Fated Hearts (25 page)

Feet dangling, she reached back and worked the clasp with a practiced twist of her fingers. With his breath on her skin, she pulled off one strap and then the other, letting the undergarment fall to the floor. She funneled her fingers through his hair and over his neck and kneaded his shoulders while he licked and nibbled at her flesh.

Carter laid her back on the bed and then sat next to her with one hand splayed over her quivering belly. She watched him take off his shoes and socks. He stood beside the bed, dug a condom out of his back pocket, and placed it on the nightstand, his eyes locked to hers. She knew he was offering her an out if she wanted one. She didn’t.

She rolled onto her knees and undid his jeans. She tugged the material down his legs and dropped them. Henley scooted back on the mattress as he climbed onto the bed. They were on their sides, face to face, kissing, touching. She wanted more. She needed it.

“Carter, I need you. Please make love with me.”

He lifted her hips and pulled off her panties. “Beautiful.” He sighed. Henley’s breath caught in her throat when he wiggled out of his boxers. He opened the foil wrapper and looked into her eyes as he rolled on the rubber. “I wish we could do without this. But the only thing I want more than to feel you take all of me with nothing between us is to protect you.”

She braced his body between her thighs. And she felt the power that roiled through him mingle with her desire. It was heady. Her back arched off the bed in anticipation. When they were finally one, she shattered. Then he made her whole again.

• • •

“We should’ve done that months ago.” Henley ran her hand over his back and felt his laughter. She smiled at the back of his head.

“Doc, I’ve been wanting to get you into bed since I first saw you.” He turned his face toward her on the pillow they shared. His body was slung over hers, and she was wrapped in a blanket of mutual contentment. He kissed the tip of her nose. “And out of bed. In the shower. Mmm, the kitchen.”

“I had no idea you were such a lech.”

“It’s my secret shame.” His palm coasted over her curves.

“Since we’re telling secrets: I’ve got a thing for your back.”

“My back?”

“Yeah. It’s sexy.”

“Not, you know, my front?”

“I like your front. But your back does something for me.”

“I think my feelings are hurt.” She could tell they weren’t.

“You’ve got amazing musculature. Lean, strong muscles. You’re in shape, but you’re not bulky. It’s hot.” She traced the line of his bicep. “Good arms, too. Where do you exercise? I haven’t seen a gym in town.”

“I run a few mornings a week.”

“That must be hard in the winter.”

“Mmm-hmm. Try impossible. We get a lot of snow, but on the upside, all the shoveling makes extra exercise unnecessary.”

“So all this”—she skimmed a hand from his shoulder to hip—“is from jogging and shoveling. Lucky me.”

“And excellent genes. Can I ask you a question?” He rolled onto his side and pulled her onto hers. Their legs entwined, they faced each other, noses nearly touching, breathing in tandem with Henley’s nipples brushing his chest when they inhaled. She nodded.

“Did your ability get in the way at all?”

“Oh.” Surprised, she cupped his jaw and gave him a solid kiss. That he’d think of that was one of the many things about him that amazed her. “No, it didn’t. In fact, I think it may have enhanced the experience.”

“Is that right?” The hand he had rested on her hip flexed and pulled her center against his. “What did it feel like to you when I … ”

“Climaxed?” she finished. His eyes sparkled, and if she weren’t privy to his emotions, she still would’ve known he was aroused. “Like a burst of pure, blinding joy.”

“That sounds about right.” He kissed her, pulled back, and caught her with the intensity that blazed from his azure eyes. “Don’t leave me.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“You haven’t done anything shameful. You aren’t to blame for anyone’s actions but your own. Your sister is wrong.” He spoke as though attempting to brand her with his words. “Ashlock was sick when he hurt you. As much as I hate to say it, he wasn’t to blame for that. But when he killed Aidan’s pregnant girlfriend, he knew he was sick, and he chose not to take the medicine that would help him. He is to blame for that. It was tragic, the whole damn thing is sad as hell, but it’s not your responsibility; it never was. I won’t have anyone say different. Including you. Understand?”

“I understand.” She understood that he was also referring to the blame he’d shouldered when Justin died. Why, after all these years, couldn’t she see her own truth as easily as she’d understood his? She could acknowledge that she’d spent her life paying a penance that belonged to another. Carter shared with her the healing perspective she’d helped him find. Hope swelled for a future she’d never considered.

“Good. Now on to more important things.”

“Like what?”

“This.” He rolled onto his back, pulling her up and over him.

“What do you have planned for your last day off from work?” he asked, buckling his holster to his belt. Henley sat at the kitchen table in one of his tees. She was tall, so despite the shirt’s size, her bottom was barely covered. Her breasts filled out the material in a tantalizing manner. Her hair was pulled into a messy knot. She looked warm and inviting. Despite the fact that they had tumbled once in bed and again on the table where she currently sat, he wanted to pull her back into his arms. She grinned at him like she knew his thoughts. He’d taken a step forward when Dublin’s impatient bark at the door interrupted his plan. She laughed as he berated the dog under his breath.

“Should’ve named him C-Block,” Carter said. “That’s a decent name for a sheriff’s pet and apropos, considering.”

“Let him in and quit your grousing. You’ve got to protect and serve the fair population of Trappers’ Cove.”

He’d made arrangements for Doug to cover his shifts, acting as dispatch in exchange, and Carter and Henley had spent the entirety of the weekend holed up at his place. He didn’t want it to end. Part of him still feared she’d pack up and leave when he wasn’t looking.

“I’m going to straighten up around here. Take a long bath, play with Dubs. This afternoon I’m having lunch with the Cove’s sexy sheriff before whiling away the hours putting my apartment back in order. Then I’m going grocery shopping.”

“Would you at least consider my offer?”

“I’m not moving in with you, Carter. I want to have my own place. We can be here, we can be there, and we can both be alone when we want or need. I’ve explained this at length.” She stood, and he watched in male appreciation at the way she crossed to him, the cotton hem of his shirt swaying around her hips, flashing him with bright pink panties. He felt his muscles jerk in erotic response. When she reached him, she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her cheek over his heart. “I won’t disappear. I promise.”

He hadn’t known that she’d seen through to the fear. He tilted his face down until his cheek rested on her hair. His hand trailed down to cup her neck while the other arm wrapped around her upper back. He kissed her temple.

“And if you play your cards right, I might be willing to make you dinner. At my place,” she said.

“Deal.” He flashed her the grin he’d first used to charm his mother. “I’ll see you at the diner around one. Let’s go, stupid.” He whistled at the door when the dog remained by Henley’s side. “I guess he’s staying with you today. Make sure he gets out one last time before you leave.”

He slid on his sunglasses and blew her a kiss as he exited. His cheerful mood plummeted as he reached for the handle on the driver’s-side door. He couldn’t help the sense of dread settling in his stomach. He searched the contacts on his cell phone from the relative privacy of his Jeep, until he found the number he was looking for and pressed call.

“Hey, Jeff. It’s Carter McAlister. Tell me you got something?” He stopped at the end of the drive and checked for traffic. There had never been another car on this particular stretch of road—a few miles down it ended at the marsh that buffeted one side of the lake and there were no other houses after his. But Carter always checked. Too many years of driving in the city had taught him well.

“McAlister, hi. I’m doing well, thanks for asking. How are you and your lady?”

“I’m sorry if I’m rude, but I need to wrap this up. Before someone gets more seriously hurt.” He turned onto Main Street. The spill of shops and offices that made up the center of town stretched out before him. “Have you found anything?”

“Matter of fact, I may have. I made a phone call to a psychiatrist who occasionally works with our office, good guy. And he made some discreet inquiries on my behalf within the mental-health community. A doctor came forward with concern about a patient he inherited from Dr. Elliott. He’s agreed to come in for a chat this morning after stressing he could only cooperate within the bounds of ethics.”

“You think it’s something?”

“He hasn’t given me anything to go on—yet. But yeah, I think it’s something. This doctor seemed shaken up.”

“You’ll call me if this guy gives you anything?”

“You know it. Least I can do.”

“Thanks.” Carter pulled into the spot reserved for the sheriff’s official vehicle. Frustration rode him—he wanted to be able to do something—battling with the gratitude that someone was, and as a favor to him.

“Have you considered the possibility whoever is after Henley is just some random whack-a-do? It happens all the time. A good-looking woman says ‘thank you’ to some twist that handed her a menu for a pizza shop, and said twist becomes obsessed.”

“Yeah, I’ve considered it. And the possibility terrifies me. If I don’t know who to look for, I can’t stop him before he comes after her again. Find me a name.”

• • •

Henley had thought she’d revel in the solitude when she had urged Carter out the door. But she missed him. The house was too quiet. She hoped the loneliness was due to the fact that it was Carter’s home rather than hers. She’d never experienced the sensation; it made her uncomfortable. She didn’t want to become codependent on her relationship with Carter for self-definition. The thought made her uneasy despite the happiness sparkling inside her. A relationship. That’s what this was—undefined, certainly, but real.

Dublin was a reticent companion. Regardless, she found herself chatting with him as she cleaned. Two days of relaxation and sex had taken their toll on the housework. Carter told her he paid a woman to clean weekly, but Henley couldn’t, in good conscience, leave it like this. She walked through the house a room at a time, collecting dirty dishes and glasses. She piled them in the sink, added soap and water, and headed to the second floor to strip the bed and spread new sheets.

“Don’t get me wrong, the sex is fantastic, but he’s also funny and thoughtful. Smart, too. I had as much fun debating issues with him.” She thought the dog snorted at her, and she eyed him. “Okay, not as much fun, but it was still a good time. I forgot what it was like to be this involved, this intimate with another person. It feels good. I feel good.”

Henley added the soiled linens to the pile of dirty clothes and wet towels she’d built in the hallway. With her hands on her hips, she surveyed the heap. This would take more than one trip to the laundry room off the kitchen where the washer and dryer units were stacked. “Well, we made a mess; didn’t we, Dubs?”

The look he shared with her from his perch on the freshly made bed was definitely a silent reproof of their slovenly behavior. Considering the hair he shed, she found a clean comforter in a cedar chest and spread it across the four-poster bed. She allowed herself a minute to linger over the things she and Carter had done in that bed. Her pulse quickened. The dog covered his eyes with a paw as though he also remembered.

“Maybe I’ll get a doggie bed for my place. I don’t want you up on my mattress.”

He huffed out a breath. And she chuckled. When his ears perked up, she stopped talking and listened. As soon as she heard the approaching car, the dog was off the bed. He rushed by her and tore through the laundry pile, leaving linens trailing in his wake.

“That’s why Carter calls you stupid,” she shouted at his wagging tail as she squatted. With her arms full, she made her way down the stairs, bracing one hip against the railing. “Miss me already?”

When she reached the bottom and peered over the top of the load, Aidan stood inside the threshold. He petted Dublin, and the dog’s tongue lolled in ecstasy.
Traitor.
She felt the muscles in her back become rigid. She couldn’t help it—any more than she could the flair of fear.

“I’m sorry. I thought you were Carter. He’s not here; he’s at the station.”

Dublin must have sensed the tension. He pulled his thick head away from Aidan’s hand, whimpered, and moved to stand beside Henley. She couldn’t comfort the Shepherd without dropping the dirty linens, and she didn’t want to do that. She didn’t want to unload evidence of her and Carter’s intimacy at Aidan’s feet.

“I know. I wanted to talk to you. Your car isn’t in town, but his Jeep is. I thought you might be here.”

Alone
, she added silently. He’d guessed she was here alone. Maybe it had been him all this time. Maybe the fire at the cabin had been a red herring. It’s not like the place belonged to him. It was Maggie’s property. And she thought she remembered Carter saying once that Aidan had lost the land to Maggie. Perhaps burning down the cabin served a twofold purpose.

“You’re afraid of me.” His stoic façade crumbled. He looked devastated. But if Carter and Maggie could be fooled, he’d have to be a consummate actor. “I’m sorry, Henley. I can’t begin to apologize. Christ, you’re afraid of me.” He stepped toward her, and she stepped back. Her hip banged into the solid, ornate banister with a resounding crack. Aidan halted. “Maggie said you weren’t answering your phone. But Carter finally did, yesterday.”

She nodded. She counted herself lucky that Maggie had reclaimed her car from the lot at the station while Henley had been at Carter’s and they’d avoided an awkward conversation. But she knew she’d have to call her friend back sooner rather than later; the headstrong woman was likely to show up and force a confrontation. But Henley hadn’t expected this move from Aidan. She’d hoped to avoid him indefinitely.