Stone Cold Heart (Tracers #13)(62)

“I do.”

“Come here.” He pulled her down and rolled her onto her side so her back was facing him. Then he slid her hips against him.

“What—”

“Shh.” His warm hands glided over her shoulders, and he started massaging them.

At first, she tensed. But as his strong thumbs kneaded her muscles, she felt the tension draining away. He gathered her hair and shifted it over her shoulder, making room for his skilled fingers as he massaged away her stress. She felt herself caving into him—into his warmth, his humor, his affection—and the touch was so intimate it brought tears to her eyes. He had no idea—none—how long it had been since a man had touched her like this, with caring and tenderness and a desire to make her problems go away. She forced the tears back and ignored the lump in her throat and tried to enjoy the moment for what it was. A moment. A fleeting snippet of time when she could block the world out and just be.

After a few blissful minutes, he kissed the back of her neck. “Better?”

“Um-hmm.” She nestled back against him, trying not to think about anything at all besides the heat of his body and the weight of his arm on her waist. She wouldn’t think about tomorrow. Not tonight. Tomorrow and all its problems would come soon enough.





CHAPTER 19


Sara picked up her shirt off the floor and pulled it on as she crept to the window. Peering out, she was relieved to see Nolan’s pickup parked in front instead of in the driveway, blocking her in. She unlocked the door and opened it. Holding her breath, she slowly pushed the screen door open and slipped outside, easing shut the front door and then the rusty screen.

Sara started down the steps, halting when a skinny gray dog rushed up to her. She reached down so it could sniff her fingers with its damp nose.

“Hi,” she whispered. “Where’d you come from?”

She glanced across the driveway at the glow coming from the window of the neighbors’ kitchen. They were up early, too.

Sara hurried across the lawn, waiting until she was right beside the Explorer to pop the locks with a too-loud chirp. She tossed her purse onto the passenger seat, and the dog watched from the grass, tail wagging, as she slid behind the wheel and backed out.

Sara let out a sigh as she passed the little white church on the corner. It looked misty and ethereal in the predawn light. She combed a hand through her messy hair. Then she turned up the radio and tried to find news, traffic, weather—anything to distract her from what she was doing.

It didn’t work, and she thought about Nolan all the way across town, particularly when she passed the familiar gas station where the shopkeeper she’d met was flipping the CLOSED sign to OPEN.

She focused on the road and made her way through two more empty stoplights to the motel. Now that the holiday had passed, it was no longer crowded, and the space right in front of Sara’s room was open. She parked and gathered her things, making a mental to-do list as she dug the key card from her purse.

First, she had to check her email and voice mail. Then shower and dress. Then she had to grab some coffee before heading to White Falls Park, where she was meeting Raul. She slid from her SUV, and the smell of bacon hit her as she crossed the sidewalk.

And she had to get something to eat. Food was a must if she was going to be any use at all today, which was already looking doubtful.

She let herself into her room and found it just as musty-smelling as when she’d checked in yesterday. Eyeing her computer bag on the bed, she decided to shower first. The second she logged in, it would be far too easy to get distracted and delayed.

She turned on the shower and stripped off her clothes. Avoiding her reflection in the mirror, she stepped into the tub and ducked her head under the spray. The hot water sluiced over her skin, and finally, finally, she let her thoughts flow.

She thought of Nolan’s body, his hands, his skin. She thought of his mouth in the darkness when he’d kissed her awake and kept her up half the night.

Since she’d first met him on that rocky path, she’d been wondering what it would be like to sleep with him. And now she knew. It was amazing. Incredible. Mind-blowing.

So . . . box checked. Curiosity satisfied.

No, even after all those hours in the dark, her curiosity wasn’t satisfied, and she had a whole new flurry of unanswered questions swirling through her head.

She hated this. She felt tense and edgy, and her stomach was in knots as she remembered sneaking out on him.

What was so bad about it? People did it all the time. She never had, but it certainly happened. She didn’t need to feel guilty.

A sharp rap on the door made her freeze. She turned off the water and listened. It couldn’t be him.

Could it?

She darted a look at her cell phone sitting by the sink, but she had no new messages. She grabbed a towel and dried off. The rapping came again, louder this time. It was insistent and confident. And definitely male-sounding. Wrapping the tiny towel around her, she crossed the room and looked through the peephole.

A police officer stood there. She’d seen him before, but damned if she could remember a name.

She tugged up her towel. “Who is it?”

“Officer Biggs, Springville Police Department.”

“May I help you?”

“Could you open the door, ma’am?”

Sara engaged the security latch and cracked the door a few inches, keeping her body shielded as she looked through the gap.