For Her Eyes Only
Page 17
“Somehow, that doesn’t seem fair.”
He looked back, cocking an eyebrow as he gave her an appreciative stare.
“You know what, sweet thing? Tonight, lying there in my bed, all mussed and rumpled, you’ve come close to giving me heartburn. Now, I know my limitations as well as the next man, and I know if I don’t get something substantial into my belly, I’m going to fade on you fast.”
“Does that mean we can’t do it again?”
He grinned. “Pretty much.”
She rolled out of bed. “I guess I’m getting hungry, too.”
He laughed. “I thought you’d see it my way.”
* * *
It happened just as the day broke on the horizon. One minute she’d been lying still beneath the curve of Stone’s shoulder, and the next she was moaning down deep in her throat and reaching out toward a horror she couldn’t stop.
Stone came awake within seconds and knew it was happening all over again. Sweat broke out on his forehead as he watched her face grimace in some unseen pain. And when she screamed out his name and sat straight up in bed, this time he was ready for her panic.
“It’s okay, it’s okay,” he said, grabbing her before she could run. “I’m here, Jessie, I’m here.”
She looked at him with disbelief, and as before, her gaze slid to his shoulder, then down at her hands.
“Blood…so much blood.”
“It was a dream. I’m here. I’m okay. It was just a dream.”
Jessica started to cry, and he felt like crying along with her. God help him, but this was hell, knowing what she was capable of seeing and knowing that he could very well be the next victim to fall.
He pulled her down beside him, cradling her as she sobbed.
“Ah, Jessie, don’t cry, please don’t cry,” he whispered, feathering kiss after kiss upon her face and neck, tasting tears and feeling her pulse as it raced beneath his lips.
“Oh, Stone, I’m so afraid of losing you.”
He rose up on one elbow. “Jessie, look at me,” he said, forcing her to meet his gaze. “What do you see?”
She didn’t hesitate. “The man I love.”
His voice broke. “Jessie Leigh, you do know how to take a man’s breath away.” He cupped the side of her face, wiping away tear tracks with the ball of his thumb. “I love you, too,” he said softly. “So much that it makes me ache.”
“Then, what are we going to do?” Jessica asked.
An odd grin tilted at the corner of his mouth. “The way I see it, we’re already doing all the right things. What I want you to do is trust me to see danger coming. I’m a trained officer, and I’m damned good at my job.”
Jessica shuddered on a sob as she blinked back more tears. “I know, but—”
“No buts,” he said, planting a swift kiss near her nose. He looked at the clock and then frowned. “Dang it, the alarm is going to go off in exactly twenty-three minutes. What do you think we should do?”
Her fingers encircled his arms, digging into the flesh in a desperate attempt to hold him safe against harm. He was so beloved, and she was so very, very afraid.
“Oh, Stone… I don’t know.”
His hand slid down past her waist to the curve of her hip, and then he rolled, pulling her beneath him as he went.
“I have an idea,” he said softly. “How about another dessert?”
She almost smiled. “For me, or for you?”
His head dipped toward her breast.
Later she would think this had been a good idea, after all. Love had a way of removing the bad taste of the day’s bitter beginning.
* * *
Brenda was sitting on the front porch swing when Jessica drove up later that morning.
Jessica muttered under her breath as she got out of the car, heading toward the house on the run.
“If you’re going to gripe, then you’re going to have to follow me around to do it,” Jessica said as she unlocked the door. “I’m going to be late for work.”
“Since you didn’t come home last night, whose fault would that be?” her sister asked.
Jessica threw up her hands and headed for the back of her house. Brenda followed right behind her, stopping at the bathroom door.
“Jessie, are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
Jessica stripped as she ran, turning on the shower as she stepped out of the last of her clothes.
“No, actually, I’m not,” she said. “But you told me to go for it, remember? And, the way things stand right now, I’m already gone.”
Brenda groaned and slapped herself on the forehead. “Me and my big mouth,” she mumbled as Jessica stepped in the shower and slammed the door shut behind her.
Brenda walked inside the bathroom and sat down on the closed lid of the commode. “Okay,” she yelled, trying to be heard above the rush of water inside the stall. “Then, answer me this. Are you being careful?”
Jessica poked her head out of the door, sending a spray billowing up into the room and fogging the vanity mirror.
“Heel blisters, Brenda. What do you think I am, a fool?”
Brenda had to grin. Heel blisters, indeed.
“I had to ask,” she said.
Jessica slammed the door shut again. “I don’t see why,” she yelled. “I never asked you that question.”
A strange expression slid across Brenda’s face. “Well,” she muttered. And then took another breath and tried to be indignant, but it just wouldn’t come.
Suddenly, she stood and yanked the shower door open, instantly showering herself and the floor with a fine, misty spray.
“I hate it when you are right,” she said briefly. “Are we still renting movies tonight, or are you jilting me for that cop?”
“You’re getting all wet,” Jessica said, pointing to her sister’s clothes.
Brenda’s gaze never wavered. “You didn’t answer my question.”
Jessica leaned out of the door and handed her sister a towel. “Just don’t bring some stupid horror movie. I’m not in the mood for blood.”
The door slid shut, leaving Brenda standing in a puddle of her own making.
“Shoot,” she muttered as she began to mop at her clothes. “I’m going to have to go home and change. I think this is going to shrink.”
Chapter Eleven
As the hot summer days passed and the horrible storm and blackout were a distant memory, the residents of Grand Springs began to move on with their lives. The Olivia Stuart murder case was ongoing, but few talked about it now, except those who were directly affected. And Jessica tried not to be one of them.
To her relief, her flashes of inspiration were becoming rare, and none life-threatening…except the one with regards to Stone. Every so often the dream came again, and when it did, she would wake up in tears. Although nothing had happened to him, in the back of her mind was always the fear that it could.
It seemed to Jessica that the city was healing, and most of the residents were looking forward to the upcoming Fourth of July celebration. There would be games in the park, a carnival at a nearby shopping mall, and a fireworks display after dark. Best of all, the children were going to be allowed to swim in the city pool at half price.
Summer. It was a time to stop and smell the roses, and Stone wanted to do that with Jessie, and more. The only thing that kept him from staking a permanent claim were old fears of a marriage gone wrong—that and the fact that Jessica’s eyes were haunted by a dream only she had seen. He couldn’t get past the idea that she was projecting subconscious fears of the dangers of his job into her dreams. If it affected her like that and they weren’t even married, even though he loved her to distraction, he shuddered to think what the reality of a marriage with her might be like.
* * *
It was quitting time on Thursday. Jessica turned off the computer and leaned back in her chair, looking forward to the upcoming three-day holiday weekend. Although the lodge itself would not close, offices such as hers would no
t need to be open. Payroll was done and all the invoices recorded. The checks had been cut to pay vendors with which Squaw Creek Lodge dealt. All she had to do was put the paperwork on Jeff Dolby’s desk and she would be free until Monday.
That meant three days with Stone at his cabin. Granted, she wasn’t the biggest fishing fan in Grand Springs, but when hanging out with a man like Stone, fishing wasn’t the only game in town.
A smile of anticipation crossed her face as she started down the hall toward the manager’s office.
Maybe it will rain.
And then she remembered all of the festivities Grand Springs had planned and crossed out the thought.
Maybe the fish won’t be biting.
She grinned to herself as she entered Dolby’s office. At least that wish wouldn’t trouble her conscience.
Sheila Biggers was still on vacation, and so the outer office was empty as Jessica walked inside. She knocked on the manager’s door, and when he called out, she entered with the reports in hand.
“Well, well,” Dolby said, smoothing his hand over the slick, shiny surface of his head. “I’ll bet you’re all ready for a good long weekend. I know I certainly am.”
Jessica handed him the papers and smiled. Mr. Dolby had given up hair for a cooler, more stunning approach. Four days ago, he’d come to work bald. What hair he’d had left had been shaved, leaving nothing on his head but skin. No more combing for Dolby, although she wondered about the can of furniture polish on a table behind his desk. Was it there for the furnishings, or for Jeff Dolby’s head?
“These all seem to be in order,” he said. “I’ll see to the disbursement of checks myself. Run along now and have a great weekend.”
“Thank you, Mr. Dolby, you too.”
She left the lodge with a smile on her face and headed home to pack.
* * *
Jessica had been up since long before daybreak and the kitchen was a mess. Cookies in all shapes and sizes were cooling on the countertop, and dishes had been piled in the sink. Spilled flour trickled from the cabinet onto the floor where she had inadvertently tracked it from one side of the room to the other. Sugar was in her hair, and she had a smudge of chocolate at the edge of her mouth, a remnant of taste-testing the dough.
She stood at the side of the sink with an empty cookie sheet in one hand and a dripping dishrag in the other, staring at the room in disbelief.
How had this happened? She’d started out to make some cookies for the weekend trip and wound up with a mess that would take her hours to clean up. She glanced at the clock. It was nearly 7:00 a.m. Stone could show at any time, and she hadn’t even started to pack. With a groan, she thrust the dishrag in the sink. It was as good a place as any to start.
Less than five minutes later, the phone rang and she tossed the dishrag back in the sink, glad to have an excuse to stop. A little breathless from her race to answer, her voice came out in a high-pitched squeak.
“Hello?”
“Jessie, is that you?”
At the sound of Stone’s voice, everything she’d been stewing over faded into obscurity.
“Stone! You should see what I’ve done. The kitchen is a mess, but the cookies aren’t half bad. If you don’t want to eat them, maybe we can use them for sinkers or bait.”
He didn’t laugh as she’d expected, and her smile faded just the tiniest bit.
“Look, Jessie, about this weekend…”
By now, her smile was completely gone. “What’s wrong?”
She could hear him sigh and knew that it probably wasn’t good.
“Come on,” she said. “I’m a big girl. I can take it. Let me guess. You decided to take Stryker to the cabin instead of me. I can’t say that I blame you. He’s probably a better fisherman, although I can guarantee you won’t have half as much fun.”
“Hell,” Stone muttered, while in the background, Stryker was calling for him to hurry. He motioned to Jack that he’d be right there. “Jessie, honey, we aren’t going to be able to leave for the cabin until tomorrow. There’s an APB out for some guy who escaped from the state pen, and the reports have him headed our way. The chief has taken everyone off of leave until the situation is under control.”
Jessica slumped against the wall as she gazed around the kitchen with disgust.
“Okay. At least I’ll have time to clean up my mess,” she said, and then could tell by the surprise in Stone’s voice that her reaction was unexpected.
“You aren’t mad?” he asked.
“Only at the mess I made, and certainly not at you,” she said. “Why on earth would I be mad?”
Stone’s whole body went weak with relief. In the back of his mind, he’d been prepared for a tantrum similar to the ones Naomi used to throw.
“I don’t know,” he said softly. “I guess I just wasn’t thinking.”
Jessica’s voice softened. “Oh, I think that you were…thinking, I mean. But I don’t think you were thinking about the right woman.”
Stone sighed. “Are you being psychic on me?”
“No, that’s simply women’s intuition. Take care of yourself. Find a brick wall to hide behind, and call me when it’s over.”
“You know what, Jessie Leigh?”
“What?” she asked, laughter rich in her voice.
“I love you so damned much.”
She grinned. “Wait until you see my cookies, then we’ll see how strong that love really is.”
His laughter rang in her ears, sending shudders of longing up her spine.
“Look, honey, I’ve got to go. Stryker is having himself a fit. Oh…and if you don’t have to, don’t go anywhere tonight, okay? We’ve got roadblocks at every entrance into the city, but there’s no telling where, or if, the escapee might show.”
Stone’s voice faded into a faint, husky buzz as she suddenly focused on a water tower near a wide, green field.
“Uh…Stone.”
“Yeah, honey?”
“Are they setting up a roadblock at the highway near the backside of the high school, too?”
He tensed. “Yes, why?”
“That’s good. You might want to tell the chief not to send out for doughnuts and coffee until after midnight.”
Stone straightened, all the teasing gone from his voice. “Are you sure?”
“As sure as I can ever be,” she said, and then hung up the phone.
* * *
The next morning, it was all over the news. Pictures of the roadblock in the morning paper. Bulletins on the local television newscasts. One disgruntled escapee back behind bars where he belonged, thanks to the fine work of the Grand Springs Police Department, and an anonymous tip from a conscientious citizen.
Jessica had the stereo on full blast and was doing a saucy little two-step in her T-shirt and panties to the tune of a Garth Brooks oldie. Yes, she thought as she tossed an extra pair of socks in her bag, like Garth, she had friends in low places.
The music was so loud she didn’t hear the knock on her door. And when it came the second time, and then the third, she was still unaware that her long-awaited suitor had arrived. Right in the middle of the last round of Garth’s chorus, the music suddenly ended. Surprised by the cessation of sound, she walked toward the living room to see what was wrong, and then squealed in shock as she entered. Stone was standing in the middle of the room holding the plug in his hand.
“Stone! You nearly scared me to death,” she muttered while her heart did a two-step of its own.
“Well, you would have never heard it coming,” he growled. “It’s a wonder you’re not deaf.” He waved the electric cord to prove his point.
She was still frowning when he scooped her up in his arms and began kissing a little mole near her ear.
“Good morning, sunshine,” he said sweetly, kissing her again and again, until the frown fell away.
“You are so bad,” she said, and wrapped her arms around his neck.
His eyes twinkled devilishly as he planted a swift, urgent kiss on
her lips.
“Damn, honey, I thought you told me I was good. Really good.”
She slapped at the hands sliding toward her hips and moved them back to her waist.
“That’s beside the point. Now, are we still going fishing, or should I move my bag from the bed so that you can go play?”
He laughed, and then cupped her bottom before sending her off with a swat.
“Go get your pants on, woman. I hear fish a’callin’.”
“Fish can’t talk. There’s coffee in the kitchen. Give me five minutes and I’ll be ready to go.”
His gaze raked the soft contours of her unfettered shape beneath the oversize shirt. “I’ll give you four, and then I’m coming in after you.”
Jessica had the bed cleared and was reclining against a pillow, waiting, when he came through the door. A cocky grin spread across his face.
“You think you’re so smart, don’t you?”
She stretched, and the motion pushed her breasts against the T-shirt in a provocative thrust.
“Unlike you, I don’t need a tackle box full of bait to catch my fish. I’ve got all the bait I need, right here.” She patted the bed beside her.
Stone started shedding clothes at the door, and by the time he joined her on the bed, he was naked and primed.
“Jessie, honey, you are a truly dangerous woman, and as an officer of the law, I feel it is my duty to subdue you in any way that I can.”
Jessica shifted her legs as Stone slid in between them. Her body was already aching and heavy with want.
“Do you swear?” she whispered.
“Only when I have to,” he said, and then slid inside.
* * *
The cabin was rustic, which meant the outhouse was out back and the water was in a nearby well.
“What do you do for baths?” Jessica asked, dubiously eyeing the spare double bed on which Stone had dropped their bags.
His eyebrows knitted thoughtfully, and Jessica rolled her eyes. “Oh, great. Don’t tell me, let me guess. You guys don’t bother, right?”
He grinned. “That’s not so! When we get too rank, we wash. The lake’s not too cold this time of year. It will be great.”