Millionaire's Last Stand (11 page)

“Yeah, next summer at the latest.”

They discussed the waterfront hotel for the next five minutes, though Cole’s head wasn’t in it, and it didn’t take long for Ian to pick up on his boss’s distracted state.

“Seriously, what’s going on?” Ian demanded, cutting Cole off midsentence.

After a moment of hesitation, Cole sighed. “I just found out Teresa was filing a restraining order against me before she died.”

There was a shocked silence. “Are you kidding?”

“Nope.” He scowled. “Apparently she told her lawyer she was scared for her life.”

“But that’s…
ridiculous
.” Ian paused. “The cops don’t actually believe this, do they?”

“Oh, they believe it.”

“Even your FBI agent?”

“She’s not
my
anything, and to be honest, I have no idea what she thinks. I haven’t spoken to her since she left this morning.”

He suddenly wondered if the sheriff had told Jamie about the restraining order. Well, of course he had. Question was, did Jamie agree with Finnegan’s preposterous premeditation theory? The mere notion that she might believe it sent a sliver of pain to his flesh. Maybe they’d both agreed that the kiss had been a mistake, but Cole still couldn’t stomach the idea of Jamie Crawford thinking he was a killer. She was the first woman he’d felt a connection with since the divorce. The only woman in this town who didn’t gaze at him with fear in her eyes.

“Do you want me to fly back?” Ian asked.

Cole rolled his eyes. That was always Ian’s solution, to glue himself to Cole’s side, as if that would magically fix everything. “No, stay in Chicago. Someone needs to make sure this business doesn’t collapse.”

“Fine,” Ian agreed. “But if you need me to come, don’t hesitate to ask.”

After he’d hung up the phone, Cole reached up to rub his temples, hoping to ward off an oncoming headache. This was total insanity. Nothing seemed to be going his way. Joe Gideon refused to tell the truth and back up Cole’s alibi. Teresa was taunting him from the grave with her damn restraining order. The sheriff and everyone in town wanted him behind bars. His business was suffering because of all the bad press.

How on earth had he wound up here? It was as if he’d fallen into a deep, dark hole, and every time he managed to claw his way out, someone came up and stomped on his fingers, sending him flying back into the abyss.

A buzzing sound snapped him from his dismal thoughts, then brought a rush of anger when he realized someone was at the gate. No doubt the sheriff, coming back with more questions. More accusations.

Shoulders stiff, he marched into the security room and studied the monitor, then swallowed when he recognized Jamie’s car. The window was rolled down, and she was looking up at the camera, her lavender eyes flickering with the compassion he’d come to associate with her. Then her voice crackled through the speaker. “Cole? Will you let me in? I just wanted to talk.”

Releasing a ragged breath, he buzzed her in and headed for the front door. As he waited, he raised his guard, refusing to be blindsided again. He doubted Jamie just wanted to
talk
. Finnegan had only left fifteen minutes ago, after Cole refused to answer any more questions without his lawyer present. And now Jamie was here, hoping to chat?

Cole’s jaw tensed as he heard her footsteps on the porch. Finnegan had sent her. No doubt about that. And he had no intention of enduring another interrogation, not even from the woman who’d passionately kissed him back last night. Actually,
especially
not this woman.

To his surprise, when he opened the door and gestured for her to come inside, the first thing she said was, “Are you all right?”

He blinked in surprise. “What?”

“Are you all right?” she repeated as they headed for the living room. Her gaze flicked to the bottle of Scotch on the table, and she answered her own question with a rueful expression. “I guess not.”

“What are you doing here, Jamie?” He couldn’t hide the weariness in his voice, or the heaviness of his body as he trudged to the sofa and sat down.

Setting her purse on the hardwood floor, Jamie joined him on the couch. The sweet fragrance of her perfume wafted in his direction, and he suddenly noticed that she wasn’t wearing the business attire she’d had on this morning. She’d changed into a pair of faded blue jeans and a black v-neck T-shirt, which made her look younger, softer.

“I was at the station when Teresa’s lawyer came in,” she admitted.

“So you know,” he said flatly.

Jamie met his eyes. “Did you threaten her?”

Frustration roiled in his belly. “Honestly? I don’t really remember. I may have told her to stop pushing me or she’d regret it, but I didn’t say I was going to kill her. I just wanted to put an end to that foolish court case.”

“That’s what I figured,” Jamie said softly. “I don’t believe you meant it as a threat to her life.”

He searched her face, seeing nothing but sincerity there. “You’re probably the only one who thinks that,” he said with a sigh. “Finnegan is convinced I’m a murderer. I’m sure the people in town think so too.”

Something flickered in her expression, causing Cole to narrow his eyes. “What is it?”

“I ran into Valerie Matthews at the diner earlier,” she said. “I don’t know about anyone else in town, but she definitely believes you murdered her sister.” Jamie paused. “I’m pretty sure she gave me a warning.”

He frowned. “What do you mean?”

The frown deepened as Jamie told him about the mysterious note that had been left on her car, accusing her of having a death wish. When she finished, Cole fought a rush of anger, turning his head so she wouldn’t see the volatile look in his eyes. The thought of someone going out of their way to warn Jamie about him made his stomach clench.

When had he become the villain? He’d worked damn hard to get to where he was, spent years building his business into the successful empire it was today. The only mistake he’d made was marrying Teresa Matthews. He’d let lust cloud his common sense, married a woman he’d hardly known and now he was paying the price for it.

The sympathy on Jamie’s face only made it worse. He didn’t want her feeling sorry for him. Didn’t need her or anyone else’s pity. Curling his hands into fists, he tightened his jaw and shot her a dark look.

“So someone left you a warning note and yet you still came here. What, you’re not scared of me?”

She seemed wary, no doubt because of the feral expression he knew must be on his face. “No, I’m not scared of you, Cole.”

“Well, maybe you should be,” he muttered. “Apparently I’m the man women file restraining orders against.” He cursed. “Lord, when the papers find out about this…”

“It might not get out.”

He gave a derisive snort. “Of course it will get out. I’m a wealthy man and people love scandals. Know what they love even more? Kicking a man when he’s down.”

Her voice grew strained. “Cole, come on.”

He was so overcome by a wave of atypical self-pity that he didn’t even notice her move closer, not until her warm hand stroked his cheek. The gentleness of her touch only made him angrier, and with another expletive, he pushed her hand away.

“Don’t,” he choked out. “Don’t feel sorry for me.”

Her violet eyes shone with more of that sympathy he was tired of seeing. “I hate seeing you like this.”

“Then leave.”

He knew he was being an ass, but at the moment, he was tired of keeping up a careless front. This entire time he’d assured himself that the investigation would blow over. That Gideon would tell the truth. That a new suspect would crop up. Well, none of that had happened, and not even Jamie Crawford’s soothing presence could fix his mess of a life.

“I’m not leaving,” Jamie said, sounding irritated. “You’re upset. You need someone to talk to. You need a friend.”

He gave an incredulous laugh. “We barely know each other. And even if we did, there’s no way we can be friends, Jamie.”

She frowned. “Why, because I’m a cop?”

“No, because we’re attracted to each other.”

Her breath hitched, but she made no attempt to deny it. From the moment he’d met her, she’d triggered his desire. It was like a magnet was pulling him toward her, and that same force had him moving closer now. Everything about this woman got his blood going. The curve of her graceful neck, the flowery scent of her perfume, the way her clothes hugged her long, willowy frame.

He’d already had a taste of her, felt her lush lips pressed against his own. God help him, but he wanted another taste.

Despite the warning bells going off in his head, he dipped it, so that their lips were inches apart. Maybe if she’d pushed him away, he could have controlled the wave of need swelling in his body, but then her gaze flitted to his mouth, her eyes darkened to a smoky violet and Cole’s control snapped like a rubber band.

Growling low in the back of his throat, he tangled one hand through Jamie’s silky red hair and kissed her. She gasped, then parted her lips and let his tongue inside. His lungs burned from the lack of oxygen as he explored Jamie’s sweet, warm mouth. His hands drifted down to grip her waist, sliding under the hem of her shirt, touching bare skin. The heat of her flesh sent his head spinning, had him kissing her deeper, harder, and as much as he wanted to keep his mouth on hers for as long as he could, he wanted her naked even more.

She must have felt the same urgency, because the next thing he knew, they were pawing at each other’s clothing like reckless teenagers. Buttons snapped, zippers hissed, the soft thud of clothing hitting the hardwood floor. And then he was in nothing but a pair of black boxers, Jamie in a pale green bra and matching panties, and they tumbled back on the couch, their mouths and hands taking on minds of their own.

Cole groaned as Jamie pressed her mouth against his chest, as she lavished kisses over his feverish skin, as her hand circled his shaft and pumped him in a slow, lazy rhythm that had him seeing stars. And then she slid off the couch, got to her knees, and freed his erection. When she covered it with her mouth, the stars became a white haze that made it impossible to see, let alone think.

His head lolled to the side, too heavy to keep upright the longer she moved her tongue over him. His muscles tensed, chest tight with arousal as Jamie drove him wild with her mouth. When she rested one hand on his thigh, squeezing hard, he nearly lost control. It took every ounce of restraint he possessed to stop that rising release. Groaning, he tugged on her long hair and brought her back to the couch, his mouth finding hers once more.

This time it was his hands doing the exploring, his mouth peppering kisses over every inch of her slender body, over every curve, every secret place. He unclasped the front of her bra and his mouth went dry when her breasts spilled out, her dusky red nipples rigid and demanding attention.

Jamie sighed with pleasure as he covered one tight bud with his mouth and suckled gently. Her hands rested on the back of his head, keeping him in place, drawing him closer. As he feasted on her breasts, he tugged on her panties, scrunched them between his fingers and shoved them down her legs.

“This is crazy,” she whispered, then moaned softly as his hand moved between her legs and stroked her core.

Crazy. With his heart thrashing an irregular beat in his chest and his erection throbbing relentlessly against her firm thigh, he knew she was right. Forget lust. This was something entirely different. Something carnal and out of control and—

“We can’t do this,” he choked out.

As Jamie blinked in confusion, Cole practically dove off her, shoving his boxers up to his hips as he struggled for breath. The sight of her gorgeous body stretched out on the couch, the trust glimmering in her eyes, her tousled hair and bee-stung lips—it all succeeded in sending a streak of guilt through his chest.

What was he
doing?
He couldn’t sleep with this woman. Not with this black cloud hanging over his head, threatening to destroy him. Not while vultures circled Donovan Enterprises, watching the stock plummet and waiting for the opportune moment to snatch up the empire. He had to focus on saving his livelihood. On clearing his name. And no matter how badly he wanted Jamie Crawford, taking her would be a big mistake. He was in no shape to get involved with anyone right now. Call him a coward, but he had no intention of handing his heart over to another woman, only to have it ripped to shreds.

“Cole,” she started, her voice shaky. “I—”

“I’m sorry,” he cut in, breathing hard to steady his racing heart. “That shouldn’t have happened. I shouldn’t have done that.”

She swallowed, then sat up, fumbling with the clasp of her bra. He glimpsed a flash of disappointment in her eyes, but within seconds, it faded, replaced by the same unease plaguing his own body.

“Oh God,” she whispered, suddenly jumping off the couch in search of her clothes. “You’re right, we shouldn’t have let that happen.”

They both dressed in a hurry, as tension and lingering heat sizzled between them like an electric current. Cole was buttoning up his shirt when Jamie finally spoke. “I didn’t come here for that,” she stammered. “I really just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I know,” he said in a gruff voice.

“But I meant what I said about being friends. Maybe I’m being foolish, but I don’t think you killed Teresa, Cole. I look into your eyes and I don’t see a killer.”

“Because I’m not.” A lump rose in his throat. “I didn’t murder my ex-wife. I can’t say I’m sad that she’s gone, or that I’m happy about all this so-called evidence against me, but I can promise you I had nothing to do with her death.”

“I believe you.”

Those three words caused his throat to tighten. Gratitude flooded every part of his body, and he found himself locking his gaze with hers. “Thank you.” The lump at the back of his throat grew even bigger. “But I meant what I said before. We can’t be friends, Jamie. Right now, my only concern is staying out of prison, and I can’t drag anyone else down with me.”

Though she looked sad, she gave a slight nod. “You were right, anyway. I’m not sure this attraction between us is conducive to a friendship.”