity to light, he did, too; they’d been more focused on each other. She turned to go back to the doorway to find the light switch but she heard a tap against the wall and the kitchen plunged into shadows. She looked around and saw a faint glow coming from under the microwave over the stove.

“It’s okay,” he whispered.

She felt stupid. “I really am sorry. I…I turned on the light to put out some food.” She would have said more but his mouth fastened onto her lips, and his tongue danced with hers. He pulled her to him soaking the front of her T-shirt. The sudden contrast of his damp cold body against her heated skin shocked her system. She sneezed. Immediately, he pulled back.

***

“Sorry about that,” he said, grinning. “I’m all wet, but I couldn’t resist. Give me a minute to change, and then we’ll eat whatever you’ve taken out, but you should probably get out of that damp T-shirt, too. Another time and I want to make love to you like that.”

She raised one eyebrow. “How’s that wet or in your clothes?”

He placed his arm around her waist and guided her out of the kitchen. “Either works. But you’re just getting better so we’ll wait for that.”

And Simon did have to keep reminding himself of those facts. She’d been so ill. He’d never known anyone who’d been so sick. Hurt from wounds yes, but not brought down because of some tiny virus. He shook his head. They’d both changed clothes. After drying off, he grabbed a pair of sweats, and she’d taken the bathroom over. He left her in the bedroom to change. On the way, he spotted Gunner, who’d run along the edge of the riverbank and only got his paws damp. Now he lay on a thick, quilted throw on one of the sofas, one eye opened to stare at him before shutting down. Poor little guy was exhausted. He stopped to rub his head before returning to the kitchen.

He opened the containers on the table, found plates to put everything on, and planned to nuke the food for a few seconds when Eboni walked into the kitchen in shorts and a tank top. His gaze roamed over her damn nice legs and toned arms. He liked them. Especially when they were wrapped around him like silk, and oh such perfect breasts he hadn’t nuzzled nearly enough. She wore her hair pulled back showing him a face he could stare at for a lifetime.
Where was this coming from
? He shook his head, the happily ever after kind, not him. But definitely something about Eboni made him want.
Things he could not have
.

“Take a seat.” The request came out gruffer than he’d meant for it to. She frowned at him but still moved to pull out a chair at the table. He stuck one plate in the microwave and adjusted the setting to medium heat before turning it on for a few seconds. Enough to heat the food and not turn it to rubber. When it beeped, he stuck the second plate in and repeated the process. He placed the first plate down in front of her.

“Where did all of this come from?” she asked.

He shook his head. “The place has a housekeeper, and after I called her, she stocked it with enough food for a few days.”

“Nice.”

The microwave went off, and he turned to get his plate out. He pulled a drawer open and took out a couple of forks for them. “Would you like something to drink? I’ve got wine, sparkling water, and not sure what else might be in the fridge. Oh and you can drink water right out of the tap here. We’ve got well water, and it’s filtered already, twice before it comes out of the faucet.”

“Okay, I’ll just try the water then.”

He placed his plate down and turned to a cabinet to take down two glasses. Running the water for a minute to get it nice and cold, he filled the glasses and placed them on the table. “Let me know if you need ice.”

Sitting down, he picked up his fork and began eating. After a moment, he watched Eboni take a sip of the water. “Mmm, wow this is good. And it’s well water?”

“Yep.”

“Very cool. But what happens if there’s a stretch of no rain?”

“Then we tap into the main water lines. There’s a control outside to switch the pipes. But that doesn’t happen very often.”

“And it’s very beautiful here. Do you get to come and spend time here very often?”

Ah, now came the questions. He’d been expecting them. “Not very.” His body tensed, an automatic reaction to what he did not want to discuss.

“Oh, that’s too bad. So you were born in Bitterroot? I bet you miss the place.”

“Not really. My life is back in LA.” He knew his tone came out clipped, and he gave short replies. But what other answers could he give her?

“Are your parents still here?”

“No.” He didn’t elaborate. His fingers tightened around his fork. This was ground he never discussed. He knew bringing her home would open up something he’d buried a long time ago. Raising the dead…never a good thing.

“Okay. Sorry, didn’t mean to pry.”

Relaxing his death grip on the fork and easing the muscle tension out of his body, he asked in a more normal tone. “How’s the salmon?”

“Great! The food is fantastic.”

“It was probably caught this morning or last night.”

“Wow, no wonder it’s so flavorful.”

“And if I know Mrs. Kapper, there should be a few desserts and homemade cookies in the jar on the counter.”

“Yeah, I saw a couple of desserts in the fridge. Is she the housekeeper, and how did she have time to do all this? You only knew this morning we were coming here. She couldn’t have had enough time.”

He breathed a sigh of relief when she went ahead with the change of subject and smiled at her assumption about Mrs. K. “Sorta. She runs a local diner and catering business so always has things on hand. She’s got several customers who don’t give her much notice to stock their homes.” She’d moved to the area only five years ago and didn’t know his family history. Thank God! But because of Mrs. K and her business, he’d been able to keep the place in such good shape and let her rent out the cabin or allow friends to use the house on several occasions. He liked the idea of people using it to enjoy. The place needed to have some of those positive happy emotions; too much of the other rested within its walls. And now he brought Eboni here, what had he been thinking?

***

“It’s been almost two fucking days. I need something.”

“And I got it. The day Blackcat left with the witness you know I followed, but took me a while to get information on where the plane went. And then try to use my resources to find out the connection about Montana.”

“Why the fuck would he take her to Montana? That agency he’s with has a safe house there?”

“Not sure if the Guardian Agency does or not. They are all close mouthed around that place. But according to Blackcat’s service records, that’s where he’s from. Big Sky, a place called Bitterroot Valley. And I got what you wanted, an address.”

“Well at least it gets my ass outta LA and saves yours. Text it to me.”

Chapter Twelve

The first night in his home they’d made love, and something shifted between them. He’d slept with her for the last week but they hadn’t made love again. He just cradled her lovingly in his arms. She’d fallen asleep in his embrace smiling yet sad. During the days Simon stayed outdoors, Gunner always at his side, fishing mostly. Almost every day he took her on long walks and showed her the world he’d grown up in. Usually, the river always within sight; which she’d enjoyed but on the way back to the house one day, they’d passed the flower garden near the house, and she’d commented on them.

“Your flowers are beautiful. The garden is very lush and the colors so bright. Even the wild flowers we saw on the hike don’t compare to the vibrancy of these. How do you manage to take care of them if you’re never here?”

“Blood will do wonders for color. And there is someone who takes care of the place, cutting the grass and seeing to the exterior.”

“Did you say blood?”

***

He’d burnt the old storage shed to the ground after being released from the juvenile detention center. It remained a black spot on the land until the groundskeeper he’d hired asked if he could plant flowers there. Simon could not say no to having flowers placed over his mother’s place of death and agreed to the man’s request. He never regretted that decision, but Eboni’s questions and observations were killing him. He should never have brought her here. Another mistake.

“Don’t mind me,” he said when she frowned at him. He did not intend to explain his remarks. “How about tomorrow we take a boat trip down river. You’ll love it.” He knew he’d been an ass the last week. It’s because he wanted her so damn bad. He understood what she needed from him but couldn’t give it to her. Not his past. Not to anyone. He wanted her, and he was done keeping his distance.

***

Okay, she hated the way he changed the subject. Not the first time he’d clammed up on her questions. He put a verbal wall up anytime she asked him anything a little personal. Even his body became tense. She got the hints. They were sharing each other’s bodies not each other’s lives. Frankly, not even much of that. But she didn’t want it that way. She needed more from him. She knew he wanted her each night that bone poked her in the back, but he’d be gone by the time she woke up each morning, and every so often she’d catch him staring in her direction.

They finished eating dinner, and he’d gone outside, he said to check the boat for their trip. Alone in the house, she wandered into the living room. She smiled as she glanced around. She enjoyed the room the most, like rest of the house, comfortable, but still not quite a home. For all its furnishings, it seemed empty. Waiting for the family who lived there to return and reclaim it. If Simon grew up here, she could see no evidence of it. Actually, nothing remained whatsoever of the people who once lived in the house. There were no photographs of him or his parents on display anywhere. Did he even have siblings? Nothing even resembling personal mementos lay around. Even the Afghans were store bought. They had brand name tags, and the books on the small bookshelf only held books about hiking and fishing. It reminded her of a beach rental her parents used to take them to when they were younger. Comfortable but no one actually lived there.