You're the One (35 page)

“Moz told me
he wasn’t home tonight, won’t be back until late.”

She smiled.
“Let me guess, you’re checking up on me?”

“Can’t be too
careful.”

“Aw, that’s
sweet, Dad.”

“Want me to
come over?”

“No, it’s
fine.”

“Maybe I
should anyway.”

“Geez, I’m not
a baby.”

“I know you’re
not a baby-”

“You’ll always
be our baby,” her mother called from the background.

Del rolled her
eyes. Catching sight of Mozart prowling around the armchair in
stalker mode after Missy, she seized upon a new topic. “So, how’re
Ian and the dog doing?”

“Dog’s doing
well, still cowed but coming out of his shell. The vet warned Ian
to keep a close eye on him in case he shows any aggression, but
that dog is a push-over. He caught sight of Farris’s dog in the
back of Farris’s ute, and when the dog barked at him, he took off
and hid behind Ian’s legs. That dog hasn’t got an aggressive bone
in his body.”

Probably why
it got belted, Brand had been trying to make him aggressive enough
to fight. Del scowled.
Bastard
. “He’s better off with Ian.
Plus it’s good for Ian, too. He was lonely.”

“Yeah, Martha
dying took it out of him. This dog has given him something to do
besides bury himself in work.” Her father chuckled. “Every good man
needs a woman to keep in order. Ouch!”

“Mum hit
you?”

“She’s a mean
hand with that tea towel.”

Resting her
heels on the coffee table, Del admired the pink nail polish on her
toes. “How’s the new cat going?”

“Seffi’s a
holy terror. I thought young cats were supposed to mature. She
keeps trying to grab your Mum’s wool while she’s knitting.”

“Inside every
cat is a kitten waiting to express itself.” Del watched Mozart peek
around the armchair, and spotting Missy looking right back at him,
he leaped into the air and shot off, Missy scampering behind
him.

One
black-haired kitten and one bald-arsed cat. She loved them
both.

After chatting
for awhile, her father rang off.

Flicking
through the TV channels, Del’s thoughts kept drifting back to Moz
and Kirk, the other cops, Grant, the rangers, hoping they were all
safe. That Moz was safe. Wondering what was happening, knowing it
was dangerous. Wondering how the hell Molly handled waiting for
Kirk to come home.

As if on cue,
the phone rang again.

“Hey,” said
Molly.

“How do you do
it?” Del demanded.

Her friend
knew what she meant straight away. “Easy.” Small pause. “Okay, not
so easy. But its Kirk’s job, he loves it. I support him.”

“Doesn’t it
kill you wondering if he’s okay?”

“Hopefully
small town life makes it safer, but there’s always an element of
danger, the unknown. Tourists pass through, people go a little
crazy at times, he meets total strangers on the road.”

“Hard.”

“Yeah, well, I
just make sure I’m here if he needs to talk, and I value our time
together. Never take it for granted, Del.”

“Do you know
where they’ve gone tonight?”

“Dog fighting
ring.”

“So Kirk told
you.”

“Only this
afternoon.”

“Does he tell
you everything?”

“Nope.”

“And you’re
okay with that.”

“I never said
that. Sometimes I’m so curious I try to bribe him with sex.”

“Huh. What
does that get you?”

“No answers,
lots of sex.” Molly gave a gurgle of laughter. “Hot sex.”

“Okay, too
much information.”

“Hey, you
asked.” Molly sobered. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah. Kirk’s
the one in the thick of it from what I understand.”

“He won’t let
anything happen to Moz. Cops go in first, get everyone rounded up,
then Moz, the rangers and the vet will go in and clear the
dogs.”

Del chewed her
bottom lip worriedly. “Those dogs aren’t sweet little poodles.”

“Nope, but Moz
isn’t an amateur, either, and nor are the rangers.”

“I know.” Del
blew out a breath of air, clinked the spoon against the bowl. “I’m
just being a worry-wart.”

“That’s what
happens when you love someone. You just want them safe.” The sound
of a baby crying came over the phone. “Uh oh, Lily’s awake. Gotta
go. You need me, you call me, okay?”

“Thanks
Molly.”

Hanging up the
phone, Del looked down to find Mozart sitting at her feet, ears
flicking forward as he looked up at her.

“Hey, Mozart.
Moz will be home sometime.”

Mozart
meowed.

“Yeah.”
Bending down, she rubbed behind his ears, rewarded by his purring.
When she leaned back, he jumped up onto her lap and curled up.
“Know how you feel. I wish Moz was here, too.”

Missy came in,
took one look at Mozart and jumped up onto the sofa, settling by
Del’s hip. She stroked the kitten, grateful for their company,
wondering how she’d managed without a cat for so long. And without
Moz.

“Well, kitty,”
she informed Mozart, “I love your Dad. How’s that? Shocked the
living crap out of me, too, but go figure. I fell head-over-heels
with the big lug.”

Mozart preened
under her hand.

“No idea when
it happened. Though I guess, considering I let him into my bed, it
must have been a little while ago. Took me awhile to realise. Huh.”
She rubbed one finger between his ears. “Maybe I’m a bit of a dumb
arse like Ryder in that department.”

Sure as eggs
Moz wasn’t. Twice he’d said he loved her, twice on the phone. Slip
of the tongue? Maybe the first time, but the second time he’d said
it? No. He’d said it deliberately. Now she’d heard the words, said
them herself, felt the truth, she wanted to hear him say it to her
face.

How had he
felt when she’d said she loved him, too?

Oh crap, what
if Moz didn’t mean it? What if-

“Man, Del, you
are such a twit.” Dropping her head back on the sofa, she looked up
at the ceiling. “Why do you always have to question
everything
?”

Because that
was just the way she was. Not quite as confident as everyone
thought, mainly when it came to Moz. He could shake her up like no
one else could, and that was the truth of it.

Because out of
everyone she knew and loved, she cared the most about what he
thought of her.

Time crept
past. The hands on the clock seemed to take twice as long to go
around. At midnight she knew whatever was going to happen at the
dog fighting ring would have happened, it’d be over for better or
worse. The fact that there was no phone call from the cops, no one
knocking on her door with bad news, meant it had gone well. Or as
well as it could go. She wished Moz would call her, just to hear
his voice.

But no news
was good news.

When the phone
rang, she leaped into the air, making Mozart dig his claw into her
bare leg in protest.

“Ouch!” She
snatched up the phone breathlessly. “Moz?”

“Yeah, Del,
it’s me.” His deep voice rumbling in her ear was welcome. “Did I
wake you?”

“No. I was
just sitting here. Couldn’t sleep.” She took a deep breath. “You’re
all right?”

“Fine.”

“Kirk?”

“Happily
sorting out cop business.”

“Grant?”

“He’s
okay.”

“It went
well?”

“Yeah.” There
was a wealth of satisfaction in Moz’s voice. “Dogs secured, owners
secured. Some of those owners are telling everything they know in a
bid to save their own hides.”

“Good to know.
Did you get Dawson, Harding and Cutter?”

“In the
lock-up as we speak, getting ready for their interviews.”

“Excellent
news.” She relaxed, leaning back. “Coming home soon?”

“Wish I could
but this is going to take awhile to sort out. We’re taking the dogs
back to Ellor’s Loop where they have the facilities to hold them.”
His voice gentled “Go to bed, Del. I’m fine.”

“I will. I’ll
sleep better knowing you’re safe. And Kirk. And Phil and Maggie, of
course. And Grant.”

His laugh was
low, amused. “You want to keep adding to that list?”

“I’ll stop
there.”

“Okay. Baby, I
have to go. This was just a quick call.”

“You knew I’d
be worrying, didn’t you?”

“Yep.”

She smiled,
breathed out. “I love you. Come home soon.”

“Love you
right back, baby.” The smile was in his voice.

In the early
hours of the morning just as dawn was making itself known, a big,
warm body slid into bed behind her.

Turning into
Moz’s arms, Del cuddled close.

“’Morning,
baby.”

“Just kiss me”
she demanded sleepily.

A low laugh, a
warm kiss. Light at first, deepening as she responded.

The remnants
of sleep slid away, replaced with hunger as the big hands slid down
her body to cup her hips before sliding beneath her nightgown to
skim back up until hard palms cupped her breasts.

Moz rolled her
onto her back, following her, coming over to kiss her more deeply,
knee sliding between her thighs.

No words, no
explanations, no questions.

She welcomed
him, wrapped her arms around his neck, slid her foot up the outside
of his leg then back down his calf.

He shifted,
leaning outward, the bedside drawer sliding open. In the gloom she
saw him lift from her, felt the cool air creeping between their
bodies before he lowered himself to her again.

A nudge of his
knee between hers, an obedient widening of her thighs. One big hand
slid beneath her bottom, angled her hips up, and he slid home,
sliding deep into her in a blissful groan matched by her equally
blissful moan.

No hurry, no
wildness, a gentle loving as he rocked against her, moved inside
her, gathered her close, kissing her deeply, taking her essence,
giving her his, filling her with his flavour and his body.

Her blood
quickened, swept through her, and she gripped him, hung on as his
hips started to surge powerfully.

No hard
pounding, no urgency, just a quickening of their bodies, rising
heat, a flood of intense sensations, a shared orgasm that had them
both depleted, satiated, rolling together under the arc of the
climaxes before settling down to a murmur of voices, shared kisses,
soft declarations of love.

Del floated
happily in a contented haze, Moz’s scent on her skin, listening to
him reassuring Mozart as he went out to the bathroom to clean up.
Minutes later he was back in bed behind her, pulling her into him,
curling around her, big arm around her waist tugging her against
his muscled chest.

Moz nuzzled
the back of her hair, cuddled her close and fell asleep within
minutes.

Mozart made
himself comfortable on Moz’s hip, Missy tucked herself under Del’s
chin, both cats purring happily.

Smiling, Del
slid back into sleep.

~*~

“Got the movie
for tonight?” Moz asked.

“Yes.”

“Is it scary?
I don’t want to hear Ryder bellyaching about not having a decent
movie to watch.”

“It’s scary,
trust me.” Del looked to where he stood mixing some concoction.
“How much are you baking?”

“Two cakes, a
couple of trays of muffins, and some biccies. Why?”

“You think
we’ll eat all that tonight? On top of the take away?”

“I’m allowing
for half of it, but who knows? Simon will be here, so…” Moz
shrugged.

“I hear you.”
Plucking the keys from the hook above the kitchen bench, Del leaned
over and planted a kiss on Moz’s mouth as he immediately bent down
to meet her. “Yum.”

“It’s the cake
mix,” he informed her.

“Are you
licking the bowls as you go?”

“A good cook
always licks the bowls.”

Laughing, she
drew back.

“I could lick
you.” His eyes held lazy heat.

Good grief, he
could make her panties damp with one suggestion. “I’ll hold you to
that when everyone goes home.”

“I could make
time for a quickie.” He flicked the tea towel over one shoulder,
arched an eyebrow wickedly.

“You,” she
pointed sternly at him, “will behave yourself. Maryanne Dooley’s
packages are still in my car boot. I’m going to finally deliver
them to her.”

He gave a
long-suffering sigh. “You only love me for my cooking, don’t
you?”

“That and the
sex.”

His hand
jerked and he almost flicked the bowl off the counter.

Laughing, Del
hurried out. “I’ll see you later.”

“You better
come back ready for a rough ride, woman!” he called after her.

“Just don’t
wear spurs,” she called back.

“I’ll use my
hands.”

God, the man
had lethal hands. Could bring her to a screaming climax in no time
at all. Combine that with his mouth and, oh boy. Just the thought
and she was panting a little.

Pulling out of
the driveway onto the road, she drove to the main road, turned left
and headed out of town. An hour later she was at Maryanne Dooley’s.
The farmer’s wife wanted Del to stay for a cup of tea, so knowing
how lonely it could get in the country, Del obliged before finally
saying her goodbyes and leaving Maryanne to her packages.

She was
halfway home when a car came up behind her. The driver flashed his
headlights.

Wondering who
it could be, Del peered at the driver’s reflection in the rear view
mirror, trying to identify the figure at the wheel.

Another flash
of lights, the car drew closer.

Oh shit. She
took a quick glance over her shoulder, faced forward, gripped the
steering wheel tighter. Her blood went cold. That face behind the
wheel, the cold eyes.

Cutter.

She reached
for the mobile on the passenger seat, intending to call Moz.

Another car
appeared ahead as she closed her hands on the mobile. The car ahead
swerved, coming straight for her, making her wrench the steering
wheel to the side.