She picked up her pace, adding a head of lettuce and a bag of radishes to her cart. She muttered irritably as she picked up a bag of oranges and three of them slipped through a hole in the bag and tumbled across the floor. Racing after them, she wondered what else could possibly go wrong.
She picked up the first two and leaned down for the third, which had gone under one of the vegetable bins. She was vaguely aware of the sound of footsteps. Suddenly she was shoved, hard enough to knock her down to the floor. Her head crashed into the front of the bin and her knee hit the floor with a painful jolt. For a moment she saw stars.
Errant orange forgotten, she pulled herself up off the floor, her knee throbbing in tune with her forehead. Wobbly, unsure exactly what had happened, she turned for her shopping cart. Gone. The cart was gone. Hysteria bubbled up in her throat. Where was Jamie? Dear God, where was her baby?
Chapter 12
The scream ripped through the relative silence of the store and raised the hairs on the nape of Dominic’s neck. Melissa! Her name exploded in his mind as he threw down the magazine he’d been thumbing through and raced toward the front of the store.
He nearly bumped into her, her eyes wide, face pale. “He’s got Jamie!” she screamed and pointed out the store window, where Dominic saw a man running with a cart across the asphalt parking lot.
Dominic ran out the door and after the man. Jamie’s cries mingled with the sound of the cart rolling and the slap of the man’s footsteps against the pavement. He had a big head start, but his speed was hampered by the cart. Dominic gained on him, his heart pounding as fast as his feet, Jamie’s frightened cries spurring him on.
The man glanced back only once, so quickly Dominic couldn’t get a good look at his features. The hood of his black sweatshirt covered his hair, making identification impossible.
As he reached the edge of the parking lot, he lifted Jamie’s infant carrier from the cart and continued to run. He crossed Main Street, while Dominic’s heart jumped into his throat as the man dodged several cars before continuing on down the sidewalk. Dominic followed, aware of the screech of tires and an angry curse from a driver as he flew across the street.
Dominic drew closer—so close he could smell the man, the scent of sweat and fear. He could have dived for him, probably cut him at the knees, but he feared that in doing so he would hurt Jamie.
They continued for a block when the man apparently made a decision. He dropped the infant carrier, which skidded on the pavement but thankfully remained upright, then continued on, gaining distance as Dominic pulled up.
Dominic’s pulse pounded at his temples as he crouched down next to the baby to catch his breath. Jamison’s cries had reddened his face and his little breaths came in gasps amid sobs. Dominic unbuckled him from the carrier and picked him up, then cradled him tightly against his chest.
Dear God. Dominic’s heart ached as he realized what a close call it had been. He kissed Jamie’s forehead, breathing in the sweet scent. All of Dominic’s insides shook as he thought of losing this child.
Within moments the baby’s cries had ebbed, but fear and anger still ripped through Dominic. What in the hell had happened here? Why would somebody want to snatch Jamie?
A shudder swept through him as he realized how lucky they’d been that the man had opted to drop Jamie. He might have gotten away with the child.
Dominic stood, Jamie still cradled in his arms. He turned to see Melissa running toward them, tears streaking down her cheeks. “Oh, thank God he’s all right.” She reached them and kissed first the baby’s head, then Dominic’s cheek. “Thank God you’re both all right.”
He handed her the baby. It was then he noticed the goose egg in the center of her forehead. He touched it gently, rage rising in him once again. “Are you all right?” He lowered his hand from the lump and instead pulled her close, careful not to crush the baby in her arms. Who had dared to do this? What could be the motivation behind it?
She shivered in his embrace and he knew it was the release of emotion, dissipating fear coupled with overwhelming relief. He released her and picked up the baby carrier. “Tell me what happened.”
She hugged the baby tighter and whispered a kiss on his forehead. “It all happened so fast. I dropped some oranges, and when I stooped down to pick one up, somebody knocked me to the floor. When I got up, my cart was gone.”
“Come on. Let’s go back to the store and call the police.”
“Dominic, why is this happening? Why would that man want Jamie?”
“I wish I knew.” Dominic’s stomach knotted as he realized again just how close they’d come to losing Jamie.
By the time they got back to the store, it was obvious somebody had already called the police. Two patrol cars were there, their lights whirling as the officers stood out front talking to the cashier.
“Oh, no, it’s Mawlins,” Melissa groaned as they drew close enough to recognize the police officers who had responded.
“It will be all right,” Dominic tried to reassure her. “There’s no question who the victim is here. He can’t do anything more to hurt you.”
“Yeah, he’s already arrested me for murder. What else can he do?” she replied dryly.
Dominic fought the impulse to shelter her and the baby in his arms. He cursed himself for letting down his guard, believing because there had been no real threats in the last month, there was no danger. He’d been a fool to grow complacent.
It took nearly an hour for Mawlins to sort out the events of what had happened and write up a report. Dominic could offer little as a description of the kidnapper. He’d not been able to see facial features or hair color, only knew the man had been tall and slender and could run like the wind, even carrying a baby.
“I think if I spent enough time with that man, I would be capable of murder,” Melissa said as she and Dominic drove home. He smiled, knowing exactly what man she referred to. “I can’t believe he honestly thinks whoever took Jamison was probably just a nutcase who didn’t want a suspected murderer raising a child.”
Dominic let her vent for a few more minutes. Her anger was a good thing to see. It was healthy. She deserved to be angry about the curves life had thrown her in the past month.
For the first time, Dominic had no doubts as to her innocence. He didn’t know what demons she’d faced in her marriage, nor did he know what secrets she held on to so tightly. What he did know was that there were too many questions, too many things going on, for Bill’s death to have been a domestic situation gone awry.
As he drove toward her house, he realized something else. There was no way he could bow out of her life now, not while her safety—and Jamie’s safety—was at risk.
He remembered the night the alarm had rung and they’d discovered the screen displaced from the nursery window. That incident by itself was concerning, but now it was absolutely chilling. Without the security on the house, it was possible that on that night Melissa would have found the crib empty. Whoever was doing this was trying to lull them into a false sense of security—and it had almost worked.
“You have to go to Canon Creek as soon as possible,” Melissa said, interrupting his thoughts.
He frowned. “I don’t know, Melissa. I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to go anywhere right now.”
She leaned over and grabbed his arm, her gaze intense. “But don’t you see, Dominic? It’s more important now than ever that we find out about Bill’s past.” She leaned back in her seat. “Whatever happened today with Jamie and that man, you can’t tell me it isn’t somehow tied into Bill’s murder. It’s all connected, and everything seems to point to the secrets of Bill’s past.”
She looked into the back seat, where Jamie had finally fallen asleep. “Whoever that man was today... he’ll be back.” Dominic chilled at the certainty of her words. “You know he’ll come back. He wanted Jamie, and he didn’t succeed in getting him. If you go to Canon Creek, maybe we’ll get some answers. Please, Dominic. Go soon. Go tomo
rrow.”
He pulled into the driveway without giving her a reply. He had to think, decide what was best. His head told him she made sense, but his heart rebelled at the thought of leaving her and Jamie without knowing who might be a threat to them. And what he would really like to know was when his heart had managed to get so damned involved?
“Dominic, even if all this isn’t somehow tied to Bill’s past, I have to have some answers. I need to know about the man I was married to. Not just for my own sake, but for Jamie’s as well.” Her eyes appealed to him. “I have to know what happened to that woman in the photograph.”
They entered the house, and Melissa immediately went to the kitchen to fix a bottle for Jamie. As she sat there, feeding Jamie, Dominic used the living-room phone to call Samantha and tell her what had happened at the store.
“I want to go to Canon Creek,” he told her. “Melissa and I both believe I’ll find some answers there.”
“When?”
“As soon as possible. I’d like to go tomorrow morning.” Dominic had decided to follow his head and ignore his heart, which urged him to remain, not leave Melissa and the baby.
“What about Melissa and Jamison?” Samantha asked, as if reading his mind. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea for them to be there in the house all alone.”
“Maybe she and Jamie could stay at your place for the day. Nobody would know they were there.”
“Why don’t you put her on the phone and let me talk to her? We’ll work out the details, but I think you’re right. It’s important that somebody go to Canon Creek and find out whatever they can about Bill.”
“Hang on, she’s in the kitchen with Jamie.” Dominic called out to Melissa to pick up the kitchen extension. When he heard her voice on the line, he hung up.
He moved to the sofa and sank down, his thoughts on the woman in the next room and the baby in her arms. He’d sworn to himself when he’d been cleared of Abigail’s murder that he would never again allow himself to fall in love. Loving Abigail had been such a mixture of pleasure and pain. He’d never wanted to experience that again.
Yet he couldn’t help the way his heart quickened as Melissa stepped out of the kitchen and into the living room, with Jamie asleep in her arms. “I’m going to put him to bed,” she said softly. She walked down the hall, leaving a trail of her floral fragrance behind.
Dominic closed his eyes, wishing it were as easy to close his heart. But in that moment when Jamie had been in danger, he’d realized just how far his heart had opened to embrace both the little boy and his lovely mother.
He didn’t hear Melissa come back into the room, didn’t realize she was near until he felt the sofa cushion next to him sag beneath her weight, smelled the sweet fresh scent he knew somehow he would never forget. He prayed she wouldn’t touch him, felt suddenly incredibly vulnerable to her.
Opening his eyes, he gazed at her. Before he knew his own intentions, he pulled her into his arms. She came willingly, nestling her head against his chest with a deep sigh.
They stayed that way for a long time, the beating of their hearts the only communication necessary. Dominic stroked her hair, the strands like fine silk beneath his fingers. He moved his hand to touch the smooth, sweet skin of her cheek, trace the outline of her jaw.
She was such an incredible mixture of strength and fragility. His fingers touched the lump on her forehead. It had gone down a little, but she flinched from his touch and stirred in his arms.
“You’re going tomorrow?” she asked, her blue eyes solemn as she gazed at him.
He nodded.
“You won’t be coming back here, will you?”
He looked at her in surprise. “Of course I’ll be coming back, hopefully with some answers.”
“That’s not what I mean.” She bit her bottom lip in the gesture that had become so familiar, so dear to him. “Things will be different...between us...won’t they?”
“They have to be,” he answered, not bothering to pretend he didn’t understand what she was talking about. She nodded, her eyes reflecting a sadness that ached in his heart.
She laid her head back on his chest. “We’re both at bad places in our lives,” he continued, feeling the need to explain. “We’ve grown too close because of the circumstances. We’d be fools to allow it to continue.” Whatever he’d wanted to say next caught in his throat as her fingers moved beneath his T-shirt, skimming the muscles of his stomach and dancing heatedly against his skin.
She looked up at him once again. “But that’s tomorrow, right?” she whispered, her moist full lips parting in invitation. “That means we still have tonight.”
His body instantly responded to her words, tensing as blood raced hot and thick through his veins. “No regrets?”
“No regrets.”
He lowered his head down to taste her lips, so sweet beneath his. She wound her arms around his neck, pressing her body against the length of his.
He fought against the ravenous hunger that swept through him, knowing if he allowed it to take control, everything would happen too fast. And he didn’t want it fast. He wanted it slow—agonizingly, breathtakingly slow. He wanted to savor each kiss, linger in every caress.
They undressed each other slowly, the act of preparing for lovemaking as sensual as the very act itself. Late-afternoon sunshine streamed in through the windows, coloring their nakedness a warm golden hue.
As she stretched out on the sofa, Dominic went to the windows and pulled the shades, remembering Gary Watters’s penchant for window peeking. He didn’t want anyone to see her, wanted no one to intrude on their intimacy. For this moment in time, she was his, and he was hers.
He joined her on the sofa, keeping the bulk of his weight on elbows and knees so as not to hurt her. His mouth found hers again, tasting the hungry need and heated passion. Her body was hot, as if fevered when she moved her hips beneath him, teasing... enticing... inviting. With a groan of sheer pleasure, Dominic allowed himself to be drawn into the vortex of desire, where rational thought was impossible, where there was only Melissa.
As Dominic’s mouth moved down to capture the tip of one of her breasts, a low moan escaped Melissa. His lips felt like fire, his fingers flames that burned imprints upon her body she knew she would never forget.
She’d told him no regrets, but she already regretted. Regretted loving him, being in love with him, and knowing there would be no “happily ever after.”
She was a woman facing murder charges, a young widow with a newborn baby. Dominic had made it clear he wanted no future part in her life. But even these thoughts could not stop her from wanting him to keep kissing her, keep touching her, could not prevent her from urging him to possess her utterly and completely.
His hands were so gentle that tears misted her eyes. He healed her as he caressed her, sweeping away any memory of Bill’s rough touch, banishing the remembrances of unhappy times.
She gave herself completely to the man and the moment, reveling in each kiss, losing herself in every tender touch. When she could bear it no longer, when the tension inside her nearly exploded, she gripped Dominic’s forearms and gazed at him. “Please, I want you inside me,” she said.
“We can’t,” he replied, his voice deep and full of desire. “It’s too soon.... I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t. Please, Dominic, I need to feel you inside me, as part of me.” She reached down and circled him with one hand, felt the power that pulsated there. “Love me,” she whispered.
His eyes flashed his response. Gently he entered her. She held her breath, tears once again springing to her eyes as he eased into her a little at a time. She knew all she had to do was grunt or moan and he would instantly withdraw, sacrifice his pleasure for her pain.
But there was no pain, only pleasure. Sweet, warm fires of pleasure as he buried himself inside her. Where before, their lovemaking had been tentative, that of two people exploring new territory, this time they loved as if they’d been lovers for a lif
etime and knew each and every secret place to touch to heighten pleasure.
Melissa wanted this moment to last forever. She wanted to keep him with her always, but knew that even after they’d finished making love, long after he’d moved on in life and left her behind, she would always have a piece of him wrapped in her soul.
As he moved inside her, his mouth locking on to hers, thought became impossible and she let herself be swept away by the passion spinning out of control.
Some time later, Melissa went to the bathroom and got her robe. When she returned to the living room, Dominic was sitting on the edge of the sofa, wearing his jeans and shirt. “Melissa, I...”
She held up a hand to stop whatever he intended to say. She didn’t want to hear apologies or excuses for what they had just done. She didn’t want him to explain to her that he wanted her, but didn’t love her; that he desired her, but couldn’t offer her anything else. She knew all that.
“Dominic, please, don’t ruin what we just shared by talking about it. We’re both adults. We acted on physical desire and no explanations are necessary.” She belted her robe at her waist, momentarily averting her gaze from his. “I don’t expect anything from you.” She’d learned from experience not to count on anything from the men in her life.
She looked back at him again. “My life has been a complicated mess for the past month. I needed somebody to hold me, to make love to me, and I’ll always be grateful that you were here for that.”
She was surprised to see his eyes flash darkly. “I was more than happy to accommodate you,” he said, a touch of anger in his voice.
She frowned, realizing that she’d made him angry. “I’m handling this poorly.” She sighed and raked a hand through her tousled hair. All she’d wanted to do was ease any guilt he might have about sleeping with her, but she seemed to be making a muddle of things. “I—I guess I just wanted to say thank-you for all you’ve done for me.”
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