Love's Protector: A Maverick's Shield Novel (7 page)

The distress she felt slowly began to subside at the thought of Jason spending the night with her. Taking a quick glance over his muscular six-foot-three-inch frame gave her a sudden sense of security along with
other
feelings that also sparked her sudden arousal, which was quite odd at a time like this. Her body abruptly went from being cold to being flushed and warm. She quickly brushed it off as just being because of the fear and anxiety she was feeling. Sure that made little sense, but it was the best explanation she could come with at the moment.

“Amour?”
Jason said as his eyebrows rose.

“Yes…um…that’s fine.” Her mouth suddenly became dry.

“Great, let me grab a few things and we’ll be on our way.”

Amour’s suite was large and plush and the coolness of the air conditioner greeted them as they entered the living room area. To the inexperienced eye, it was an impressive place to stay but it wasn’t anything Jason hadn’t seen before while guarding wealthy clients. He entered the small second bedroom Amour had pointed him in the direction of and sat his large duffle bag on the queen size bed. He then headed to the second bathroom next to the room to wash off some of the sweat that covered his face from the ninety degree heat outside. Walking out of the bathroom into the small hallway, he could hear Amour’s soft voice as he stepped back into the living area.

“Hi, I would like to order a large pepperoni pizza and a pint of chocolate ice cream please.” Realizing he was there, she looked up at him. “Do you want anything in particular from the restaurant downstairs?”

He shook his head and she finished up the order with the person on the phone. “Hungry now?” he asked sitting on the couch next to her.

“Yeah, a little bit.”

“You must be feeling better.”

She rubbed her temples again. “Still a little freaked out, but I guess I’ll live.”

His lips curved into a smile. “You’ll be fine. I’ll make sure of it.”

She nodded her head in agreement. “My head still hurts.”

“I have pain killers in my bag if you want some.”

“Aspirin?”

“No, Norco’s.”

She looked up at him and her eyes grew wider. “Isn’t that a narcotic?”

“Yes.”

“No, that’s ok. I’ll get some aspirin. They sell it in the gift shop.”

“I know it’s illegal to take my medication but come on, who’s going to tell on you? This will work much better trust me.”

She stood abruptly and headed to the door. “I said no! Please, just walk me downstairs to the gift shop!”

What was up with her? That phone call must’ve really freaked her out. All that

attitude over pain pills? “Alright, calm down. I’ll walk you down.”

“Thank you,” she said dryly, and then headed out the door.

By the time they’d filled up on the pizza she’d ordered and watched a couple of action movies on Pay-Per-View, the sun was starting to set. Jason took a glance behind him out of the large window at the nice view and it occurred to him that maybe a quick swim and the ocean would relieve at least some of her tension. He was about five seconds from suggesting that very thing to her when she’d walked up behind him and spoke before he could do so.

“Beautiful view isn’t it?”

“Yes it is.” He smiled as her words offered the perfect segue to his plan. “Why don’t we go and see it up close?”

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s go for a swim.”

She looked at him as if he were crazy.
“A swim?”

“Yeah, you
do
know how to swim don’t you?”

“I can swim.”

“Then let’s go. It’ll be fun.”

“I don’t have a bathing suit,” she said.

“They had some in the gift shop.” He flashed a provocative smile in hopes of persuading her.

She took in a deep breath, looked away for a second and then said, “Ok, why not?”

He didn’t think she’d actually go for it considering the day she had but she surprisingly obliged. Now that he’d convinced her to go along with his plan, he had to figure out a way to keep from wanting to ravish her at the site of her in a bikini…all wet…from head to toe. Oh god! This was
not
going to be easy.

The ocean was cool and inviting and the blue and white bikini Amour had purchased from the gift shop fit her snug and wonderfully. Her body was long and lean but not too perfect, which made him even more attracted to her. It was obvious she took good care of herself, but he could also tell that she didn’t obsess over it. Her thighs weren’t flabby, but they had a slight jiggle to them as well as her ass which went perfectly with the pair of full intoxicating breasts that filled out the bikini top. They were also beautifully ordinary, slightly low with a natural bounce to them. Not like the much too perfect surgically enhanced ones he’d seen and touched on so many occasions especially living in Los Angeles. She was different; her beauty was her own, not bought and the fact that she didn’t care about showing the few stretch marks she had on her hips and thighs that most women had was very refreshing. The water made her once straight long blonde tresses form into large waves that framed her face and reached down to the middle of her back and  the reflection of the sunset in the ocean behind her gave her an almost glowing appearance.

“I fell in the water! The wave knocked me down,” she said through a laugh.

That made him laugh
as well because he’d seen her fall…twice. It was obvious she wasn’t used to swimming in the ocean. She was having fun though and he was glad to see it. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah,” she said while adjusting the strings of her bottoms.

As she started to walk in his direction, a large wave knocked her right into him making them both fall onto the sand. Her breasts were pressed tightly against his chest as her soft body covered his. His heart skipped a beat and his cock twitched. Could she feel it? He was sure she could, but she didn’t move, didn’t speak. Her crystal blue eyes just stared into his. He slid his fingers through her damp hair moving it out of her face. “You’re beautiful Amour.”

The words came out before he could stop them, but she still said nothing as their eyes remained locked on one another. His hand traveled from her hair, down her cheek and to her mouth where his thumb slid slowly over her damp lips. He wanted to kiss them, to taste them and the thought of doing so made his own lips start to tingle. His hand then made its way to the back of her head and he slowly lowered it to his. When she didn’t protest, he pressed his lips to her welcoming mouth. Her lips parted for his tongue and the sweet taste of her intoxicated him, making his pulse race and his erection full and definitely noticeable. He could tell she’d felt it when she broke the kiss they shared and quickly rolled off of him leaving them both out of breath and flushed.

“I’m sorry,” he said in a low breathy voice. “I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s okay,” she interrupted. “Don’t worry about it.” She stood up and dusted off some of the sand that was stuck to her thigh. “I think we should go back inside, it’s getting late.”

Fuck!
What was he thinking?
He’d definitely screwed up…royally.

The hot shower Amour had taken did nothing to ease the tension or the arousal she’d felt after the kiss she and Jason shared on the beach. How it happened, she wasn’t sure. All she knew was that one minute, she was laughing and splashing in the water and the next, she was on top of him feeling his lips, tongue and hard body on hers as well as his noticeable erection between her thighs. The thought of their intimate encounter made her body warm and the flesh between her thighs wet. She couldn’t think about this anymore and she definitely couldn’t let it happen again. That’s not why she was here; she had to remember that. She needed to get some sleep, though it was going to be hard considering the sudden rush of hormones but it was worth a try.

Her phone rang again somewhere in between consciousness and slumber. Hearing it, she rolled over to the small nightstand beside her bed where her cell was charging and hit the talk button without looking at the caller ID. “Hello?” she said lethargically.

“I take it since you’ve decided to stay and hire yourself a bodyguard that means you’re not heading my warning.” It was the same voice that had threatened her earlier today. She froze, and her heart immediately started to race. “Who are you?”

“I’m the person that’s going to make your life miserable if you don’t go back to Nebraska,” the caller said in an ominous tone.

Her hands trembled so much she could barely hold the phone. “H…how did you know that?”

“I know everything about you Miss Graciette. I also know that you’re a stubborn little bitch just like your mother. You just can’t leave well enough alone can you?” the caller said with a low chuckle.

“You know nothing! Stop calling me!”

“I’ll stop calling when you’re out of town…or dead.” Just like that, he was gone.

She quickly hopped out of bed, rushed to Jason’s room and knocked hard at his door. When he answered, she stood in the doorway sobbing and trembling.

“What happened Amour? Why are you crying?’ Jason asked, placing his hands on her shoulders.

“He called again.” She could barely get the words out as tears ran down her cheeks.

“The guy from earlier?”

“Yes,” she said looking down at the floor. “He told me again to leave town or he’ll kill me.”

He lifted her face to his. “What?”

She wiped her tears away with the back of her hand but more replaced them. “I think he’s been following me.”

“What did he say to you?”

“He knows you’re with me. He thinks I hired you because I want to pursue the investigation. He told me to get rid of you.” She blinked several times as the tears continued to fall.

Jason ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath. “Shit!”

“That’s not all,” she said faintly.

“What is it?”

“He knows I live in Nebraska. He also knows my name and he mentioned my mother.”

Jason’s eyes grew wider. “Your mother?”

“Yes, he said that I was stubborn just like her and that I couldn’t leave well enough alone.”

He went into the bathroom returning a few seconds later with a hand full of tissue. “I guess it’s safe to assume that your father was right.”

She took the tissue from him and wiped her nose. “Do you think he’s the one that killed her?”

“I don’t know, but I’m betting if he isn’t, he knows who did.”

She walked into his room and sat on the bed. “I’m scared Jason. What are we going to do?”

He sat on the bed next to her. “Like I said earlier, we can forget this whole thing. Finding out who killed her won’t bring her back. The whole game has changed now; your life is being threatened. I’ll completely understand if you would rather not go through with this.”

“No! I can’t stop now. I owe it to my mother to bring her killer to justice and my father deserves to know what happened to her and frankly so do I. I’m not
that
afraid; I can handle this.”

“Are you sure about this?”

She hesitated to answer his question, but she knew this wasn’t going to stop her. “Yes…you’ll be here to protect me right?”

He gently rubbed the back of her head then lifted her face up to his looking into her eyes. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.”

She felt more tears coming but pushed them back. She’d cried enough…no more. “May I sleep in here with you tonight? I don’t want to be alone.”

“Of course.”

She crawled underneath the covers in his bed and laid down next to him. Having his large warm body wrapped around her made her feel safe and secure enough to drift into a deep sleep.

* * *

“Do you really think this ex-cop is going to tell us something he hadn’t already told Chandra?” Amour asked as she and Jason headed west on Pacific Coast Highway.

Jason had received a call from Chandra when they’d woken up this morning informing him that she’d spoken with the retired cop she had questioned again. He’d confirmed that he had not spoken to anyone else about what they were doing. He’d also agreed to meet with them at his home in Malibu to further discuss the case.

“I don’t know, but I still want to ask him some more questions. He worked on the case back then so anything we ask may help to jog his memory.

“That’s fine but I think that maybe we’re barking up the wrong tree here. I think we should talk to Mrs. Pruitt; she was a witness, they
only
witness. If she remembers anything about that day, I’m guessing she would be of more help to us.”

“You’re right and we’re going to question her also but I think we need to talk to any and everyone we can who was directly and indirectly involved in the case. Mrs. Pruitt was a witness yes, but given the fact that it was so long ago, her memory may not be exactly reliable.”

She took in a deep breath and exhaled as they parked in front of the address Jason had logged into his navigation system. “Okay.”

The medium sized house on Heathercliff Road was located within minutes of Zumba Beach. The views were gorgeous here in Malibu and so were the homes. Amour could definitely get used to
this
. “All this on a retired cop’s salary?” she asked in amazement.

“You’d be surprised by all the kick backs and bonuses cops get. They could make a hefty living off of their pensions alone depending on their ranking and who they are.”

The two of them approached the front door to the sound of a large wind chime that filled their ears as a heavy warm breeze hit when Jason rang the bell. The portly owner of the house didn’t exactly strike Amour as someone who was ever in law enforcement. He was all of five-feet-six inches tall with a large round belly and stubby hands. He stood in the doorway smoking a large strong smelling cigar that let out a huge cloud of smoke. “Yes?” he asked running his fingers through his thinning salt and pepper hair.

“Hello, are you Daniel Riley?” Amour asked fanning the smoke out of her face.

“That’s me.”

“I’m Amour Graciette and this is Jason Kincaid; we spoke on the phone.”

“Yes, please come in and have a seat.” He gestured towards the small sofa in the living room before sitting in the large winged-backed chair across from them. He placed his cigar in an ashtray shaped like a giant seashell that was sitting on the coffee table in front of him.  His home reeked of cigar smoke. It was very obvious that smoking them was his pastime. “Now, what can I do for you?”

Amour opened her mouth to speak, but Jason beat her to it. “We just need to ask you a few questions about the day Carly Graciette died. We heard that you worked the case back then.”

“Yes I did but as I told Officer Winslow, there really wasn’t much to it. I don’t recall there being any reason to investigate any further. The case was pretty cut and dry.”

“Why was there an investigation in the first place?” Jason asked. Amour suspected he’d asked that question to see if the former officer’s answer matched up with Chandra’s.

Riley rubbed his knuckles across his chin. “Well if memory serves me, it was because someone close to the victim suspected fowl play so we had to prove or disprove it.”

“Was this person Ted Crawford by any chance?” Amour’s eyes grew wider as she asked the question.

“I’m not completely sure but that name does sound about right. It’s been such a long time since then, so remembering all the details isn’t exactly easy to do.”

“I understand sir,” she said. “Please try to remember as much as you can; this is very important.”

“I remember him coming to us saying that he didn’t believe that her death was natural and that he suspected murder because he wasn’t aware of her illness or something like that. We told him that without any witnesses, evidence or motive it was nothing he could do.”

Jason frowned and said, “But there was a witness by the name of Mrs. Pruitt that saw someone at the victim’s home. What about her?”

“Yes, she and Mr. Crawford’s suspicions are what made us launch the investigation in the first place. We never found anyone matching the description that she had given us of this “supposed” person’s face.” His lips formed a slight smirk. “Mrs. Pruitt isn’t exactly the most reliable witness. She thinks everyone in town is up to no good. If you would’ve heard some of the outrageous accusations she made when she would call us at the station, you wouldn’t take any information she gave you with a grain salt. She still to this day calls the station with her crazy conspiracy theories according to the officers there. I wouldn’t trust anything she says if I were you, she’s as loony as a toon.”

“Is there
anything
else that you remember about the case Mr. Riley?” Jason asked while leaning forward.

“There is one thing.” He paused for a few seconds and tapped his index finger on his temple. “That Crawford guy did seem kind of weird.”

Jason cocked and eyebrow. “Why is that?”

“Well, after we’d gathered all the evidence and my partner questioned Mrs. Pruitt, he insisted that we also question all the immediate neighbors in the area but we didn’t. That went on for days, but then all of a sudden he was gone.”

“Why is that weird?”

“Because usually when someone makes such a stink about something like that, they don’t just give up that easily. The fact that he did just that led us to believe that he was either off his rocker or stricken with grief. Either way, he wasn’t all there at the time.”

“Why wouldn’t you question anybody else?” Jason asked suspiciously.

“There was no need. Her death was public knowledge because it was briefly on the evening news and in the paper. If anyone else had any information about it, I’m sure they would’ve come forward with it.”

“Some people don’t like to get involved in things like this even if they know what happened. Sometimes you have to approach them to get them to talk. Being cops, surely you guys knew that.”

Riley was clearly not happy with the derisive tone in Jason’s voice. “Yeah, and we did question a few of them, but nothing materialized out of it so we didn’t see the need to continue.”

“You said your
partner
questioned Mrs. Pruitt?”

Riley frowned, clearly wondering were Jason was going with this. “That’s right.”

“You didn’t talk to her yourself?”

“No, I was examining the crime scene while he was questioning her. He also talked to the M.E.” His brown eyes lowered in confusion as he looked at Jason. “Why?”

“Just trying to make sense of it all.”

“Well I’m afraid I don’t have any more information to give you.” He abruptly stood, walked to the door and opened it. It was evident that he
was
not
answering anymore of their questions. “Now if you would excuse me, it’s time for my nap.”

The two of them rose up from the sofa and walked towards the door. “No problem,” Jason said. “Thanks for your help.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of any more to you,” Riley said through a yawn.

“You’ve been plenty. Thank you.” The look on Jason’s face and the tone in his voice let Amour know that he didn’t entirely trust this man. Whatever the reason was, she wasn’t sure, but the look in his eyes also told her that he was now just as determined to get to the bottom of this mystery as she was and for that, she was grateful.

The ride home was a quiet one. She could tell that Jason was deep in thought and contemplating on what to do next. So was she, but she needed to know where his head was. “You don’t trust him do you?”

He snickered. “Am I
that
obvious?”

“You don’t have a very good poker face,” she said through a smile.

“I don’t know, I could just tell that it was a lot he wasn’t telling us. He also seemed pretty adamant on painting Mrs. Pruitt as some crazy old lady.”

“Do you think it was to deter us from talking to her?” she asked as she looked out of the window admiring the breathtaking ocean scenery along Pacific Coast Highway.

“That’s what I’m guessing. So that’s all the reason why we should. He also said they couldn’t find anyone fitting the facial description of the mystery woman.