Lost in Flames (Lost Series Book 2)

by Nicholson, C. T.

  "I love you, Cooper. This will blow over and it will all be okay." She believed this, but wasn't naïve enough to think it wouldn't keep happening. "I said for better or for worse and I meant it with all my heart."

  "Yes it will or I'll kick all their—"

  "Hush and just say you love me." She laced her fingers with his.

  His laughter filled the truck. "Yes Ma'am. I love you too."

  Chapter Ten

  Mike shook his head at how quickly the crowd thinned after Cooper and Sophia left.

  "That was terrible. I really hope she's okay." Tessa still held his hand and he tried not to bring her attention to it.

  Ryan came over to them. "She just texted. They were headed home. She said all those things the reporters said weren't true. I must have missed something."

  "I'd say so. The damn reporters were rattling off crap about Cooper cheating. I personally don't believe it. The way he loves her and the fact that we'd be fighting over who killed him is enough to prove what they spouted were lies," Jacob said. He looked down at their hands and then at Mike.

  Tessa did the same and jerked her hand back, folding both arms across her stomach. He really hoped the pissed off look he gave Jacob proved close enough to chewing him out. Of course, his brother just shrugged his shoulders and then held his arm out for Tessa to take it. "I know it got crazy in here, but would you like to dance with another Johnson brother?"

  The jealousy charged at him and landed a sucker punch in the gut. When she took his brother's arm, Mike fisted his hands.

  He's just trying to get under your skin and it's working. Asshat.

  He caught Tessa's gaze once and then Jacob said something that made her laugh. Mike really liked the sound and sight of her laughter, but selfishly wished he'd be the one to bring it out of her—every time. Not Jacob or anyone else.

  Nick propped against the bar beside him and captured his attention while she spun around the floor with Jacob. "Hmmm. You can't keep your eyes off her. Can I expect a sister-in-law soon?"

  "No. She's not going to stay." He wasn't an idiot to believe she didn't already have one foot out the door.

  "I guess I understand why you decided to let her crash with us considering her situation. Not that I mind." Nick nodded to a girl who gave him a dirty look and shot him a bird. "Well."

  "What do you expect after the way you go through women? Concerning Tessa, the house she was in caught on fire, so I offered our extra room. No big deal." He watched her tip the cowgirl hat back. It wasn't her style and he knew it. Didn't mean she didn't look drive-a-man-crazy sexy. He turned to Nick. "Where did your date go anyways?"

  His brother just snorted. "She wasn't really a date and she got on my nerves quick. The airhead women are beginning to drive me nuts. I think I'll try someone who can speak in complete sentences."

  "So, she found out how much of a hound dog you are and left." Shocker.

  He turned back to the dance floor to find Tessa and Jacob, but only found Jacob arguing with Ryan near the door. Panic set in and his heartbeat sped up with an overwhelming fear hitting him. After one more quick check and coming up empty, he stomped over to Jacob with a sudden need to beat his brother if Tessa wasn't found before he made it. "Where's Tessa?"

  They both stopped cold in their argument.

  "Calm down. She went to the bathroom." Jacob pointed to the back of the bar.

  "I saw her step outside," Max, the bar owner, jumped in the conversation obviously able to hear from the bar with most of the people gone for the night.

  He and Jacob both cursed. Mike had the handle to the bar door when it opened. Ice blue eyes stared back into his. "What were you thinking? I thought we talked about being careful?"

  Having all eyes on him didn't concern him when his heart pounded relentlessly in his chest. His whole body shook with fear and rage mixed together.

  Sirens sounded outside, getting closer quick. Then the door opened again, forcing him to jerk Tessa out of the way.

  "Mike! Your truck is on fire. I called it in and they're pulling in now." Zeke, an older officer, spewed quickly. "I didn't see who did it. With all the people showing up for Cooper, there was no way to really keep track."

  "Y'all keep an eye on her." He hurried outside just in time to see them putting out the fire. "Shit!"

  Seth came over after his truck was free of flames. "I knew you were an idiot for taking her in, and then you bring her out in public."

  He scrubbed his face with both hands and shook his head. "Look, don't start with me. This night already turned to shit. I don't need your crap, too. Marcus thought it was a good idea as well. We didn't expect all the extra people to show up. If anyone strange was here, it was impossible to tell with the show of out of towners."

  "Whatever. I guess she's innocent, since you were with her when this started." Seth walked away.

  Only issue, he wasn't with her the whole time. Not when she'd gone outside alone. He wasn't sure for how long. Could it have been that long? No way … not possible. But it didn't matter, because he still trusted her. He was glad nothing happened to her when she did leave. His truck being set on fire just meant she'd been that close to danger.

  Tessa came outside with his brothers and Ryan surrounding her. She looked pissed and worried. "I'm so sorry! Was anyone hurt? Please tell me no." The fear gathered in her eyes proved sufficient to banish any doubts. Her haunted past showed in the way she shook, holding herself tight.

  All he wanted was to gather her in his arms, and he didn't stop himself. "No one was hurt. This isn't your fault."

  "It is!" Tears leaked down her cheeks. "All of this is my fault. I wanted to leave before anyone ended up hurt or worse. I can't handle it. Not again."

  Not again. There lay the truth. Her situation seemed to be worse than he first realized. She feared for her and other's safety, because she'd already lost someone. Yet, he refused to back down from the fight she had been burdened with.

  "Zeke. Please drive us home." He refused to release Tessa, with her quiet sobs against his shirt so painful to witness. If he could kill the bastard causing her to break into pieces, he thought he could do it without remorse. It frightened him how much he wanted to murder the man. "Ryan, will you call Cooper and tell him what happened?"

  He hurried off with the phone already to his ear. Jacob and Nick just stood there, waiting.

  "The house is already compromised. We could go somewhere else, but I think y'all would still be in danger at home. Can you find somewhere else to stay until we figure out what to do?"

  "No," they answered in unison and then Jacob finished, "That's our home, too. Even if you don't stay, we're not leaving it unprotected from whoever the idiot is."

  Tessa burrowed deeper into his chest, shaking harder.

  "I don't really know more than what I've told you. She either really doesn't know or isn't telling us." He probably should have talked to his brothers alone, but he couldn't let her go.

  She tugged as far as he'd let her. "I need to leave. If I go, everyone will be safe. I promise."

  "Everyone but you. No ma'am. That's not happening. I'll see y'all at home." Mike maneuvered to the police car and they climbed in the back. As petty as it was, he liked that she wasn't pulling away from his embrace. It felt like he was protecting her from harm and he'd stay that way as long as possible.

  The beams of the car lit up the front of his home. Another car sat in front of it. Marcus got out and waited on them.

  "I went ahead and checked the house. I haven't seen anything that says anyone was here. When they called about the fire, I figured I'd beat you here. Whoever did this probably wouldn't do something here. At least not tonight."

  "Did anyone see anything?" He'd hoped the ride over gave them enough time to find out.

  "No." Marcus jerked his head to the side. "Can I talk to you a moment?"

  "Will you be okay?" He didn't care to leave her side and knew Marcus had something to say that he wouldn't like. Why else would he as
k to speak alone?

  She nodded and went to sit on the front porch.

  "What is it?" It wasn't right of him to be upset with the officer, but he hated the gut feeling he had.

  Marcus glanced over his shoulder at Tessa. "I began a search for arsons from New York that linked with the name Tessa. Her name is Tessa Stenerson. Her…ummm… husband is from a very wealthy family."

  Husband. The word just floated around in his head, keeping him from being able to speak. He'd had the feeling an ex had been torturing her, but he didn't completely think it through and definitely hadn't fathomed she could've been married.

  "Now, they were separated," Marcus reassured.

  "That's good to know." The words weren't meant to come out of his mouth, but they did and he was sure Marcus picked up on his sarcastic tone.

  "A report from the NYPD stated she'd grown angry and started a fire where she'd thought her ex-husband's location to be. Only he wasn't there, and her friend was. He was killed in the fire, Mike. She denied it and said she'd been in the house when it caught on fire." Marcus placed a hand on his shoulder. "They believed she went in to help her friend when she realized her mistake."

  "Why wouldn't they arrest her?" None of this made sense and he didn't believe any of it.

  "No evidence. She ran off and started going by another last name. I'm telling you this for your own good. You should let her stay at the station—"

  "She stays here. She wasn't the one who set my truck on fire," Mike interrupted the sincere offer. There was no way he'd let them take her away and he wasn't going anywhere without her.

  "Are you sure? Was she really with you the whole time at the bar?" he asked with suspicion lacing his tone.

  He gritted his teeth. "I'm sure. I'll talk with you later about my truck. Just make sure your officers are keeping a good watch."

  Marcus left and when he could barely see his taillights, Mike took a deep breath and twisted around to catch her sitting on his porch. She wasn't there. With the lights on, he could see her through the bay window. She paced back and forth, those arms of hers wrapped around her waist. If she held them there anymore, he wouldn't be surprised if they became stuck. That seemed to be a constant gesture on her part.

  They needed to talk. She had to tell him her side of the story. No more secrets.

  ****

  Tessa felt sick to her stomach. Nothing unusual for her. He was back and destroying her life. Arriving in the small town had almost been a relief. She believed she'd really lost his trail. How stupid to let her guard down. Deep down she'd hoped he'd stop looking.

  Why did he care so much? Because he didn't like to lose.

  She answered her own question.

  "We need to talk." The deep tone made her jump, even though she heard the door open when he came inside.

  Loath to look at him, she took a breath to gain her strength and turned to find him closer than she'd realized. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out before he kissed her. A brief touch before he pulled away.

  She touched her lips with her fingertips, still wondering if she'd imagined the scenario.

  "I had to do that before we talk. You've kept quiet about what's really going on and I've let you. Now I've got to be the bad guy." He crossed his arms over his broad chest, never removing his gaze from hers.

  He was kicking her out. It didn't surprise her. Not after she put him and his family in danger. Yet, it didn't make sense for him to kiss her before doing so. "I'll stay somewhere else if I'm still not allowed to leave town. I never meant for any of this to happen. Please believe that at least."

  "I'm not letting you leave, Tessa. I just want to know the truth. Please." He still didn't touch her and she was okay with that since she was certain her legs would turn to jelly, sending her to the floor.

  She sat down on the couch and waited until he joined her. The heat of his leg made her aware of his closeness. Tears formed in her eyes. It was hard to tell him about Richard. He might've assumed who could be after her, but he could run far away if he knew she was married. "First I want to tell you I'm married. We separated and for sure would be now."

  He wasn't shocked and she assumed Marcus already broke that news to him. "I know."

  She picked back up with her story, relieved he didn't look at her differently. Yet. "I didn't come from a wealthy background and lost my mom and only parent before I could finish college. When I got married, Richard's family really didn't approve of me. We were in love, at least that's what I thought. I really don't know if he thought he was at that time or not. He's unable to love. That was finally proven about a year after we were married."

  "It's okay. I've got you." The comforting words felt good, but she still freaked out.

  She'd practically began hyperventilating in his arms. After a few minutes, she was glad he was patient with her, and she started again. "I planned on leaving him, but he wasn't about to let that happen. He thought that I'd fear leaving. At first I didn't. I was completely ready to be free of him and his family. To them, I was only a gold digging whore and to him, I was brainless arm candy."

  "Now that seems like the biggest load of you-know-what I've ever heard. I haven't known you very long and I am without doubt sure that you're no gold digging whore, nor are you brainless." He held both her hands in his and squeezed.

  "And arm candy?" she asked with a forced smile, trying to lighten the mood and hoping it worked.

  "Oh, you're gorgeous. You could pass as arm candy," he said with heat in his eyes as he scanned her from head to toe.

  She forced her body to ignore his heated gaze and continued.

  "I left one day when he was gone to work. My friend Sean helped me move my things into his place and I really thought it was all working out. Up until the fire started. I don't know how I made it out that day. All I know is that the smoke was so thick and I heard Sean calling my name." That was all she remembered, but ever since that day, she'd had so many nights of nightmares, then waking up and with the memory of his screams "I awoke on the sidewalk with EMT's getting me onto a gurney. Then the cops were coming to my room asking questions. I had no answers. And still didn't when they told me Sean had died."

  "Shit. I'm so sorry."

  "Richard showed up in my room and the pure joy in his eyes he showed when no one was around told me the truth. Then he actually threatened to hurt me and those I loved if I tried to leave again." She took a deep breath. "I tried to tell the cops."

  "They didn't believe you." Mike shook his head.

  "No. They are on his payroll. How could I trust anyone there? I had to run away. He caught up to me at the last place I went, so I tried a small town. Then he found me again. Don't you see why I need to leave? I can't risk any more lives. Not you." She knew her words told him she had feelings for him, but it didn't matter. She needed him to know the truth before she left.

  His hands never left hers as he got onto his knees on the floor in front of her. "You could have told me all of this from the beginning. I could have protected you better. Or our police department would have been more prepared. No matter what you believe, you're not in this alone anymore. I'm here with you."

  Chapter Eleven

  The beating of Tessa's heart grew to a dangerous speed inside her chest. She had no doubt he could hear it, too. When he leaned in, she refused to close her eyes at first. She didn't want to miss the sight. The kiss felt softer than before and not at all rushed. He took his time tasting her and she did the same. Her life had gone to shits and if she could just have this one moment, she didn't want to lose it. There was so much she couldn't forgive herself for. She didn't want to look back and hate herself for not taking a chance. Even if she didn't feel she deserved to be happy when Sean lost his life.

  He shoved his hands under her butt and stood, forcing her to wrap her legs around his waist. If she'd wanted to run away, she couldn't then. Feeling the heat on her face, she dipped her head between his neck and shoulder. His arousal pressed firmly against
her and she couldn't help her embarrassment. A new feeling to her. Even the rock hard body proved novel, something she was not used to.

  The loud sound of his boot kicking the door open so they'd fit made her think at first he'd busted a hole in the wood. That thought didn't last when he dropped her on the bed and held her stare.

  "I can stop if you want."

  The strained sound in his voice and the slight tick in his jaw served to tell her his words reflected the complete opposite of what he wanted. She still took a moment. If she went through with this, she'd never be able to forget him.

  Tessa! You're an idiot. You'll never forget him either way.

  "I want this." She pulled her shirt over her head, along with her sports bra—the only bra she had, which wasn't sexy enough for him to see her in. "I need it."

  Her nipples tightened with the cool air and her skin prickled everywhere his eyes touched. Since he was removing his clothes, she didn't want to stray from the view to see if her feeling was accurate. When his pants were gone, she swallowed hard. He was not hiding a thing behind his underwear. The air left the room when his hands grabbed the sides to push them down. His erection popped free, ready and a lot larger than she'd realized.

  Then he turned, taking that sight from her, only to give her the glorious view of his backside. Her breath caught. The muscles. Everything about him seemed perfect and she suddenly felt less secure about her body as she sat undressed from the waist up. She wasn't fat; actually she felt too skinny and she'd gotten worse since being on the run.

  He returned to her with a box of condoms. "I'm sorry. That wasn't very gentlemanly of me, but you've had me going crazy since I met you and I just wanted to be prepared."

  How optimistic and strange that he might expect to use more than one. She'd never had sex more than once in a day. Sometimes it would be weeks before she did. Of course, she wasn't a moron. She realized Richard was cheating on her the whole time, which fact had her file for separation.