Count on Me (Petal, Georgia) (32 page)

“Man, you already got it.
Four
times.”

He laughed and turned her to her back. “Never enough where you’re concerned. But you’re safe for now. I think I need to drink a few gallons of water to rehydrate after the last three hours.”

“You make me laugh. Thank you for that.”

He kissed her slow, and despite her satiated state, desire still rose when he touched her this way.

“You make me
happy
.” He rested his forehead against hers before easing himself back to the bed. “I’m a pretty easygoing guy. My general mood tends toward affable.”

She nodded, looking up at the way the late-afternoon sun cast sharp shadows on the ceiling. “It pleases me to be around you, and yes, part of that is this
us
thing that makes me happy, but you’re a positive person. It’s rarer than it should be.”

“Thank you. But there’s happy and there’s
happy
. You know what I mean?”

“I think so, yes.”

“I have a good life. My business is doing well, and that means I’ve managed to start pulling the farm into the next century. I have nice friends to hang out with. A house that fits me. I dated around and enjoyed things physically when an opportunity arose, and I wanted to accept it.”

Caroline growled and he snickered.

“So I had no complaints. I was happy and centered and successful, and then you. I turned my head and I saw you in the grocery store. I watched you contemplate just how you were going to get that box down, and it was like,
wow, there’s a whole deeper kind of happy
. Because I thought about you all the time until we finally managed to run into each other again—mainly because I was coming to town daily.”

“Thank goodness. I do like a go-getter.”

“And there was this connection. I tried to tell myself it was the newness of it. But I’ve dated before. Enough to know the difference between new-relationship excitement and this fifty-foot-high series of deep ocean waves that came with you. Exhilarating, that’s what it is. You’re powerful and you have so much energy and it’s terrifying and sexy all at once. Knowing you’ll be what I see when I wake up each day makes me happy.”

He went quiet as she lay there, happiness coursing through her, a smile on her lips.

“You make me
happy
, Caro. In a way that I wasn’t craving because I had no idea it even existed until you.”

“I’m pretty lucky you love me.” She rested her leg on him to touch more, be closer. She
was
lucky.

“You’ve been having a time of it. You okay?”

She blew out a breath. “This is all so overwhelming, and yet here you are, helping me through, making me believe I can do it.”

“You have been doing it. For over a decade before I came into your life.”

“Like I said, it’s different now. All the stuff I’ve learned how to do isn’t as useful at this point. I’m not a cop or an investigator. Sometimes I feel like I’m drowning in all this. I’m scared I’ll mess up. Scared of whoever it is out there who wants to hurt me.” That was the worst part. She hated being scared, and she’d gotten used to plowing through the world without fear. And in a matter of months, everything in her life had changed. Some, like the long, tall handsome man next to her, were good changes.

Being scared made her feel helpless.

So many aspects of this new reality with her mother’s murder were not only out of her hands, but something she just didn’t have enough of a handle on to feel super confident about.

She wasn’t a wait-and-see sort of person. But now she had to be, and on top of that, she had this creepy-stalker deal going on.

“Point taken. Things are different, yes. This isn’t a legal-system issue. You’re a rock star there, so I can understand why the shift is distressing. But you’re doing everything you can. Your friends are doing all they can. You have allies here at the Petal PD and over in Millersburg too.”

“I’m trying to keep it all copacetic. Trying to remember I can’t control everything, and that people who are awesome at their jobs are helping. Most of the time it works. Right now so much is happening, and I’m so glad I took this afternoon off with you because I really needed to let go of all that out there and focus on what’s in here. This is the most relaxed I’ve been in a while. I can’t hide forever. I have stuff I really need to think about but not right at this moment.”

“Good answer. Do you see how it works out when you just listen to me and do what I say?”

She closed her eyes. “I guess I should listen to you more often. I’d much rather be here than in court. It’s way harder to have an orgasm there.”

He snorted. “Since I’m nowhere near the courthouse ninety-nine point nine percent of the time, I’m fine with that.”

Caroline said, “By the way, we’re going bowling tonight.”

Royal groaned. “See this was going really well until you brought that up. I thought you liked spending alone time with me.”

“Hush you. You know I do. But you have this longstanding thing you do with your friends and that’s tonight, and I’m trying to get to know them all too so I’m coming along.”

“I want you safe, damn it.”

“I can’t hide in your house all the time. Not that the constant sex isn’t a wonderful way to spend my time, but I have friends and family and so do you. We have lives here in Petal, and we’re also building one as a couple. I want to be safe too, believe me. But I’m not just going to stop living because this freak is out there. I’m panicked he’ll run for it, so I need to stay somewhat visible so he’ll keep trying until we get enough info we find out who he is and he gets arrested.”

He sat straight up. “
You are out of your mind
. No. No, Caroline! Let the authorities handle this. This isn’t a television show. This is way out of your area of expertise.”

She gave him a look. “The only reason I didn’t just punch you in the throat is that you’re scared and so am I so you can have some slack. Of course this isn’t a television show. I’m not an idiot.”

“You need to not take stupid risks. You need to tell Shane what you’re doing so he can make you stop this.”

“Stop treating me like I’m stupid. I’m not outside wearing a bull’s-eye calling out,
you hoooo, mr. murderer
or anything.”

“You don’t get to be mad at me for being freaked.” He narrowed his gaze at her and her anger sort of drained away.

She sat across from him. “I would if I wanted to.” She frowned, and he sighed, but there was a smile bubbling up. She took his hands. “I’m sorry for taking for granted that you were just fine. You’re freaked too. I hate that I’ve brought this into your life.”

He growled and she found herself on her back. “You didn’t bring this. This was just beneath the surface all that time. All those years your father did time he didn’t deserve, all the time you’ve been apart from your hometown and your brother and sister. This piece of garbage needs to be caught and put in jail, yes. I just hate that it makes you unsafe. Hate it. But this is not your fault except when you think you can act as bait. Not going to be okay with that, Caro. Not at all.”

“Okay, can we just negotiate here a little? I can’t be inside your house all the time I’m not working. It just isn’t feasible, or even really a life I want to live. Plus, it’s been my job all along to put the person who killed my mother in jail. I have an intense job so being socially active helps me burn that off. So how about for the time being I go to things if you’ll be there? Otherwise I’m at work or here.”

“What’s the situation with your brother and movie night? I’m obviously not down with you going back to your place. But if you do, I want to come along. I won’t interfere with your time with him or anything.”

“He’s coming here instead. That way you can do your own thing or hang out with us, he’s fine with that too. He likes you. He was told not to come over here, but he’s too old for that sort of control.”

Royal had such a goofy look on his face she didn’t know how to take it. “Are you mad? I’m sorry I didn’t run it by you. I figured it would be a good solution for everyone involved. I can meet him somewhere else too.”

Royal shook his head and kissed her quickly to reassure her. “Not mad at all. Just the opposite. That you just did something that indicated you were comfortable enough to invite your brother here? It means a lot to me.”

“Oh. Well, carry on then.”

“Shep coming over is totally fine with me. I think your proposal is a good one. Not that I like the idea of you out and about at all, but I get it. Thanks for giving in a little. I know it’s hard.”

“Not like this is something I’m an expert on. I’m feeling my way along here.”

Thursday started out on such a high note. There was excellent morning sex, which was just a ruse to get her up afterward and make her run. Running sucked. You’d think a man like Royal would stick with the backbreaking physical nature of his job but no. He exercised too, and he liked to watch her run so who was she to refuse him? Even if she got all sweaty and it was running. She liked to think it was excellent training for the zombie apocalypse.

Then after a nice hot shower, she’d had a great hair day, her skirt made her look taller and they’d had some breakfast and she got to simply watch Royal being Royal.

Royal was a complicated man. The thing was, you first started off thinking he’s one thing because he was all slow southern charm. He seemed mellow and laid-back. But that ease only covered the foundations of a very strong and in-charge man. A man who had no hesitation in claiming her, or protecting her. He had opinions, yes, but Royal was a magnetic force. He pulled all sorts of stuff around him like an orbit. He was steady and smart, and he had a certainty she saw in herself.

He moved around his kitchen, handling multiple tasks without breaking a sweat. Pouring this, flipping that. Caroline sighed at the flex and play of the muscles in his forearms, the stretch of denim at his thighs as he knelt.

All the while he knew she watched. And sometimes he gave her a show, left her breathless.

So she’d ogled his ass and eaten with him, and he’d insisted on driving her to work, which he did, also insisting on coming up and into the office with her.

“Dude,” she told him as he came around to her door, “you don’t need to come in with me. It’s seven so Peter will definitely be here already. Our paralegal comes in early Thursday and Friday so she’s there. Secretaries. Holly the goddess. I’m good. You have a farm to run.”

He walked next to her. Because this was now part of her workday, he didn’t hold her hand. He respected her space and her need to keep her work life and romantic life separate. Which was another thing about him she loved.

He pushed open the outer doors and Holly was at the front desk. Before Caroline could shoo Royal back to work, Holly stood up, and by the look on her face, the news wasn’t good.

“I just left a message on your phone.”

Caroline dug the phone from her bag. “It wasn’t on yet. What’s going on?”

Edward Chase came into the reception area. “Ah, you’re here. Come on back. I’ve called the police.”

“About what? What’s going on?” Caroline followed him, and Royal walked next to her, lending her all that strength. It made her feel better.

Edward indicated a legal-sized envelope on the table in the conference room. “When Holly showed up about ten minutes ago, this envelope had been left.”

“She touched it?” Royal asked.

“We get stuff left all the time. Clients leaving papers, that sort of thing. Sometimes the legal messenger service we use will leave end-of-day reports if we’re not here when they finish up,” Caroline explained. But that meant there was something about the envelope that upon closer examination meant a call to the cops.

Holly came in with Shane. “Good thing I was in early this morning. What’s going on?”

Holly spoke this time. “I like to come in a few minutes before seven to get everything prepared and to have a cup of coffee in peace. When I opened the outer doors, this was on the floor. You know like someone pushed it under the door. There were a few other things with it so I scooped them up and put them down while I made myself some coffee. When it finished I brought everything back to my desk and went through it, putting it all where it went. Mr. Chase came in right then, and when I pointed it out to him, he told me to call the police and then Ms. Mendoza.”

“What’s it say?” Caroline reached for it but Shane held her wrist a moment to stay her.

“Let me. I have gloves.”

“God, if this is just a motion or run of the mill
lawyers are the devil
hate mail I’m going to be so embarrassed,” Caroline muttered.

Shane held it so she could see how it was addressed.

Caroline Mary Mendoza

Deliver to her next of kin

“Oh sure, not scary at all.” Royal groaned. “Why don’t you step back, Caroline? Why don’t we all step back? Who the heck knows what’s in there? It could be someone’s will or anthrax.”

“Royal is right that you should all get back. It feels like paper. There’s no grit that I can sense. But let’s be safe.”

She let Royal pull her toward the doorway where Peter and Justin now stood.

Shane pulled out what looked to be a photograph, and he paled, covering quickly, but not fast enough for her to miss his initial reaction.