by Amy Brent
“I can’t tell you why I’m here, Jonah. Honestly, I didn’t expect to see you at all.”
“You mean you hoped you wouldn’t see me.”
She shrugged, not denying the truth.
We stood there for a long moment, the tension thick like a blanket of cotton filling the air between us but finally I gave in with a sigh.
“Fine, you can stay here tonight. Just tonight! And just until the storm passes.” I shook my head as another memory rose. A frantic phone call and a desperate plea for help.
“Thanks, Jonah. I really appreciate it.”
“Don’t thank me. You helped me out, with Quinn and Leo. You tracked him down for me. You didn’t have to do that.” I gave her one last look, “Consider us even.”
“Yep, even.” She said, her voice barely more than a whisper and there was nothing else to say, and everything else to say, but no words would come. I turned and left, my mind and my heart torn.
Chapter 3
Sabrina
I opened my eyes and lay there for a long moment, staring at the unfamiliar pale blue green color of the bedroom wall. I was dreaming. That had to be the only explanation for all of this. The drive in the rain. The bed and breakfast. Jonah.
Especially…him. It still hurt to say his name. Hell, it still hurt to just think his name. The memories came flooding back in a painful rush. I had been dragged into Coral Springs following a case. It was a run of the mill Private Investigator case. One I’d worked a thousand times. A wife worried that her husband was cheating on her, which he had been.
I had followed the mark for a few days, and wound up in Coral Springs, recorded the evidence needed for my client and all that was left was to turn around and leave this town in my dust. But things hadn’t worked out that way. Not that time. That time had been different. Because of him.
After I met Jonah I found excuse after excuse not to leave and before I even realized what was happening months had passed and I’d basically moved in with him. It had all been small, nearly unnoticeable steps. The motel I’d been staying at got flooded and I needed a place to stay. He offered and it made sense. We were spending practically every night together anyway.
Then, one morning woke up, and I realized something that had terrified me. I was falling for him. In a big way. In a scary way. I didn’t do relationships. I never had before. Being a private investigator didn’t exactly lend itself to a steady lifestyle. I constantly moved. I didn’t settle down. But in that moment, I realized that I could. I could make a life with Jonah. I would give up everything that made me me for Jonah. And it had scared the hell out of me.
That same morning I packed all of my things, left Jonah a scribbled note lying and telling him I had another case, and I left.
It was for the best, I told myself, it was better for both of us.
Was it?
I remembered the phone calls. Jonah had tried for weeks after I’d left to get me to come back. To get me to explain. But how could I explain it to him? I’d fallen in love with him, and I was afraid he was falling in love with me. With a woman who would never settle down. With someone who didn’t have roots. With someone who didn’t know how to be loved. With someone who would only end up breaking his heart.
“Jesus, enough already,” I huffed to myself as I tossed off the covers, irritated at my own morose thoughts. I walked to the bathroom and grabbed the clothes I’d thrown over the shower rod the night before in the hopes that they would dry. The dark grey cotton t-shirt was still slightly damp but at least the jeans were dry. I pulled on the skin tight black skinny jeans and then fished a pair of clean socks out of my backpack and finished with my ankle high leather boots.
It still felt like I was in a dream. When I thought of everything that had happened. Tracking my bounty to this bed and breakfast, the break in, and Jonah. Especially Jonah.
But it’s not a dream, I reminded myself sternly as I zipped up my back pack and threw it over my shoulder, and I have a job to do. I’m not going to let anything, or anyone, get in my way.
With that thought ringing in my ear, I left the room and walked downstairs. I hadn’t exactly had a chance to get the grand tour the night before but I glanced around curiously now. It was a quaint, eclectic mix of old and new.
I could see the bones of the old farmhouse it had been, in the worn wood floors and the plaster molding around the ceilings but it was juxtaposed with bright, inviting colors that made it feel comfortable and cozy. Like slipping on a favorite pair of slippers and sitting next to a fire.
I had just wandered past the front desk when a voice halted me from behind.
“If you’re looking for breakfast, it’s this way.”
“I’m sorry?” I asked, turning and taking in the woman clad in all black. She had black dyed hair and black lipstick to match.
“Breakfast?” She asked, tilting her head as if I were the crazy one, “You know, as in bed and breakfast. It’s kind of implied in the name.”
“Oh, right,” I stuttered, trying to think of some excuse but it might be the best opportunity I would get to scope out the other guests and find my guy. And the sooner I did that, the sooner I could get away from Coral Springs. And from Jonah.
I ignored that last thought, shooting a smile at the goth girl and gesturing her to lead the way.
“I’m Charlotte, by the way.” She said, returning my smile with a surprisingly friendly one of her own. “I work here during the day. I’m usually at the front desk, so if you need anything you can just ask. Or call down from the phone in your room.”
“Great. Thanks.”
“No problem.” She said as we walked into the small but lovely dining room. There were only three small tables scattered around the room, and two were full. “Here you go. You’ll be sitting with Mr. Carter, his wife, Ginger, and this over here is Mrs. Markel.”
I smiled at them in greeting with each introduction, but it faltered a little at the last. It was the same woman who had walked in on Jonah and I the night before and she was sending me a knowing glance behind her thick rimmed glasses.
“Here’s some fruit to get you started. The rest of breakfast will be out soon. Would you like coffee or juice?”
“Coffee, please.” I said as I took my seat, sliding my back pack to the floor between my feet. I shot a dubious look at the bowl of fruit as Charlotte walked away. Coffee normally was my breakfast of choice but I picked at it as I glanced around the room at the other guests.
There was another older couple sitting at the table next to me, both reading newspapers, and at the last table was a group of twenty somethings already dressed in their hiking boots and outdoor gear. Obviously ready to go hiking and explore the springs.
Outdoors. I shuddered to myself at the thought. No thank you. I would be spending my time here comfortably indoors, searching for my bounty, who appeared to be missing from this morning’s breakfast spread.
Where are you? I wondered to myself, itching to pull out the small notebook from my back pack. It’s where I kept all of my ongoing notes about my cases. The bounty. Where they were headed and how I was going to track them down.
He had to be here somewhere. Maybe I can convince Jonah to let me look at the books, see what room he’s in. But I knew the odds of him using his real name to check in was slim. He was dumb enough to use one of his credit cards.
I nodded. I might just get lucky. But I hated to rely on luck. No, what I needed was a plan.
“…Oh, I know. Isn’t he just to die for?”
“Oh, Caroline, you’re the worst. You’re not wrong though. Not wrong at all.”
I glanced up to see Ginger and Mrs. Markel staring at something intently over my left shoulder.
“Now, ladies. Enough ogling. Ginger, you’re practically drooling.”
“Sorry, dear.” Mrs. Carter patted her husband’s hand but I noticed her eyes never left their mark.
I was just about to ask who they were talking about but before I could g
et the question out a shadow fell over our table and all the breath was stolen from my lungs. It was Jonah, carrying a tray full of plates.
I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe or speak or think with him that close to me. All I could do was sit there in silence as he placed the plates piled high with breakfast food in front of each of us. He didn’t look at me the whole time. And I couldn’t look away.
I noticed with a jolt of humor that the two older ladies at my table couldn’t look away either but it fizzled when Jonah finally stepped back. He smiled at the elderly couple and Mrs. Markel, saying something though I couldn’t hear what it was. My pulse was pounding so hard in my ears that it drowned out everything else.
He was about to walk away and that was when our eyes met. The bright clover green of his gaze was surprisingly hard as he shot me a sharp look. I felt that look like a physical blow and then he turned and the moment was gone.
Temper flared, hot and harsh inside me and I grabbed my back pack and followed after him. How dare he treat me that way? Look at me that way? As if I wasn’t even worth saying good morning to. As if I wasn’t worth saying anything to.
It had hurt more than I wanted to admit, that look, and that more than anything else spurred me forward, following him as he made his way passed the front desk and through the door into the office behind it.
“What was that about?” The words shot out of my mouth before I could stop them but my temper was flaring hot now and there was nothing I could do to stem the tide.
“Sabrina? You’re not supposed to be here.”
“You’re right. I’m not. I’m not supposed to be here. But I am. And you’re going to have to find a better way to deal with it than sending me dirty looks.”
“No, I mean you’re not supposed to be in the back office, not here. I mean Coral Springs. I mean, damn it, I don’t know what I mean!”
“Well, you better figure it out, Jonah!”
“Why?! Why should I have to figure anything out!” He stopped and turned around, stalking towards me as he shot out words like bullets, and I was the target. “You were the one that broke in here in the middle of the night. You were the one that just showed up out of nowhere and expect me to pretend that it’s normal. You were the one that left, Sabrina! You left. Not me. There is nothing I need to figure out.”
Jonah didn’t stop until we were standing toe to toe and we were both breathing hard as his tirade hit me. I winced on impact but there was nothing I could say. Nothing I could do to make it right.
We stood there, and I stared up into his green eyes and hated seeing the hurt that I’d caused him. But there something else there, too. Something behind the hurt. Something wild and hot, burning out of control. The same electric chemistry that exploded whenever we were within twenty feet of each other.
And there was nothing I could do to resist it. I opened my mouth to say something, anything but no sound came out. Jonah’s head dropped to meet mine, his lips bruising as we kissed and then all the words were gone.
***
Jonah
I felt Sabrina shudder in my arms as I angled my mouth over hers to deepen the kiss and for the first time in over a year and a half, everything felt right. For the first time, I felt like I was finally back where I belonged. It felt like coming home.
The anger was gone, melting into a razor-sharp desire that had me pulling her close, crushing her to me but it still wasn’t close enough. It would never be close enough. The thought had me kissing her harder, faster. Biting her lower lip between my teeth in that way I knew drove her insane.
I couldn’t resist her. I could never resist. Not from the first moment we met in that dive bar just outside of town. Not any moment since then. I knew it was a lost cause to try, and damn it, I didn’t want to.
It felt so good to hold her in my arms, to feel the familiar fire that had always burned like wildfire between us sear away all the lonely night and empty beer bottles that I’d tried and failed to drown her in.
Need, sweet and sharp pounded through me and I didn’t think. I couldn’t think. All I could do was give in. All the defenses I’d spent building over the past year crumbled to dust, swept away by her kiss, her touch. Her taste. Honey and spice all mixed up together to make something as unique as she was.
My hand were moving, my fingers tracing down her rib cage until they reached the hem of her t-shirt and then sliding up and under. I pushed the fabric out of the way as I went and nearly groaned out loud as I felt nothing but bare skin.
“Fuck, Sabrina. You’re not wearing a bra?”
I felt her shrug, and then her words spoken softly against my lips, “It was still wet from last night.”
The sound of the word wet spoken in her sultry, sinful voice made my knees go weak and for a moment I wondered If I would hit the floor.
“Jesus. You’re going to kill me.” But the words were lost in our kiss, swallowed down right along with the panting breaths and moans of need. I cupped each breast in one hand, feeling the plump fullness before narrowing my touch to the already hard peaks of her nipples.
I teased them with my fingers, just as my tongue teased hers. A dance that felt as familiar to me as my own skin. Sabrina gasped into my mouth and gladly drank in the sound. Every murmur and sound of pleasure and desire just spurred on my own.
With one frantic motion I lifted the t-shirt, pulling it over her head and latched onto one nipple, my fingers still teasing the other. Sabrina’s hands fisted in my hair, pulling me even closer and I gratefully obliged.
All I wanted to do was to taste her, to tease her, to feel her coming apart in my arms. I knew exactly how beautiful she was, the sight of her flushed cheek and heavy lidded as her whole body tightened around me like a vice.
Everything inside me snapped at the thought and I reached for the button of the jeans that were all but painted on her body but she was wriggling away. I reached out again, my body in full control and my mind little more than a pulsing red haze of want but she pushed my hands away.
“Jonah, hold on…I think…I have to go.”
I shook my head, trying to understand. She was looking behind her, following something with those dark, fathomless eyes of hers as she pushed her shirt back into place
“Sabrina, I–.” I trailed off. I didn’t know what to say. Most of my thoughts were still focused on the painfully hard erection pressing against the zipper of my jeans.
“Damn it. I’m going to lose him,” She shot me a look full of regret, and another unreadable emotion, and then she was gone.
I don’t know how long I stood there, my whole-body aching, waiting for the rest of me to figure out that it wasn’t going to happen so I could walk out of the back office without embarrassing myself or giving Mrs. Markel the show of her life.
I snorted, rolling my eyes at the thought but they landed on the black shadow on the floor a few feet away. I picked it up, recognizing the bag Sabrina had slung over her shoulder. The bag that had fallen unheeded to the ground during that kiss.
Kiss. It was such a weak word to describe what had happened between us. It had been so much more than just a mere kiss. With a sigh, I grabbed the bag but stopped when something slid from the open flap in the front.
Curious, I picked it up, my eyes widening on the small pocket sized notebook. Sabrina had never been without one of these things. Before I could stop myself, I flipped it open. I stared at her chicken scratch handwriting. It was nearly incomprehensible but I wanted to see it more than read it. Another part of her that had been missing from my life for so long.
I flipped to the last few pages and something familiar caught my eye. Notes about the bed and breakfast. About Coral Springs. And something about following a ten-thousand-dollar bounty.
Bounty? I shook my head, more confused now than before. Sabrina was a private investigator. She wasn’t a bounty hunter, was she? But according to the notes that’s exactly what she was doing here.
Worr
y filled me. I knew better than most just how resourceful Sabrina could be but it could be a dangerous job, chasing after criminals. My thoughts racing, I took both bag and notebook and headed after her. But by the time I got out into the hallway, she was already long gone, and with no clue to tell me where she could have taken off to.
“I’ll just wait until she gets back,” I muttered to myself, glad I didn’t run into any of the other guests. I’ll wait for her, and maybe I’ll take a cold shower while I do. Or three. I wasn’t sure even that would be enough.
Chapter 4
Sabrina
“Where is it? Where is it?” I wasn’t even aware of the panicked words falling out of my mouth as I tore through the bedroom, searching frantically for my notebook. “Fuck. Where the hell is it?”
Mentally, I traced back, trying to remember every step I took, every place I’d been throughout the day. Waking up the room. Going downstairs to the dining room. Breakfast with the gossip girls. Following Jonah to the back office. And then after…
My cheeks heated as the memories filled my mind unbidden. Memories of Jonah’s mouth on mine. His all-consuming kiss. His hands touching me, pulling me close against his hard body. That was the problem. As soon as I started thinking about Jonah and that wildfire kiss every other thought just flew out of my head. I could hardly focus.
