Chapter Sixteen
Melanie and Kay sat in Kay’s car, staring at the house the Grainger’s would occupy until their insurance paid them to rebuild or buy a new home.
“Why isn’t Paul here?” Kay asked more to herself than to Melanie.
Melanie smiled. Obviously Kay had hoped to spend some quality time with her ex.
“He’d planned to come. He got called away at the last minute. Something about a case he’s been working. Maybe we should wait until he can join us.”
“I don’t think so. We may not get another chance.”
Melanie’s stomach balled into a knot. “We’re not detectives, Kay. If we get caught, we’ll go to jail.”
“Where’s your sense of adventure, Mel? We’ll be in and out in no time flat.”
“Sense of adventure? I’m not Huckleberry Finn. We're not sailing the Mississippi. This is called breaking and entering and, last I heard, it’s illegal.”
Kay’s amber eyes lit up. “Not if we don’t get caught.”
“But the Graingers are home. What are we going to do? Wait for them to go to bed? This is not going to work.”
Kay pointed to the front door. “Look, they’re leaving.”
Dean walked out of the house with a baby in his arms. Tracy trailed behind, two little girls in tow. All headed for the van parked in the driveway.
“See, now we can get in, look for the earring, and get out with no one being the wiser.”
Melanie sneered at Kay’s deduction. “Why do you make it sound so easy?”
“Duck, they’re going to see us.” Kay pushed Melanie down in the seat. Seconds later she released her. “Okay. The coast is clear.”
Melanie sat up and shook her head. “You watch too many crime shows.”
“No, not at all. I’ve been with Paul a few times on stakeouts. We did some undercover work when we weren’t under the covers ourselves. So what do you say? Ready?”
“I don’t know—”
“Nonsense, just follow me.”
Melanie inhaled deeply, opened the door, and crossed the street to the house.
Kay glanced left, then right and said, “Paul told me to always make sure no one is watching.”
Melanie gawked at her friend, shocked Kay had actually listened to anything her ex said about his job. It was so unlike her. “Maybe you should consider a new profession. Become an operative for the CIA or something.”
Kay shook her head. “Too much travel in third-world countries involved. I’d need a five-star hotel—with all the amenities—in which to lay my head at night. I don’t think the mountains of Afghanistan have accommodations like that.”
“No, they do have caves, though. Have you forgotten I know your ultimate fantasy? Being thrown over a big, brooding caveman-type shoulder and carried away to be ravished for days.”
“True, though he’d need an ornamented brass tub with hot, running water and a chef on-call for when we worked up an appetite. Do you think those Afghani guys have a five-star chef on retainer?” Kay sighed. “Who is that Italian dude who cooks for that morning show? I can’t think of his name, but he could serve me pasta any time.”
“I hate to ruin your fantasy, Kay. But if we stand around here much longer, we’re going to be spotted and no man, hot or not, is going to save our asses.”
“You’re right. Let’s get to the back.” The two crept around to the rear of the house, hoping for an open window or door to get inside. Luck was with them when they found a window ajar. With some effort, they raised it enough to climb inside.
“Now what?” The pair stood in the middle of the pantry and Melanie’s skin prickled with unease. Why were they doing this? If they got caught, they’d go down, and no amount of begging for leniency would get them out of such a mess. Breaking into someone’s home was a felony. And frankly, “Felony Melanie” didn’t have a ring to it.
Kay shoved her forward. “We have to look for their bedroom. That’s where Mrs. Grainger would probably keep her jewelry.”
Melanie took a step and tripped over something, flailing for the doorframe to keep herself from falling. Once she’d steadied, she looked down to find a child’s pull toy the culprit of the stumble.
She stared at the wooden duck. Why hadn’t she realized how many people Dean had hurt? He had children, toddlers, and that hadn’t stopped him from pursuing her. Hadn’t made him think when he offered to leave his wife for her. Why were some men so heartless? So uncaring?
“We don’t have all day, Mel.” Kay shoved her again. “They might have just gone out to eat.”
“Okay, okay, I’m going.”
Melanie dodged another toy, then searched room by room until she came across one that looked to be Dean and Tracy’s bedroom. “Here it is.” Melanie waved Kay into the room.
“Okay, you check that dresser, I’ll look through the armoire.” Kay made her way to the tall wardrobe.
Melanie dashed to the dresser directly in front of the bed and opened the first drawer, stunned by what was inside. Strange gadgets lay atop a multitude of sex books. She gasped.
“What did you find?” Kay raced to Melanie’s side. She glanced in the drawer and grinned. “Whoa. I’d say Dean and Tracy are a little kinky. “
Melanie didn’t know what to think. “If Tracy was willing to do all this for Dean, why would he want me?”
Kay shrugged. “Maybe this is all new, bought after she found out about you. The woman apparently loves her husband and is willing to do whatever it takes to keep him. Maybe even set a fire and plant evidence to incriminate you.”
Melanie’s blood boiled. “Let’s find that earring.” The idea that this woman might have stooped to such a level pissed her off. She hadn’t known Dean was married, so why try and ruin her life? An arson conviction would definitely do that.
“I found her jewelry box,” Kay shouted, drawing Melanie’s attention back to her friend.
Melanie inhaled and watched Kay open the large, wooden box. She looked inside, reached in and pulled out an earring. “This one seems to be the only hoop without a mate.” She dangled it in front of Melanie.
Excitement surged through her when she recognized it. “That’s it. It’s a clip-on.”
“Yeah, all of her earrings are,” Kay said, smiling. “Let’s get out of here. We have what we came for.”
The two retraced their steps to the pantry, crawled out the window, and inched it down to its original position. They had the earring, now they had to find out if it was enough to deflect the guilt from her onto Tracy Grainger. Melanie just prayed it would be.
* * *
“You have to think this out, Knox,” Sandra said, rising from her sofa. “What kind of life is our child going to have if you’re not living with us?”
Knox shook his head. “We can’t get married just because of a baby. It’d never work.”
“I love you, Knox. Have since the moment I laid eyes on you.”
Sandra’s comment floored him. Laid eyes on? What did that mean? His looks were all that meant anything to her—his physique? Damn. He suddenly felt like a slab of beef. Was this what women went through, feeling like an object, not a person? He wasn’t sure, yet one thing he did know, he didn’t love Sandra. It was Melanie he was in love with.
Shit, what was he thinking? In love with Melanie? Impossible. He didn’t know her well enough. It was lust. Pure and simple, and that he could believe. The thought of her drove him crazy, more directly, drove his body crazy. He’d taken more cold showers in the short time he’d known her than anytime before, icy showers that made his skin goose bump just thinking about them.
“Don’t you believe me?” Sandra asked in a sharp, snippy tone.
Knox got the feeling she knew his mind was somewhere else—something she felt threatened by. “Let me ask you this, Sandy. Do you even like me? I mean, me, as a person?”
Her amber eyes darkened, her lips thinning into a hard line. “I just told you I loved you, didn’t I?”
“
Love is not the same as like, Sandra. I’m not surprised you can’t distinguish between the two.”
Her fisted hands flew to her hips. “What does that mean?”
This conversation was going nowhere as far as Knox was concerned. She’d never understand what he was trying to say. Hell, not once had she seen things his way. That’s why he’d ended their affair. “Let’s drop it.”
“Okay, what are we going to do about the baby? I think we should at least live together until the baby’s born. See if we can’t build on our relationship. Give it a chance to grow into something real.”
What she wanted wouldn’t work. No amount of living together would change things between them. She’d drive him crazy.
“I need time to think,” Knox lied, not wanting to say out loud that hell would freeze over before they’d share a bed again. She’d just argue further and he wanted to get out of her apartment before he said something he’d never be able to take back—something that might anger her to the point that she’d never let him see his child.
“We’re running out of time, Knox. I’m going to start showing soon and everyone will know. You need to make a decision right away.”
Knox caught a glimpse of something in Sandra’s eyes, a flash of panic. What was she afraid of? The emotion was so out of character for her. Something wasn’t right. She was in an awful big hurry to get him hogtied, saddled to her, especially when the baby was months from being born. He wouldn’t ask why now. Hopefully, he’d find out her reasons at a later date. He needed to get out of her apartment. Talk of marriage and living together made him claustrophobic, a sensation that left him cold and in need of some space.
* * *
Melanie lay in Kay’s guest bed and stared at the clip-on in her hand. Would the thing help her case at all? It was just an earring. No proof Tracy had set the fire in her own home. Melanie could still go down for the crime, especially with her previous arson charge.
Why had she allowed her mother to destroy her future in such a way? It’s not like she owed her anything, not like the woman had been mother of the year.
Melanie snorted at the notion. Her mother had been nothing like June Cleaver. While her friend’s mom’s were baking cookies and going to PTA meetings, her mom was out looking for Melanie’s next daddy—men no one else wanted. Drunks. Drug addicts. All sick sons-of-bitches hell-bent on making her life miserable. So why had she allowed her mother to manipulate her? Certainly, if she had it to do over, she’d never agree to take the fall for her step-dad.
Angry, she pushed the memories away. She placed the earring on the nightstand and switched off the lamp next to it.
Tomorrow she’d go to Knox and find out if the earring would be enough to eliminate her as a suspect. Right now, she’d try and get some sleep.
She closed her eyes and was about to nod off when she heard a plink.
Her eyes popped open and she listened intently. Another plink, followed by a slightly louder one. What was it?
No one knew she was here. She’d stayed at Kay’s thinking it safer. Had Dean somehow found out? Was he sneaking around outside?
Plink!
This time Melanie saw something hit the window.
She got up and raced across the floor and pulled back the ruffled curtains. Down below, illuminated by a streetlight, stood Knox. He smiled when he saw her.
She slid the window up. “What are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you. Would you come down?”
Melanie swallowed hard. What did he want at this time of night? Was he here to warn her that they’d decided to charge her in the fire? The mere thought brought a realm of emotions with it. Terror. A feeling of total helplessness. A sense that she’d brought all this on by dating Dean. Even though she knew none of it was her fault. “Okay.” She closed the window, grabbed her robe off corner of the bed and slipped it on.
Quietly, so as to not wake Kay, she crept down the staircase, her anxiety increasing with each step.
She unlocked the back door and slipped out just as Knox came around the side of the house.
Melanie’s heart accelerated at the thought of being arrested. If that happened, her life and reputation would be destroyed, her career over. That was one thing she couldn’t bear.
“I hope I didn’t wake you,” Knox said, his casual remark relieving her fears somewhat.
“No, I’d just gone to bed. What did you want? How’d you know I was here?” She tried hard to keep the tension from her voice, but knew she’d failed. This was her life. Her whole world could change with three little words, “You’re under arrest”.
“Nothing really. I just needed to see you. Nadar told me you were staying with Kay.” He stuffed his hands into his pants pockets and shifted his stance.
Relief washed over Melanie. It was quickly replaced by confusion. Why would he need to see her when he had a beautiful, sophisticated blonde to spend time with? Why wasn’t he cuddled up in bed with her, having wild sex? “Why?” she asked, giving voice to the thought.
“Because I can’t stop thinking about you, Mel. I was at home, trying to sleep. Thoughts of you kept me awake.”
“Me? Why? Don’t you have someone you should be with?” Melanie inwardly scolded herself for asking, was sure jealousy oozed from the question.
His eye widened. “No, I’d rather be here with you.” The sincerity in his voice floored her. He’d meant what he’d said and it made her emotions soar.
In Melanie’s heart, she knew she loved Knox and she wanted him to love her. She yearned to be held in his arms, for him to make her forget her troubles if just for a few hours. The only thing that could achieve that for her would be to make love to him. Here and now.
Chapter Seventeen
Knox’s heart pumped faster when Melanie’s powder blue eyes filled with unmasked desire. She wanted him. The gut wrenching realization was more powerful than anything he’d felt fighting fires, strange considering that had been a high nothing had even come close to before. He'd never desired a woman so completely. Denying himself when she obviously wanted him too no longer made sense.
His misgivings disintegrated and he reached for her, fusing them as one, the heat of her body warming his.
“I want to apologize—”
Melanie cupped a hand over Knox’s mouth to stop his confession, and smiled. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything.’’
She removed her hand and hugged his neck, drawing his mouth down onto hers. The petal softness of her lips ignited a flash-fire deep in his belly, one that raged out of control.
He deepened the kiss, crushing her to him. His heart thudded dangerously fast, the drumbeat thrumming a mating ritual in his ears as her nipples hardened against this chest. The strange humming that had plagued him since he’d met her started again, a light vibration that only stimulated him more.
He applied light pressure to her mouth with his tongue, impatient to explore every nuance, each sweet recess of the woman he’d done nothing but think about since he’d met her.
When her mouth yielded to his gentle prodding, he took advantage and slipped his tongue inside. His reward…her warm, inviting tongue tangling with his, tasting of pungent peppermint and heat. The heady combination heightened his physical need. Every nerve in his body sensitized, stirring his lower region to painful proportions.
She tore her lips from his, her breathing labored, her liquid blue eyes panic-stricken. “Knox, we can’t do this.”
Disappointment slammed into Knox. He’d never wanted anything so bad in his life. “Why?” he asked, the word coming out as a raspy croak.
She waved her hands around them. “Where? We can’t go into house, Kay would hear, and I’d never live that down.”
Relief washed over him when he understood her dilemma. Hell, if location were her only concern, they’d be able to work around that.
He did a visual sweep of the backyard, a cushioned lounge chair catching his eye. A thrill raced down his backbone, shooting
to his crotch. He pictured Melanie straddling him on the thing, her beautiful face hovering, her eyes filled with undeniable passion.
Knox pointed to the chair. “What do you think?”
Her gaze followed his direction. “What if it breaks?”
He grinned. “I’ll buy your friend a new one. It’ll be worth it, I promise.”
“You’re pretty sure of yourself.” She sidled backward in the direction of the chair. “I hope you’re ready to prove that.”
“More than ready,” he said, keeping in step with her.
“So, I have a question for you, Mr. Fireman.”
“Yeah, what’s that?”
She stopped when her calves bumped against the edge of the chair, her eyes widening. “Exactly how far does that hose of yours extend?”
He leaned in close to her ear and whispered, “Far enough.”
As his tongue delved into her ear, Knox reveled in the fragrant honeysuckle scent of her rich, red hair. His hands laced through the strands, the silken texture a contrast against his callused fingers.
He pulled back and gazed into her eyes. At that moment he knew without a doubt he’d fallen in love. The woman before him had captured his closed-off heart.
He bent to kiss her, a tender union he hoped imparted what he felt for her.
His hands slid over her shoulders, drawing her near, deepening the kiss. He turned around and backed up to ease them down onto the chaise, the chair groaning in protest. The thought of the lawn furniture breaking crossed his mind, though he pushed the possibility aside and concentrated on the woman in his arms, kissing her as he untied the belt of her robe. They were going to make love and he wanted it to be the most monumental event in Melanie’s life.
Melanie struggled to breathe as she helped Knox remove his shirt. She sat completely naked on his lap and could hardly wait to feel his warm skin under her hands, next to her body, as they experienced what she’d longed for since the Fire & Ice dance. Making love to him and only him.
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