Forgotten Sins (Sin Brothers, #1)(39)

He shrugged. “Good. Hopefully nobody else did, either.” A click echoed. He’d locked the door. Prowling forward, he stood next to her chair, his hands dropping to knead her neck. “There’s a patrol car out front, no doubt watching for me.”

Josie lowered her chin to her chest. Heaven. The man had magic fingers, and she should really move away. “Yeah. The detective didn’t buy my story.” She fought a groan as Shane worked out the knots in her neck.

Her thighs began to soften.

Warmth lit her abdomen.

She cleared her throat and pushed away, swiveling the chair to face him. “So, what now?”

Shane slid his hands into the pockets of well-worn jeans. A dark T-shirt covered his thick chest and brought out the deep gray flecks in his eyes. “Now I borrow your computer.”

With a shrug, Josie relinquished her chair, taking her notebooks to the other side of the desk. “What are you looking for?”

Shane sat, punching keys on the computer. “First I want to hack into my military records. Then I want to find my brothers.” He frowned, dark gaze shifting to her. “I had a dream. I saw them. Matt and Nathan—if I had to guess, I’d think they were both older than me. We were at some type of camp—maybe a military one?”

Intrigue sped up her heart. She’d never even known their names. “How old were you?”

Shane shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe eight?”

Josie wrinkled her nose. “A military camp at the age of eight? Seems young.” She cleared her throat. “When you had the nightmare about losing your brother, you yelled out the name Jory.”

Shane’s jaw hardened. “Jory. Yeah. Mattie mentioned that name in the dream.” Shane rubbed his chest. “Jory.” He turned his focus back to the computer.

Josie returned to her files, working through deductions for Fuller Labs. Her favorite client. Always paid on time, always kept good records. Since they had labs all over the United States, she’d been able to keep the client as she made the move to Washington. Why couldn’t all clients be this good?

She ordered a pizza and met the pizza girl at the elevator, bringing the large pie into her office and shutting the door.

Shane looked up and smiled. “Do I like pizza?”

How odd not to remember. Josie returned the smile, placing the box on the desk and flipping open the lid. “Yes. You like pizza with pepperoni and pineapple.”

Shane frowned, his gaze on the colorful pie. “Really?”

Surprising humor bubbled through her. “Well, kind of. You like pepperoni, and I always wanted pineapple, so we learned to compromise the first month of our marriage and order it this way.” She handed him a piece.

“Thanks.” He took a bite, slowly chewed, and then smiled. “All right. The combination works for me.”

“I remember.” She took a bite. They’d been happy as newlyweds. She’d moved into his apartment, immediately repainting the walls a homey tan with white trim. Away from the base, so they had privacy. “We got married in Las Vegas.”

He squinted, a smile playing on his face. “Just the two of us?”

“Yes.” She took another bite, the pineapple cooling the pepperoni on her tongue. It’d been two years since she’d enjoyed the combination of flavors. “You were on leave, and as a new accountant at the firm, I only had one day off.” The memories rushed through her, bringing both pleasure and the pang of eventual loss. “You bought me a dress.” He’d already taken her heart, but with the white dress, he’d stolen her soul. The white silk had been perfect, better than she’d ever dreamed.

He inhaled. “I can’t wait to remember that day. While my brain is fuzzy, my emotions are clear, Josie. I know I loved you.”

A tingle started at her heart and spread through her entire chest. She pushed the feeling aside. He couldn’t make such a claim without his memories. No matter how badly she wanted to believe him. Even if she did learn to trust that the love was real, he’d still left her alone. She cleared her throat. “So how’s the research going?”

He gave a short nod, letting her off the hook. “Not great. But I’ll find what I need.”

“Good.” They needed answers before another attack came. Josie pushed the pizza box aside and grabbed the file on Agers Hardware, a small hardware store whose owners weren’t as good at record keeping as some of her other clients. Good thing she knew her job. She’d find the deductions the young couple needed to pay the IRS less.

Shane went back to typing. Hours passed. Finally, Shane looked up at her and frowned thoughtfully.

Did she have pizza sauce on her face? “What?”

He studied her, his eyes the color of a stormy sky. Not moving an inch, he kept his focus entirely on her, as if she were the only thing in his world. Tension thickened the air around him, his predatory stillness a warning that he’d soon lunge.

Memories assailed her. She’d forgotten the feeling of being everything. Her heart picked up its pace, and heat slid through her veins like a fine whiskey. Desire slammed into her abdomen. With just one look from him, electricity zipped through her body to pulse between her legs.

His nostrils flared. “I remember you.”





Chapter 12

Josie struggled to stay calm as she stared at Shane. “You remember me?”