by Carolyn Lee
"Well, then, I wish you luck in your new endeavor." Bob had shook his hand and bid him farewell. Just like that, a ten year career came to a close. Keegan strolled toward the same parking lot Nikki had just left and slid in behind the wheel of his BMW. As soon as he went home and showered and changed, he was going to trade the ridiculous car in for something more practical for farm life.
Farm life. Ha. What he had was a piece of overgrown land and a falling down house. What had he gotten himself into anyway?
His cell phone rang. Fishing it out of his pocket, he wiped away a few grains of sand. "Hello?"
"Keegan? Where are you?"
"In my car, Ma. Why?"
"I had Kaiden drop me by your place on his way to work and you aren't here."
"I'll be home in a minute. Just sit tight." Home for the moment was an off-season beach rental. With the tourist season about to pick up he was going to be evicted in a week or so. Hopefully his house would be deemed safe soon or he would be forced to sleep on his brother's sofa. All that nauseating, lovey dovey crap between Kaiden and Katie would drive Keegan to an early grave. Maybe he should look for a decent tent to sleep in on his own land. Just in case he was homeless for a bit.
His mother was sitting in the rocker on the little front porch when he pulled up in front of the bungalow. She looked annoyed. Keegan parked and stepped from his car. "Good morning, Ma. What are you doing here so early?"
"I wanted to see you again before I headed home. Besides, my car is parked here, remember?"
"Oh, right."
"Where have you been?" Clara stood up and followed him through the front door.
"I went for a walk on the beach."
Clara eyed him up and down. "Why are you wearing the same things you had on yesterday and why are you all wet?"
"The walk started last night. I fell in the water." He led his mother to the kitchen. "Are you hungry?"
"Are you not sleeping again?" That's it. No questions about how he fell in the water.
"It's okay, Ma. I was just a little wired last night. Not working has given me a whole lot of excess energy. I'll be fine when I get back to work again."
"It's my fault, isn't it?"
"Why would my sleep issues be your fault?"
"I was too hard on you last night about falling in love. I'm sorry. I just want to see you happy."
"I am happy." An image of Nikki Swenson passed through his mind bringing a smile to his lips. Getting to know her better would definitely make him happier. Dumbass. Why didn't you get her number?
Because he wasn't interested in a relationship. He kept reminding himself of that. A friendship wouldn't hurt though, right? He was new in town. His twin was busy with his new bride. Keegan needed to make a few friends of his own. Maybe if he hung out at the beach in the early mornings he would run into her again. No. He didn't need to get involved with anyone, friend or otherwise. It was time to just focus on his house and new job. But damn, she had looked good in those tight running shorts.
Clara patted him on the arm drawing him back into the conversation. "I know, son. I just don't want you to spend your life alone the way I did after your father died, God rest his soul."
"You need to stop worrying about me. I'm not a child anymore. I am a grown man and maybe I am happy with my life the way it is."
His mother reached up and lightly pinched his cheek. "If you say so. You will always be my baby though."
Keegan grinned and hug Clara. "I know. I love you, Ma."
"And I love you. So, I'm probably going to keep bugging you to settle down and give me a couple grandbabies. In the meantime, I suppose that new home of yours is going to keep you busy."
He nodded. "Yes. Very. But first I am going to trade my car in."
"Your car? But, I thought you loved your little Beamer?"
"I do but it's not practical. How am I going to haul anything with that?"
"What do you plan on hauling?"
"Trees. Rocks. Bodies."
"Keegan Matthew James!" Clara gave him a look of mock shock.
"I'm just ready for a change. That's why I moved here and took the job with the Border Patrol. I'm going all in, seizing my southern roots and getting a big old pick-up truck like my twin."
"Good lord, Keegan. You got confidence issues or something? That truck Kaiden drives is ridiculous. I'm just counting the days until Katie talks some sense into him."
"I think she likes the truck, but don't tell her I said so. I'm not getting the lift kit or the oversized tires though, just a normal old truck."
"You're a good boy, Keegan. You've always had your head on straight with a plan for your life. I'm a little worried about you though. All of sudden you quit your job, buy an old farm, and ditch your BMW. What aren’t you telling me? You aren't dying, are you?"
"Of course not! I told you, I was just ready for a change. You ought to understand a little something about that."
Clara's eyes turned kind and lit with understanding. "There was a woman, wasn't there?"
"Ma," Keegan issued a quiet warning.
"There was. That's why you were so resistant to the dating website."
"I don’t need a match maker to find a girlfriend. That's why I resisted the website."
"You know you can't lie to your mother. You will go straight to hell."
"Let it be, please."
"Here's what I think. You fell in love with someone you work with and that is against bureau policy. The wrong person found out and gave you the old two envelope deal. You know, quit or be fired. So, you resigned, grabbed up the first thing that came your way, and ran back to Virginia to nurse your broken heart."
Wow, his mother was good. Too good. "I was never told to quit or be fired."
"But you are nursing a broken heart."
"I was dating a woman, yes. Unfortunately, she was also seeing someone else. Someone with a large pocketbook and an even larger diamond ring."
"Oh, Keegan, I am so sorry. You never mentioned—"
"That's because I didn’t want to have this conversation. And, because we were keeping it quiet. I figured I would give it a chance, see where things went before I told anybody anything."
"Was she an agent?"
"Yes."
"How long were you together?"
"Almost a year."
"A year? That's more than just casual dating."
"At first it was casual then it got serious. At least, I thought it got serious. I mean, I was serious. She was too. Just with some other dude."
"I really am sorry, dear. I wish you had told me sooner."
"Then we would have had to have this heart to heart sooner and I wasn't ready to do that. I'm still not but you have an uncanny way of forcing me to tell you pretty much everything."
Clara chuckled. "One of the talents that comes with raising three boys."
"You did a great job, you know. It can't have been easy to be a widow with two boys, let alone taking in a third."
"It was a walk in the park because I love you all with all of my heart."
"We love you too."
"I know you do. Well, I think I'm going to get on out of here so you can go buy yourself some confidence."
Keegan couldn't help but laugh then. "You are something else, Ma. You know that, right?"
"Oh yes. Your father used to tell me that all the time." Clara hugged Keegan and picked up her purse from where she had set it on the kitchen table. "Call me, tell me what you end up with."
"You know I will. Drive safe, Ma. I love you." He watched as his mother followed the path to the driveway.
"Love you too!" Clara called from the end of the walkway. Keegan smiled and waved as he watched her drive off. As much as he loved his mother, a visit with her always left him emotionally drained.
A huge yawn overtook him. "It's still early. Maybe I will take a nap before I go car shopping. And, now I am talking to myself. Yup, definitely time for a nap."
After a quick shower to get the sand off of
him, Keegan climbed in between the cool sheets without even bothering to put any shorts on. What did it matter if he slept naked or in a snowsuit? There was no one that would know or care anyway.
6
Nikki
Nikki was distracted and it pissed her off. She should have been exhausted but instead was running at full tilt trying to focus on the job she needed to do. No matter how hard she tried though, there was no getting Keegan James out of her mind. She alternated between wanting to die of embarrassment for knocking him over and thanking every deity there was for the opportunity to be sprawled out on top of that perfect representation of a man. Then there was that little voice of reason that crept in and reminded her he might be smack in the middle of her case.
Her instincts told her that there was no way Keegan was involved. She had been on the job for a good ten years, met a lot of dirty people, and Keegan just didn't fit the type. She truly believed he had no idea what was happening at his property under the cover of darkness. Now she just had to prove it and then find a way to get back on top of Keegan in the sand.
She was so pathetic. And desperate. Don't forget desperate.
"Hey, Nik. There's someone here to see you." Henry stood in the door to her office. "Girl, you look like hell."
"Gee thanks, Henry. That pick-up line usually work for you?" She leaned back in her chair and studied her boss.
"Every time. Just ask my ex-wife. It's your piece of work ex-boyfriend. He has a huge bouquet of roses. I thought you hated roses?" Henry took a step into the office and leaned a hip against her desk.
"I do." Nikki sighed and tapped a finger against her knee.
"Shouldn’t he know that?" Henry stood up and smoothed out the front of his khakis.
"There's a lot of things he should know but like you said the man is a real piece of work."
"You want me to show him out?"
"Nope. I'll go out and get rid of him." She stood up and straightened her clothes. Nikki always felt like she was a little too wrinkled and a bit too disheveled.
"Take your gun. It'll be self-defense. I'll swear to that in court." Henry folded his arms across his chest and followed her to the door of her office.
Nikki patted Henry on the arm and offered him a smile. "You're a good man, Henry. I won't need the gun though. Troy is the biggest pansy you'll ever meet. All I have to do is raise my voice and pretend I'm going to hit him and he will wet himself."
"Hmpf. A lot of psychopaths and narcissists put up a good front. You watch your step around good ole' Troy. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot the bastard myself if I feared for your safety."
Once again, Henry reminded her of her father. She really needed to call her dad later. It had been a couple of weeks since she’d visited him. "I appreciate that Henry but I'll be fine."
Her boss stepped aside and Nikki headed to the front desk. Troy was standing there with a huge bouquet of roses all smiles like nothing had ever happened between them.
"What are you doing here, Troy?"
"Hey, babe, I thought I'd take you to lunch."
"I'm not having lunch with you. We broke up, remember?"
"I brought these for you." Troy shoved the ridiculous bouquet in her face.
"I hate roses. You'd know that if you ever paid attention to anything in our relationship."
Troy just kept smiling, probably not hearing a word she said, as usual. "Women love roses."
"Not all women. Now, I need you to leave. If I don't get back to my office soon, my boss might shoot you."
Troy laughed. "Why are you always so dramatic, Nikole?"
"I told you to never, ever call me that."
"It's your name."
"No. It's not. I've never been called Nikole by anyone but you. Leave, Troy." She turned her back and started walking away but Troy caught up with her and put a hand on her shoulder. Nikki whipped around, anger starting to simmer.
"Do you want my boss to bring his gun out here?"
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry. For everything."
"Fine. You're sorry. Now get the hell out." Troy was never really sorry about anything. He apologized like a politician. Just enough to sneak past and release his true agenda. She walked away without looking back.
"Do I need to shoot him?" Henry was still in her office when she returned.
"Nope. He's gone." Nikki walked over to her desk. She just happened to look out the window. "Are you freaking kidding me?"
"What's wrong?"
"Look." She waved Henry over to where she stood.
"That son of a bitch! I told you to let me shoot him!"
Nikki's car sat in the parking lot directly below her office covered in rose petals. Broken glass littered the ground and bent flower stems spelled out the word B-I-T-C-H across the hood.
"I guess I should have accepted the roses."
"I'm calling security." Henry disappeared and Nikki dropped in to her chair. Lowering her head to arms she crossed on her desk, Nikki let out a long sigh.
Keegan James probably wouldn't stalk a woman or vandalize her car. Hell, he could stalk her anytime he wanted. There was no way he could be as flipping crazy as Troy.
Unless the problem was her. Maybe she was a magnet for psychos.
Yay.
7
Nikki
As predicted, the shipment Henry mentioned landed in Norfolk Friday morning. Nikki got out of her car on the road that ran along the back of Keegan's property. It was still a couple of hours before sunset so the rest of the team wasn't there yet. She was just going to do a little recon on her own first. From the trunk of her car she dug out a can of bug spray and doused herself in it. The mosquitos and gnats were ridiculous in the overgrown weeds of the old homestead. She was damn near eaten alive the other day.
The other day. The first time she had set eyes on the man that had been haunting her days and her nights since she fell on top of him at the beach.
You have got to focus on work tonight. Finish this case and then you get your chance with Keegan.
Chance. Ha. That was a funny concept. Once he discovered she's been traipsing around his home, suspecting him of dope dealing, and dreaming about him he would probably never speak to her again. If he wasn't involved in the dope dealing, of course.
She picked her way through the tall grasses and trees until she reached the abandoned building that was once used as a barn. Pulling a small flashlight out of her pocket, Nikki slipped inside. The air was thick with dust and oppressively warm. This was the place where the deals went down. Dust sat thick and heavy on every flat surface except the floor. Tire tracks and footprints marred the surface to the point that it almost looked clean in some places. Nikki crossed the open space, taking stock of possible hiding places.
In a few hours the sun would set and she would break the biggest case of her career. There was a stall at the back of the structure, right near another door that would be the perfect place for her to sit watch. The door behind her made for an easy escape as well as a second point of entry for the team.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and checked the screen. It was Henry.
The team's all set. Heading your way in an hour.
Sounds good. I'm in the barn. She typed back before setting the phone on silent and putting it back in her pocket.
Nikki started walking toward the stall, her mind wandering to all the things she could do with Keegan James up in the loft when the barn suddenly filled with blinding, late evening sunlight.
Shielding her eyes with one hand, Nikki grabbed for her gun with the other. "Stop right there or I'll shoot!"
"Nikki? What are you doing here?" The disbelief in the voice matched her own.
It couldn't be, could it? She stepped sideways out of the sun's glare without lowering her weapon.
"Mr. James?"
"I thought I asked you to call me Keegan." He softened the words with a smile. Her insides heated instantly.
"What are you doing here?"
"I think I just asked you the same thing since I am the one that lives here. Or, at least I will in a couple of weeks."
"You really shouldn't go sneaking up on people like that, you know."
"Sneaking up on people? I'm out walking around on my own property and happen upon, well, a trespasser, and you accuse me of sneaking up on you?"
Nikki holstered her weapon. It was time to confess who she really was, sort of. "You're right. I'm sorry. Someone called in and said they saw someone out here. The caller thought the property was abandoned. Actually, so did I. That house is about to topple to the ground."
"You're a cop." It was a statement, not a question. Also, not exactly the truth but she seemed to be operating on half-truths at the moment so she went with it.
"Yeah."
"Well, that certainly explains quite a bit."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Why the hell was she getting so defensive?
"Absolutely nothing." Keegan grinned. "Now, why don't you tell me why you are really here? I've already introduced myself to all my neighbors, and they know this place isn't abandoned."
What the hell did she say now?
Keegan watched her steadily. His eyes said he knew all her secrets. The tension grew between them, thicker than the dusty air in the old barn. She had to lay all her cards out on the table and hope for the best.
"Are you a drug dealer?" The words just fell out of her mouth before she could stop them. Nikki half expected Keegan to pull out a gun and shoot her or something but instead he dissolved in a fit of laughter.
"A what?"
"A drug lord. Dealer of drugs. Cocaine, heroin. Marijuana."
"You're kidding, right?" He wiped actual tears from his eyes. Nikki resisted the urge to hit him.
"Why are you laughing? It's not funny."
Instead of answering, Keegan reached into his pocket. Instinctively Nikki's had moved to her gun.
