Obsidian (22 page)

He didn’t want to put her through this. He didn’t want to hurt her, but he had to find out what the connection was between Case and the smuggling. “So until two years ago, you had never set eyes on him before?”

She shook her head. “I guess it has been about two years ago, maybe a little less. After Dad died, Tommy didn’t have time for the family business. He had his boat and traps and he was determined to make a go of it. Josh was fishing his own boat and he never showed much interest in the wharf. So, when Uncle John showed up, he just sort of jumped into the fray and helped out. We never asked him to help. He just did it.” Her shoulders sagged against him.

Jamie wanted more than anything to tell her that she was through losing people she cared about, but he couldn’t make that kind of promise to her. Not when he knew that he couldn’t keep it. They were at the beginning of something special, but it was still a very fragile thing. The right thing to do would be to walk away now, before she had feelings for him, before he could figure out what it was that he felt for her. But he couldn’t walk away now, not when he was this close to figuring it all out.

“There are things about your uncle that you should know.”

Shelby lifted her face from Jamie’s chest to look him. Her large brown eyes were confused and hesitant. He hated himself for the feelings that he saw there. Maybe telling her wasn’t such a good thing?

“Such as?” She looked up at him. What could he do? He knew he couldn’t tell her about Case’s past. Not right now. He didn’t have the answers himself and it wouldn’t be fair to break her trust, when he couldn’t give her the full truth.

He put a hand to her cheek and brushed away the remains of a tear. A tear he’d caused. Her skin was soft at his touch as she leaned into the caress. She was a beautiful woman.

“I don’t have the answers you need right now, Shelby. I wish to hell I did. I have questions about his past, but I don’t know how it fits into what is going on. I hope that I’m wrong.”

She closed her eyes and he could feel the hurt in her. She was trying to process it, to take it all in.

“I know you will make it right, Jamie.” Her words sent a shot of electricity through him. She’d chosen to trust him and that was worth everything right now.

“I will. I promise.”

He let his hand travel the length of her back to settle at the base of her back, pulling the full length of her against him. Her warmth seared him through the soft fabric of her shirt and a shudder ran up her spine.

“We shouldn't do this, Shelby.” But his words were just words. He wanted her and she could feel it in him as much as in herself.

Jamie trailed his free hand upward, his fingers touching at the strong cord of her spine as pleasure rippled through her. He could enchant her with just a touch. It was an incredible power.

“If you don’t want to touch me, I can walk away.” Her words stopped as his lips came down upon hers. The kiss was urgent at first, demanding and needy and she gave as much as she took. He pressed closer to her, pulling her tight against him with his hands. The kiss broke and she opened her eyes to see what had stopped him. Maybe she hadn’t kissed him well enough? Maybe he didn’t feel right about it?

His eyes were like steel, radiating cold and hot at the same time. His eyelids were heavy as he peered at her beneath those incredible long lashes.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to walk away from you again.” Jamie said, and for the first time, she knew that what she was looking at was the real Jamie. This was the man who’d told her about his brother, the one who promised to protect her.

“You asked me to tell you everything. You wanted to know all of me.”

She held her breath as he continued to look into her with his gaze.

“I’ve already told you more than I’ve told anyone in a lifetime. But right now, right this minute, I’m going to love you. If you let me.” His words were a pledge that she knew came from his heart. He was offering her much more than pleasures. He was giving her himself.

Raising up on her toes, she trembled as they kissed. She wanted him with an intensity she’d never felt before. If she didn’t have him now she was going to go up in flames and dissolve into ashes at his feet.

Jamie let her take the initiative, watching her through those guarded eyes. She reached her hand up to touch the hollowing spot at his neck, her fingertips grazing the gentle skin at his chest. He had strong, wide shoulders and a broad chest covered in sparse dark hair. His skin gleamed in the firelight as he leaned down to kiss her.

Shelby pulled back, stilling his movements. She needed to please him. She needed to see the effect she could have on him.

Jamie let out a low growl that radiated from deep within his chest and she smiled. She was getting to him.

She reveled in her newfound power by exploring the plains of his chest. She ran her hands across the hardened strength of his waist where it narrowed to the band of his jeans and gloried in the sharp intake of breath and muttered curse as she explored.

“Woman, you’re going to kill me. I need to touch you.” True to his words, his hands moved from the small of her back to nestle against the curve of her bottom, lifting her up against him, thigh to thigh, chest to chest, lips to lips. The storm outside had moved within her. She was hot and shivering and every part of her body was electrified.

His fingers moved to the buttons of her shirt, making quick work of the soft fabric, letting it slip from her bare shoulders as he bent his head, tracing the line of her collar with his lips. She slid her fingers into his hair, threading them through the dark heavy mass. He had wonderful hair.

He picked her up and moved to settle her in front of the fire. In her secret fantasies, she’d dreamed of such a romantic scene, a beautiful fire on a stormy night with a man who could melt her with his touch.

Skin touched to heated skin as they lay in front of the flames. Each took turns exploring and enticing, touching and feeling and playfulness until they were burning.

“Tell me you want to make love with me.” She needed to hear the words. She needed to know that he was feeling the same restlessness coursing through her.

He raised up on an elbow above her, running a hand down her cheek to nestle against her chin. There was saw no hesitation in his eyes, just wanting and needing.

“I’ve never felt like this. I know that it sounds like a line, but it’s not. Somehow, you’ve gotten beyond all the other places in me that I never let anyone else go.”

He ran a hand down the length of her, following it with soft kisses. Her skin heated beneath the touch of his lips until she wanted to explode from wanting him. She ran her hands along his sides feeling him shudder and reveling in the intimate power.

He sighed, his fingers moving against her, touching
,
tasting and teasing in her until she thought her heart would stop and time ebbed away around them.

Jamie raised up, settling above her. The hard planes of his body nestled against her. The fire and the heat of their entwined body warmed them and lit their union in a soft glow. Her fingers gripped the corded muscles of his shoulders as he entered her; a play of fire and emotions marking his face. She closed her eyes and giving into the strength and beauty.

Never would she have imagined she’d be in his arms, and loving the way he made her feel. And for the first time in forever, she felt beautiful and protected. And all because of Jamie.

The rain began to lessen, going from a furious drumming to a periodic wind-powered splatter as the tail end of the storm brushed the coastline. Dawn was streaking through the turbulent sky, but it was enough to tell her that they had made it through the night.

The fire was still going. The embers had died to a low burn and despite the lingering warmth she still had to fight a shiver from running through her.

She’d been awake for over twenty hours now and the last few hours spent with Jamie were like a beautiful dream. The memory of his touch and her response had settled somewhere between the wake of exhaustion and the gentle glow of their being together. As strange as it was, being with Jamie had been perfect. She couldn’t regret it. Not even with the threat hanging heavy around them. She was somehow fated to end up here, with him.

She turned as a cold draft swept the room. Jamie had returned with another stash of logs for the fire. His shirt hung open at his chest. His hair was rumpled and disorderly like a child and the dark line on his jaw showed just how long they had been here.

“I don’t think we should put much more wood on the fire. We should be heading out soon. It’s been safe here during the storm, but now that the hurricane is heading out to sea I need to get you to a safe place, then get back to Chandler to find out what is going on.”

She felt guilty. She hadn’t given Chandler much thought the last few hours. Just for a moment, she’d allowed herself to forget the outside world and her brother’s disappearance. But now that the storm was abating, Jamie was right, they needed to get back.

A loud banging on the door sounded through the room. Jamie waved a hand at her, motioning for her to get down behind the safety of the couch. He made his way toward the door, being careful to stay along the wall. He hesitated, looking back to make sure she was out of sight and under cover.

Again, there was a loud banging, but this time it was followed by the familiar sounds of her uncle’s voice.

“Open up this blasted door. It’s still raining out here, ye’ know.” Shelby scrambled from her hiding place as Jamie opened the door to her uncle. Case swept into the room with a gust of wind, the hood of his black raincoat pulled low over his head. His jeans and boots were soaked from the rain as he shoved the hood of the coat back and unzipped the front.

“No one knew we were here. What the hell are you doing here?”

Case raised an eyebrow at him and then motioned toward Shelby. “I’m guessing that you’ve told her at least part of who you are. Otherwise, I doubt she’d have let you get close enough for you be so personal like.”

A slow blush crept across Shelby’s cheeks. Case was right. The scene was very domestic. Her hair was tousled; her lips still held the subtle traces of their kisses. His own shirt hung open and his feet were bare. Case was not a stupid man. He was bound to realize what had gone on between them.

He allowed himself a scowl. “Shelby knows who I am. The question is, how do you know?”

Case shrugged off his wet coat and swung it over the back of the couch before grabbing one of the candy bars Jamie had left on the side table. He unwrapped it and took a healthy bite.

“Rivard, you leave as big of a trail as those Miami idiots. If I wasn’t sure of who you were before, I am now.” He went to stand in front of the fire, warming his hands, as he used a free hand to stuff the rest of the candy bar into his mouth.

“What are you talking about?” Shelby asked, sinking onto one of the couch cushions and clutching her hands in her lap.

“He’s talking about my Coast Guard background.” Jamie scowled some more. Case had somehow gotten the jump on him. Coming to Ledgeview should have kept them safe. No one knew him here. No one knew his connection to the house. But someone was all too aware of his past. If Case had found them, then who else could do it?

Case had his own speculative look. “I’m asking again. How’d you find me?”

Case took a long second before answering. “Roe and John Henry told me that you had gone out to Marianne’s place. They got worried when the storm came in and you hadn’t gotten back.” He spoke slowly, measuring his words before he spoke. “I went to Marianne’s looking for you and that’s when I found her.” His words trailed off.

Jamie sat down on the couch next to Shelby and put an arm around her. She was shaking again and starting to shut down from overload. The stress of her brother’s disappearance and the loss of her friend had taken their toll. He looked at Case and saw the recognition in his eyes.

“I’m sorry, Shelby. I know how much Marianne meant to you.” A single tear rolled down her cheek and Jamie willed himself not to go to her, pull her into his arms and brush away the tear. But he couldn’t. Too many things were up in the air. Too many things didn’t make any sense and right now he needed answers . . . answers that only Case could give him.

“So you followed us here?”

Case gave a snort. “Nothing as simple as that, I can assure you. I have contacts, people who knew where to find you. Just like the people who gave you the information about me.” He gave him a direct look, one that challenged him to deny it. He couldn’t do it. He was going to have to take a chance and trust Case. He only hoped that his instincts didn’t fail him this time.

“I couldn’t get here until the storm let up some. The road is washed out about a mile from here and I just barely got the truck through as it was. But my guess is that if I made it through there, then the people who are after you can too and they can’t be far behind me.”

“Damn.” As much as he hated to admit it, Case was right. If those two goons that had come after him were the same two that had shot at them at Marianne’s then they weren’t about to give up. If he didn’t know better he’d have thought he was the target, but that would be stupid. Why would anyone want to go after him? No one even knew he was in Chandler. But if Case had managed to find out who he was then maybe someone else had, too.