“More coffee?”
“Instant.”
“Fine by me.”
“Forget it,” he said, changing his mind. “I’ll take you to breakfast.”
“In a while,” she said, enjoying the moment
While Hunter attended to the fire, Jenny rummaged around in the kitchen. It was fun and slightly dangerous to peek into his life. Clearly he hadn’t made much of one for himself in Santa Fe. The place felt untouched, in a way. As if it were waiting for someone to take it over.
She boiled water in a pan and poured it over instant coffee crystals. Handing Hunter a cup, she inhaled the aroma.
“Not the best if you’re used to lattes and espressos,” he observed, taking a mouthful.
“I can deal,” she said.
She sat down on the couch as the fire got going. “I’m going to take a quick shower,” he told her, and was gone before she could answer. She heard the water start up and had to close her mind to the vision of him naked … and wet
Fifteen minutes later he returned wearing clean jeans and a loose gray sweater, his hair still glistening with water. His feet were bare. Pouring himself another cup of coffee, he asked if she needed a refill. Jenny shook her head.
He stood in front of the fire. Jenny crossed her legs. She wanted him to kiss and caress her, make love to her. She could scarcely think of anything else.
Hunter studied her, taking his sweet time about it She wore jeans and a black sweater that stretched lusciously over her breasts. Her sleeves were rolled up and he could see the delicate band of her gold watch. She looked like money even in casual clothes. He reminded himself silently of all the reasons he should not get involved with a wealthy woman.
None of them seemed to matter.
“What are you thinking about?” she ventured.
He shrugged. “Uh, what we should do about Troy.”
“That’s not what you were thinking about.” He lifted his brows, waiting. She swallowed, then said softly, “You’re thinking about what I’m thinking about.”
“Which is?”
She climbed to her feet and came to stand beside him, her back to the fire. “Well, we’re alone at last.”
“Ahhh …” He slid her a look. “That’s not what I’m thinking about.”
“It’s not?”
He shook his head. “I’m way past you. My mind’s already traveled in that direction….” He indicated his bedroom door. Sliding one hand around her back, he dragged her close, his breath ruffling her hair.
A delicious shiver slid down Jenny’s spine. “My father won’t like this.”
He kissed her neck tenderly until she sighed with pleasure.
“My son won’t like this, either.” Lightly she nipped his earlobe with her teeth and pulled ever so slightly.
“Yeah, but I like it,” he pointed out, pulling her to him and kissing her boldly on the mouth, his hands digging into her hair.
Jenny’s knees went weak. “So do I,” she said, drawing in a shaky breath, and that was the end of their conversation.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
They rode back to Jenny’s condo in satisfied silence. Lovemaking had made them incredibly hungry; and when Hunter’s stomach growled, Jenny dragged him off to Tia Sophia’s, a favorite Santa Fe breakfast spot for locals and tourists alike. They had to wait in a minuscule foyer before being seated but Hunter held her close the whole time and Jenny simply let herself forget all her problems while in the comfort of his arms. They ordered blue corn tortilla dishes, breakfast burritos, and mucho caliente enchiladas to share, and they both drank plenty of water to douse the flames.
“I hope Rawley made himself something to eat,” she observed as they turned in to the gate. “There were enough leftovers to feed an army, but he prefers traditional breakfast food.”
“Hmm … I’m pretty sure I’ve lost a layer of taste buds.”
“You didn’t have to order extra hot,” she pointed out.
“I’m a man. I wanted to impress you.”
“You already did that,” she said with a sideways glance, then was mortified to feel a blush crossing her face.
“You said you could be hot. You were right.”
“Funny.”
They walked up the stairs together. Jenny would have liked to hold hands, silly as that might look, but she knew Rawley could be peeking out the window and her son needed lots of time to adjust to Hunter. They were making progress, but she didn’t want to ruin things by pushing too hard.
“Rawley?” she called as she stepped inside the condo. A glance at the spotless kitchen said her son hadn’t fixed himself breakfast. If he had, the place would have looked like a tornado had hit.
Glancing at the sink, she expected to see the two coffee cups that she and Hunter had left but one of the cups was shattered into a dozen pieces, as if someone had dashed it into the sink with real force. It gave her a bad feeling.
Benny whined and scratched at the door from inside Rawley’s room. Jenny quickly released him and let him outside. “Rawley?” she called again.
No answer.
She glanced toward the carport across the way where her Volvo still sat. “For a moment I was afraid he’d taken the car! He’s fifteen and he wants to get his learner’s permit, but I wanted to wait till we were settled.”
“Where would he go?” Hunter asked, and something in his tone alarmed Jenny anew.
“Well, he could be in the neighborhood.”
“Without Benny?”
She hesitated. “Maybe he’s left a note …”
She searched his room, the living room and kitchen but found nothing. Frightened, she struggled to understand what had happened. He was probably fine. Just hanging around somewhere nearby. He didn’t have any close friends yet that she could call, and unless there was a number on the caller ID …
“There’s a private call that came in not long after we left,” Jenny said, staring down at it. She swallowed hard. “He told me Troy has a cell phone.”
Hunter couldn’t offer false hope because he’d been thinking the same thing.
Jenny dashed to her room, heart pounding. Against her jewelry box was propped a white envelope. She tore it open, scanned the contents, and let out a cry of anguish. Hunter hurried to her side and took the note from her shaking hands.
Mom,
Sorry I had to leave without calling you. I’m just on a trip with Dad. I’ll call when I get a chance. Don’t worry. I didn’t want to go back to that school where I don’t know anyone. I’m okay. I promise I’ll be back soon.
Love, Rawley
“He’s kidnapped my son,” she whispered. “Troy’s kidnapped my son.”
“Shh …” Hunter said, drawing her close. His own heart pounded heavily, his own worry for Rawley taking over.
“While I was making love to you … he stole my son.”
“Don’t panic. Rawley went willingly. We’ll get him back.”
“We need to call the police. We need to stop him right now! Call your sergeant friend,” she demanded urgently, pulling away from him to gaze pleadingly into his eyes. “Call him and tell him what happened.”
“Who knows how long they’ve been gone? They’re probably outside the Santa Fe department’s jurisdiction by now. We can call the state police, but …”
“But?”
“They’re not going to get too excited just yet. Troy is Rawley’s father. Rawley said he’d call you.”
“What’s that got to do with it? He has no right!”
“I’m telling you how the law will look at it.”
“Don’t you care? Don’t you care at all?”
Hunter gazed at her. Her accusation hurt even though he understood it was out of fear. “I’ll find Rawley.” He dropped his arms from around her, his mind already swirling ahead.
“What do you mean? Where will you look? What will you do?” Now that Hunter had said he was leaving, Jenny’s anxiety intensified.
“Troy was last living in the
L.A. area. He knows people there.”
“But … but that’s California! Rawley said his father was moving to Taos. He might be there.”
“I’ll check it out.”
He sounded so uninterested in her theory that Jenny clutched desperately at his sleeve. “What’s wrong?”
“Jenny.” He disengaged her tense fingers and dropped his hands lightly on her shoulders. She trembled beneath his grip. “Do you have Troy’s cell phone number?”
“No … no …” She shook her head. “Unless Rawley wrote it down. He had the number.” She tore away from him and ran into Rawley’s bedroom, frantic with fear. Her eyes darted every which way. Yanking out drawer after drawer, she rummaged through his belongings. She took a step back, one hand pressed to her lips. “He’s taken some clothes. A lot of them!”
Hunter’s expression grew grimmer, if that were possible. He rifled through the clutter in Rawley’s desk drawer. Candy wrappers, paper clips, a stapler, and blank note pads—the usual. No doodlings or numbers of any kind.
“There’s no phone number, is there?” she said hopelessly.
“He’ll call.” Hunter was positive.
“They’re on a trip,” Jenny said, rereading the note with renewed hope. “Just a trip. They could be back tonight.”
He didn’t know how to tell her she was wrong. He knew Troy had taken the boy a lot farther than a day trip would allow. He knew it like he knew when bad things were about to happen.
“I’ll get him back,” he said in a tone so intense it caught Jenny’s fragmented attention.
“How? What do you mean?” As he turned to the door, she demanded, “Where are you going?”
“L.A. Like I said, it’s where he’s been these last fifteen years. I know all the names of Troy’s friends and his exgirlfriends.”
“But you’ve been in Santa Fe for six years. You said so yourself!”
“Like Troy, I still know people in LA. And I have friends on the force who think I was justified in following Russell and making his life a living hell. Friends who’ve kept their eyes on Russell’s habits.”
“You’re scaring me,” she said in a small voice.
“I’m glad I didn’t take my old job back,” he said soberly.
She knew what he meant. She understood that if he were an officer of the law he would have to abide by certain rules. And when it came to Troy Russell, Hunter didn’t want to abide by any rules.
She swallowed hard, holding back tears. “Do you think your friends can find him?”
“I’ll find him.”
“Are you sure?”
His answer was a faint, twisted smile that said this showdown with her ex-husband had been a long time coming. “Keep Benny close,” he said, and then he was gone.
Rawley sat in the seat, his baseball cap pulled down over his eyes, his arm wrapped around the soccer ball in his lap. He chewed gum. Big Red. His father’s favorite and now it was Rawley’s too.
His dad was in a great mood. The best. Rawley had begged Troy to take him along, and he’d had to plead like hell to get his dad to listen. But it had all worked out great. Now, they were on their way to who knew where. The thrill of excitement burned bright. He did feel a little bad about his mom, though. She would worry, he thought guiltily. A lot.
But he didn’t give a damn, really. Not really. She was hanging out with that Hunter Calgary and having him around wasn’t what Rawley wanted at all.
“Are we going to your place in Touts?”
Troy smiled. “Taos,” he said with a snort which Rawley couldn’t quite understand. “Nah … I had somewhere further in mind.”
“But we’ll be back by tonight, or so …”
There was silence for the next a couple of miles. Rawley felt his first prickle of unease as the car sped down the road, sagebrush and scraggly trees no more than a gray-green blur. He reckoned they were heading west. He was pretty good at directions.
With an effort he tamped down his feelings. He’d been so glad to see his dad when he’d showed up this morning. A feeling of pride had actually stolen over him. When his dad walked into a room, he just took over.
Benny’s snarling had spoiled the effect and Rawley had been forced to drag the dog by the collar into his bedroom. When he’d returned it was to find Troy staring down at the two coffee cups in the sink. “So, your mom had a friend spend the night, huh?” he’d asked casually.
“Nothing happened between them,” Rawley assured him as quickly as he could. “He just stayed here.”
“Where?”
“On the couch,” Rawley answered with difficulty.
“You sure?”
Rawley’s heart slammed against his chest. He didn’t like thinking in those terms, and his expression must have shown it because Troy said, “Think they might have snuck around? You know what I mean.”
“No!”
“What’s this guy like?” He picked up a coffee cup from the sink.
“He’s just a guy. I don’t know!”
“But you don’t want him around, do you?”
“Hell, no,” Rawley said loudly, testing his father’s reaction to having him swear.
His dad grinned. “I don’t want him around either. You know, I’ve always regretted how things turned out between Jenny and me. I made a lot of mistakes, but we were good together.”
“Then, you gotta help me get this guy out of here. He’s a policeman, sort of.”
“What do you mean ‘sort of’?” Troy asked sharply.
“He used to be. And they want him back at the department. His sergeant always yells at him, but he really wants him—”
“His sergeant? Here in Santa Fe?”
“Uh-huh, he’s—”
“What’s his fucking name?” Troy demanded, throwing the cup in the sink and shattering it.
Rawley just stared. “Hunter Calgary.”
His father’s reaction was nothing short of explosive. He clasped his hands into fists and backed away from the sink as if the coffee cups were somehow dangerous. Rawley glanced around in fear, wondering what had happened.
“Do you—know him?” Rawley asked in a thin voice that scarcely sounded like his own.
Troy turned around, his back to Rawley. His hands closed and opened, closed and opened. “He stayed the night with your mother?”
“I said he was on the couch.”
“But what’s their relationship?” he demanded impatiently.
“I think …”
“You think what?” Troy whipped around, clearly in the grip of some serious emotion.
“I think she likes him,” he admitted, afraid, knowing it was exactly what his father didn’t want to hear.
“Is she with him now? That’s the guy?”
Rawley nodded, miserably, feeling like the situation was somehow his fault.
Troy’s eyes closed. He relaxed his hands and drew several deep breaths. It was like yoga, or something … some kind of relaxation technique that Rawley had heard of.
“Hunter Calgary.” Troy opened his eyes and regarded Rawley with new control. “Do you know who that man is?” Rawley shook his head vehemently. “He’s on a campaign to ruin me. If he’s seeing your mother, it’s because he wants to get to me.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a lunatic. You know why he’s not a policeman anymore? Because he followed me like a dog and threatened my life.”
Rawley tried to put this picture of Hunter together with what he knew about him and failed. Still, his father was clearly affected by the man. This was no act.
“How did Jenny meet him?”
“I don’t know.”
“At the restaurant?”
“I—don’t know.”
“Has this been going on a while? Why didn’t you tell me about it sooner?”
“It started when I was at soccer camp! Maybe—maybe they met in Puerto Vallarta?”
“Impossible.” Troy paced to the window, pulled back the curtain, looked out. “Does
the old man know?”
“Grandpa Holloway? Yes. He’s here. He stopped by last night.”
“He met Calgary face to face?”
“I went to my room,” Rawley said apologetically. “I didn’t pay much attention, but yeah. They were here together. I think they knew each other already.”
That really got him. Rawley was sorry he’d brought the whole thing up and now wished to high heaven he’d never called his father. But was he right? Was Hunter after his mom because he wanted to get back at Troy?
“Why does he hate you so much?”
“Because he blames me for the death of his sister.”
“What?” Rawley asked faintly.
“I was involved briefly with his sister and he couldn’t stand it.” Troy regarded him for a long moment. “Are you old enough to handle the truth?”
“Sure. What do you mean? Of course I am.” Rawley was slightly offended.
“It’s dirty.”
Rawley inwardly recoiled. He knew dirty. He’d seen his share of dirty pictures and films, and he knew what it meant to fight dirty. But there was a whole swirl of adult meaning in his father’s tone. In truth, he wasn’t sure he was old enough to handle the whatever his dad was about to say. “What’s dirty?” he asked reluctantly.
“I think there was something going on between Calgary and his sister. The kind of thing nobody likes to talk about, you understand? He was jealous of me. He didn’t like me going where no man—other than big bro—had gone before.”
His meaning slammed into Rawley’s brain. “I don’t believe it!”
“I told you you wouldn’t like it.”
“That’s just—sick!”
“They’re both sick. And that’s why she committed suicide by throwing herself off a building.”
“No … no …” Rawley raised his hands, warding off the words as if they’d been physically thrown at him.
“Why don’t you ask him, if you don’t believe me?” Troy stalked toward him, a black rage building.
Rawley was taken aback. “I can’t do that!” he choked out, afraid that he was suddenly about to cry. Sometimes he didn’t understand himself at all. “I just want to get the hell out of here!” he practically screamed.
Benny whined and scratched at the door. Troy glanced down the hall, then back at Rawley. “You could never do that to your mother,” he said slowly.
In Too Deep Page 27
