The Bodyguard's Return (11 page)

“I want to know who these men are and why they’re buying up land in Cotter Creek,” Joshua said, then went on to explain what he and Savannah had been investigating.

“Strange,” Dalton said when he’d finished. “Why would a couple of Boston men want anything to do with Cotter Creek?”

“That’s what I’m hoping you can find out,” Joshua replied.

“This may take a little while,” Dalton said.

Joshua looked at Savannah. “Want to grab a quick cup of coffee at the café while we wait?”

“Sounds good to me,” she replied.

“We’ll be back in twenty minutes or so,” Joshua said to his brother, who nodded absently, his attention totally focused on his task.

There was no way Joshua felt like just sitting and waiting in the office. He knew Dalton would work better if he didn’t have the distraction of him and Savannah standing over him.

“What does all this mean, Joshua?” Savannah asked him a few minutes later as they sat at a back booth in the café. “Why would those men be buying land here?”

“I don’t know. Maybe Dalton will come up with some answers that will make sense.”

She frowned thoughtfully. “You think those men
are responsible for all those ranchers’ deaths? Do you think one of those men killed Charlie?”

“Who knows? To be perfectly honest, I don’t know what to think.” He took a sip of the strong, hot coffee, then continued. “Cotter Creek is such a small town. I do find it difficult to believe that there are strangers running around killing people then buying up their land. People around here notice strangers.”

Savannah’s pretty eyes gazed at him somberly. “Then that means probably somebody here in town is killing those people. Somebody we know. Maybe somebody we trust.”

Once again the knot in his chest constricted tighter. “Hopefully when we get back to the office Dalton will have some answers for us.”

Savannah wrapped her slender fingers around her coffee cup and stared out the nearby window. As she looked outside, he found himself staring at her.

She was right. She wasn’t beautiful in the traditional sense. But she was pretty, and when she smiled she exuded a warmth that was entrancing.

Today she was dressed in a pair of navy slacks and a pink and navy striped sweater that intimately hugged her curves. As he stared at her, desire struck him like a punch to the gut.

He liked her. The sudden knowledge surprised him. In the time they had spent together he’d definitely come to admire her intelligence, he enjoyed her sense of humor and sensed they shared the same moral standards.

He’d even grown to like the fact that she’d never met a silence she couldn’t fill and had come to realize that her stubbornness was actually a fierce determination to do what she thought was right.

There was a soft vulnerability in her that touched him. Even though she often joked about her mother and the ugly things she’d been told about herself, he sensed she carried deep scars from her childhood and it surprised him that there was a part of him that wanted to heal those scars.

He wanted her again. Right here. Right now. He wanted to strip that sweater over her head and kiss the freckles on her shoulders. He needed to hear her soft sighs as he caressed her skin.

She looked at him then and a small gasp escaped her. A blush worked up her neck and swept to her cheeks…as if she were privy to his innermost thoughts, as if his desire was raw and bare in his gaze.

“What are you thinking?” she asked, her voice a husky whisper.

“I was just thinking that maybe after we see what Dalton finds, you’d like me to fix you some lunch at my place.” Of course, that hadn’t been what he’d been thinking. His thoughts hadn’t been of food, but rather of her.

“I’d like that,” she said simply, her eyes simmering with unspoken words.

“Don’t you want to know if I can cook or not?” he asked.

Her smile heightened the tension and made him glad he was seated at a booth. “I don’t care if you can cook or not.”

Her reply let him know she was aware of what would happen if she came to his place, she was not only aware of it but apparently wanted him as much as he wanted her.

She cleared her throat and sat back in the seat. “So, you still think it’s possible Lauren is after me?”

Thoughts of their lunch date instantly disappeared from his head. “I don’t know. I still haven’t been able to make contact with her and I have to admit that worries me a little.”

He took another sip of his coffee and frowned thoughtfully. “I can’t believe how badly I screwed that up.”

“From what you told me about the situation, you didn’t screw up. It sounds to me like Lauren had some major problems to start with.” Savannah leaned forward. “I’ve never understood those kind of women who smash car windows or rip up clothing or stalk a man because of unrequited love. If a man doesn’t want me, then I certainly don’t want to be with him. Life is too short for that kind of drama.”

“Yeah, but I should have seen that Lauren wasn’t right. Somehow I missed the signals, I misjudged her. Reading people and situations is part of what I was trained to do as a bodyguard.” Frustration edged through him at thoughts of Lauren.

She reached across the table and touched the back
of one of his hands. “Joshua, stop beating yourself up. If disturbed or evil people were so easy to pick out then we’d know who in this town was responsible for those deaths just by looking at his face. Besides, as far as I’m concerned you’re a terrific bodyguard. You saved me from getting a butt full of birdshot, didn’t you?”

He turned his hand and grabbed hers as he thought of that moment when Jim Ramsey had told him somebody had been attacked at Winnie’s place. “Yeah, but somebody almost beat you to death in your bed and I was nowhere around.”

“You aren’t to blame for that. Who knew that anyone would break into Winnie’s. You can’t be with me every minute of the day and night.” She released his hand. “Joshua, if I had to handpick a bodyguard, you’d be who I’d choose.”

“Why? Because I’m a West?”

“I wouldn’t care if your name was Mud.” She leaned back in the booth and eyed him intently. “I’ve seen the way you are when we’re out in public, the way you look at everything and everyone, how you measure the safety of the place and the people around me. I’d hire you because whenever I’m with you I feel safe.”

Her words dug deeply into him, touching him more than he wanted her to know. “Thanks, and personally I’m glad my name isn’t Mud.”

She smiled. “You think we should head back over to the office?”

“Yeah, let’s go see if Dalton has managed to get us some answers.”

Together they left the café and walked the short distance back to the Wild West Protective Services office. Dalton was waiting for them, a frown etched across his forehead.

“I have something for you, but it isn’t much,” he said. “I can’t find anything on the two men, but the address comes back with a listing for a MoTwin Corporation.”

“Did you find out anything about the corporation?”

Dalton shook his head. “All I’ve managed to learn so far is that it’s a privately owned corporation. It’s going to take me longer than twenty minutes to get more information. It looks like it might be some sort of dummy corporation.”

“Keep digging, would you?” Joshua asked.

“Definitely. I’ll keep you posted on what I find out.”

Once again Joshua and Savannah stepped outside into the late morning sunshine. “So, what do you want to do now?” he asked Savannah. “Do you need to check in at the newspaper office or anything?”

She shook her head, her hair glinting like fire in the sunlight. She looked at him, her amber eyes blazing more gold than brown. “How about that lunch you offered me? I’m suddenly ravenous.”

N
ot a word was spoken as Joshua sped to the West ranch. Savannah knew they were going to his cabin for one reason and one reason alone.

To make love.

The air between them snapped and crackled with their intent, with their desire for one another. It was as if the electricity was so big, so intense it left no room for talk or thought.

Even though she knew there was no future with him, even though she knew she’d never be anything but a momentary diversion in his life, no doubts entered her mind, her heart. She would take whatever pieces Joshua was willing to give her of himself.

She’d take from him until he tired of her then she
would go quietly away. No drama, no tears. She was the queen of reality, and she had never questioned that her future would ultimately be a lonely one.

They flew by the West ranch house and down a pasture lane, eventually stopping in front of a small cabin half hidden by lush trees and overgrown brush. The place held a rustic charm that wasn’t lost on her. It looked like the perfect place for a private midday rendezvous.

Savannah’s body nearly sang with anticipation as they got out of the truck and she followed Joshua across the small porch and to the front door.

She’d barely gotten inside the door when he grabbed her and crashed his mouth to hers. The kiss felt half-angry, demanding and all-consuming.

She returned it with the same emotions. She was half-angry with him because she knew that he wanted nothing more from her than to sate a physical desire. She demanded that he give her all he was capable of giving because she was at least worth that much.

They’d entered into the kitchen and the force of the kiss drove her back against the refrigerator. Joshua leaned into her, trapping her between the cool enamel of the fridge and his hot, hard body.

“What are you doing to me?” he asked, his voice a half growl.

“I don’t know, but you’re doing the same thing to me,” she replied breathlessly.

He slammed his mouth back to hers and ground
his hips against hers. She ground back, loving the feel of his arousal hard against her. It frightened her more than a little, the ease that he could sweep all thoughts out of her mind, how easily he drove her half-crazy with desire.

The kiss ended and he stepped back from her, his chest heaving with deep breaths, his green eyes glowing with a primal energy.

“You make me crazy,” he said, his voice a husky whisper. “I can’t remember ever wanting a woman like I want you right now.”

The admission from him simply fanned the flames that burned inside her. “Joshua, I want you so much it’s all I can think about.”

He took her mouth again with his, his tongue battling hers in a sensual war. Savannah wound her arms around his neck, melting against him as the heat of his kiss weakened her knees.

This time when the kiss finally ended he grabbed the bottom of her sweater and with one smooth action pulled it up and over her head. He tossed the garment toward a small wooden dining table, then grabbed her hand and pulled her into the bedroom.

She had no opportunity to pay attention to the surroundings. There was only Joshua and her desire for him. She was blinded to anything else.

It took only moments for them to undress and get beneath the sheets that smelled of him. They moved together in a frenzy, the lovemaking fast and furious, and when they were finished they remained in the
bed, the afternoon sunshine streaming through the window.

For the first time since arriving Savannah took note of the room. Navy curtains hung at the window, matching the navy bedspread that had been thrown off at some point. A wooden dresser sat against one wall, a photo of the West family on top.

She turned over on her side and looked at Joshua, who was on his back, staring up at the ceiling with a frown cutting across his forehead. “What are you thinking?” she asked softly. She placed a hand on his chest, the thump of his heartbeat against her palm.

The frown disappeared as he gazed at her. “Nothing. At least nothing important.”

She held his gaze for a long moment. “Do you miss New York City?”

“Not at all.” His reply came quickly. He placed an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him. She snuggled into him, savoring the quiet intimacy of not just their physical closeness but also a momentary emotional one as well.

He released a deep sigh. “Going to New York was a mistake. I realize that now. I want my life to be here, in Cotter Creek. At the time I moved to New York I had a need to get away from here, find a place, an identity that was all my own. It’s great having a big family, but I needed to get off by myself.”

“I can’t imagine having everything you have here and choosing to leave it all,” she replied. “It has to
be amazing to know how much you’re loved by everyone around you, to have such wonderful support from your family.”

“It is wonderful,” he agreed easily, “but it’s one thing for your family to think you’re terrific. I needed to find out what kind of a person I was separate from my family.”

He frowned once again. “Everyone in my family told me how smart I was, how competent, but the only job I’d worked was as a bodyguard for a business my father owned. I needed to find out if I was worth anything besides being a West and working for Wild West Protective Services.”

“And did you find what you were looking for?”

“The verdict is still out.”

“It’s funny, you had to leave your family because you had too much love and support and I had to leave mine for just the opposite reasons.” As always, a tiny rivulet of pain fluttered through her as she thought of her parents.

He tightened his arm around her. “Tell me about your mother and father. You’ve mentioned before that they weren’t cut out to be parents.”

She ran her hand across the muscled expanse of his chest, enjoying the feel of his chest hair beneath her fingertips. “They aren’t bad people. To be honest, I hardly know my father. He worked a lot and when he was home he was completely caught up in my mother. There wasn’t time for me in his life.”

“And your mother?” His hand rubbed her back in
a gentle swirling motion that was both erotic yet soothing at the same time.

Savannah sighed. Thoughts of her mother always confused her. “I love my mother, but I don’t like her very much.” She propped herself up on an elbow and gazed at Joshua. “My mother is an absolutely stunning woman. Her life before she met my father had been beauty pageants. By the time she was ten years old she’d won over a hundred contests, but I think that world made her worship beauty above all else and unfortunately I didn’t fit into her world. Nothing worse for a beauty queen than to have a red-headed, freckle-faced, outspoken, lacking-of-poise daughter.”

Joshua smiled and touched the tip of her nose. “I like your freckles.” His smile faded as his fingers slid down her cheek, and he caressed the length of her neck.

He leaned forward and kissed her, a kiss of infinite tenderness and quiet passion. Savannah pressed herself against him, returning his kiss with a tenderness and passion of her own.

She wanted him again and it was obvious from his arousal that he wanted her, too. As his hands moved down the length of her, they didn’t move with the white-hot fever that they had earlier, but rather this time it was a slow burn that slowly consumed her.

He touched her everywhere with his hands, with his mouth, caressing and tasting and bringing her again and again to the brink of release then denying her with a low wicked laugh.

She returned the favor, loving the fact that when
she touched him low across his belly he groaned and when she licked across that same skin, he gripped her shoulders and groaned her name like a plea.

When he finally entered her, it was a slow, smooth glide into magic. They made love as if they had all the time in the world, as if they knew each other so intimately there was no need to be adventurous or exploratory. They simply moved together in perfect rhythm, giving and taking as naturally as breathing.

As he kissed her, a deep, soulful kiss, she felt the rise of intense emotions filling her. It was so intense tears stung her eyes. Her heart felt too big for her chest and it was in that moment that she realized she’d only been fooling herself.

She’d believed that she could spend almost every waking hour with Joshua and have sex with him and not get her heart involved. She’d thought she was strong enough not to fall victim to his charm. She’d thought she could know the man inside and not care about him, but she’d been wrong.

The truth was, she was falling in love with Joshua West. He liked her freckles. How could she not fall in love with a man who told her he liked her freckles.

Unfortunately, she knew as surely as she was breathing that she was headed for heartache.

Joshua listened to the sounds of the shower coming from the bathroom. He’d taken a quick
shower minutes before and now sat at the kitchen table and waited for Savannah to shower and dress.

He had never felt so confused in his life…confused about himself, confused about Savannah. After they’d had sex the second time he’d looked at her and wondered how anyone could ever even imagine that she wasn’t beautiful.

And that had scared the hell out of him. She was creeping in where no other woman had ever been…into his head, into his heart.

At the moment all he felt was a need to run, to escape her with her charming chatter and innate warmth. He needed to distance himself not only from his desire for her on a physical level, but also an emotional level as well.

Despite her background with her family, he thought she was the most together woman he’d ever met. She seemed to know exactly who she was and what she wanted from life and he envied her that.

She’d shown him some of the scars that had been left by her mother and as the youngest son of a loving family, he’d ached for her pain, a pain he’d never known.

He tensed as he heard the shower water shut off. He looked at his watch, surprised to realize how late it had gotten. They had spent the entire afternoon in bed.

There was a part of him that wished they could just grab a bite to eat from the refrigerator, then tumble back into each other’s arms and sleep
together through the night. But there was a bigger part of him that needed to get away from her.

She was supposed to interview Sheila in less than an hour. He’d take her to the café for the interview, then take her home and tomorrow he’d be stronger where she was concerned.

He had to get control of his feelings, because until he knew where he was going with his life, he had no intention of taking anyone along with him.

He was still seated at the table when she came out of the bedroom. Despite his need to control his emotions, he couldn’t help the way his heart leaped as she gifted him with one of her wide smiles.

“I can’t believe you don’t have a hair dryer,” she said as she finger-combed her curly, damp hair.

“Yeah, well, that’s because I discourage female visitors,” he said.

She stopped in her tracks and stared at him. “Oh, forgive me, I didn’t realize you were discouraging my presence here when you were driving ninety miles an hour to get me here.”

“You’re right. I guess I just want to make sure that you understand that nothing has changed as far as I’m concerned.” He knew he was being an ass, but he couldn’t stop himself. She scared him, his feelings for her scared him and he needed to gain a safe distance. “I just don’t want another Lauren situation on my hands.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You’re some piece of work, Joshua West. How dare you even think I’d be capable
of being a ‘Lauren situation.’” Her words were clipped and curt with anger.

Her eyes blazed as she stalked across the room to the front door. “You might be all that and a bag of chips to most of the girls you sleep with, but I told you from the very beginning that all I was looking for was a little fun. You’re so worried about me wanting more from you, but what makes you think you’re so great that I’d want anything more from you?”

She opened the front door, stepped out then slammed the door behind her. Joshua hurriedly followed, instant regret weighing heavily on his shoulders.

As Savannah started walking, short angry strides taking her past his truck, he called after her. “If you’re planning on walking back to town you’re going to be late for your interview with Sheila.”

She paused, whirled to face him, then walked back to his truck and got in. He slid behind the wheel, then turned to face her. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

She looked at him and in the depths of her eyes he thought he saw a whisper of hurt, but she raised her chin in a show of defiance. “Just get me back to town. I have a job to do.” She averted her gaze out the passenger window as if to dismiss him.

He started the engine and pulled away from the cabin, sorry that he’d said anything, sorry that he’d obviously hurt her feelings.

They rode for a few minutes in silence, a taut silence that deepened his regret.

“Savannah, I didn’t mean for it to sound like I thought you might be like Lauren,” he said after several minutes of the impossibly strained silence. “I just don’t want there to be any complications, I wanted to make sure you know where I stood with you.”

“You’ve made that crystal clear,” she said with marked coolness in her voice. She turned to face him once again. “Look, Joshua, things have somehow gotten out of control between us, with the bodyguard thing maybe we’re spending way too much time together. You know what they say about familiarity breeding contempt.”

Once again she turned her head and looked out the passenger window. Her breasts heaved with a deep sigh. “I think maybe we need a break from each other. I appreciate the fact that there might be some sort of threat against me, but I’m a big girl. We have the alarm system now at the house and I know to watch my back.”

“We’re in the middle of an investigation,” he protested. “I’m not sure now is the time to change things.” He pulled up and parked in front of the café. He cut the engine, then turned to face her. “We’re both running a little high on emotion here. Why don’t we wait and see what we find out from Sheila before we make any rash decisions?”