A Stranger on Her Doorstep

by Julie Miller

  Then he was inside her, thrusting up to meet her tight heat, loving every touch, every gasp of pleasure she gave.

  When they were on the brink, she braced her hand against his chest. “This is where you say, ‘I love you, Willow.’”

  He shook his head. “I love you, Ava.”

  He pulled her down on top of him, claiming her mouth in a kiss. He slipped his thumb in between them where they were linked and pressed the sensitive bud that took her to the top of the mountain. And as Ava gasped his name—his name, “Luke...”—beside his ear, the tension in him released. He thrust into her one more time, topping the crest and following her down the other side.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Ava slept soundly, free from nightmares, claimed by the most beautiful kind of exhaustion. After waking with the sunrise to put Maxie out for her morning constitutional and feed her beloved pet, she went back upstairs to return to Luke’s arms and discover other sorts of pleasure that didn’t require the protection they lacked.

  She’d learned that the numbers beneath the tattoo were a tribute to the men and women he’d lost in his unit, marking the date of their ultimate sacrifice. Ava had kissed each number, then kissed the man bearing the tribute, before he’d pulled the quilt over them both and she’d drifted off with her lips smiling against the eagle, globe and anchor.

  The morning sun was shining brightly through the gaps around the window when she awoke to the suffocating sensation of being pressed down onto the bed. She came awake, gasping for air, shoving at the weight that pinned her down.

  “It’s okay, Ava. It’s me.”

  Even as Luke moved the arm and leg that he’d thrown over her while they slept, she was rolling off the edge of the bed. She tumbled onto her knees, then quickly stood up, orienting herself to her surroundings and the sound of Luke’s voice. By the time she focused in on him standing on the opposite side of the bed in his boxer-briefs, she knew she’d ruined the beautiful night they’d shared.

  “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “For a minute, I forgot you were with me. If I had opened my eyes first—”

  “Stop it,” he ordered, his slitted eyes raking over her from head to toe. Ava hugged her arms around herself, knowing that she’d hurt him, but not knowing the words to say to make it right. But then Luke was striding around the bed, pulling her into his arms and giving her the kind of hug she really needed. “I’m not angry at you. I’m mad because you think you need to apologize. Neither one of us is going to be fixed overnight. There are going to be setbacks, but as long as we’re working through them together, I can handle it. I’m in this for the long haul with you, sweetheart. I just need to know that you’re in the fight with me.”

  Sighing with relief, Ava snaked her arms around his waist. What she and Luke had shared this weekend had been more than therapeutic. He hadn’t just reawakened her courage. He’d awakened her heart. Her feelings for this man were new and tender and strong, and she didn’t want to jeopardize this precious gift before she had the chance to explore where a relationship between them might lead once they got past the obstacles of her PTSD, his amnesia and people who wanted him dead.

  How could she not love a man who wasn’t scared of her mood swings, and who kissed like a man on a mission. Wait. Love? Was that where her thoughts had gone? Was that what her heart wanted?

  Clearly needing to start this morning over again, Ava opted for humor. “‘I just need to know that you’re in the fight with me.’ That’s good. Can I use that line in the book?”

  He laughed. “As long as you understand that my promise to you is real, not fiction.”

  Luke stiffened a split second before she heard the crunch of gravel in the distance and Maxie woofed a warning downstairs as a vehicle approached the cabin.

  Luke didn’t bother to ask if she was expecting visitors. “This conversation isn’t over.” He released her to pull on his jeans and dashed across the hallway to grab a T-shirt, boots and his gun.

  Ava pulled underwear and a tank top from her dresser. “You need to get to Stormhaven. Now. Take the back door straight out to the trees. You’ll run into the creek. Turn north and follow it about fifteen, twenty minutes to the cave, depending on how fast you move. They’ll never see you.”

  He reappeared in the doorway, tucking his gun into the back of his jeans. “You’re coming with me.”

  “No. I can distract them while you get away. Nobody’s after me. I need you to be safe. Until your friend gets here, we’re still on our own.” She gestured to the rumpled bed. “I want to do this again. I want to do it better.”

  He took two steps, palmed the back of her neck and pulled her onto her toes for a hard, quick kiss. “Sweetheart, it doesn’t get any better than last night.” Her cheeks were on fire at that blunt reassurance. “But I’m more than willing to practice if that’s what you want.” She laughed and they traded another quick kiss. “Now wipe that blush off your face and throw some pants on so you can answer the door.”

  Ava pulled on her socks and jeans while Luke peeked out the window to see the approaching vehicles. “Looks like the sheriff’s car and a black SUV.” He let the curtain fall shut again. “I don’t like this.” He picked up her cell phone and tucked it into the back pocket of her jeans while she zipped the front. “You’re coming with me.”

  “No.” She grabbed her boots and pushed him into the hallway, hurrying him down the stairs in front of her. “Brandon won’t hurt me. He’s still trying to get me to go out with him again. You, on the other hand, he’ll probably slap in jail.”

  “Ava—”

  “Luke. You’re not supposed to be here. Don’t be here.” She picked up the backpack of supplies they’d prepped the night before, in case they’d needed to make an escape like this, and handed it to him. “If whoever is in that black SUV is the man who tried to kill you, what’s to stop him if he finds you here. And what’s to stop him from killing Brandon and me, too, so there are no witnesses.”

  “Damn, I hate that you’re right.”

  She laid her hand against his jaw, stroking her fingers through his beard. “Sometimes, the only way to win a battle is to avoid it until you’re ready to fight.”

  “Larkin Bonecrusher, Book Two.”

  “You do read my books.”

  “You’ve got my new cell number?” Ava nodded. “Call as soon as you can and let me know what’s going on. If I don’t see your face in an hour, I will come back for you.”

  “It might not be safe.”

  “If anything happens to you, none of this matters.”

  “Hang on.” She ran back to the living room and retrieved a key from her desk. She looped the lanyard attached to it around his neck. “The key to the closet where my gun safe is. The combination is JMW-7334. In case you and your Marine buddies need some backup and I’m not here.”

  “JMW-7334,” he repeated back to her. “I will come back for you.” He brushed his fingers into her hair and tucked it behind her ear before turning to the dog, who watched them curiously. “You. Keep her safe.”

  The crunch of gravel stopped, and they both knew their unwanted guests had pulled into the driveway.

  “Go.” Ava closed the door behind Luke and watched him run to the tree line and disappear.

  Maxie barked and got up as the first car door closed out front. Ava took the time to tie her boots and button her blouse before answering the repeated knocking at her front door.

  She plaited her hair into a loose braid and pulled it over her shoulder to mask her damaged cheek before unlocking the door and opening it to greet Sheriff Stout. Brandon wore mirrored sunglasses beneath the bill of his hat, making it impossible to read his expression. All she could see was her own pale reflection. She needed to do better than cringe and chase people away if she was going to help Luke.

  You’re smart. You’ve got skills now. You’re a survivor. You’ve got thi
s, Ava.

  “Hi.” Brandon pushed her inside and closed the door before she could see who was in the second vehicle. “What are you doing here?”

  “A guy can’t come see his best girl?”

  “With company?” She moved around him to peek through the sidelight and realized the SUV’s windows were tinted. She couldn’t see the driver or if anyone was with him. “Can I get you some coffee or iced tea? Do your friends want anything?”

  When had Ava Wallace ever invited anyone inside her remote home for tea and cookies? But Brandon didn’t seem to notice her unusual politeness. Maybe she was finally acting the way he expected her to.

  “Nah.” He took off his hat and worked the brim between his hands. “Sorry to bug you. I guess you were working?”

  Not exactly. But out loud, she answered, “Yes.”

  “Well, this won’t take too long.” Was the man in the other vehicle not coming in? Or worse, was he walking around her property, searching for Luke? “I understand you talked to a man named Hauser in town yesterday. I’m helping him look for an employee of his who’s gone missing.”

  “Missing?” It was too easy to play dumb with a man who expected her to be clueless about the dangers of the world. Maxie leaned into Ava’s thigh and she gladly ran her fingers over the dog’s head. She needed to stay calm to keep up this friendly facade. “That sounds terrible. His family must be so worried about him.”

  “According to Hauser, he doesn’t have a family. No wife or kids. Dead parents. Only child.”

  She wondered if Luke had remembered that. That was probably one reason why he’d formed such tight bonds with his fellow Marines. They were his family. It was also probably why he’d taken the deaths of Ryan Voltaggio and the rest of his unit so hard. “Well, I’m sure someone’s missing him.”

  “The people he works for would sure like to find him. Hauser wants to come in and ask you some questions. See if you’ve remembered anything helpful about the man you brought in. Doc Russell is looking for him, too. He’s worried your John Doe could be a danger to himself. With that head injury, if he passes out and can’t get help, he could die.” Brandon took off his sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket, finally letting her see the concern lining his eyes. “And since he took off before I got a chance to interview him, I wanted to know if he’d contacted you. Maybe to thank you.”

  Maxie circled around Ava’s legs, perhaps sensing something that Ava couldn’t. Had she missed the other man getting out of his SUV? “Like I told Mr. Hauser yesterday, I couldn’t tell if the picture he showed me matches the man I met or not. I haven’t seen him since.”

  When the dog trotted to the front door and woofed, Brandon rolled his eyes with an impatient huff. “Would you mind putting Maxie in her crate?”

  “Yeah, as a matter of fact, I—”

  “Hauser’s waiting outside, and you know how Maxie is with strangers. The sooner we can have this conversation, the sooner we can get out of your hair.”

  The sharpness of his tone was a little unexpected. “Couldn’t I talk to him out on the front porch? You know I don’t like company at the house.”

  Brandon caught her hand and squeezed it. “Please, Ave. I need your help.” Maybe Hauser had already threatened Brandon. Get the weird recluse to talk or your brakes might go out, too.

  If she’d really been playing her part, she would have pulled free of his grasp. But his plea was her Achilles’ heel. The last time she’d stopped to help a man...had been Luke Broughton. And her time with him had changed her life. He’d changed her self-perception and he’d changed her heart. The least she could do was help a friend she’d known since she was eight years old.

  “Okay. I’ll talk to him. For you.”

  “Thanks, babe.” It wasn’t an act when Brandon hugged her. Her pulse pounded in her ears and her breath locked in her chest. She couldn’t stop herself from pushing away.

  “The Rule of Three, Brandon. Let go.” As soon as he released her, she whistled for Maxie and led her to her crate in the kitchen. She paused for a few seconds to pet the dog, centering herself. “Sorry, girl. Not everybody knows what a love bug you are.”

  She’d just clicked the latch shut when Maxie let out a warning bark.

  In the next second, a scarf looped over her head, settling in front of her eyes and pulling her back. Ava screamed and scratched at the silky material as a knot tightened at the back of her head, catching strands of hair and pinching her scalp.

  She scratched at the hands that were tying the blindfold on. The same hands cinched her arms and lifted her off her feet. “Stop! Why are you doing this?” Something else looped around her eyes, tighter, elasticized, blocking out even the light. Ava twisted, breaking one hand free, and clawed at the nightmare against her skin. “You don’t understand. Please don’t do this! Brandon!”

  The arms that carried her tightened their grip. “It’s for your own safety, babe. If you don’t see faces, you can’t identify anyone, and there’s no reason to hurt you. I asked them if we could handle it this way.”

  “Them?”

  “I don’t want you to get hurt. I love you. I want a future with you.”

  Ava was screaming, thrashing against the restraint of his arms and chest. She kicked at his shins, tried to throw him off balance. She was sinking into the darkness, helpless again. “Do you know what a panic attack is? Did you ever wonder why I have them?”

  “This is the only way. These people don’t like witnesses.”

  Think, Ava! Stay in the moment. With Luke fleeing for his life and Maxie caged, no one could help her if she got trapped in the past. She had to be strong. She had to be smart.

  There was a flaw in Brandon’s logic. She might not know who he was talking about, but she knew him. And if he was involved with Bell Design Systems, then she was a witness to that involvement. She wasn’t safe. Brandon might not even realize that he wasn’t safe.

  The front door opened. She felt the warmth of the sun on her skin, but she couldn’t see anything. “Brandon, please!”

  “It’s all right.” Brandon was shouting past her to someone else. “The dog is secured, and she can’t see anything.”

  “Let go of me!”

  She heard footsteps on the wood porch. More than one set of footsteps. At least one person was heavy enough to make the steps creak.

  “Why is she flailing around like that?” an unfamiliar voice asked. “Tie her up. If she raises her voice again, put a gag in her mouth.”

  She felt light-headed when the first metal bracelet locked around her wrist. She took a wild swing at her captor, but Brandon caught her arm and pulled it behind her with a painful wrench to her shoulder. “Come on, Ave. I’m trying to save you here. Cooperate.”

  With the handcuffs locked around her wrists, Brandon dragged her back into the living room and pushed her down onto the sofa. As he warned her to stay put, she heard the other men moving through her house. Opening doors, clinking dishes in the kitchen. Rifling through her desk.

  “What are they doing? Please take off the blindfold. I have a phobia—”

  “There are no BDS flash drives here.” That voice she knew, didn’t she? But it was hard to place it with the terror swirling around inside her head.

  “Brandon, I can’t see.”

  “That’s the whole idea. Come on, baby. Stop acting crazy. These men need to ask you a few questions.”

  “And I have to be blindfolded and handcuffed to answer?” And poor Maxie, growling and barking, desperate to get to her. Someone banged on her cage and she stopped for a second, then barked again, sounding a lot less like a big, friendly galoot and a lot more like a beast who wanted to take someone’s head off. “You’re a fool, Brandon. No wonder I couldn’t confide in you.”

  “Confide in me about what?”

  “Didn’t you ever wonder why I’d changed when I mo
ved back here?” She rocked back and forth, willing the past to stay in the past, knowing she needed to focus on the present to survive.

  “It’s okay, Ave. I’m taking care of everything.”

  “I don’t need to be taken care of.”

  “Do you know who I am, Ms. Baines?” A new voice spoke. An older voice. One she didn’t recognize.

  Brandon squeezed her shoulder and she nearly jumped off the couch. “I told you this is Ava Wallace.”

  “He doesn’t know?”

  Ava forced herself to stop rocking and shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Don’t be stupid. I dislike stupid people.” Then this man must despise Brandon.

  She heard footsteps on the stairs. One man. She wondered how many were still here with her.

  The older man’s voice continued. “I know you’re A. L. Baines, Miss Wallace. My daughters are huge fans of yours. They have a crush on some knight named Larkin Bonecrusher.”

  Play dumb. “The Bonecrusher Chronicles. I’ve read those, too. Pretty entertaining books.”

  “I also know what happened to you in Chicago two years ago.” Everything in Ava went still. “I know that Detective Gabriel Charles has made an arrest based on a recent murder, and he will be calling you later today about identifying the man and giving a sworn deposition.”

  “You hacked into my case file at CPD?”

  “I’m pretty good with technology. What I don’t know personally, I can hire people from all over the world to do for me.” This man thought he had the upper hand. Right now, he probably did. But this fight wasn’t over. She needed to assess her enemy and gather evidence until the moment came to fight this battle. “I needed to know who I was working with and the best way to get what I wanted from you.”

  “Which is?”

  “I believe you know more about Luke Broughton than you let on to Sheriff Stout.”

  “And you thought inciting a panic attack by sending me a message from my kidnapper would ensure my cooperation?”