Head Start (Cedar Tree #7) (19 page)

A deep hum rumbles in his chest when his fingers find me slick. With one hand caressing my breast and the long fingers of the other stroking lightly through my folds, my knees turn to rubber. Keeping my eyes on the image we make in the window, I drop my head back and give myself over.

“That’s it, Pup.” Neil’s voice is rough with need, when another, much louder, voice rings out from the front hall.

“Mornin’, got any coffee left?”

N
eil

Son of a bitch.

I manage to square my body to block Kendra from view the moment I hear Gus’s voice. Two minutes later and I would’ve had her bent over the sink, her panties around her ankles and my tongue or my cock buried in her pussy.

The bark of laughter behind me, as Gus walks into the kitchen sets my teeth on edge, and I fight to hang on to my temper when I slowly turn my head. “A minute,” I bite off between clenched teeth at the man who is standing in the doorway, grinning ear to ear. Gus doesn’t seem affected at all by the angry scowl I throw his way. He just throws up his hands in a defensive gesture and backs out.

“Ohmigod, ohmigod...” Kendra’s whispered mantra reaches my ears as I slowly withdraw my fingers from where they’d been playing with her.

“It’s okay,” I mumble in her hair, pulling her shirt back down to cover her. “He’s gone.”

No sooner have I said that and she whips around, punching me in the arm.

“What was that for?”

“You,” she spits out. “Making me forget myself. In the bloody kitchen, of all places.” I’m hanging on to my straight face, because even a hint of the smug smile I feel tugging at my mouth, and the spitting mad—and supremely adorable—woman in front of me would not hesitate to castrate me. Instead, I wrap my arms around her and bury my face in her neck.

“You make me forget myself wherever I am, Pup. And you don’t even have to try.”

Apparently that was the right thing to say, because with a little sigh, she slips her arms around my waist. “I should get dressed,” she mumbles.

“You do that. I’ll get some fresh coffee going and find out why Gus is here.” I give her a quick kiss on the lips and a pat on her luscious ass. That earns me an irritated glare over her shoulder as she scurries out of the kitchen and straight up the stairs. I use the time it takes to prepare a fresh pot of coffee, to bring my body back down from its primed condition. 

“See you’ve discovered the draw of the kitchen,” Gus says as I walk in with a mug for him and a fresh coffee for myself.

“Shut it.”

He doesn’t. He just starts chuckling again. “Only fair, seeing as I think you’ve caught every last one of us in a similar position at some point during the past couple of years.”

“Whatever,” I mutter, but I do it smiling. He’s right. I’ve been in the unlucky position of walking in on too many of my friends going at it on the kitchen counter or against the fridge. Never could figure out what the deal was with the kitchen. Now I can. Shit, I’ll never live this down. “How’d you know I was here anyway? I thought I was supposed to meet you at the diner?” I change tracks.

“Emma is a bit under the weather, so I left her in bed and grabbed a quick breakfast at Arlene’s. Saw your truck was gone and took a guess. Thought I’d save you backtracking to the diner.” With a gulp he throws back his coffee and walks with his mug to the kitchen. “By the way,” he calls out, “we’re leaving in five, so if you need to say goodbye, I suggest you get to it. Just don’t finish what I walked in on just now—it’ll have to wait.”

I rub my face, hearing him clearly. I’d better get to it like he says, because for all I know, Kendra heard him too and will only add it to her lists of reasons not to get involved with me. Too late, she’s already there.

I find her in the bathroom, pulling her hair back into a ponytail. Dressed and ready for work in a pair of scrubs, I already miss seeing my shirt on her. Her eyes watch me in the mirror as I step in behind her, sliding my hands to her stomach where she stops any progress by putting hers over mine.

“That can’t happen again,” she says with determination, but I can feel the give in her body as I lean my chin on her shoulder.

“Can’t guarantee that, Pup. You’re irresistible. Get used to having my hands on you at every damn opportunity.”

“Neil, please...”

I band my arms around her when she pleads. “Babe,” I groan. “Don’t say please after you say my name—not unless it’s followed by fuck me. Because that’s all I can think about when I hear those words.”

In an unexpected—but welcome—move, Kendra turns her head to the side while wrapping her hand around my neck, pulling me in for a kiss. Another bit of resistance melting away. I pull away much sooner than I’d like to, but I don’t need a repeat of what happened in the kitchen. If Gus says five minutes, then Gus means five minutes, and four of them are gone.

“Baby, be careful today. You’ve got my number and Joe’s gonna stick around town, so if anything is the matter, you call Joe first and then me. Okay?” I wait for her to nod her understanding before I go on. “I’m not sure how long we’ll be, but I’ll call you when I’m heading back.”

“I’m working in Cortez today,” she reminds me. “I’ll probably have my phone on silent in the hospital.”

Right. “Okay, then I’ll text you. Just check regularly.”

Gus is waiting with his foot on the bottom step. “Cut that close, my friend,” he says with a smirk.

“Quit busting my balls.”

-

W
e’ve just picked up some more coffee at the Silver Bean and are leaving Cortez behind us when Gus suddenly pipes up.

“Do you know what’s going on with Kara? She was moping around the house earlier this week and now all of a sudden she’s all bubbly again. She’s got Emma literally worried sick. She pregnant or something?”

I almost choke on my coffee. God—they think she’s pregnant? I feel guilty keeping something I’ve known about for a few years from them, but it’s not my secret to tell.

“I don’t think she’s pregnant, Gus. She would’ve told me,” I offer, hoping it will satisfy him.

“Well, then what the hell has her going all hormonal on us?” he asks, frustration clear in his voice before he turns to me. “She keeps saying everything is fine, but it’s clear she’s not fine, Neil. She shows up out of the blue for an indefinite vacation, leaving her job and life in Boston behind. It’s clear something is eating at her. Is she sick? I know you and her are just friends, but I also know you’ve spent some time with her this past week. Anything you can give us?”

Fuck.

“Look,” I scramble to find the right thing to say. “I can tell you safely that she’s healthy as a horse. As far as I know she’s not hiding any detrimental illnesses from you.”

“But she’s hiding something?” he asks, his eyes boring into me.

“Dammit, Gus. You’re asking me to betray a trust I don’t want to betray,” I swear, pissed to be stuck in the middle. “You’re an investigator. You were trained to ask the right questions. Ask her the right things. Don’t ask if she’s all right, or feeling okay or any other vague questions that are easy to evade. Look, listen and when you do ask her, make sure there’s no way for her to answer with a simple yes, no or fine. Be specific. Fuck.”

The rest of the drive to Durango is as quiet as it started. Except now I could almost hear the gears turning inside Gus’s head. Good. Time for this shit to come out into the open. Kara is stubborn—but then so is Gus.

And that reminds me, I forgot to mention to Kendra I’d spent some time with Kara. First chance I get, I’m going to take care of that.

K
endra

I smile at myself when I walk from the far end of the parking lot where I parked to the hospital’s entrance. I can feel every step. He warned me he was going to fuck me hard and he did. The rub of my tender flesh and the slight ache in my joints and muscles not only a reminder that it’s been a while, but also that I’m not getting any younger. Something I’m finally starting to believe makes absolutely no difference to Neil. I don’t think I’ve ever had my body worshipped like that before. And then this morning... I feel a blush burn up my cheeks as I think of Gus walking in.

“I missed you on Monday.”

I turn to the familiar voice of Mrs. Henderson who is dropped off by her husband twice a week for hip-replacement rehabilitation.

“I’m sorry Mrs. Henderson, I just moved to Cedar Tree and the roads were washed out,” I tell her as I hook my arm in hers and walk her into the hospital, waving at her husband driving away.

“I heard about that, County Road G, right?”

“Yes, ma’am. I was lucky I’d just done a big grocery run to fill up my new cupboards.”

“I’ll say. Is that country diner still there on Main Street? Been years since Buck took me there for a meal.”

Every time Mrs. Henderson calls her husband Buck, I have to fight not to burst out laughing. Mr. Henderson is no more than five foot six, if he even makes that, and so thin, a stiff wind would blow him off. To hear her talk about him, you’d think she was married to a big strapping lumberjack type, but I guess it really is all in the eye of the beholder, and Mrs. Henderson adores her husband. I’m sure to her he is all that and more. And just like that, my mind slips back to Neil.

-

“A
ll done for today,” I tell the seventeen-year-old kid. Star receiver for the high school football team, Tom blew out his knee at the end of last season. The orthopedic surgeon had questioned if he’d play football again, but Tom was adamant he’d be ready to play the next season—his last year. Over the past few months, he’s shown more grit at his young age, than many grown-ups that come in here. He kind of reminds me of Neil. Young, smart, focused and very determined. Several colleges were interested in him before the end of last year, and he’d been assured of some interesting scholarship offers before his injury. Coming from a low-income family with four kids, Tom is well aware those scholarships were perhaps his only chance at getting an education. That’s why the kid has been working his ass off in here every chance he gets, and why I almost have to force him to stop his exercises.

“I’ll see you on Monday,” he calls out over his shoulder as he walks out.

“Three o’clock,” I remind him. “Later, Tom!”

Last patient of the day, and all that’s left is cleaning up the exercise equipment and writing up my notes. I’ll miss this place once the Cedar Tree clinic gets too busy for just the three and a half days I’m there. I’d have to give up my shift-and-a-half here. It would be nice in the winter, not to have to go that far to get to work. I had to go the opposite way this past winter, from Cortez to Cedar Tree instead of the other way around, and there were days I’d wished I could just stay in. The roads were that traitorous.

With everything wiped down and clean for the weekend shifts and all my notes up to date, I head out into the warm late afternoon sun. I see Tom still hanging around his old pick-up truck, chatting with a friend, when I walk across the parking lot. I lift my hand in greeting as I think about what to make for dinner with the ground beef I pulled from the freezer this morning. A slight movement in the low brush at the edge of the pavement draws my attention. But when a sudden burst of wind, blowing the hair around my face, also makes the brush rustle, my thoughts turn back to dinner.

I unlock my RAV and climb in behind the wheel when I remember I’d promised Neil to check messages. I didn’t look once all day. Fudgesticks. A quick glance at my phone shows two voicemails and a bunch of texts. Mom, Naomi and Neil all texted at some point during the day, but both messages came from Neil’s number. I decide to listen to those first. When I hear his voice asking something about Lars limping, I catch the little stumble as he signs off. Not quite sure what that was, but I know it leaves my heart beating just a little faster. The second message from him is a bit more urgent, asking me to call him back right away. When I look at the time stamp, I see that it came in while I was saying goodbye to Tom.

I’m just about to call him back when suddenly the driver’s side door is yanked open. I let out a startled cry, which is almost immediately cut off when a bag is pulled over my head and a large hand clamps over my mouth. Before I have a chance to react, I’m hoisted from my car with an arm around my waist.

“Quiet,” his voice hisses in my ear. “One fucking peep out of you and I’ll break your neck. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

With my faculties returning, I let my body go heavy, so my feet can touch the ground. I can’t do anything to defend myself if he holds me suspended and he’s moving away from my vehicle. But it’s too late. I hear the distinct slide of a door and am hoisted up once again and tossed in the back of a van. I scramble away as fast as I can, but the moment the door is slammed shut behind me, I instantly yank the bag off my head. Complete darkness. No windows, no light, except for a tiny crack of what probably is the back door. On hands and knees, I crawl around the space trying to find a door latch, as I hear the engine start up and feel the van start moving. My movements become more frantic, because the farther away he gets, the harder it will be to find my way back. Or for someone to find me.