Whispers of the Falls: Book one (Twelve Oaks Farm Series 1) (10 page)

Her voice husky, she whispered, “I’ve never felt anything so wonderful in my life. Take me, Grant.” There was strength in the hands that gripped his back, pulling him tighter against her.

The pleasure was so piercing he bit his lower lip to keep from groaning. Heat pumped through his blood as he spread her legs and entered her ferociously. She gasped and let out a little scream of surprise. He waited until she grew accustomed to his size. In seconds she began to move under him, bucking her hips against his shaft. She wrapped herself around him bringing him as deeply into her as possible. She shuddered beneath him. Grant rolled over onto his back bringing Nina with him. She sat up, hands on his chest. Her throaty cries intensified as she slammed against him time and time again, writhing, moaning as she straddled him. He gripped her buttocks and squirmed against her as his orgasm exploded. A great shudder moved through him. She gave a savage, powerful, upward thrust of her hips. Several thrusts later she collapsed onto his chest. Thick, gold hair covered his chest, neck and cheeks. She fell to the mattress gasping for air. “That was wonderful.”

Even though he didn’t say it, Grant felt something powerful with Nina. No woman had ever touched his soul as she had. For long moments Grant lay unmoving considering his actions. He felt ashamed.

Chapter Eight

“I love you.” Nina felt him tense. Making small circles in his chest hair with her fingers, she smiled. “It’s okay, Grant. I know you are dealing with a lot right now. I don’t expect you to return the feelings.” Head propped on her elbow she looked at him. “You are one bad ass Marine. I have a lot of work to do and I’m too weak to get out of bed.” Everything ached. Never in her life did she think she could be as wicked as she had been with Grant. She felt like she had been in a fight.

He pushed her tangled hair away from her face. “I’ll help you. We’ll get the work done.”

Propped against the headboard, he asked, “What do you know about Randle Collins?”

She huffed in annoyance, “Like I said, the man is of no concern to you.”

“I’m not letting it go, Nina. I get the feeling the man is dangerous. I want to know everything about him. Why was he here?”

She groaned in pain when she scooted to the edge of the bed to get dressed. Grant grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to his side. “I want to know. I have to know.”

“Why? So you can beat him up. Believe me, he is not the type of man you want as an enemy. I regret ever letting him into my life.” Emotion brought color to her cheeks. “Six dates and Randal Collins thinks he owns me.”

“What does he do for a living?”

She let out a loud breath. “He owns a night club called the Red Diamond in Raleigh. By his spending habits, I guess it does pretty well. He owns a huge house, an expensive car, and all the play toys you can imagine.”

Before he could stop her, she jumped to her feet. He got hard once again as he watched the sway of her round backside as she disappeared into the bathroom. He placed his arm over his eyes and groaned. The woman had him tied in knots. He was a fool for sleeping with her. Just knowing she was in love with him only complicated things more. Guilt consumed him like a flame. His life was up in the air and he didn’t know where she would fit. He doubted she would ever fit.

He drove the thoughts of Nina to the back of his mind and focused on Collins. Not once had his uncle mentioned the man owning a night club. Maybe it was bought under a fake name. Night clubs would be the perfect place to sale his drugs. In the midst of loud music and alcohol being served, no one would notice transactions of money and drugs changing hands.

Tomorrow he would go back to the marijuana crop and see if he could find out any new information. In the meantime, he would call Uncle Tate and have him put an undercover agent inside the club. Large amounts of marijuana were being grown and so large amounts were being sold. It wouldn’t take long to find out who was helping distribute the drugs from the club. Maybe the high-sheriff was also involved. If so, Matthew Collins would be able to tip his son off to any investigation. That’s probably how he had been able to escape suspicion.

The tap water ceased. Towel wrapped around her, Nina flounced back into the bedroom and gathered her clothes. Unable to find her panties, she dropped down on her knees and looked under the bed. “Is this what you’re looking for?” Grant twirled the black, lacy swatch of cloth on his finger.

One hand clutching the towel to her bosoms, she reached out and jerked them off his finger with the other. He threw back the quilt and whispered seductively, “Come on back to bed.” His penis stood glistening and proud.

Embarrassed at his boldness, her cheeks turned pink. “I told you I have guests coming tomorrow. I don’t have time to dally in bed with you all day.”

Grant sobered, “We need to talk.”

“We have nothing to talk about.” She stopped in front of the bathroom door and peered at him. “I don’t expect you to make promises. Don’t feel like you owe me anything because I was a virgin. I couldn’t hang onto it forever.” With that said, she disappeared into the bathroom.

His guilt intensified. It did bother him that he took something so special. If she ever found out he came here with an ulterior motive, she would be one angry woman. She would believe he used her. But then he guessed that was exactly what he was doing in the beginning. Now she meant something to him.

****

Peering through the binoculars, Grant watched the men guarding the marijuana crop. He raised the high powered camera and snapped several pictures zeroing in on as many of the faces as he could. Not one of them was Collins.

Grant wiped the sweat from his face with the sleeve of his tee-shirt. It was over a hundred degrees. It didn’t help matters any that he had to wear the camouflage to blend in with the foliage. He should be accustomed to the heat after nine years in Iraq, but the week at Twelve Oaks Farm had spoiled him. Usually the temperature was a comfortable 85° to the mid 90’s. He would pick the hottest day of the year to hide in the woods for hours and watch a group of men wielding automatic machine guns. Talk about miserable, the men looked like they would faint in the extreme heat as they walked the perimeter of the fields.

It would be dark soon, so Grant didn’t see any reason to stick around and wait for Collins. He doubted the man would show this late in the day. It was doubtful he made the long trek from Raleigh often to check on his crop. Obviously he had hired capable men to look after things.

Progress was slow in the investigation. By his estimation the plants would be ready to harvest in about a month. Hopefully, Matthew Collins would make an appearance to watch his investment harvested. That is if Matthew Collins was involved. Instincts told him he was the man at the top. Problem was his instincts didn’t matter. They needed hard, cold evidence.

He wanted to be there when Randle Collins was arrested. The man wouldn’t be so high and mighty when the handcuffs locked around his wrists. It would be worth all the boring hours spent on surveillance. Grant would have no reason to stay at Twelve Oaks Farm after Collins was arrested. He would miss the farm and Nina.

While at the farm he had come up with some great ideas for Nina to make a profit. When he had the time, he would discuss the plans with her and see what she thought. That is if she spoke to him again.

It wasn’t a good time to tell her he was going camping for a few days. Of course she thought it was because of her and their strained relationship. Little had been said after they made love. When he helped her prepare the pool house for her guests, she seemed all business.

Grant pushed himself off the ground and stretched. His muscles ached from lying in one place for so long. He gathered his backpack and followed the small deer path in the woods back to where he left Nina’s four-wheeler.

If it wasn’t such a long ride back to the farm, he would try to make it back tonight. He didn’t like being away after Collins showed up like he did to see Nina. What if he came back and he wasn’t there to protect her? Surely, the man wouldn’t do something stupid. He had managed to stay under the FBI’s radar for years. It was doubtful he would do anything to throw suspicion on him.

By the time he made his way to the four-wheeler, it was dark. The forest was full of night sounds. An owl hooted from somewhere in the tree above him. Coyotes howled in the distance. Nature had always calmed his nerves, but too much was on his mind.

Irked at himself for worrying over Nina, he let out a loud breath. He took off his cap and raked his fingers through his hair. It couldn’t be much longer and they would have all the evidence they needed and Collins and his cohorts would be arrested. He had only a few days to decide what he planned to do with his life.

****

The next morning Grant arrived at the farm at 11 o’clock to find Nina saddling horses. He opened the door to the building where she kept the three four-wheelers she owned and drove it inside. It was another warm day, but not as warm as yesterday. The sun was shining brightly as he locked the door, placed the key in its hiding place under a rock, and hurried to help her.

Three horses were already saddled and bridled and three more waited. He took the saddle from her and tossed it on the bay gelding’s high back. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, Grant.” Without saying another word she turned and hurried to the barn. It was the first time he had seen her in jeans and she had the perfect body for them. She returned with three bridles draped over a saddle. The top button on the white cotton shirt was undone and he got a glimpse of cleavage as she struggled with the saddle.

“Did you have a good time?”

Grant smiled at Nina as he tightened the cinch under the bay’s stomach. “I did. I missed you.”

“Sure you did.” Nina had trouble getting the paint, Thunder, to take the bit. With a gentle pat, and reassuring whispers he finally opened his mouth, took the bit, and she was able to slip the bridle over his tall head.

Grant spent time centering the blanket perfectly so Thunder wouldn’t get saddle sores before throwing the saddle over his back. The silence continued until Nina stomped her foot and faced him. “I missed you also.” She moved toward him before wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him close. Her lips met his and she kissed him gently, seductively. “Let’s just enjoy our time together. I know you’ll probably go back to the war and I’ll never see you again. I’m okay with that.” She touched her fingers to his cheek. “I don’t want to fight and ruin what time we have left.”

He kissed her on the tip of her nose. “Nina, we need to talk about this.”

“Bad timing, Marine. I am taking my guests on a trail ride and then a picnic. We won’t be back until late.” She pulled away from him and slipped the bit into the gentle sorrel mare’s mouth. “They’ll be here any minute and I need to have these horses saddled and bridled.”

Hearing voices, Grant turned and saw three men and two women walking toward them. A chill went up his spine when he recognized one of the men. The man was in the woods the day he was almost discovered by the three men. He was the smoker. Grant took the cigarette and gave it to his uncle to check for DNA, but he had not gotten back with him about the identity of the man.

“Grant, this is Tim, Mark, Clay, Mel, and Callie.”

The smoker, Clay, stopped in front of Grant and announced loud enough for his entourage to hear. “I guess you are the stable boy?” Callie, the woman with short brown hair giggled.

Did Collins send him to spy? More than likely he was there to find out if he was sleeping with Nina. Grant chose to ignore him and tightened the cinch with a bit too much force.

Dangerous eyes looked Nina up and down before he replied in a fake southern drawl, “Are we ready to mount up?” He tucked his fingers into his belt loops and rocked back on his heels doing his best to look like a cowboy. He laughed loud and hard as if thought his imitation was funny.

Obviously, Nina didn’t care much for Clay’s attitude, but she had to put up with his rude manners because he was a paying customer. She forced a smile. “Almost.”

She finished saddling the last horse and handed the reins to one of the women. “Mel, this is Sugar.” Nina patted the horse on the neck. “She is very sweet and gentle. Just leave the reins slack and she’ll follow the other horses.”

An attractive woman, Mel took the reins and Grant noticed her hands trembled. She looked at the horse as if she didn’t know which end was which. Her thick, dark braid had fallen across her chest. She tossed it aside with her bright red nails shining in the sunlight.

Nina put her foot into the stirrup and hefted herself onto the back of Sugar with the expertise of a seasoned cowgirl. She smiled at Mel from her high perch. While Nina gave her a quick lesson in riding, the others mounted up. It seemed they had more experience than Mel.

The small woman struggled to mount Sugar. At least sixteen hands high, the horse was too tall for her petite size. Grant cupped his hand and offered, “Step into my hand and I’ll give you a shove.”

A look of pure lust on Mel’s face, she smiled and placed her hands on his shoulders. “You’ll have to hold to the saddle horn, ma’am.”

Her eyes raked over his chest, as she reached up and gripped the saddle horn. She giggled, “Is this the saddle horn?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He gave her a light shove and she landed in the saddle. She didn’t weigh more than a hundred pounds so it didn’t take much effort. “Let me adjust the stirrups so you’ll be comfortable.” Mischievous green eyes watched him intently until he was satisfied with the length.

Mel purred, “Aren’t you coming with us?”

Grant glanced up to see Nina staring at him. Jealousy showed on her face. “No, ma’am. I have a lot of work waiting on me.”

He touched the tip of his cap and gazed at Nina. “Be careful. Do you have your cell phone?”

“Yes, it’s in my saddlebag.”

Grant watched them ride away with a sense of unease. The smoker kneed his horse and rode along side Nina. He said something and her soft laughter drifted on the hot, humid air. His unease grew when the man turned in the saddle, his eyes meeting his. What if Collins sent him to harm Nina?

The thought of something happening to her spurred him into action. Upset that he wasn’t invited on the ride, Midnight raced along the fence line bellowing. Grant put his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle. Long legs brought Midnight racing toward him tearing up the ground in his wake.

It had been a long time since Grant had ridden a horse. “It’s just like riding a bike, you never forget. Just use your balance and let the horse know who’s boss,” he whispered out loud as he bridled and saddled the excited horse. Maybe this had been a bad idea. With a little effort, he finally managed to get into the saddle because the horse kept sidestepping every time he put his foot into the stirrup. Midnight fought the bit and wanted to catch up with the other riders. Nina did say that she only let the most experienced riders take him out. The horse sidestepped and shook his head when Grant pulled back on the reins to slow his much too fast gait. In a firm voice he ordered, “Calm down, Midnight.” He patted the horse’s neck.