Eight
A
lex rapped on the door to Sabrina’s uptown
apartment. When she didn’t answer right away, he pounded harder. When the door
swung open, he took one look at the petite woman with a headful of soft red
curls, ignored the kick he felt in his gut and stormed past her into the
entry.
Alex slammed the door behind him. “Have you lost your
mind?”
“Well, hello to you, too.”
“Sage tells me you’re going back to Rio Gordo—alone. That’s
bullshit, Sabrina. You nearly got killed the first time. What the hell is the
matter with you?”
She crossed her arms over her chest and for the first time he
noticed she was wearing only a short pink silk robe.
“Do you know what time it is?” she asked, forcing him to tear
his gaze away from her bare legs and small feet, the toenails that were painted
a bright shade of pink.
“So it’s a little early.”
“It’s six o’clock in the morning. I’m barely out of bed.”
The image that conjured made his groin tighten. He’d been so
damned mad he hadn’t noticed that her face was void of makeup, all that fiery
hair temptingly mussed. She looked a lot like she had when she’d been sleeping
beside him in the desert. Which reminded him of the crash and made him mad all
over again.
“I don’t care what time it is. You can’t go out there
alone.”
“I can do whatever I please, Alex Justice. And you don’t have a
damned thing to say about it.”
He caught her shoulders and hauled her close, forcing her to
tip her head back to look at him. “Don’t I? I’m the guy who dragged you out of
that chopper. I’m the guy who kept you alive out there and I’m not about to
stand by and let you do something that could wind up with you hurt or dead.”
She didn’t back down. “I’m driving out to the mine and I’m
meeting a mining engineer there. I’m not going to be in any kind of danger.”
Reluctantly, he let her go. Running a hand through his hair, he
fought to hold on to his temper. He didn’t have any say in what Sabrina Eckhart
did or didn’t do, but he sure as hell wasn’t letting her go back there
alone.
“Fine, you want to go back, I’ll go with you. You don’t even
have to pay me. I’ll just go along as a friend.”
She stared up at him, tried to read his face. “Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why do you want to go?”
“Because I...because I feel responsible for you. And because
Sage would never forgive me if I let something happen to you.”
She glanced away. “Oh.”
“When are you going?”
“Day after tomorrow. I’ve booked a commercial flight out of
Hobby to Odessa. I’ll be renting a car to drive the rest of the way.”
“I’ll fly you. It’ll be faster. Change the rental car location
to Rio Gordo.”
“But—”
“You need me, Sabrina, and you know it. You remember those guys
at the airport? A woman who looks like you shouldn’t be going off to a place
like that alone.”
She frowned. “A woman who looks like me?”
“That’s right. You saw those guys. They’ll be drooling all over
you. No telling how far they’d be willing to go to have you.”
For the first time she smiled. “I think there was a compliment
in there somewhere.”
“Are you listening, dammit?”
“All right, fine. But I almost got you killed before. If
something happens, don’t you dare blame me.”
He felt the pull of a smile. “You didn’t almost get me killed.
The helicopter did that.”
“Whatever you say.”
He relaxed a little. “What time is your meeting with the mining
engineer?”
“Noon.”
“All right, I’ll pick you up at seven. That should give us
plenty of time.”
“Fine.”
She just stood there with her arms crossed and her legs bare.
He wanted to eat her up. He wanted to kiss her so badly his jaw ached. Ever
since they’d gotten back, he’d done his best not to think about her. He’d
considered calling one of his old flames just to get rid of some of his
frustration, but couldn’t work up the least bit of enthusiasm. Now he was here,
the last place he should be, and he had no desire to leave.
She looked up at him. He could tell she was trying to brazen it
out, not let him know how uncomfortable she felt standing there in only a swatch
of pink silk and probably not a damned thing on underneath.
Inwardly he groaned.
“I need to take a shower,” she said.
He tried not to imagine peeling off the robe and joining her
under the warm, wet spray, but his body had a mind of its own and he started
getting hard.
“Want some company?” he said with a grin, just to be annoying.
He hadn’t felt such a jolt of heat since she’d been sleeping next to him in the
desert.
Sabrina rolled her eyes. “There’s a box of powdered doughnuts
and some coffee in the kitchen. Help yourself.”
Dammit, he didn’t want coffee. He wanted her. And coming here
had just made it worse.
You had no damn choice,
he told
himself. He sure as hell couldn’t let her go back to the desert by herself. Sage
and Jake had both agreed with him on that. And the truth was, he cared about
Sabrina Eckhart. He might not want to, but he did.
“Thanks, I’ll grab a doughnut on my way out. I’ll see you
Wednesday morning.” He thought of the hours they’d be spending together, the
torture he would be putting himself through. With a long-suffering sigh, he went
in to get a doughnut, which would satisfy at least one of his appetites.
* * *
The pounding of a hammer somewhere downstairs forced
Rebecca’s eyes slowly open. She swung her long legs to the side of the bed,
stood up and walked to the window. Joe McCauley, the carpenter Alex had
recommended, was already at work, hammering away in her kitchen, adding a window
with a flower box that looked out into the big backyard, knocking out a wall to
make the space larger.
From her position at the upstairs bedroom window, she watched
him walk from the house to his white pickup truck, shoulder another piece of
plywood and start back to the kitchen. Though it was still fairly early, it was
already getting hot and Joe was working with his shirt off. He was as solid as
the slab of wood he carried and as tough as the nails he pounded into the
walls.
Hard work had given Joe the kind of powerful build her brother
had. Joe was beefier than Alex, with bigger arms and thighs. Joe was shorter,
maybe five-eleven, with dark hair and dark brown eyes. With heels on, Rebecca
was taller than he was.
Not that Joe seemed to notice. Well, there
was
the occasional male glance in her direction, but mostly where
she was concerned, Joe was all business. It was Ginny who won his smiles, Ginny
he seemed completely at ease with. He liked kids, he’d once told her. Said he
hoped to have a couple of his own someday.
Clearly, Ginny liked Joe. The two shared such a feeling of
camaraderie that Rebecca felt a little left out when the three of them were
together. Which wasn’t very often, since Joe mostly worked and kept to
himself.
Exactly what Rebecca wanted. She had no interest in men. At
least not right now. Been there, done that. Though she’d been separated from her
ex-husband for more than two years, her divorce was only final six months ago.
She was starting over in Houston, had come because she had family here, an older
brother she could count on if she needed help.
Unlike her wealthy parents back in Connecticut, whose only
concern was their highly esteemed position in society, Alex loved her and Ginny.
The only thing Spencer and Virginia Justice cared about was making sure their
children did exactly what they were told.
It hadn’t worked on Alex, who’d refused to continue his Yale
education and attend law school, then go into politics. Instead, he’d signed up
for navy flight school. He’d been a crackerjack pilot and now he was a
successful private investigator. But no matter what Alex accomplished, their
parents considered him a total failure.
Rebecca was the one who had done exactly what her parents
wanted. She’d yearned for the approval they doled out in rare bits and pieces.
Wanted it so badly she had married a man she didn’t love just to please them.
Jeremy Wyatt had turned out to be both verbally and physically abusive, but even
that wasn’t enough to convince her parents she should divorce him.
It had taken a while to build the courage to go against their
wishes. She might never have left Jeremy if Alex hadn’t been there when she
needed him. Just as he had been since they were kids. He was only two years
older, but he had always been her strength, the one person she could count
on.
He still was.
Rebecca looked out the window and caught another glimpse of
Joe. Reminding herself she wasn’t interested in having a man in her life, she
headed for the bathroom to shower and dress for the day. Ginny would be up soon,
Rebecca’s whole world.
She didn’t need a man. She had figured that out the hard
way.
* * *
Cloudy skies hung over the airpark as the plane rose
into the early-morning sky over Houston. A passing spring storm was moving
through, the turbulence making the ride a little bumpy. Alex glanced over at the
woman riding next to him in the copilot’s seat. Where Sabrina had relaxed and
enjoyed herself before, this time as the plane dropped and jolted, her fingers
dug into the leather seat.
He flashed her a glance. “Everything’s okay, you know. This is
nothing like what happened with the chopper. This is just a little turbulence.
Nothing out of the ordinary. We should smooth out in a few more minutes.”
She swallowed, looked up at him and nodded, but her face was a
little too pale. He was glad when the turbulence lessened and she finally leaned
back in her seat.
The rest of the ride went smoothly and they landed at the Rio
Gordo airport right on time. Alex retrieved her bag, which was bigger than
before. He didn’t have to ask what was in it. He figured she’d had to make do
with nothing on her last trip. She wasn’t taking any chances this time.
He took care of securing the plane then checked in at the
office. Sabrina said hello to Mr. Woodard, who seemed relieved to see her all in
one piece.
“You got some good friends out there,” the old man told her.
“Seemed like they was calling every five minutes. Had the sheriff jumpin’, said
somethin’ must have happened or you would have phoned.”
Sabrina smiled at him. “We kind of look out for each
other.”
Woodard nodded his approval, handed her the keys to the rental
car, a four-wheel drive Jeep Cherokee. “Thank you,” she said.
“You be careful out there. Desert can be a real nasty
place...but then I guess you know that already.”
“I’ll make sure she gets back safely,” Alex said, hoping to
hell the rental car was more reliable than the chopper.
As they walked out of the office, he took the keys from
Sabrina’s hand. “We’ve got a little time. Let’s stop at the market and pick up
some lunch meat and cheese, stuff to make sandwiches to take out there with
us.”
Sabrina grinned and tapped her canvas bag. “Already got ’em.
Along with some water and a few other goodies.”
His mouth edged up. “I guess you’re playing it safe this
time.”
“I’d just as soon not have to eat any more snake.” She slung
the strap of the bag over her shoulder. “You brought your emergency gear. I
brought mine. I’m a fast learner, Alex.”
He thought of the lessons he’d like to teach her that had
nothing to do with survival. “So I’ve noticed.” She’d done just fine out there
in the desert. Better than he ever would have guessed. The courage she had shown
only made him want her more.
They made their way over to the rental car pickup area, located
the dark green Jeep, and he tossed their bags into the back. Sabrina went around
and climbed in the passenger side. He was getting ready to slide behind the
wheel when the roar of a jet plane signaled the ringing of his iPhone. He pulled
it out of his jeans pocket but didn’t recognize the number.
“Justice.”
“Sheriff Beau Dickens here. I’ve got some information regardin’
the helicopter crash.”
“I’m listening.”
“The aviation expert says the wrong kind of oil was added to
the engine. Says the same thing happened with the rotor blades. Wrong lubricant
used. Human error caused the chopper to crash.”
Alex mulled that over, tried to understand how that could have
happened. “Who’s responsible?”
“That’s the funny thing. Guy named Dexter Phillips is the
mechanic on the helo. He’s been taking care of her for the last five years. Dex
swears he used the right oil.”
“Maybe he was drunk or drugged-up or something.”
“Man’s a teetotaler. Family man all the way round. He claims
someone must have tampered with the chopper after he did the maintenance
work.”
Alex didn’t like the sound of that. “You’re saying the crash
wasn’t an accident.”
“We aren’t sure yet, but it’s startin’ to look that way.”
“Who else would have access besides Phillips?”
“This is Rio Gordo. We’ve only got one security camera out at
the airport.”
“I assume you’ve checked it.”
“We’ve been goin’ over the images. Be pretty easy for somebody
to get in and out without being seen. We aren’t sure, but we may have found
somethin’. Too soon to say.”
“What about Phillips? You’re convinced he’s telling the
truth?”
“Dex’s real good at his job. Takes pride in his work. So yeah,
I think it’s likely someone else did it.”
“You have any idea who that might be or why?”
“As I said, we’re followin’ a lead. Too soon to tell if it’s
gonna pan out.”
Alex’s mind ran through a scenario that was unlikely, but he
couldn’t afford to overlook. “Listen, Sheriff, Ms. Eckhart and I just got back
to Rio Gordo. My plane’s out here at the airport. We’ll only be away for a few
hours. Think you could post a deputy to watch it? I’ll pay for his time.”