Spirit of Seduction (7 page)

“Who?”

“The woman you saw me with before.” He
didn’t have time for these games.

“I have no idea where she is. But if you
know what’s good for you, you’ll stay the hell away from here. Do I
have to get a restraining order against you, too?”

“What does that mean?”

“I didn’t want to go legal on Becky but she
wouldn’t stop coming around, apologizing and begging me to take her
back. Swore she made a huge mistake but I said it was too late.”
Tommy dropped his gaze and sighed. “I wish to God I’d handled it
differently but there’s nothing I can do to change it now.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Tommy met his stare. “She didn’t tell you
I’d taken out a restraining order against her? After she admitted
she’d had an affair, I couldn’t bring myself to forgive her.” He
wiped a hand over his face. “Shit, Ryan, I’m sorry. I had no
idea.”

Suddenly unsteady, Ryan grasped a post.
“Who’d she have an affair with?”

“She wouldn’t say. The
whole thing came out of the blue. I
still
can’t believe it.”

He couldn’t afford to delve into the matter
more, not with Emily missing. “I’ve got to go. Sorry I—”

Tommy held up his hands. “Don’t. I
understand.”

With a nod, he started back to Becky’s car.
He didn’t have time to deal with his sister’s secrets now, not with
Emily missing. Getting behind the wheel, he racked his brain to
think where she would have gone and why. Nothing came to him. All
he could do was hope she’d contact him and that she was all
right.

* * * * *

Emily grabbed Ryan’s jacket from behind the
seat of his truck and pulled it on before getting out at Arnie’s
place. His scent wrapped around her and a pang of regret tugged at
her heart. Arnie could be wrong about Ryan. She prayed he was as
she climbed out of the cab.

The front door to his shop was locked so she
knocked and peered through the glass when he didn’t answer after
several minutes. Thunder cracked nearby and rain started moments
later. She moved under the awning.

Finally he came out from the back and opened
the door. “Sorry, sweetheart. I was on the phone with a vendor.” He
glanced over her shoulder. “You didn’t tell Becky’s brother where
you were going, did you?”

She shook her head. Deep
down inside, she almost hoped he would
find
her and proclaim his innocence.

“C’mon inside. Looks like it’s getting nasty
out there.” Arnie locked the door behind her then led her back into
the office where they’d spoken earlier. He disappeared behind a
trifold screen for a moment then returned a minute later and set a
cup of tea in front of her as he sat opposite her. “It’s chamomile.
It’ll calm you down.”

She sipped the steaming liquid, wondered how
he’d made it so quickly. Maybe he’d brewed it for himself. The tea
tasted much sweeter than she liked. She winced then immediately
schooled her expression.

Arnie laughed. “Too much agave syrup?”

“It’s fine, thank you.” She drank more to
convince him. “You said I might not be safe with Ryan. Did Josiah
tell you that?”

He nodded. “That’s why I had you get away
from him. Josiah said Becky’s spirit is in turmoil because she was
betrayed by her brother. She didn’t have many people who cared
about her and truly loved her, you know. And certainly not that
boyfriend.”

What was he talking about? She tried to
concentrate but her stomach was burning.

“Tell me exactly what Becky’s spirit said to
you.” He leaned toward her and looked at her expectantly. “It’s
important that I know…so I can tell Josiah.”

“Wait, I’m confused. I thought Josiah told
you things.” She blinked, trying to focus but she couldn’t seem to
concentrate. She grasped the edge of the table, suddenly
lightheaded.

No one knew where she was or who she was
with. Now that she thought about it, she didn’t know Arnie that
well. She swallowed hard and glanced out the window. She tried to
focus on his aura but she was finding it hard to keep her eyes
open. She blinked several times but the sensation didn’t
lessen.

“What did Becky say?” Arnie’s hands were
clenched into tight balls on the table as if he planned to punch
something. “Tell me.” His voice was rougher now, almost angry.

The steely curtain around his emotions
lifted for a brief moment and she gasped at the waves of cold
menacing evil surrounding him. She stared down into the teacup,
struggling to stay awake. “Oh, God. You drugged me.” Meeting his
gaze, her worst fears were realized.

Arnie’s eyes were wild. He bolted from his
chair, knocking it over then grabbed her shoulders and shook her.
“What did she say? Does she remember who was at her house and…” his
voice trailed off.

Emily could barely suck in a breath. She
struggled against the effects of whatever Arnie had put in her tea,
tried to figure out how to get out of there.

“Answer me.” Now he was shouting.

Her voice was locked in her chest, not that
she’d tell him a damn thing. All she could do was try to wrestle
herself free.

He was slightly built but she was no match
for his strength. He pulled her up and held her so close she
smelled his breath, like stale cigarettes. “Emily! What do you
know?”

She wanted to tell him to screw himself, but
she couldn’t even make her mouth work enough to say that.

“You’re a whore, just like Becky.” He shoved
her onto the floor and she scrambled back into a corner,
frantically searching the room for anything she could use as a
weapon. But the sparsely appointed office offered nothing.

“I wanted her to leave that dumb redneck
boyfriend, but she didn’t want to hurt him.” He rolled his eyes and
took a menacing step toward her. “We were in love, but she left me
no choice. Do you see?”

Black dots appeared in her field of vision.
She tried to hang on to consciousness.

Help me, Ryan!

But she knew he was closed off to her
telepathic messages. “Ryan!” she managed in a hoarse voice she
barely recognized as her own. Then the darkness overtook her.

* * * * *

Ryan drove out of Tommy’s driveway toward
the road but he had no idea where to go.

“Where the hell are you, Emily?” She
wouldn’t have taken his truck if something wasn’t terribly wrong.
What if someone had been waiting inside his house and kidnapped her
as soon as she entered. Why hadn’t he gone in with her? Unless he’d
inadvertently done something to upset her.

He replayed the day in his mind, but he
couldn’t come up with any reason why she’d be pissed off. Leaning
his head back, he concentrated on everything he knew about her. He
put the car in Park then phoned the salon where she worked.

“Sorry, she’s off today,” the receptionist
told him.

He tried her cell again but he went straight
to voicemail again.

Damn it. He punched the steering wheel. If
only he was psychic, he’d know what was going on.

“That’s it,” he said aloud. That psychic
they’d met with might be able to contact her telepathically. He put
the car in Drive, practically blind with panic, and sped toward
Raleigh.

The occult bookstore was dark when he
arrived.

Too damn bad.

His heart felt like it skipped a beat when
he spotted his truck parked under a tree, nearly hidden from view.
His relief was short-lived when the questions started tumbling
through his mind. Why had she disappeared without a word and why
hadn’t she even called him? She had to know he’d be frantic.

He approached the truck, opened the driver
side door and looked inside. Nothing seemed out of place. He
started toward the building when a flash of chrome and metallic
black caught his eye. A freestanding carport peeked out from behind
some tall shrubs. His pulse did double time when he neared the
structure and found a black SUV with several dents in front.

He shifted into high alert. Glad he’d
brought a weapon, he headed to the door and tried to see through
the windows but the curtains were drawn. He banged on the glass
then tried the knob and found it locked. “Emily?” he called but was
greeted with only silence.

Somewhere deep inside him, he heard—or
felt—her reaching out to him. She was in trouble. He headed around
the back of the building and found another entrance that looked
like it went to the office they’d been in earlier.

Without another thought, he slammed his
shoulder into the door, once, twice, finally breaking through on
his third try. Every muscle in his body tensed at the sight of
Emily tied up in a chair in the corner. Her head slumped forward
and her eyes were closed.

Please let her be
okay
.

He rushed over, knelt in front of her and
touch her cheek. He nearly cried with joy when he felt the warm
moisture of her breath fan over his wrist. “Emily?” She didn’t stir
when he lightly slapped her face and his hope plummeted.

“Get up,” a male voice said from behind
him.

He started to reach for the gun in his
waistband until the cold metal of the other man’s weapon jabbed
against the back of his neck.

“I’ll kill you both if you make a move for
it.” Arnie’s voice was flat and Ryan had no doubt the man would
carry through with the threat.

But he refused to just give his power up to
the son-of-a-bitch who’d tied up Emily and done God knows what to
her. He clenched his jaw and started to raise his hands in the air.
But instead of surrendering, he thrust his elbow back and it
connected with the other man’s gut.

Arnie yelped and Ryan spun around in time to
watch Arnie’s gun drop to the floor. Before Ryan could grab his own
weapon, Arnie landed a punch to Ryan’s jaw. Then Arnie bent and
charged him, knocking them both to the ground.

Arnie straddled him and tried to choke him.
“Why couldn’t you leave it alone? I didn’t want to kill Becky but I
couldn’t make her see reason.”

Fury supercharged Ryan’s strength. He
knocked the other man off and reached for his gun. When Arnie came
back at him, Ryan fired.

Arnie froze, then looked down at the tiny
dark hole in the breast pocket of his white shirt. Blood soaked the
fabric in seconds as Arnie slumped to the floor, his eyes wide with
shock.

Ryan immediately shifted his focus to Emily.
He got her untied then tried to rouse her. She moaned softly and he
knew she’d make it. Holding her in his arms, he called nine-one-one
and cradled her until the emergency personnel arrived minutes
later.

* * * * *

“I’m glad Arnie’s dead,” Ryan told Emily as
he helped her into his truck outside the Emergency Department of
Raleigh General Hospital. He’d insisted she let doctors check her
out even though she’d awakened feeling fine.

“Me, too. Now Becky can rest.” Pink and
orange stripes filled the morning sky as the new day broke, filling
Emily with hope, but she had no idea if Ryan would forgive her for
believing that he’d killed Becky. She glanced across the seat at
him and offered up a prayer that the kindness he’d showed her
through the night would last.

He caught her staring. Silently, he reached
for her hand then brought it to his lips and kissed it softly. “You
okay?” He pulled out of the hospital parking lot into the empty
street.

She nodded, suddenly too choked up with
emotion to speak.

“You’ll have to direct me to your
place.”

She held her breath, waiting for him to
broach the subject of their relationship but he didn’t say
anything. “I’m on the north side, off Creedmore Road.” She told him
where to go, turn by turn until they arrived at her building.

She led him inside. Her stomach churned as
she followed him through the small apartment since he insisted on
checking it out for her safety. They ended up in the bedroom.

“This is nice.” He swept his gaze around the
room. “Cozy.”

“Do you mind waiting while I take a shower?
I’m still kind of nervous to be alone.”

He furrowed his brow then pulled her against
him and wrapped his arms around her. “Who said anything about
leaving you alone?”

She allowed herself a measure of relief.

“I could go for a shower, too. Mind if I
join you?” He captured her stare and his eyes turned smoky with
desire.

Hot need suffused her insides as he rubbed
his hands up and down her back. She took a step away and threaded
her fingers through his. “Come on.” Pulling him behind her, she
strode to the bathroom and turned on the faucet.

Ryan’s gaze singed her skin as she stripped
off her clothes and dropped them to the floor. He followed suit
then took her hand as they entered the shower.

She grabbed the soap but he took it from
her.

“Let me.” His hard arousal pressed against
her belly as he washed her shoulders and back, sliding his
soap-slick hands over her skin.

She shut her eyes and gave over to the
luxurious sensations. A sweet ache started in her core as he
sluiced sudsy water over her hips, down her legs then back up to
the juncture of her thighs. She moved her legs apart a little, just
enough to allow him entry.

He slid a finger inside her and she started
rocking against him, riding his hand. He kissed her mouth, tasting
and exploring. She melted into a mass of joy.

He stroked and rubbed as if he lived in her
head, knew exactly how, where and when she needed him. She teetered
on the brink of ecstasy, held her breath until she fell into the
depth of pleasure. Delicious pulses of bliss went on and on. Weak
with euphoria, she’d have slid to the floor were it not for Ryan’s
support.

The waves subsided, leaving her weak and
delirious.

“I’m not done with you. Not by a longshot.”
Ryan’s voice was a growl against her ear. He shut off the water
then yanked the bath sheet off the rack and wrapped it around the
two of them.