by Barb Han
Maria studied the dog and then Aunt Bea.
“You’re right, Aunt Bea, I wish Tommy would find the man who did this.” She took a threatening step toward Aunt Bea. Austin caught on and anger nearly consumed him.
His aunt inched backward toward the front door as her hand-twisting intensified. She could no longer make eye contact and Austin remembered what Maria had said. The person acting guilty usually is.
“But that’s been the problem all along, hasn’t it? Tommy’s been looking for a man when he should’ve been searching for a woman,” Maria said, and guilt flashed across Aunt Bea’s face.
And then chaos erupted as Aunt Bea made a run for it and Uncle Ezra came up with a knife.
“Step back,” he said, waving the blade in the air. “Do it now!”
“Why’d you do it?” Austin asked.
“I made a deal with McCabe for a parcel of land and your father was so stubborn. He wouldn’t give an inch and he said horrible things to me and your uncle. So, I decided we should take matters into our own hands. My daughter lost her job and times have been tight for her. I wanted to help and when I proposed the idea to your father about the land deal he threatened to cut me out completely and take away what I already had.” Her eyes were wild. “I couldn’t let him do that, so I told Ezra what we needed to do and he agreed.”
Aunt Bea made a move for the door when Austin dived at Uncle Ezra and landed headfirst into the man’s knees in a football tackle. The knife sliced Austin’s shoulder before he wrangled the blade out of Uncle Ezra’s hands. In the next second, Gideon, Dallas and Tommy were in the fray. Austin eased his weight off the older man as Tommy spun Uncle Ezra facedown and zip-cuffed his wrists behind his back.
Maria had already taken care of Aunt Bea. By the time Austin stood up again, Maria’s knee was lodged in Aunt Bea’s back and she was eating carpet.
“I hope they throw away the key when they lock you up,” Maria said.
Tommy stalked over to Aunt Bea and cuffed her next as Austin moved to Denali’s side.
“It’s okay, boy,” he soothed. “She can’t hurt you again, buddy.”
Denali leaned his body against Austin, as though for comfort.
“I know. She hurt you before but it’s over,” he said, and that covered so much more than just for Denali. His parents would finally receive justice for their murders. It had taken all of Austin’s self-control not to snap Uncle Ezra’s neck when he’d been on top of him. He could’ve done it so easily. Death was too simple for his uncle. Ezra needed to suffer behind bars for the rest of his miserable life. As for Bea, she would get everything she had coming to her.
Dallas immediately tracked over to Austin, dropped to his knees and embraced both him and Denali in the same hug. Maria’s arms tangled in as well and he could hear her sob. Not tears of sadness, but the sound of healing tears.
It was done. His parents could finally rest in peace.
“I’ll call the others for a meeting and fill them in on what happened here today,” Dallas finally said, standing when the evil had been removed from Austin’s house. Gideon helped Tommy stuff them in the back of his SUV. They were going where they belonged.
“We have answers,” Austin said. “And we’ll get justice.”
Dallas agreed, and then he left, too.
Austin and Maria were on the floor with the dogs curled next to them. Bailey and Denali had become fast friends. He and Maria held on to each other and she felt so damn right in his arms.
When Denali and Bailey fell asleep, Austin slowly eased away from them, taking Maria with him. Neither spoke as though words might shatter the sacred quiet around them. They didn’t need words to communicate how much they needed each other in that moment.
And so, Austin linked their fingers and took his wife to bed.
She kissed him first. His hands went to the hem of her shirt and she helped him lift it off her, her breasts rising and falling with movement. Austin ran his finger along the trim of her bra. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, matching his own breathing.
He palmed her breast and a blast of need rocketed through him when her nipple beaded against his skin.
All he could do was close his mouth over hers and slide his tongue inside her mouth again.
Her fingers worked the snap on her bra before helping him out of his shirt, and the feeling of her smooth, creamy skin against his chest corded his muscles. A second later and his running shorts were on the floor. It didn’t take but a few more for hers to join his. And then she dropped her silk-and-lace panties as he slipped out of his boxers.
She slipped the rubber band off her ponytail and her hair fell around her shoulders, brushing his sensitized skin. Awareness plowed through him and his erection pulsed. He had to slow things down because when she palmed his shaft he nearly exploded.
So he picked her up, her long legs wrapped around his midsection, and he drove his tip inside her slick heat. She was wet and ready for him, so he thrust a little deeper, making sure he wasn’t hurting her with his length. Her sexy little moan, her arms around his neck and her hands tunneled inside his hair nearly sent him to the brink. But he wanted this to last. He wanted to take it slow and pleasure her until she begged for release.
“I need you, Austin,” came out in between breaths as she rocked her hips back and forth, working his shaft until he almost came first.
“My beautiful Maria,” was all he could say in response as her muscles clenched around him.
He moved to the bed without breaking their rhythm and she moaned her pleasure as he drove deeper inside her. Her legs were high around him and he turned to plant a kiss on one before putting more of his weight on top of her and taking her mouth again.
Their pace was dizzying and frantic and...
He groaned in order to hold back. He wanted her to reach the abyss first and her frantic pace said she was on the brink.
He gripped her waist, letting her take the lead as she ground against him and sent pleasure rocketing through him.
She looked up at him with wild, sexy eyes, her hair in a tangle on the sheets, and that one look nearly obliterated him as he felt her muscles constrict and release around his shaft.
Her pacing slowed as she floated back to earth and smiled at him.
“Your turn,” was all she said before she scooted out from underneath him, breaking contact.
He frowned until he realized what she was doing when she flipped him onto his back and straddled him. With two hands, he grabbed her sweet round bottom as she lowered down on him, taking him inside her.
With her hands firmly planted on his chest, she bent over and kissed him before rocking his world. The rhythm she set was fast and hard and intense. He gripped her waist and drove her sex against his in a dizzying pace until he was driven to the edge.
He detonated with her in the ring of fire, engulfing them.
By the time they reached release they were both heaving for air. She dropped down beside him on the bed, drained.
When she looked at him, all they could do was laugh. That was the best damn sex of Austin’s life.
“I miss everything about you,” he said.
She curled over to face him and he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer.
“I miss you, too, Austin.” Her big doe eyes were still glittery and her smile was like watching a bird take flight. “I miss all of it.”
“The question is...what should we do about it?” Austin pulled her down for a kiss.
“What we should’ve done a year ago,” she said, “talk.”
* * *
AUSTIN STIRRED AND blinked his eyes open, realizing he’d fallen asleep. He looked at the woman sleeping next to him and realized that they’d figured out a way to build a bridge. They’d talked, made love, and repeated both before they’d both
fallen asleep in each other’s arms, completely spent. As it was, he was a lucky man but with one big problem. Someone wanted her dead.
Maria’s cell buzzed in the other room and he hated waking her. She seemed content and it was the first time she’d looked like that in longer than he could remember.
Denali padded into the room.
“I know, buddy,” he said to the dog that moved to his side.
Maria stretched. “How long was I asleep?”
A quick glance at the clock said two hours.
“Was that my phone?” she asked, curling her warm body around him in a way that threatened to get him going again.
He didn’t mind but she was probably about to get up and check her cell, so he kissed her and tossed the covers off himself.
“What if we just stay here and let the others handle the case?” she asked, and that would be great if they could.
“I’m all for it.” They both seemed to think about Cliff at the same time. “We should probably make sure there isn’t news.”
Maria yawned before peeling the covers off.
Austin couldn’t help himself, he palmed her sweet round bottom as she pushed up and off the bed.
“Do that again and I’m not leaving,” she teased, and her voice had that musical quality he loved so much.
Within five minutes they were dressed and she was listening to voice mail. Austin studied her reaction as she listened. Her face paled and then she ended the call.
“Vic is setting up surveillance across the street from a strip shopping center. He’s baited a man he believes to be Halpern into a trap. Halpern thinks he’s meeting with a thirteen-year-old boy to exchange sexual favors this afternoon. I have to go. I have to see if it’s him,” she said, and the determination in her eyes spoke volumes about her intent. She needed closure.
“Is it safe for you to be there?” he asked. “I don’t want to take unnecessary risks with you. What happened between us changes things for me and I hope like hell it does for you, too.”
“If I’m being honest I’m worried that the black cloud that’s been following me my entire life will make you miserable,” she admitted, and it seemed to take great effort on her part.
“Bad things happen to good people, Maria. No one is immune, not even an O’Brien. You see what we’ve been through in the past year and you were nowhere near when it happened.” He walked over to her and kissed her. “You’re not cursed. And just like during a bad storm, you need to know that sunshine always follows. Miserable is living my life without you.”
“I’ve been wanting, no, needing to hear those words for so long, Austin,” she said, pushing up on her tiptoes to kiss him back. “But what if I can’t give you a family? What if losing Raina means that I’m broken? You’d be sacrificing too much if we couldn’t have children.”
He shook off her concerns like stray rain droplets. “Family isn’t always blood. Look at Tommy. He’s no less an O’Brien than I am because he doesn’t share the same letters of the alphabet in his last name. If we can’t conceive again, then we’ll find another way to have a family. Besides, there’s no shortage of rug rats running around the ranch lately. If you don’t want children we’ll be the best damn aunt and uncle an O’Brien has ever seen.”
“I love you, Austin,” she said, kissing him again.
“Good. Because I love you and I’m not letting you go this time,” he said. “Something comes up from now on and we talk it through.”
“That’s a deal.” She beamed up at him and his heart free-fell. She still had the same effect on him as she did when they first met. She linked their fingers. “I want to make love to my husband again.”
He couldn’t stop himself from smiling. He picked her up and she wrapped her long legs around his midsection. “What are you waiting for?”
Chapter Seventeen
“The setup is complete,” Vic said to her over the phone, and Maria caught on to how tired her boss sounded.
“I want to take a shift on surveillance,” she said. “I’ve spoken to him before and I want to get a sense of his disposition.”
“You aren’t allowed anywhere near my investigation, remember,” Vic said.
“The doc left half an hour ago. The paperwork clearing me to return to work should be in your inbox,” she said, thankful that the O’Brien name could move mountains when needed. She’d cashed in a few chips to make that happen.
A moment of silence passed before Vic acquiesced. “You’re going to have to fill me in later on how you managed to get the doctor to visit your residence.”
That meant he was considering it.
“Can’t divulge all my secrets, can I?” she asked, trying to bring levity into the situation. When a dark and tense situation loomed, it was common to make jokes to ease some of the anxiety created by adrenaline. Hers was already starting to pump through her, giving her a jolt of extra energy. Experience had taught her that it would continue until long after the situation went down, leaving her exhausted. It was also the thing that gave her an edge, making her mind sharper and giving a boost to her physical strength. She wanted closure, she wanted Halpern or whoever was responsible for trolling for juveniles to be locked away. And yet, the usual hum of excitement that accompanied the feeling of a case that was about to break open escaped her. She’d always said that when the feeling was gone out of her job that it would be time to walk away. She shelved the thought for now, not sure what to do with it. The only thing she knew for certain was that when this sting was over she planned to talk to her husband about it and listen to his point of view.
After a long pause from Vic, where she figured he was checking his inbox, he finally said, “Fine. You’re in.”
“Thank you, sir,” she said.
“But this is observational only,” he warned.
“Got it,” she said, thinking she needed to be on guard because Halpern had been great at ambushing her so far. If she got any weird feelings while watching the sting she’d get out of there. “I’ll be on my best behavior.”
“You’d better be. I need you back on cases ASAP,” he demanded, and he was starting to sound like himself.
Instead of confirming, she asked, “How’s Cliff?”
“Better. Last night was long but he’s sitting up now and asking for fish tacos of all things,” he said with a slight chuckle.
“Sounds like him.” Relief washed over her at the first sign that maybe no one else would die before this case was solved.
“The nurse gave in but threatened to give him the boot if his wife sneaked in beer,” Vic said on another chuckle.
“Then, he’ll make a full recovery?” She held her breath until his confirmation came a second later.
Then silence filled the line.
Vic spoke first. “We’ll get this dirtbag. I don’t care who he turns out to be. He’s going down hard for what he’s done.”
“What makes Wheeler think this might be Halpern?” she asked.
“The accepted invitation came from his IP address,” he confirmed.
“That’s what I suspected,” she stated. “Vic.”
“Yeah?” he asked in that nasally voice that said he most likely had a raging headache.
“How many bars are left on the candy?” she asked.
“Three.”
“He’s going to jail today,” she said.
“That’s the plan.” Vic relayed the details of the sting operation next. Agent Wheeler and Vic would be set up in a mobile command vehicle in the parking lot of a strip shopping center. Another agent would be set up a block behind the center, and in the back of the house where Maria would be. As soon as Halpern showed, he’d be arrested. It sounded simple enough but she had enough experience to know sting operations rarely were executed neatly or went as planned.
Maria jotted down pertinent information of who, when and where.
“I’ll keep my head down,” she said. “I won’t blow our cover.”
“I know you won’t,” he said after a pause.
Austin stood nearby in the kitchen and she could feel his gaze on her. She ended the call with her boss, promising again that no one would recognize her.
“It’s going down at four o’clock today,” she said. “Vic will be in a mobile unit with Wheeler on the street. There’s a house set up for surveillance directly behind the strip mall, which is to be the meet-up point with the undercover ‘victim.’”
Austin walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He looked her in the eyes and asked, “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“I’m feeling better. My memories have returned. Doc gave me clearance to return to work,” she said, and then brought her hands up to his shoulders. “I need to see him arrested. I need to see him locked away. I need that closure so I can move on with my life. As long as he’s free I might as well be a prisoner in my own home.”
“This is not a bad place to be.” Austin eased back a step and folded his arms over his chest. She could tell that she was making headway, which was good because she needed him to be on board.
“Vic said I’m on the sideline for this one. I’m not going to be involved in the arrest,” she continued.
“As long as you’re not part of the sting,” he said. “And as long as I can go with you.”
“I’m pretty sure that Vic knows we’re a package deal,” she said. “Believe me, I’m happy watching from the bench on this one.”
He didn’t exactly smile but he nodded and that was close enough.
“And when this is over, I want to talk to you about something,” she hedged.
“Like what?” he asked.
“Not now. I don’t want to jinx anything,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. Austin had gotten very serious when she’d called her boss. She couldn’t blame him. If the shoe were on the other foot she wouldn’t like it, either. Because she was about to come face-to-face with the man who wanted her dead.
