“We’re camping?” Grace’s voice had been incredulous.
“You don’t camp?” He tried to be cheerful about it, funny even. Grace did not take it that way.
“Not in the snow! That means it’s close to or below freezing.” He started to hold up the supplies he’d bought, but she wasn’t having it. “I thought the heater was for the car! For if we had to do a stake-out. I didn’t realize that was a tent…and, no, I don’t think a foil blanket is going to make me feel better.”
“I’m sorry. I can offer body heat if that makes you feel better.”
Her eyebrows raised, suggesting that no, it didn’t. “You know I search the woods for dead bodies, right?”
“Sure, but I’m not intending to camp us on a burial ground.”
“No, but what I usually find is animal bones. I find human bones with all kinds of bites and scratches in them. There are way more animals out there willing to eat people than the average American thinks!”
“So, you’re not a camper then.”
She gave him a death glare and sighed heavily. He didn’t like the rift suddenly growing between them, but and he didn’t know what he could do about it. It didn’t stop him from turning off on a national forest road and opening the gate.
“You had a key for that?”
“They supply the police with the keys so we don’t have to wait to get in. There was a body of a little girl found before and there was a lot of brouhaha about the police standing around waiting for National Forest guys to let them in.”
She glared at him. “Told you there are bodies in here!”
“It was over twenty years ago.”
“I’ll bet it was a serial killer, though.” Grace was not to be convinced.
Nate liked camping. But maybe that was okay. He’d hold onto this disagreement when she told him she was going back to Georgia and she thanked him for the orgasms and help re-opening and solving her brother’s case. That didn’t stop him from making a pass at a defense. “It wasn’t a serial killer.”
She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her.
“I’ll keep you safe, Grace.” He whispered it into the darkness of the car after pulling the gate closed and heading up the gravel road that had once been for logging. “That’s my only job now.”
That softened her. Even without the light, he could see it.
“Your chivalry and dedication are not my worry, Nate.” Her head tipped as though she was thinking. “I’m not a fan of camping, and this seems kind of sprung on me.”
“It was. I’m sorry. I couldn’t say anything in the store. Paranoia is keeping us alive. I couldn’t look or sound like I was buying a full set of camping equipment, but I should have said something in the car. I just thought you saw it.”
“Nope. Non-campers don’t see camping gear in everything at the store. I’ll deal. No worries.”
He hadn’t doubted that. She was tougher than maybe even she knew. Hell, she still hadn’t really broken down over her brother. The quest for his killer was keeping her on her feet. Her anger and her undeniable thirst to solve the mystery drove her forward. Nate refused to think about what might be left when the case closed. They were burning hot and bright and he couldn’t bear the thought of cold when this burned out.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Grace had not gotten into her pajamas for the night. There was nowhere she could stand up and change.
Though she knew Nate hadn’t planned this from the start, she was grateful she’d showered the morning before so she wasn’t a total troll. At least Nate didn’t seem to think she was.
They’d brushed their teeth with bottled water. He’d gotten an inflatable mattress with a battery powered pump and installed it in the tiny tent. So though she was sleeping in the noisiest forest in the history of fairy tales, at least her back didn’t hurt.
She’d also curled into Nate’s arms the whole night, as she was not to be responsible for heating her camping-burrito-self solo. He’d kissed her goodnight with tongue and touches, but they’d crashed too quickly to do anything else. It had taken too long to shop, drive, shop, find another store, and drive on. The road they’d pulled off of to get up the old logging road had been blessedly clear, and no one had seen them pull off the shoulder at all.
Grace believed she was safe here. Who would look for them in the woods? The feeling was much more comforting than she’d thought. She’d have to apologize for all the cross things she said about being taken surprise-camping.
Once again, she awoke before Nate. Now she was beginning to think either he wasn’t the light sleeper that all cops were purported to be, or else he trusted her enough to kick ass on his behalf should anything happen before he woke. She kind of liked the quirkiness of the first thought and the trust of the second.
A low moan from him told her he was coming awake and made her think of the night before last. The feel of him inside her had been more than she’d been ready for. Had he brought condoms in the tent with them? Was that pushy or just practical?
The foil blanket crinkled as she rolled over in his arms. Facing toward him, her nose buried against his neck, she whispered her question.
“Oh, God, Grace. Now? In this horrid little tent in the woods?”
She smiled at the sarcasm in his voice and she was getting ready to say so when he answered her.
“Yes, I have condoms. Plural.”
She tipped her head up in time to see the grin break out on his face.
“I thought you’d never ask. I missed you last night.” At that admission, his grin cracked, as though he’d gone too far, said too much.
Though maybe he had, Grace wasn’t going to let it ruin a morning. “Me, too.”
He was on top of her, foil blanket shuffled around to keep them covered. Her body was hot, but her face was cold. Throwing it off would leave her freezing, whether they were having sex or not.
“Think you can be quiet?” he teased.
“Please! With these birds and squirrels and shit making so much noise, it won’t matter.”
He laughed but turned to the task of logistics. They were both in jeans, shirts, jackets even. He growled, but his hand snaked up under her shirt anyway. His deft fingers pushed aside her bra and felt for her nipple, his mouth closing over hers and covering her gasp at the sensation of being touched by him.
He was breathing heavily by the time she popped the buttons on his fly and reached down in to stroke him. She ducked her hand under the elastic band of his underwear, wanting to feel his skin under her fingertips, and she enjoyed the way his breath sucked in then he stopped breathing at all. Like a rabbit, he didn’t move other than for his face to change from clearly enjoying her touch to his eyeballs practically rolling back in his head.
As she stroked him harder, his head snapped forward and he grabbed at her wrist, stilling her. “That isn’t going to do.”
He flipped her over, turning her away and confusing her for a moment. Then his hands were everywhere, up her shirt, opening her jeans and stroking her.
Facing away from him, she couldn’t touch him aside from reaching back for his ass or to try and grab at his head to hold his mouth to the side of her neck. “I can’t touch you, Nate. I want to touch you, too.”
“Next time,” he growled it out, his voice and his touch too needy to be argued with. “Next time, when we can find a goddamned real bed and some heat, then you can touch me to your heart’s content. But for now, just come for me.”
The words turned her boneless, both the command and the promise to lay still for her later, for whatever next time might come. She curled and unfurled under his touch, coming close to orgasm, but noticing that he pulled away at the last moment.
Then his hand pulled out of her jeans and she missed the touch, the nearness to climax. In fact, he wasn’t touching her at all, but he was moving behind her. She was about to turn around and see what was going on, when he pulled her close again and whispered in her ear. “Stay right there.”
&nbs
p; Then he pushed his fingers into the sides of her jeans, under her underwear, and shoved it all down to her knees. She was trapped that way, but it only turned her on more. Grace felt him then, behind her, the head of him finding and entering her slowly, then faster as they found their rhythm.
There was no more touching, other than that his one hand held hers tucked in close to her chest. The other grasped her hip, pulling her back toward him and pushing her along to his rhythm as though maybe she didn’t feel it, too. But she did. She was pushing back against him, wanting to take him deeper, calling out until his hand clamped over her mouth.
“Shhhh, baby. Shhhhhh.” He whispered it into the shell of her ear then bit down gently. He’d let go of her hands and snaked his fingers up under her shirt. Now he stroked her breast as he pushed into her from behind in a frantic rhythm that spoke of hiding out in a tent in the forest.
She broke apart as he pushed into her again, again, and one more time before she felt and heard him groan his own release against her back. Inside her, he pulsed, filling the condom she could only assume he’d put on.
All the tension drained out of her body as she melted into his hold.
“Mmmmmm,” the sound seemed wrung out of him and he pushed against her again, making them both moan in the afterglow.
Her heart pounded, and her chest clenched for a moment as she suddenly became afraid. Straining to listen to the sounds of the forest, she waited to hear footsteps, the sound of a gun or rifle being cocked, or maybe worse, a random camper stumbling across them.
“I don’t hear anything. It’s too cold for campers, remember?” He seemed to read her thoughts and she relaxed back into him, for a moment wanting to ignore the rest of what their day entailed.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Nate stayed curled against her like that, mostly clothed but still joined, under the stupid, crinkly foil blanket for a while. God, he really knew how to romance a woman, didn’t he?
If he ever told anyone, they’d laugh him off the planet. He was supposed to bring flowers and offer dinner dates to get to know each other. Though he was pretty sure Grace wasn’t a roses-and-steaks kind of woman, animal sex in a pup tent was way too far off the mark.
“When we get this wrapped up, I’m going to take you somewhere nice and make love to you the way it should be done.” He smiled to himself, thinking about it until she stiffened ever so slightly.
Shit. Even worse than taking her in a tent in the freezing cold, he’d just referenced finding her brother’s killer as an occasion for a couple’s spa day. Jesus, he wasn’t just putting his foot in his mouth, he was putting it up his own ass. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”
“I know. It’s okay.” There was a pause to her words he didn’t like. And her next words confirmed that feeling. “I just don’t know exactly what happens when we find Jimmy’s killer…”
She let the thought trail off, but he could fill in all the pieces. She had a job that she was clearly very good at. Though he hadn’t seen her out finding bodies, he suspected she loved it. The way she’d talked about her measurement techniques made it clear she was enamored both with the research and the field work of it. Did they even have enough here to interrupt that? He knew what it meant to find the job you belonged in. Still, he tugged her closer against his chest and hoped he could convey what he couldn’t find the words for.
Though she curled back into him, the silence pressed in and they didn’t last long. He sighed into the cloud of her hair. “We have to get out of here.”
“Can’t stay in one place too long.” Her comment was flat and only repeated what he’d been saying.
Nate wanted to get into her head, know what she was thinking, but he didn’t have any way to do that, so he let it slide and motioned her to be quiet. It was stupid given the noise they’d just been making but being stupid for a while didn’t excuse continuing to be stupid. Grace waited, and he slowly drew back the zipper on the tent and peeked out. When he decided it was clear—thank God because they’d been screaming each other’s names—he unfolded himself into the cold day and watched his breath steam in front of him.
“Do we get coffee?” she asked as she stood up stretching behind him.
“Yes, but not here. We can’t risk a fire or a smoke signal.”
“You didn’t get us a battery powered coffee pot?” she teased him and grinned despite the cold and the fact that she was still in yesterday’s clothing.
Nate sauntered over and turned on the car, running the engine to warm it. “Nope. I did not. I think we can take turns changing in the car.”
She frowned at him. “Take turns? Are you afraid I’ll see you naked? The horse is not only out of the barn on that one, he’s fled the state.”
Nate laughed into the chill air. He shouldn’t feel this good with a target on his back, a dead body, and compromised fellow officers. But he did. “I was thinking more that one of us should stand guard. Can you use a gun?”
“I like that this is the first time you’ve asked me that. And the answer is: I’ve seen it on TV and I’m guessing that’s not good enough.”
“Hell, no.” But he was still laughing. For a moment, he thought about showing her how to hold it properly, how to shoot. But there was no time for that now, and even Grace seemed to grasp the fact that an untrained shooter was about the most dangerous thing out there. “I guess we’ll get you a big stick then.”
“I want a shiv. And you should just change fast.” She crossed her arms and started folding up the tent.
* * *
She hadn’t even gotten a shiv. Nate hadn’t had one for her and there wasn’t time to sharpen her toothbrush. Oh, well.
Grace sat in the passenger seat as they drove out of the forestry land. Nate had opened the gate and run down the road and signaled her to pull out, hoping they wouldn’t run into anyone. It did look suspicious, coming out of the closed road. But he’d pulled it off.
So she’d sat in a diner and drunk some coffee and eaten some eggs that were nowhere near as good as what they’d had in Denver. She hadn’t showered, but she tried not to let it bother her. He hadn’t either. She’d asked him what they were doing that day over the top of her coffee mug, and now that the day had worn on, she was beginning to regret it.
They’d stalked Kevin, trying to find a way to get in contact with him without alerting anyone. This would involve getting him one of the burner phones. That meant breaking into his car—Nate had tools, at least—and then staking him out and waiting.
The problem was Kevin lived on a relatively busy street. He worked in an office building that, no matter how long they’d waited, had not offered an opportunity to pop the locks unobserved. They did not need the Dark Falls police called on them.
Though Nate could probably get away with it, there was still at least one shady officer in the PD. Maybe more. Nate wasn’t willing to chance it, and neither was she. That meant they sat in the car all day and waited.
Grace’s toes got cold since they couldn’t run the engine all the time. Wrapping herself in the foil space blanket, or any blanket, would have been suspicious. The coffee and fast food and waiting was more than she could handle. She’d never make it as a cop. For four straight hours, she’d been about ten minutes away from calling off their little stakeout. And this was a case to solve her brother’s murder. Nope, she’d gladly sit in the dirt and lean into a deep pit to haul out a skeleton bone by bone, never digging, only brushing the dirt away. But this? She was going to murder someone, then Nate would have to arrest her.
As soon as it was dusk, they risked it. Nate did the work, leaving Grace as the getaway driver. She wanted to go up to the door and hug Kevin, say she understood and that she was glad he’d been there for Jimmy. She couldn’t. Chances were good people were watching Kevin. Possibly Slater X’s people. Possibly the PD. The reasons Grace and Nate needed to get to him were obvious. He was the first place anyone would think of looking for them to turn up.
Her heart had pou
nded at her ribs as though it were trying to escape as she sat at the wheel and watched Nate jimmy the lock. It seemed so obvious to her, and it was technically a crime. Not that Kevin would press charges.
Nate stayed low, barely in view. Someone would have to be looking for him or directly at him to see what was going on. But if they did? They’d see everything. She waited with white knuckles gripping the steering wheel. He popped the burner cell onto the seat and clicked the door shut. Then he disappeared.
Grace held her breath as she’d watched him. She knew how it was supposed to go. He’d disappear for a minute, then show up on the street a few houses down, walk to the car, climb in and they’d drive off.
She waited. And Nate didn’t show.
She waited more. Watching the little car clock. One minute. Hardly enough time to worry. But the digital number clicked to two minutes, then three. And there was no Nate. Grace had not thought her heart could pound harder but it did. Nate said Slater X would be watching Kevin if there was anyone with any logical reasoning skills in his organization. He’d come up against Slater before and thought the man was very intelligent. It’s why he was still on the streets.
Had they figured out that the better bet was to watch the back of the house? Nate was too smart to walk along the front. And he hadn’t. Had it gotten him caught? She took two deep breaths.
There was no contingency plan if Nate didn’t show. There was a gun in a lock box under the seat. It had been left for them—with spare ammo—by the Denver police officers who supplied the car. She knew the combination now, but she was no closer to being able to fire the gun. And she’d not gotten her damn shiv! It had been a joke, but as she watched the time tick to ten minutes that Nate hadn’t shown up, she wished she’d gotten it.
Dark Secrets Page 10
