“But I thought—”
“You thought wrong. Now, if you head back down the road and hit I-20, you should be able to find someplace to stay tonight.”
She shut the door in his face. A moment later, a car door slammed and the engine started.
“Well, that was interesting,” Duncan said dryly. She turned to face him, her fisted hands on her hips. His eyes twinkled with humor and a satisfied smile curved his lips.
“Don’t start with me tonight, Duncan. I’m not in the mood.”
“Hey, don’t take it out on me.”
He reached out and pulled her into his arms and rested his chin on top of her head. Completely surprised by the gesture, she relaxed against his chest, sliding her hands around his lean waist.
The angry tension eased from her body. His hands moved down her back, massaging her rigid muscles. God, he smells good. She snuggled closer.
“I still can’t believe he flew here today.” She thought about the phone call that morning. “He must be very desperate. Graham quit. I’m not surprised.”
“Graham?”
She’d pressed her ear against his chest and the rumble of his voice vibrated against it. Deep and resonate, the sound of it flowed through her.
“He was my sous chef, and Jason tried to make him take over my job when Antonio, who was my assistant head chef, quit. Probably expected him to do all the office work, also. Graham’s only twenty-two and not ready for the job.”
“Ah, but you did all that and more when you opened the place. What were you…twenty-four?”
“Yes.” She thought of the red-haired, green-eyed sous chef. “Graham’s had a pretty easy life…has a little royal blood. Plus, he never really wanted to be anything higher than a sous chef. There was only so much he’d take from Jason.”
She realized Duncan was rocking them. Not much, but just enough to let her full stomach and the wine sliding through her relax her even further.
His lips touched her temple. Just a brush of his mouth and warmth spread through her. At first she thought she may have mistaken the gesture, but a second later, he pressed a definite kiss, then tilted her chin up with his knuckle.
His eyes were closed as he bent his head and touched his lips to hers.
“You know, Thea, this will work better if you participate.” His eyes were still closed, and a smile played about his lips.
“What are you doing, Duncan?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” he asked between kisses. “I’m complicating things.”
He pulled her closer, his hands dipping down to her rear end, pressing her against his arousal. Her nipples tightened as she slid her hands up his chest and around his neck. His tongue tickled her lips and she opened her mouth willingly.
He tastes so good. The sweet wine was still on his lips but he tasted of something else, something she’d never sampled before. Passion. That’s what he tastes like, unadulterated passion. And she wanted it. Her body thrummed with anticipation.
He pulled her up, and she entwined her legs around his waist. She rubbed against him, irritated with the layers of clothing that kept her from touching him skin to skin.
Without breaking the kiss, he walked a few steps until she felt the wall against her back. He ground against her. She could feel the hard length of his cock. The anticipation had her panties damp, her heart beating out of control.
His lips lifted from hers and left a wake of wet skin as he kissed his way down her neck.
“We have to get you naked.”
He grabbed the bottom of her shirt and yanked it over her head. She’d forgotten about not wearing a bra until she saw his eyes. Something dark and dangerous moved in them, his gaze focused on her hardened nipples. Molten heat sizzled along her nerve endings, another rush of tingles skipping down her spine. Her legs were still around his waist but he leaned back from her a bit to get a better view, slipping a hand beneath her rear end to add support.
He lightly skimmed his hand over her distended nipple, causing it to pucker further. He did it a couple times more before rolling it between his thumb and forefinger. The whole time, he never looked up. He licked his lips before bending his head and taking it into his mouth. She moaned the moment she felt his wet tongue lave the tip. She shuddered as he dragged his teeth against it, then suckled. Little bursts of energy popped through her blood. She speared her hands through his hair, urging him to continue.
Before she knew what was happening, he set her down on the ground and her jeans and panties were on the floor. Duncan fumbled with his button fly but finally with an aggravated curse, he tugged it open. His erection sprang free. She circled it with her hand, amazed at the size of it. She brushed her thumb over the tip, spreading the drop of moisture around.
He stilled her hand and pulled it away from him. He retrieved a condom and he rolled it down the length of him. With his hand cupping her bottom, he lifted her against the wall again. She grabbed hold of his cock and guided him into her.
He teased her, slipping only the very tip of his shaft into her damp passage. Her position made it impossible for her to move. Duncan had all the control, she was at his mercy. Then, when she was ready to scream, he slipped in just a bit more, slowly working his way in. He would pull all the way back out, then push back in, just slightly further than he been before.
“Duncan.”
He kissed her jaw and hummed. “What?”
“If you don’t—”
She sucked in a breath when he thrust into her to the hilt.
“Oh, Jesus, you feel so good.” His rough voice told her that he was close, that the teasing had caused the same reaction in him.
Slowly, over and over, he moved within her. A surge of heat gathered in her stomach, her nerves tightened. She felt as if she was trying to achieve something so far out of reach. He must have known because he slipped his hand down her stomach grazing his fingers against her clit.
“Come for me, baby. Now.”
Duncan thrust into her one more time, and she shattered into a thousand pieces as he moaned her name.
* * * *
The scent of musky passion filled the air around them, as Duncan tried to catch his breath but he wasn’t sure if he ever would. Never in his life had he ever burned so hot, so fast for a woman. He nuzzled her neck and waited for the recriminations to start but she said nothing.
“Well, that was something.” Her voice was husky and he shivered as it vibrated down his spine.
“Something?” He bit her earlobe. God, she was sweet. He’d never get enough of her.
“Yeah, I think this the first time I’ve done it in a kitchen.”
For a second Duncan paused in his exploration and then he chuckled. Jason was a jackass. She lifted her head and Duncan looked down at her. Her curls were a mess, tumbled across her shoulders in disarray. Her lips were red and swollen from his kisses and her eyes still dark with passion. She looked completely and thoroughly loved. His hands clenched on her rear end and he felt himself stir to life inside of her. Too fast.
“So, are you going to give me a lot of crap about how this is some kind of mistake?” she asked. He didn’t miss the note of vulnerability in her voice.
“No. What I plan on doing is taking you upstairs and jumping your bones again.”
She laughed and her muscles clenched tighter around his shaft. Gently, he pulled out of her and let her slide to the floor. For a second she looked up at him and then her face turned pink. She cleared her throat a couple times and looked away from him.
“Thea, there’s no reason to be embarrassed.”
“I’m not…well I am embarrassed. I’m standing here naked and you’re practically dressed.”
“Yeah, but all my important parts are exposed.”
She looked up at him and then laughed. “Okay, but still. I’m not what you’re used to.”
“And just what am I used to?”
“Oh, just forget it.” She tried to walk past him but he caught her arm and pulled her ba
ck. He braced a hand on either side of her face.
“Now, tell me what this is all about.”
“Well, I’m not normal.” She was staring over his shoulder when she made the statement. He did not like this distance at all.
“Why, do you have an extra boob?”
She graced him with a dirty look. “I know you are used to model-thin, gorgeous and I’m…well I’m not.”
He studied her face for a moment. Her thick lashed green eyes, her unruly locks. His attention dipped further down and he couldn’t believe the woman thought she wasn’t gorgeous. Then he remembered her comments about the ex.
“What did that jackass say to you?”
“Listen, Duncan, I don’t want to talk about it. I have to clean up the kitchen and we need to go over those files.”
She grabbed her clothes off the floor and ducked under his arm before he could catch her and dashed toward the stove. Quickly, he buttoned his jeans and strode after her. When he reached her, she was about to put on her shirt. He never slowed down. He bent, bracing her stomach on his shoulder, his arm anchoring her legs and he lifted her.
“Duncan, what the hell are you doing?”
He didn’t answer, just walked up the stairs and carried her to her bedroom. He dropped her on the bed and then came down on top of her.
“Now, let us get one thing straight here. Leave what that jerk told you at the door. I’m not him.” She struggled to get out from beneath him but he grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the bed. He kept one leg over her thighs as he rolled to the side. Jesus, she was beautiful. Her breasts were perfectly full, her waist tapered and then flared into nice rounded hips. His eyes dipped further to the triangle of curls between her legs and he felt himself harden. Slowly his eyes traveled back up her body all the way to her face.
“Thea, you have to see what you do to me.” She snorted and he wanted to shake her. “What do you think? I get a boner like this every time I get close to a woman? I hate to tell you this, honey, but it doesn’t happen like this for me all the time. I’ll be forty in a few more years, but good Lord, I already want you again.” Her eyes softened, a flare of hope sparkled.
“You want to…again?”
“Oh, yeah, but this time, I’m getting naked too.”
* * * *
Sometime in the middle of the night, Thea rolled over and reached for Duncan, only to find his side of the bed still warm but empty. Well, what did she expect? Jason had always said she was too clingy, always wanting to snuggle after they’d made love. But…Duncan seemed to enjoy it. The second time they’d made love had been slow and deliberate. He seemed to revel in the feel of her skin.
She raised up on her elbow and glanced at the clock. It was just after three in the morning and she realized nature was calling. She grabbed a nightshirt and headed to the bathroom.
Once she was done, she knew she wouldn’t sleep again so she headed downstairs to clean up the kitchen. The light was still burning but she was surprised to find Duncan sitting at the table. He was reading over the files, but he turned as soon as he heard the bottom stair squeak.
He stared at her for a second and then his lips curved into a satisfied smile. He stood and she realized he must have just thrown on the jeans he’d been wearing earlier. His chest was bare and she couldn’t stop staring at the sexy line of hair that ran down his abs and disappeared beneath the waistline of his pants.
“I thought you might get some sleep.” He reached for her and brushed his lips against hers. “I didn’t wake you, did I?”
“No. I couldn’t sleep.”
“Well, I tried to be quiet but I was afraid I banged the pots too loudly.”
She looked around the room and realized he’d cleaned it. Every pot had been washed, every counter wiped down, the dishes apparently in the dishwasher. Before she could squash it, a huge blossom of warmth filled her belly. Never in all the years they’d been married had Jason once cleaned the kitchen.
“Thanks for cleaning up.”
“Hey, you cooked.”
“Did you find anything?” She nodded at the files.
He sighed as if he didn’t want to change the subject but both of them knew they had work to do.
“Yeah, there are a few suspects, a couple of them still around.” He slid his arm over her shoulders and held her close as they walked to the table. After she was seated, he sat down. “There is also the fact someone could be using your history to get back at you.”
She looked at him, his face was devoid of all emotion but she knew what he was suggesting. “Jason.”
“Yeah, but we’ll work on him later.” He pulled out a couple of faded file folders, hesitating before setting them in front of her.
She opened the first one and came face to face with Richard White.
Surprised, she looked at him. “Yeah, I know. I didn’t even know he’d been around that year but he’d been kicked out of Texas Tech. I thought, everyone thought, it was for failing grades.”
“It wasn’t?”
“Well, Dailey found no hard evidence but there was some indication he might have forced himself on a girl at a frat party.”
“Jesus. How could he be a deputy?”
“No charges were filed. Dailey couldn’t find the girl’s name. He could never prove it. And Richard’s father was the head of the school board at the time, and had a lot of power back then, so he pushed Ferguson to hire him.”
She frowned. “Ferguson?”
“He was sheriff between Dailey and me.”
She nodded. “Why would he be suspected?”
“He did work on your house that fall.”
“The roof.” She’d forgotten about the bad hailstorm that had ravaged the roof and at the time, Richard had been working for one of the local roofers part-time.
“Yeah. And he seemed fixated on your mother, at least according to a couple of the guys who worked with him.”
That and tormenting her. He’d spent all day calling her names.
“What’s that look about?”
She looked up. “Oh, he bugged me a lot that fall.”
“Bugged you?” His voice had gone deadly soft.
“Well, he always called me names.”
The hand he had resting on the table clenched and she was surprised at the anger darkening his eyes.
“Duncan, it was a long time ago.” She placed her hand on top of his fist. “I always thought he had low self-esteem.”
“Yeah.” He relaxed a little. “But that is another sign he could be the stalker. Never had much luck with the ladies.”
She set aside Richard’s file and then picked up the second one.
Hammond Barker. The name and the face were vaguely familiar.
“Do you know him?” Duncan asked softly.
“No, I don’t.” She read the file.
Minister. Dispute on lot lines. Threatened to kill Mrs. Johnson and had fired shots at Mr. Johnson. Subject suspect in tire slashing of Johnson’s pickup.
“I sort of remember one of our neighbors complaining about old Beau getting into his trash.” She smiled as she remembered the old hound dog. It vanished when she thought about the report. “I had no idea it was this bad though.”
“Well, at your age, I’m sure your parents wouldn’t have told you everything.”
She nodded as she looked through the other files.
“Those are all drifters who’d been reported in the area around the time of the murders. All of them have violent pasts. Do any of them look familiar to you?”
She looked through each file. One tall and skinny, another short and fat, the next average with a bald head. She sighed. “No, none of them.”
“Well, I’ll get to work on them tomorrow morning. I may need to get on your computer and do a little research. I think I need to keep this away from the office.”
“Because of Dick.”
He gave her a small smile. “Yeah. Plus, if one person even gets an inkling we are looking into this, it w
ill be all over town by nightfall.”
“Now, what about Jason?”
“Did he know about your parents?”
She thought about it. “He knew they’d been killed, didn’t know about much of it until the nightmares started.” Or, at least she thought he hadn’t.
“What?” he asked, apparently catching her indecision.
“Well, we were in town twice during our marriage. I guess he could have heard then.” She shrugged.
“Okay, so I need to find out what he’s been up to lately. Anyone else you can think of who would use this to get to you?”
“No. No one. I didn’t talk about it.”
“Okay. Tomorrow morning I’ll run in and get those reports. I can’t access some of that from your computer. Hopefully, Dailey was blowing smoke up my butt about the other murders and we don’t have a killer running around the area.” He studied her in silence for a moment. “I think we need to get back to bed.”
“You do?” Warmth spread through her as she thought about snuggling next to him, her hands gliding over his bare skin.
“Yeah, I really am beat. Not used to this much activity in one night.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she laughed. “And although I know you will avoid it, we are going to have a long discussion. But I’ll let you have a reprieve tonight if you promise to use sex to control me.”
“Well, I guess I could try. You sure you’re ready for another round?”
“You just let me—”
The shrill ring of the phone made both of them jump.
Chapter Thirteen
Thea’s gut tightened and uneasiness crept down her spine when her cell phone rang a second time. She picked it up and showed Duncan the caller ID. Whoever called was blocking identification. He nodded and she hit the button.
The shuddering sigh sent a wave of revulsion that coiled in her stomach.
“Thea.” The caller’s voice was whisper soft, but laced with anger. “Thea, who was that man?”
Fear held her speechless. Now she knew he’d seen Duncan and would target him. Every nerve turned ice cold and Thea shivered.
“W-what man?”
“The man with the blond hair.”
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