Caching Out (13 page)

Emma
Gage-Echo pulled her bag off the luggage carousel at the Pine Ridge Airport and
slid the handle up, dragging it behind her as she slipped out the glass double
doors of the airport and stood in the passenger pick-up area. Looking at the
black hills in the distance, she thought that Tate had been right to leave the
FBI and come back here. “This is where he belongs,” she whispered.

Tate
had been a great agent and they had been an amazing team until they fell in love.
Frustrated that she would even think the word ‘love,’ Emma stamped her foot on
the smooth pavement and whispered to herself, “Emma Grant-Echo don’t you dare
forget that Tate is off limits. Do
not
forget how it was in the end. That
sweet man turned into an absolute idiot, remember?”

She
remembered alright. Every time she pulled a case he freaked out and his constant
worrying had made them both crazy until they split apart like a tree struck by
lightning; two pieces belonging together but separated by hot jagged edges that
no longer fit.

Emma
caught sight of Tate’s SUV and watched as he steered over to the curb. All six
feet plus of him unfolded from the vehicle.
Damn he looks good
. A little
tremor skittered down her back. Unable to move, Emma stared as Tate slid his
cap on and strode toward her
.

One
step
.
His hair was a little long, the dark strands touching the collar of his brown
uniform.

Two
steps
.
His grey eyes were intense and questioning as they locked with hers.

Three
steps.
Emma had always loved those eyes—and those long ‘belonged on a woman’ lashes framing
them.

Four
steps. Get a grip Emma, and lighten up, okay?
 

Five
steps.
Do something before you melt into a puddle on the sidewalk
, her mind
screamed.   

Emma
turned her back to him and posed with one hand on her hip. She shifted her
weight so that her back side moved provocatively in the tight jeans. She
watched Tate’s face over her shoulder.

Six
steps.
Emma
smiled, “Tell me, Tate, is it still a pretty little tail or what?” 

Seven
steps. Was that a growl?

Emma
turned to face him, let go of the bag at her side and lifted her arms. Her feet
left the ground as Tate pulled her into his embrace. Emma wrapped her arms
tightly around his neck, closed her eyes and held on. Her fingers found their way
to the hair at his nape on their own, weaving themselves into the soft dark
strands. She pushed closer and breathed in the scent of him as she silently
warned herself.
It won’t work Emma.

            Watching
Emma turn and shake her backside, had really gotten to Tate.
Get over it
Echo. You can’t have it.
Forcing his legs to move, Tate took another step
and then another until her reached her. He wrapped her in a tight, and long
overdue hug. Tate forced himself to stop thinking, allowing himself to let go
and just feel for the first time in a very long time. Emma in his arms. Her body
pressed flush against his. Tate closed his eyes and savored the sweet citrusy
smell of her hair, the feel of her breasts pushed tight against his chest. Silently
he cursed.
Tate what have you gotten yourself into? You know you’ll never
keep her.

Letting
her body slide against his, Tate set Emma down and playfully swatted her
backside. “You know damn well that your ass is just as gorgeous as it ever was,
just like you knew I wouldn’t be able to look away when you turned around and
shook it for me.”

Emma
laughed and turned toward the SUV with her bag in tow. Reaching out, Tate took
her arm and pulling her around to face him. “Em, it’s good to see you, but
don’t think for even a minute that I’m not going to ask you some very personal
questions about why you’re here.” 

Opening
the rear door  of the SUV, Tate tossed Emma’s bag inside and watched her
closely as she silently slid into the passenger seat and pulled the door
closed.

Tate
hopped in and started the vehicle then turned to face her. “So, where to?”

“Your
house, of course. Surely you don’t expect your ex-wife to stay in a hotel. What
would your mother say if she found out that you were that unaccommodating?”

Tate
felt the rumble of a growl in his chest again, or maybe it was a groan. Tate pressed
the gas pedal and the SUV eased out, moving smoothly into the light traffic
around the terminal.

Tate
shook his head and frowned, “Emma, I don’t know what’s going on or why exactly you’re
here, but you can bet the farm that I intend to find out.”

She
ignored the comment.

He
slid her a  sideways glance, “You know that you’re welcome to stay at my house,
even better, stay in my bed, but I need to understand what the rules are and
what exactly you are up to.” 

CHAPTER 20

“Look,
Dad, it’s not that hard to use. You just put the coordinates from the geocaching
website into the GPS and then you follow it to the site and voila, the treasure’s
yours!” Tapping one manicured finger on the small screen, Jewel Mabry continued,
“This thing will get you within a couple of feet of the cache and then you use
the clues that are on the website to find it.” 

Jewel
handed the GPS over to her sixty-year-old dad, who turned it over in his large,
work-roughened hand while looking at the small screen. Today was his birthday,
the handheld GPS a gift from Jules.

 “You’re
going to like this better than your metal detector, because you’ll always find
the treasure—no more quarters or bottle caps,” she promised.

Smiling
at his daughter’s excitement and knowing that she’d given him this blasted
thing hoping he would get out and walk more, Walter patted Jewel’s hand. Since
his heart attack last spring, she’d come up with any number of ways to keep him
busy. First it was that damned treadmill, then the metal detector, now this.

“Okay,
Jules, I’ll give it a try. Help me find some of those treasure numbers on the
computer and get ‘em loaded in before you leave. I might just take me a drive
this afternoon and see what I find.”

After
helping her father load several nearby cache coordinates into his new GPS,
Jewel kissed him goodbye on the cheek.“Don’t be out late Dad, remember we’re
all having dinner for your birthday over at The Rib Shack, seven sharp.” 

 “Don’t
you worry none about that baby girl.” Walter smiled, “I won’t be one minute
late. I can smell the wood smoke and that sweet sauce now.” 

Laughing
at her father’s excitement over the dinner, Jewel stepped off the porch and
walked to her car. She turned, blowing him a kiss, “Love you, Daddy!” 

Reaching
down, Walt placed one hand on the head of a German shepherd standing on the
porch next to him then waved, “Love you too sweetie.”  He continued to wave as he
watched his only child backed her car from the drive. When he could no longer
see her car on the dirt road leading to his farm, Walt turned and went inside, the
dog following on his heels.

Walt
sat in a faded tan recliner, and examined his new birthday gift for a minute
before exchanging it for the television remote. Reaching over and rubbing the
dog’s head he said, “Maybe tomorrow, King. Yeah, we’ll go looking for treasure
tomorrow. Judge Judy is coming on in a few minutes and I can’t miss that old
broad making a fool out of somebody today.”

Placing
one large paw on his master’s knee, the dog stared at him with rich brown eyes.

“Don’t
you worry none, King, I’ll be sure to bring you home some nice juicy rib
bones.”  Walt continued to rub the dog’s head, laughing at the dog’s excited
tail wag. “That is, if I don’t gnaw the bones myself. Been way to long since I
had some barbeque ribs. Jewel makes sure everything in this house is green or
made of cardboard. She says ‘fiber is good for you, Dad.’ Hah!  You’re lucky
she hasn’t took away your favorite treats, King, or caught us down at the diner
on meatloaf day.” 

Flipping
through the channels to find his show, Walt shook his head. What would Jules
come up with next? “Here we go, King. All rise!” Letting out a sharp bark the
dog lay down at his master’s feet resting his large head on his paws.

CHAPTER 21

Sliding
out of the SUV, Emma looked appreciatively at Tate’s home for a minute. Sitting
off the road a few hundred feet, the house was small but neat on the outside
with a large front yard that had been recently mowed. Sighing, Emma thought
that the only thing missing here was a couple kids playing in the yard and a
pretty woman in the doorway to welcome him home. Her mind traveled further down
that path and she wondered how long it would be before Tate added the missing
pieces to his small town life.

 
This
could have been your fairytale
, her heart screamed.
He begged you to
come with him
. 

As
Tate rounded the front of the SUV, Emma pasted a smile on her face and moved
aside so he could pull the rear door open.

Grabbing
Emma by the hand, Tate pulled her up the driveway and the steps leading to the
front door. He pushed the door open and stepped back so that she could enter
before him.

“You
always leave your door unlocked?”  Emma asked.

Moving
past her in the small entryway, Tate turned down the hallway with her bag in
tow. “Yeah well you never know when an ex-wife or two might show up needing a
place to stay.” 

Emma
followed Tate into a small bedroom at the end of the hallway and watched him
sit her bag down inside the door then point to a nearby bathroom.

“I’ve
got a couple steaks in the fridge, so make yourself at home while I get the
grill started. And Em, just so you don’t think I’ve forgotten, first we eat,
then we talk.” 

Emma
stood and listened as the sound of his boots on the smooth wooden floor faded.
She hoisted her bag onto the bed and unzipped it, staring at her clothes for a
moment. She sat on the edge of the bed.
Emma, what are you doing here?
She
wondered.

 In
her heart, she admitted the answer to her question; his voice on the line after
so long just wasn’t enough. She had to see him, smell him, touch him and have
him touch her back. His needing her help gave her an excuse and the impulse
overwhelmed common sense.  In that weak moment she’d hopped a plane to South
Dakota; so now what? This would be self-torture at its best and at worst,
emotional suicide. She buried her face in her hands.
Emma you are a fool. Do
you have any idea how hard it’s going to be to walk away from him this time
?

Emma
pushed herself up from the bed and crossed the hall to the bathroom. Bending at
the white pedestal sink, she splashed her face with cool water trying to calm
her nervous energy.
You are here to help find a killer and that is all, Emma.
That is all. Now, go help Tate with dinner and pretend everything is fine.
 

Emma
stopped in the hallway when she reached the door to Tate’s bedroom. She
couldn’t resist a peek. The room was large with double windows facing the back
yard. The late day sun drifted across the room through open blinds. A king-sized
bed dominated the room. In one corner, an overstuffed arm chair sat near a
window and was flanked by a small table, its smooth wooden surface dust free
and topped with an open book that lay face down saving Tate’s place in the text.
Crossing to the table Emma picked up a gold picture frame sitting next to the
book, a photo of them taken shortly after their wedding. With one finger she
traced a line across the faces of the laughing couple in the photo. Tate stood
behind her, his arms locked around her waist while she twisted back looking up
at him.
We were happy then
.

“Reminds
you of better days, huh?” 

Emma
was startled to see Tate standing in the doorway, his shoulder resting against
the frame. “Why didn’t we try harder Em?”

He’d
changed from his uniform and the soft t-shirt that he wore clung to the hard
muscles of his chest and arms. Sucking in a quick breath, Emma bent and
returned the photo to its place. Emma stepped around him into the hallway and
said, “Let’s just put everything on hold for one night, okay? No blame, no
questions; just two old friends catching up, alright?”

Tate
trailed behind her as they went down the hall, “Sure Em—one night and then
you’re going to tell me what the hell you’re really doing in Pine Ridge.” 

Hours
later, the sun had given up its last rays to make way for the night and the
occasional glow of a firefly flittered in the air, blinking a florescent
yellow-green. Puffy trails of smoke escaping the grill snuck skyward in the
soft breeze and disappeared into the darkness.

“The
steaks were great,” Emma sighed. 

Tate
twisted the top off a bottle of beer and handed it to Emma. “Glad you liked
them.” 

Relaxing
in the darkness, Emma watched as the sky filled with stars. “It’s so peaceful
here. No traffic, no sirens. And the stars! You can see so many more here than
I can in the city.” She wanted to talk about the murders, but knew that
tomorrow would be soon enough to talk about the case and all the other things
she’d tried to forget. But for tonight, she wanted to rest and drink in the
peace and comfort she felt just knowing Tate was close by.