by Simply BWWM
All her selfies were the artistic shots of the painfully shy, showing one honey colored eye against caramel skin, a perfect ringlet of dark hair with artificial red highlights dangling just short of her lashes. Another showed only her nose, eyes and forehead, with the hashtag “stressed” in the caption. There were only two pictures that showed her full face, and even those were useless. From the neck up, there was no way to tell her body type. She could be tall or short, curved or petite. The only thing he knew was she was a light-skinned black woman with shoulder length, curly hair. That was it.
“This is pointless,” he growled, his voice echoing in the empty office.
Half the women in the pictures had deep tans and hats pulled over their faces to block out the sun. With nothing but her face to go on, he might as well not have a picture.
He closed his eyes, letting out an angry breath and looking at the clock. It was after midnight, and he needed to get some rest so he could set out early in the morning.
Grabbing his phone, he shut his computer down and left the office, headed straight for bed. He couldn’t look at another picture, and the next day promised to be another brutal one. He was spiraling outward, and he’d already covered all the popular trails. Tomorrow marked the start of his exploration of the permit-only trails, and the trails that were closed for the season.
He didn’t think George would have gone to either of those places, and a discreet call to the ranger’s station had told him that George had never pulled a permit, but he had to check regardless. The terrain was so grueling that he’d decided to set up camp, and each day he would cover one section, bed down for the night and start again fresh in the morning. His supplies were packed, permit pulled, and away messages set on all his accounts.
The last thing I need is a search party looking for me, he thought, shaking his head and falling into bed.
He rolled over and put his phone on the bedside table, burrowing into his covers and enjoying the last night in his comfortable bed.
“How did all those people hike Mount Rainier and not one person saw him?” he wondered aloud, starting to drift off to sleep.
Something tugged at his consciousness as he did, and all at once, he sat up.
What about Lincoln? Will thought. He’d completely forgotten that he’d seen Lincoln there with a friend on Labor Day. He had enough bags that Will was sure he had his equipment with him, which meant hours and hours of unedited feed. It was possible that Lincoln had accidentally caught a glimpse of George, if he was even there that day.
“He’s not going to tell you shit,” he grumbled, rolling over and grabbing his phone anyway.
He opened his direct messages, scrolling down until he got to the last conversation he’d had with Lincoln. It had been over a year before, and it wasn’t a good one.
He cringed when he saw some of the things that he’d said in anger, but maybe he could appeal to Lincoln’s sense of duty. He wasn’t asking for the feeds, just for Lincoln to let him know if he’d seen George or captured him on camera at some point.
It took him a few tries, but he finally composed a message that he was sure would get him what he wanted.
Lincoln. Not sure if you remember, but I saw you at Mount Rainier on Labor Day. I’m not asking for your videos or anything, but I’ve attached a picture of a man that I’m looking for. Is there a chance that you or your friend saw him that day? He would’ve been with a woman named Charity Derrick, or he may have been alone. I would appreciate any video stills you have with him, or any information on his location if you saw him. I know we’ve had our differences, but this man’s life may be in danger and his family is worried about him. Thank you for your time.
He closed the phone and rolled back over. It was a long-shot, and there was a real chance that Lincoln was going to tell him to go to hell. But it was worth more than a million dollars to Will, and that kind of money was worth making nice with your enemy.
Hopefully, Lincoln would grace him with an answer before he left for his week away in the morning, but he wasn’t going to hold his breath. He’d burned that bridge long ago, and Will knew that Lincoln would never admit to owing him a thing. He’d learned that the hard way.
Chapter9
The gentle rays of light were just starting to make their way into the room when Charity stretched and rolled over, snuggling against Lincoln, who was still naked beside her.
He opened his eyes and smiled, kissing her on the forehead and hugging her tight.
“Did you sleep well?” he asked, his voice low and gravelly with sleep.
“I slept better than I have in a long time.”
“Good sex will do that,” he teased.
“Feeling safe in your arms did that.”
The smile slid from his face for a moment, and she was afraid she’d said something wrong. But when he nodded and kissed her again, she knew it was more than that. He’d bared his soul to her, sharing the pain of growing up with his own controlling father, with his honesty helping her tear down her own walls in the process. Connecting with someone on that level had left her speechless many times over the past few days, and it looked like she wasn’t the only one feeling all the feels.
“I get you,” she said, kissing him before rolling out of bed and strutting across the room naked on her way to the shower.
She turned on the faucet, surprised when the water fell from the ceiling like a heavy rain. The shower was huge, at least three times the size of her tub and shower combination in her apartment, and the entire ceiling rained down ensuring that, whether she stood in the middle or sat on the tile bench, she would be drenched.
“I need to get me one of these,” she muttered under her breath, adjusting the temperature with the touchscreen outside the stall.
The water was just starting to warm when the door opened and Lincoln joined her in the large glass enclosure.
“This is a nice surprise,” she said, wrapping her arms around him.
“I thought you’d enjoy it,” he said, grabbing her ass and pulling her closer as they kissed.
She wrapped her legs around his hips and he guided her onto his already rigid shaft. She rode him hard and fast, the water cooler than the heat radiating from their intertwined bodies.
Her body responded to him so quickly it was dizzying. Within minutes, she felt the familiar flood of heat fill her entire body, and then the orgasm crashed over her. She thrust harder and faster, her voice echoing off the frosted glass, her body drenched from the deluge that rained down on them unrelenting.
When he grunted and buried his face in her neck, she held onto him even tighter, riding the waves of pleasure with him until he sighed and lowered her onto her own two feet.
Her legs felt shaky as she stood there, but Lincoln was right there to steady her. She leaned against his broad, bare chest and for the longest time they stood there, swaying in each other’s arms as the water trickled over every inch of their bodies.
“This place is spectacular,” she said, still standing in his arms. “I’ve never seen a shower like this, and they literally thought of everything, right down to fresh shower poufs instead of washcloths.”
“It is a luxury hotel,” he said, his tone light and teasing.
“I’ve never been anywhere like this. I could definitely get used to living this way.”
He pulled away, smiling at her and reaching past her to grab the shower pouf she’d opened the night before and a bottle of lotion-rich shower gel. Lincoln squeezed a large amount of creamy bodywash into the pouf and worked it in his hand until it had a nice, rich lather.
Washing her from head to toe, he lingered over every curve and every dip, all but worshipping her body with each pass of the delicate mesh in his hand. She waited patiently until he was through, his touch setting her body on fire again. She was sore, and her muscles were tired, but she was already thinking about being in his arms again. So much had changed in one night. She was glad she’d taken a leap of faith and told him how she felt.
/>
When he was done, she gave him the same treatment. She laughed when he moaned appreciatively under her rough touch across his back and shoulders.
“That feels amazing,” he said. “Keep that up and we’re never leaving this shower.”
He chuckled at his own joke, the deep, sexy sound sending butterflies soaring in her stomach. Did he know how amazing he was? He was masculine, strong, and forceful, but everything about him was effortless. He didn’t have to bend people to his will because they wanted to make him happy. And though he was the typical alpha male, he was kind to a fault and completely self-assured.
He was everything a man should be without trying to be.
“Penny for your thoughts?” he said, touching her cheek with aching tenderness that almost undid her.
“I was just thinking about you.”
He laughed nervously.
“But I’m right here,” he said.
“I know.”
She smiled then impulsively kissed him before stepping out of the shower and grabbing a towel. She tossed him a towel from the clean stack in the linen closet and watched him while she scrunched her hair dry.
“My cabin is done,” he said without preamble. “The only thing left to do is have the furniture delivered, which will happen this morning.”
“I thought it was pretty remote,” she said.
She took the plush robe he handed her and cinched it tightly around the waist, then followed him into the room. He picked up his phone while he talked, holding it in one hand while he gathered his clothes from where they’d landed on the floor.
“It is remote, but I convinced the construction crew that built the place to do it for me. They’re assembling it as we speak, according to their text.”
He was scrolling through the texts as if to show her, then his brow furrowed, and he hastily dropped his phone in his pocket.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I just have more notifications than I expected. Nothing important.”
“I’m always most popular when I’m busy,” Charity offered, still wondering at his sudden change of mood, but brushing it off.
Whatever it was, it was probably none of her business. She wasn’t about to let the paranoia and fear that had defined her relationship with George to creep in on her now. She had enough going on without borrowing trouble.
Lincoln sat down on the edge of the bed, patting the area beside him with an inviting smile.
She sat down, turned facing him.
“I was thinking. What if we spent some time at the cabin? I know it’s not a luxury hotel, but it’s beautiful, and it’s way out of town. It’s near Lake Kachess.”
“Isn’t that a little close to Mount Rainier?” she asked.
He shook his head.
“Even as the crow flies, it’s over an hour away.”
“What about the hotel?”
“I’ll keep it for a while longer.” He took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. “There will come a time when he is found or something else happens, and you’ll be called in for questioning.”
“Or he could never be found.”
“That too,” Lincoln said. “In fact, that would be ideal.”
“It’s been over a week since his mother called me,” she said hopefully. “Maybe they’ll follow another lead.”
“And maybe they won’t,” he said.
Her face fell and she nodded. She knew that it was inevitable, and the waiting had her on edge.
He cupped her cheek and tilted her head gently so that she looked at him.
“I have the lawyer covered already, and remember, they have to call you in. Which means that you can’t just be broadsided and brought in without having time to prepare.”
“What if they call and want me there immediately?”
He smiled.
“That’s not how it works now,” he said. “And that’s the beauty of the cabin. Set an away message on your website and your social media. Nothing revealing. Just let people know that you’ll be unplugging for a few weeks and feel free to leave a message or an email and you’ll get back to them when you return.”
“And you think that will work?”
He shrugged.
“It’s something very common for people who are plugged in twenty-four-seven to do, and you’re already known to be an avid hiker and nature lover. Checking out of the rat race for a week or two is reasonable.”
“Well, it does when you say it like that, but I have bills to pay.”
“I’ll pay them,” he said, matter-of-factly. “That’s not an issue.”
“I can’t let you pay my bills,” she said quietly.
He sighed.
“Listen, I wasn’t going to tell you, but I guess the only way to convince you to do things my way is to tell you everything.”
Her stomach dropped. Nothing good ever happened after an intro like that.
“Alright, so tell me.”
“Remember that guy we met on the way to my truck?”
“Yes.”
“I was posting my videos last night before you had your dream, and I saw that he was asking for people that had been at Mount Rainier Labor Day Week to tag him in their pictures or send him a direct message.”
“Oh no,” she said, stomach in knots. “But it could be a coincidence, right?”
“That’s what I was hoping, but then I got a message from him this morning.”
He handed her the phone and pointed at the message. Her mouth went dry when she read it, and panic began to well up inside her.
“That’s not good,” she said. “Oh my gosh, Lincoln, they’re going to find out.”
“Deep breaths,” he said. “It’s still not definitive, and I don’t think he knows anything because if he did, he would have asked your name.”
Charity was still struggling to calm herself.
“So, do you see why I think we need to hang out at the cabin for a while?”
“I do. But what if Mr. Wittman sees that I’ve left and thinks that I’m running?”
“He won’t, because if you don’t put dates on the message, he won’t have any way of knowing when you decided to leave. I’m going to keep the hotel room indefinitely, so we have somewhere to go and prepare if they call us, but we can’t just sit here, holed up like caged animals, waiting for the shit to hit the fan.”
She hesitated for a moment, going through all her options and discarding them just as quickly as they came up. Then she finally gave in because she knew that he was right.
“So, what’s the plan?”
“You didn’t bring much, so we’ll pack up your stuff and I’ll take what I need. We’ll leave the rest here.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll need a list of the bills you have.”
“I really don’t want to owe you anything more than I already do.”
“You don’t owe me a thing.”
“I owe you my life,” she said.
“And I’m still trying to save it. Let me, please, Charity. Trust me.”
“I will,” she said. “But this is hard for me.”
“I know it is. Let me try to make this right so you can move on with your life and forget everything he did to you. You deserve that and more, Charity. Let me take care of you.”
When she finally nodded, he hugged her tight and kissed her soundly on the lips. She was reeling when he let her go, but he was already in motion.
“You get packed and I’ll get breakfast started after I make some calls. If we leave after breakfast, we should be there by lunch.”
Before she could say anything, he had left the room, and she was left to pack or get left behind. She laughed, shaking her head. As crazy as everything was, Lincoln being there made it all better. She just hoped that he wouldn’t bounce when this was all over.
She’d guarded her heart for a long time, but somehow, Lincoln had found his way through her carefully constructed defenses. She didn’t know when it had happened, but she’d fa
llen in love with Lincoln, and she knew better than most that falling in love could complicate things.
Chapter10
Charity stepped out of the car, awed by the cabin that Lincoln had called both quaint and rustic. It was anything but.
“This place is huge,” she said. “I thought you were going for primitive living.”
He laughed.
“I grew up in a mansion with my own nanny, my own personal kid chef, a maid and a slew of tutors, coaches, and advisors. Cooking my own meals and doing my own laundry is primitive living for me.”
She shook her head, laughing at the exaggerated grimace he made to get his point across.
“You’re an excellent cook,” she said.
“Thank you,” he said, grabbing her bags and his and leading the way into the cabin.
When he opened the door, a gasp escaped her lips. The cabin was two stories, with beautifully stained wood floors and a winding staircase that looked like something out of the movies. The outside looked like a normal wood cabin despite the size, but inside, the walls and floors looked like any other house in Seattle. There were windows and skylights everywhere, and it took her a moment to realize that, while the house was bathed in light, there wasn’t a single man-made light on in the house.
“This is amazing,” she said.
“If you like the foyer, you should see the rest of the house.”
“Very funny.”
“I knew you would like it here. How about a tour?”
He set her bags down in the foyer and took her hand, leading her through every room of the house.
“This kitchen is to die for,” she said, taking in the marble countertops, the large island in the center, and the appliances a professional chef would kill to have in their home kitchen. “That refrigerator is big enough to store food for a small army.”
“During the winter, the road is sometimes impassable. I’ll be stuck here for weeks at a time, so I needed to make sure I could ride out an epic snowstorm.”
“What’s through that door?”
