Long Simmering Spring (14 page)

“All the more reason why you need to stay away from the investigation.”

She stayed silent and kept chopping.

“Julie—” he said, his voice a clear warning.

She relaxed her stance and took a deep breath. “Look, if you’re that worried, why don’t you sleep on my couch tonight? You can join me for dinner, and afterward you can teach me some self-defense.” She smiled at him but he didn’t smile back.

“That would be fine if there weren’t people like Don Rathbone out there—he still hasn’t turned up, by the way. And no arrest warrant or restraining order is going to help if the man’s gone missing.”

“Are you trying to scare me?”

“And if I weren’t so concerned about the drug issue in our town,” he said, ignoring her question.

“I could help with that.”

“No.” His tone brooked no opposition. “It is too dangerous.”

Julie sighed. “No one’s running drugs on my property.”

“Maybe not, but people have been seeing odd lights up here. The bluff is far away from town, and your house is secluded. Your property can be accessed by the woods or by water, both of which would allow someone to arrive or depart without being seen easily. Those footprints are deep. Someone stood in your shed for a long time. Maybe watching you. That doesn’t scare you?”

“It’s creepy, which is why I called. But the more I think about it, the more I realize how silly it all seems. Why would someone stand in my shed and watch the house? I’m barely here most of the time. It could have been anyone—a neighbor—whoever.”

“Or it could have been someone who means you harm.” Quickly, she glanced at him to see whether he was serious. His dark look said it all. “For a smart woman, you sure are acting stupid.”

“I am not,” she said. “I’m just looking at this rationally. Seems to me that Don’s the only concern right now, and you’ve put structures in place to find him and bring him to justice. Nothing is going to happen to me here.”

“Okay, okay,” Cole said, sounding weary. “Fine. We have an APB out on Don, and we’ll pick him up. A restraining order has been filed with the court. And if anyone other than Don is casing your place, we’ll find him.”

“I know.” Whatever else she knew about him, the one thing Julie was certain of was that Cole took his job very, very seriously.

“I’ll ask you one more time. Come with me to Val’s. Stay anywhere else but here.”

“No. That’s unnecessary.”

He sighed and cupped her face in his hand. “I can’t force you to leave, but you have to know I’m not happy about it.” If the tone of his voice hadn’t been enough to let her know how displeased he was, the crease between his brows would have given it away.

“I know,” she said, tracing her hand up his arm. “So let me make it up to you. Please join me for dinner.”

“I can’t,” he sighed. “I’m in the middle of a training session and I have to get back to my deputies.” He paused, and it seemed like he was drinking in her face. “But I have a few minutes for this,” he said, just before he pinned her against the counter and kissed her.

As Cole’s lips met Julie’s, a rocket went off in his brain. She tasted sweet and earthy and real.

His hands gravitated to her hips, right where her jeans stretched over her curves, and he slid his palms to her waist. Underneath her shirt, her skin was warm and tantalizingly smooth. Something drop-kicked him right in the gut. Something beyond anything he’d felt before. “I need to touch you,” he rasped, and damned if she didn’t take both his hands and pull them up her rib cage.

“Yes, please.” Leave it to Julie to be polite even when she was trying to be demanding.

When his hands found the soft mounds of her breasts and kneaded, she slipped her hands into the back pockets of his jeans and pulled him in closer, moaning into his mouth. Her nipples peaked in his palms, and he nearly lost it, right then and there.

The desire to touch her bare skin was intense, so he undid her bra with none of his usual finesse and pushed it up. And then, when he had those two perfect mounds in his hands, he sighed and circled her nipples with his thumbs, reveling in her sharp cry of pleasure. She kissed him harder, more desperately. That she wanted him so badly ratcheted his own desire higher, and he pressed the length of his body against her. The hard bulge between his legs throbbed.

By now, her nipples were rock hard. Gently, he twisted them between his thumbs and forefingers. She moaned, a soft, erotic sound.

He needed a taste. Just one taste and he’d leave. He pushed her shirt up and feasted his eyes on the most beautiful set of breasts he’d ever seen—high and round, with the nipples drawn tight. Then he bent his head and drew one into his mouth. Julie cried out and wove her hands in his hair, holding him to her. He continued to twist the other nipple in time with the flicks of his tongue, and Julie grabbed onto his deltoid and squeezed.

At that very moment, his phone rang.

“Aw, f—” he started, then caught himself. No need for her to hear his trash mouth. He jerked himself away and whipped out his phone.

“Grayson.” He sounded angry, and for good reason. The most delectable meal had been snatched out from under his nose. Her cheeks colored red, Julie had pulled down her shirt and started trying to refasten her bra.

“Boss, it’s Hank. When are you coming back? I don’t want to start the hands-on training without you. If you’re going to be a while longer, I can have everyone move on to traffic stops.”

Julie was looking up at him, her eyes bigger than usual. Gently, he stroked her hair. “I’ll be there in fifteen. Move on to traffic stops. I’ll take over when I get back.”

“Will do,” Hank said. Then the line went dead.

“I have to go,” he said, pocketing his phone.

“Then go,” Julie said, trying to straighten her shirt.

“Lock all the doors and windows. Be safe. I’ll be back later to take you up on that couch offer.”

“All right,” she said, looking a bit surprised that he was actually going to follow through. As if he’d ever leave her alone at night while Don was prowling around.

They walked to the front door, and before he left, he kissed her again, soft and sweet. It was torture to tear himself away, but he had a job to do. Reluctantly, he walked to his cruiser and headed back to the Sheriff’s Department.

CHAPTER 12

 
“I have a confession to make.” Julie was seated in the passenger seat of Cole’s Charger as they sped north on Interstate 495. The Saturday morning was bright, the windows were cracked, and the wind gently tossed her hair. It was a fine day for a drive, and it felt good to be out of Star Harbor, especially given the events of the past couple of weeks.

Cole glanced at her. “What’s that?”

“I Googled ‘opening day’ just to see what all the hoopla was about.”

He laughed. “I’d have expected nothing less from you, Doc. You excited?”

“Very. I can’t believe my first Red Sox game is going to be the opening game of the season.”

“Blows my mind that you haven’t been to a game before.”

“I always wanted to go, but I was so focused on my classes and lab work in med school that I could never make time. I’m sorry to say that the same held true while I was doing my residency.”

“Well, I’m honored to be the one to initiate you. You’re in for a treat. But there’s someplace I need to stop first.”

“Where?”

“Work.” He smiled at her, his blue eyes glinting hard and bright in the sunshine.

“But you work in Star Harbor.”

“Not always.”

“Can you give me a hint? A clue?”

“Nope,” he said firmly. “Just sit back and enjoy the ride. The errand won’t take long, so just relax. We’ll get to the ballpark on time so I can buy you a chili dog.” She gave a little snort and he laughed. “Aw, Doc, you can’t eat healthy
all
the time.”

“I try to.”

“Nah. I can see it in your eyes. You love bad-for-you food. You’re jonesing for a chili dog right now, aren’t you? Don’t deny it.”

Now she really laughed. She liked this side of him—playful, and a little bit cheeky. She was actually starting to enjoy his sense of humor, something she hadn’t even known he possessed until a week or so ago. Up to that point, pretty much only one word could have summed the man up—intense. He still was intense, but it was tempered by that softer side she was starting to see peek out.

Her own attitude had adjusted, too. Once she’d wrapped her head around the fact that he was actually more than just a good-time guy, she could accept that their outrageous physical chemistry wasn’t a fluke, either. As he’d promised, he’d been staying at her place every night. On the couch. He’d been the perfect gentleman, and quite honestly, that had been a problem. A big one. Because she wanted him—seriously wanted him—and he seemed determined to take it slow.

It seemed that regardless of what she was doing, her mind would always drift back to their few brief, heated encounters. And his body—his beautiful, flawed body, with all its scars and ink and life. Wondering what it would be like to have those big hands on her again, to have him sink inside her and take her over the edge, was making her a little crazy—and more than a little hot. Her cheeks warmed with the vivid image of their bodies, naked, intertwined, in her oversized bed.

To get her mind off Cole, if only for a moment, she turned and looked out the window. The trees lining the highway whipped by in rapid speed—pine, mostly, but also some still-bare deciduous ones. In the next few weeks, leaves would begin to unfurl from the buds and wildflowers would start to bloom. A palette of pastels, light green, yellow, pink, and purple, would cover the countryside. The soil, damp and fresh, would give off its loamy smell as new life began and nature showed its true colors.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, wondering where they were going first.

Cole looked over at Julie, who was doing exactly what he’d suggested—enjoying the ride. Of course, a few seconds before she’d been blushing. He didn’t have to be a mind reader to know what she was thinking about, and it sure as hell wasn’t baseball.
Good
. Let her wonder what he was like in the sack. Let her want him as much as he wanted her.

She’d been more than clear about why she’d finally agreed to go out with him—fun. Only thing was, he wasn’t seeing it that way. She was the real deal—a keeper—whether she realized it or not, and he wanted more from her. He was tired of being so damned nice, but one wrong move and he could blow every ounce of trust they’d built between them. He almost laughed aloud. Cole Grayson,
nice
. Not a word he would ever have used to describe himself, but there he was, Mister Nice Guy, a role he’d never thought he’d be playing, and it was all because of one sexy-sweet doctor sitting right next to him.

He wondered when she’d figure out that he was playing all right. Playing for keeps. With Julie in his life, he was gaining the courage to look at things more optimistically, to move on from his past, and to embrace the future. No way was he giving that up.

They’d been driving for a little over an hour. He’d turned the car onto Route 3, and it was evident they were heading into Boston.

Julie sat up in her seat and began to pay attention.

He pulled off Route 3 onto Storrow Drive and headed for Back Bay. After another fifteen minutes, he had the car parked on a side street.

As he helped Julie out of the car, he couldn’t help grinning. “You know where we are?”

“No idea. Would you like to tell me?”

“You’ll see in a moment. Gotta work, but it won’t take long, and there are some people I want you to meet.”

Cole held her hand as they walked down the sidewalk. He looked down at her. She was dressed simply and her skirt showed just the right amount of leg. Gleaming in the sunlight, her light hair touched her back. He walked more slowly than usual, knowing that she’d need to take a few steps to keep up with one of his long strides. As if she realized he was taking it slower for her, she looked up at him and smiled, her eyes crinkling at their edges. Something tugged at his heart.

Before long, they arrived at their destination. The Boston Police Department. His life for three long years. The building was modern yet had a retro feel. It had been designed on a plaza with brown and cream-colored marble in a geometric pattern. Small square glass windows two stories tall lined the entranceway. On the right was a huge silver radio tower.

“Come on in,” Cole said, holding the door for her. She slipped into the building and they both passed through the metal detectors that were situated just inside the entrance. Then they headed to the main offices.

Cole walked inside and was immediately greeted with shouts and cries of welcome.

“Cole, great to see ya!” a burly man with gray hair exclaimed. “How’re ya doing, big sheriff?”

“Great, Rick, just great,” Cole responded.

“How’s it going back home?” a ruddy, red-haired man asked.

Cole gave Julie a little smile. “Good, Jeff. Got a frosty reception at first, but I think they’re warming up to me.” As a tall, powerfully built woman approached, Cole raised his hand in greeting. “Cannon, great to see you.”

“You too, Grayson,” Trina said with a smile. “We all miss you around here. Joe especially.”

“Where is Zee?” he asked, looking around.

“Right here!” a voice called out. He turned and saw his old partner, Joe Zachary, coming toward him. Physically, the big man hadn’t changed in the six months since he’d last seen him. The department had a running joke that Cole and Joe must do their workouts together, since they had almost identical muscle tone, and Zee looked as fit as he always had. But there was something in his face that told a different story. His friend looked weary, almost downtrodden. Whatever it was, it would probably best be discussed when they didn’t have the entire gang surrounding them.

“Zee,” Cole said, embracing him in a bear hug. “How are you doing?” He stepped back and gave his ex-partner a searching gaze.

“Been better,” Joe admitted. “But we can talk later. Why don’t you introduce me?” he asked, looking pointedly at Julie.

Cole wrapped his arm around Julie and pulled her close. “Gang, I’d like you to meet Julia Kensington, Star Harbor’s finest doctor. Julie, this is Rick, Jeff, Trina, and Joe.”