Hot Water (22 page)

“Before or after the shower and food?”

“During. But first, thanks for bringing me here, for providing me this respite so I wouldn’t have to think about all the troubles over in Mossy Bog.”

“I’d do it again in a heartbeat. You’re one of a kind.”

His words were positive and upbeat, but she’d hoped for more from him. God, she was greedy. Why couldn’t she accept the great sex and companionship for what it was? Why did she long for it to be more?

She met his gaze, delighted to find that lusty glint back in his eyes. She let the sheet drop a little. “You’re pretty special yourself.”

His gaze heated. “No dirty tricks, Dinterman. You want to talk to the world, get a shower, and dinner, remember?”

“I left something off my list.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“You.”

He reached for her. “Oh, yeah.”

Chapter 43

Laurie Ann phoned her dad after she showered. She noted her voicemail had thirty new messages, but they could wait. She had to talk to her dad. He answered on the fourth ring. Music blared in the background. Even so, his hello was a balm to her weary soul.

She tried to speak but found her throat tight with emotion. She’d been so strong for everyone, but this was different. She didn’t have to pretend anything with her dad.

“You all right, hon?” he prompted after the silence lengthened.

She limped over to sit on the edge of the tub, scrubbing the tears from her cheeks. “I’m okay, but it’s been rough.”

“I wish I could come home, but these Team Six Security guys say it’s best if I keep a low profile until we catch Lester.”

Laurie Ann nodded, then realized her dad couldn’t see her because they were on the phone. “I didn’t believe it at first. How could someone so close to us do such terrible things?”

Her voice broke. She ignored it. “I believed in Lester right up until the minute he tried to burn me up in the woods behind my house. We tried to get out the back way through Horseshoe Swamp, but he set another fire back there. If it hadn’t been for Wyatt, I’d be dead right now.”

Her dad let out a string of cuss words. “Good thing they got me corralled in this swanky hunting lodge, ʼcuz I’d break that boy with my bare hands.”

“I’m so relieved you’re safe and far away from here. Lester’s killed at least three people, maybe more. I’m glad he can’t get to you.”

“What about you? Are you staying at my place?”

“No, but I’m heading there in a day or so.” Wyatt had cautioned her not to reveal their current location to her father in case Lester contacted him. “I needed to hear your voice, and to reassure you personally that I’m safe. I don’t want you to worry about me.”

“You may be a tough cop, but you’re still my baby girl. Keep your head up. Lester gets downright obsessive about things, and he wants you dead. Rely on your instincts. Don’t lower your guard.”

She gripped the phone tighter, the cold of the floor tiles seeping into her bare feet. “What good are my instincts? Lester had me fooled. I had no inkling he would do anything wrong. He’s stolen from people. He’s started fires all over the state. And he’s killed. I didn’t see any of that coming, and he was in and out of my house that whole time.”

A chill swept through her as a piece of information fell into place. “Oh, my God. He was making sure the cops didn’t know about him. He knew about my scrap metal task force. He must have known he was living on borrowed time.”

“I didn’t know any of that either. I trusted Lester. He’s my sister’s boy, for Christ’s sake. Why did he do it? How’d we miss the signs?”

“I’ve been over it in my mind too, but without much success. He set a few backyard fires as a kid, but I didn’t know he continued to do it. I thought serial killers had a history of fires and cruelty to animals. Lester loves his hunting dogs.”

“He never liked cats.”

“True, but a lot of guys aren’t cat people.” She sighed into the phone and shoved her wet hair back from her face. “I can’t figure out how I could’ve been so blind.”

“He fooled all of us. That’s for sure.” Silence played out on the line before her father cleared his throat. “We’ve never had an arsonist or a serial killer in Tidewater County, not in all my years on the planet. My God. My sister. How is Bessie taking this?”

“She cussed me out for putting out the APB on Lester yesterday, but she isn’t well. Lester hasn’t been taking good care of her or her place. I asked Social Services to pay Aunt Bessie a visit. Odds are they’ve already moved her to a nursing home.”

“Lester won’t like that.”

“Doesn’t matter what Lester wants anymore, does it? He’s a wanted man, and if he doesn’t get shot being captured, he’ll spend the rest of his life behind bars. He’ll never live with his mama again.”

“Poor Bessie. All she ever wanted in life was to take care of Lester, and look at how he repaid her. When I think of all I’ve done for that kid, I could hit something.”

If her dad remembered he’d taught Lester how to build a fire, he would eat his gun. “None of this is your fault. It’s all on Lester. He had every advantage, but he chose a dark path. Enough about him. I don’t want to think about Lester or Aunt Bessie. I need to feel normal again. What’s with all the music on your end of the phone?”

“Some friends of the bodyguards have a band. They’re practicing here while the rest of us play poker.”

“How are the cards falling?”

“Not my way, that’s for sure, but these fellas are so friendly I can’t complain. Look. You show ’em what a Dinterman is made of. I know you have that grit in you. I’ve seen you take on sparring partners twice your size and win. You can beat this. I’m solidly in your corner. You know that, right?”

“I do.”

“Lester can’t beat you unless you let him. You trap that rat bastard, and I’m coming home and ripping him a new one.”

Her father’s growled threat made her laugh. He sounded fine. He was handling this. She didn’t have to worry about him. A weight lifted from her heart.

After she hung up, she picked up her necklace and slipped it around her neck. If there was ever a time to need a surplus of luck, this was it. She knotted the plush bathrobe securely around her and stepped out into the suite.

The table was set with crystal and china, an elegant, filigreed cart of heavenly smelling food sat nearby. Shopping bags lined the sofa.

“What’s all this?” she asked Wyatt.

“This is what happens when you have sisters and a nosy Mom. They’d already arranged dinner so when I called down to order room service, it was ready. And the clothes they ordered from local shops are hit or miss but maybe something will fit.”

She made a beeline for the shopping bags and started pulling things out. “I don’t understand. How did they know my size?”

“The females in my family know everything. A word of warning. Never tell them anything remotely resembling a secret. They will take out an ad in the
New York Times
to publicize it.”

Jeans. Tops. Undies. Lacy bras. Shoes. A new purse. A swimsuit. She shoved one of the empty bags aside and sat on the soft leather sofa. “This is too much. I need to pay them for these things.”

“Please, do us both a favor and accept the gift with grace.”

She shook her head to clear it, but the fog remained. Who was Wyatt North? Why would his relatives go to so much trouble for her? “What did you tell your family about me?”

He stabbed his fingers through his disheveled hair and groaned. “The worst thing possible.”

Her hand crept to her heart. Did he tell them she was related to a serial killer? Did they pity her naiveté? She had to know. “What?”

“That I like you.” He stared into her eyes. “That I more than like you.”

Chapter 44

Last night, she’d kissed him all the way to the bedroom after his admission of affection. He’d hoped to hear her say something similar, but his cop was more interested in showing him how much she liked him.

That was okay with him, for now.

The attraction wasn’t one-sided. It was mutual, and he’d darn well get her to admit it before the week was over. She was everything he’d ever wanted and then some. Sexy. Strong. Independent. Self-starting. Gorgeous.

He wished every morning would start off with her in his arms.

“This has to end,” Laurie Ann said as she ate their room service breakfast. She sat across from him in the hotel suite wearing nothing but a plush hotel robe and her St. Christopher’s medal.

Wyatt’s emotions pulsed. Last night had been the best night of his life. Surely, she wasn’t talking about their personal relationship. God. He’d nearly lost her in the fire. He didn’t know when he’d be able to let her out of his sight without hyperventilating.

“Come again?” he asked to gain time.

“I won’t live my life in a bubble. I’m a cop, and a darned good one. I can’t think of Lester as my cousin anymore. He’s a murder suspect. Given that I know him, well some of him anyway, I know how he operates when he’s in Tidewater County. I know his watering holes. I know his duck blinds. I know his deer stands. Know what that means?”

Relief sighed out of him. She wasn’t leaving him. He hadn’t missed any of those invisible relationship cues. He hadn’t messed up the best thing that ever happened to him.

He reached out and smoothed a lock of hair away from her face. “What?”

“It means I’m our best chance of finding Lester. The longer we stay in lockdown mode, the more time he has to start another fire, hurt someone else, or get away.”

“Trust me, we’ve got an extensive manhunt going on for Lester Church. He will not get away this time.”

“It’s not a question of trust. Lester has survival skills. He could live for weeks or months out in the swamp, and it wouldn’t bother him one bit. But we can beat him at this chess game because we’ve got something he wants. Me.”

Wyatt worked to unlock his clenched jaw. “We’re not using you as bait. I won’t allow that.”

Laurie Ann laughed. “Allow? I’ll wear a vest, if you want, but after we finish this delicious breakfast, we’re leaving this hotel and catching a killer.”

“A serial arsonist,” he corrected.

She waved her hand dismissively. “Let the lawyers figure out the prosecution strategy. We’re going after Lester. This morning.”

“You’ll do it my way?”

“What way is that?”

“With protection.”

She grinned. “You’ll need more than a condom to catch Lester.”

He drew her into his arms, delighted at her joke. “I won’t be using those on anyone but you.”

“Seriously?”

He kissed her. “Seriously.”

“We should talk about this. You said you like me. I definitely like you. Where’s this going?”

He stiffened. Every woman he’d ever dated wanted to put their relationship in a box. Every time that happened was the beginning of the end. He didn’t want this to end. But how could he discourage her inquiry without hurting her feelings?

“I’ve been honest with you, Laurie Ann. I’m not good with relationships. I’m not looking to be reformed or rehabbed or reinvented. I want to keep seeing you. I want to be with you. Is that enough for you?”

A storm of emotions played across her face. She was angry. She was relieved. She was pensive. She was unhappy. It was the scowl that plunged a knife in his heart. She didn’t like what he’d said. If she walked out that door right now, he would be a broken man.

A smile dawned on her face. “Relax, North. I’m not trying to muscle my way into your family. Relationships aren’t my strength either. But know this. I’m very direct about what I want. You don’t have to read between the lines with me. If I do or say something that bothers you, ask me about it. Deal?”

“Deal.”

She couldn’t be any more perfect for him. This was the kind of relationship he’d longed to have for years. Laurie Ann was the perfect date. She enjoyed his company. The sex was great. And she didn’t want to put him in a glass box and penalize him for being caught up in his work.

She was like him in that regard. Dedicated to her work.

“Tell me about your necklace,” he said, hoping it wasn’t a gift from a former boyfriend. “Sometimes you carry it in your pocket. Lately, you’ve been wearing it.”

Laurie Ann rubbed the shiny metal between her thumb and forefinger. “St. Chris is very important to me.”

“I didn’t know you were Catholic.”

“I’m not, though St. Christopher is the patron saint of travelers. My mom gave this necklace to my dad when he became a cop. He carried it every day he was on the force, and it brought him home safely each night. When I joined the force, he gave it to me. I never go anywhere without it.”

“I’m glad you have it,” he said.

“It means the world to me. I don’t have much that was my mom’s. It was actually my granddad’s first, so I have more than one reason to treasure it.”

He noticed she was blinking back tears. Her story touched him and darned if tears weren’t threatening his own vision. Time to steer away from the personal and get back to the business at hand. Tracking down her cousin. “It certainly is a special talisman. We’ll need all the luck we can get to catch Lester.”

She nodded. “Breakfast and then a quick stop at the Outdoor Store. Tell your goons we’re going off road. We’ll need vehicles with four-wheel drive, rifles, and tick repellent.”

“Tick repellent.” A grin spread across his face. “Seems like a common theme with you.”

“You’ll thank me later. Trust me, you don’t want to get eaten up with ticks.”

He trusted her and more. They were a good fit. A good team. Her attitude toward a relationship was what he’d always wanted.

So why did he feel disappointed?

Chapter 45

The campfire ashes were warm. “He was here,” Laurie Ann crowed. She dropped the stick she’d used to stir the ashes, excitement pulsing in her veins. “Lester spent the night here.”

“We should have brought scent dogs,” Wyatt said.

“He’s long gone. Probably left this blind at dawn.”

“Why would he leave?”

“He had to know I’d come after him at some point.” She watched the cadre of heavily armed men Wyatt had hired as they set up high tech sensors around the perimeter. “He won’t be back. You’re wasting time and money setting up surveillance out here.”