Midnight Lies: The Wildefire Series (19 page)

“Nothing.” Even though she was almost a thousand miles away, Samantha knew her sister
well enough to recognize the defensiveness in her tone.

“Bri, you can’t keep putting yourself in danger every time you get scared.”

“I’m not. I’m doing my job.”

Talking her out of this was hopeless. Samantha had known that even before she’d made
the call. She had just hoped that invoking Bri’s worry about Savvy would have made
a dent.

“So what’s your plan?”

“I’m meeting with the undercover cop today. He’s
going to give me the lowdown on what he knows so far.”

“He’s not going to resent you coming in?”

“I don’t think so. He’d told his handler he would need a female undercover soon. Apparently
he’s made some good inroads with Cruz and is being invited to some social events.
Cruz never goes anywhere without a woman and apparently wants the men around him to
have female companions, too.”

“Be careful. Okay?”

“I will. I’ll call you as soon as I can and give you a briefing.”

“Sounds good. I love you.”

“Love you, too, Sammie. Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

Her stomach churning with worry, Samantha ended the call and got out of the car. She
would listen to more of Lauren’s accounts and then she was going for a long, body-aching
run. The need to get away from everything for a little while was almost overwhelming.
Running was her favorite way to relieve stress. Another thing she’d had in common
with Quinn. Cursing herself for bringing him into her already dire thoughts, Samantha
entered the safe house, determined to get through the rest of the day without thinking
about Quinn at all.

Quinn stood in front of his new home. For the first time in his memory, he actually
felt as though he had one. His condo was nice but had never really felt like home.
The house he’d briefly shared with Charlene had never been a comfortable fit for him,
either. And she had been a neat freak. Leaving a pair of socks on the bathroom floor
had usually brought out her screeching tendencies.

The house he’d grown up in had been just as uncomfortable. His parents had been so
absorbed with impressing those around them, they hadn’t had time to actually enjoy
what they had. He’d learned long ago that a large house and many possessions did not
make a home.

He had a lot of work ahead of him. No one had lived here in over five years. Fortunately,
even though it was almost a century old, the house was well built. However, it needed
painting, both inside and out, a new roof, updated plumbing, and a central air-conditioning
unit. And since he could only get down here every few weeks, he wouldn’t be able to
supervise the renovations. He had someone in mind for that, but had no clue if she
would be interested.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Cursing softly, Quinn turned to face a perspiring and furious Sam. He hadn’t meant
for her to find out this way.

“I bought this place.”

Her eyes narrowing, she stalked toward him. Quinn swallowed hard. Damn, she looked
good. Locking his jaw, he ground his teeth together as he tried to control his body’s
reaction. Dressed in spandex shorts and a white University of Georgia T-shirt, her
beautiful body glowed. The glistening moisture on her skin made him want to lay her
down and lick her from head to foot. The memory of those long, elegant legs wrapped
around him while she undulated beneath him shot fireworks through his blood.

Hungrily and warily, he watched her come closer. When she stopped inches from his
face, Quinn inhaled her scent, a mixture of delicate perspiration and the subtle,
lingering fragrance of Sam’s favorite perfume. Ah hell, there went his control. The
hard-on he’d been determined to prevent sprang to full-fledged life. Since there wasn’t
a damn thing he could do about that, he concentrated instead on keeping his hands
to himself. From the way she was looking at him, she’d slug him if he tried anything.

“Dammit, Quinn, haven’t you hurt me enough?”

Astonishment at her words pulled him out of his lustful thoughts. “What the hell are
you talking about?”

“You knew I wanted this house. You don’t even live in Midnight. Why else would you
buy the place if it wasn’t to hurt me?”

Quinn didn’t know if he’d ever been this speechless. She thought he had bought this
house to hurt her? When all he could think about was being close to her?

“Why would you think something like that?”

“I don’t know. You tell me.”

Now wasn’t the time to tell her he’d bought the house so he’d have a place to stay
when he came to see her. That he had hoped she might consider moving into it and overseeing
the repairs.

But she needed an explanation and the only one he had that wouldn’t make her go ballistic
was “I bought it for us.”

Alarm flared briefly, making the leaf green of her eyes blaze a brilliant emerald.
“There is no ‘us.’ ”

Closing the distance between them, he said quietly, “Are you sure, Sam?”

The alarm deepened and he knew she wanted to back away from him. He was damn proud
of her that she didn’t. Instead she raised her chin and glared. When he stepped even
closer, her body went stiff as if poised for flight.

“What are you scared of, sweetheart?”

“I’m not scared.”

He might have believed her if her voice hadn’t been trembling. Lifting her chin with
his finger, he gently traced the edge of her jaw. “Sam …” Lowering his head, he whispered
a soft kiss across her lips. “Please … baby … I’m sorry I hurt you.”

She moaned beneath his mouth and opened hers for a deeper connection. Though everything
within him urged him to give her the soul-deep kiss he wanted, Quinn kept it as gentle
and unthreatening as possible. He’d hurt her before, damned if he would do it again.

Pulling away slightly, he looked down, hoping to see acceptance and forgiveness. It
wasn’t there.

Samantha backed away, shaking her head. She couldn’t believe she’d almost given in.
Even now, just from that one kiss, she could feel her body softening, preparing itself
for more. Her libido might be a traitor, but her mind and heart made the decisions
for her. They told her to get the hell away from him.

“Go home, Quinn. There’s nothing for you here.”

“You’re here, Sam,” Quinn said quietly.

Unable to respond without falling apart, Samantha
turned around and took off running. She could feel Quinn’s eyes on her until she disappeared
from sight.

With every step, the anger and hurt grew. How could he do that? He had bought the
house that she had always dreamed of owning.

She hadn’t planned to run such a long distance tonight, but visiting the Hartley place
before the new owners took possession had seemed like a good idea. One last goodbye
before it belonged to someone else permanently. Never had she considered that it would
belong to Quinn.

He had said he bought it for them. There was no them. And he had accused her of being
afraid. She had denied it, but in her heart, she knew that to be the case. She couldn’t
take the risk. Not again.

Even though it was past dusk, Samantha had no problem following the road that led
her home. She’d run this way hundreds of times before. And if it became too dark,
she had a small flashlight she could use. But for now, she kept her pace steady as
she headed farther away from the man who had crushed her heart once again.

The sound of a vehicle coming up behind her brought her out of her dismal thoughts.
Automatically, she moved over to the shoulder. For an instant she wondered if it was
Quinn, but when the speed didn’t decrease, she relaxed and continued running. Even
though it was now dark as pitch, both her clothes and her shoes were made of reflective
material and she was completely off the road. She was perfectly safe.

Her mind returning to Quinn’s outrageous behavior, Samantha didn’t realize she was
in danger until it was almost too late. An engine raced as the vehicle behind her
sped up. Before she could wonder about that, she heard the sound of spinning gravel.
The car had gone off the road, onto the shoulder. Without turning, she knew it
was closing in, aiming right at her. Instinct born of survival had her leaping sideways
into the bushes a half second before the car would have slammed into her body.

She landed on her side and then rolled, cursing as soft, exposed skin met a giant
briar patch. In an instant, fury gave her a surge of adrenaline. Bouncing to her feet,
she watched as the vehicle continued down the road at a high speed. Holy hell, had
someone just tried to kill her?

“You’re sure you’re okay?”

“Are you sure you can’t describe the car?”

With her mind still spinning from her tumble and her body aching from the multitude
of bruises and scratches, Samantha nodded at Savvy’s question and then shook her head
for Zach’s. Those were the best answers she could give right now.

She had called Zach on her cellphone and told him what happened. He’d told her to
stay hidden in the bushes until he got to her. She knew what he was thinking. Whoever
it had been might come back. To check and make sure she was okay or to finish the
job? She didn’t want to find out. Ordinarily she felt quite comfortable in a one-on-one
confrontation. She knew how to defend herself. But she wasn’t armed and she was bruised.
It wouldn’t have been a fair fight and she would have been on the losing end.

In the end, no one had returned to either check on her or finish the job.

When Zach arrived, he had insisted on taking her to the medical clinic. Samantha hadn’t
argued. She knew nothing was broken but she wanted to get cleaned up before her sister
saw her.

Keeping the incident from Savvy would have been impossible. Samantha had scratches
and bruises on her
face and most of her body. It would take days for them to go away. While the on-call
doctor had cleaned her up with antiseptic and given her a couple of stitches on her
side where a sharp rock had dug deep, Zach had gone to tell Savvy.

The instant her sister had walked into the clinic and let out a cry when she saw her,
Samantha had wanted to kill the bastard who’d almost run her down. If this incident
caused harm to Savvy or her baby, someone was going to pay.

His expression grim, Zach paced back and forth in the small examination room. Savvy
sat beside her, softly touching her hand and looking both worried and furious.

“And you’re sure the driver came after you?” Zach said. “He didn’t just not see you?”

Samantha shook her head. “I heard him speed up as he approached. I got as far onto
the shoulder as I could. He would have had to deliberately go off the road.”

“But who would do something like that, Sammie? Everyone in this town loves you.”

“Not everyone, sis, but I don’t know anyone who hates me enough to kill me.”

“Maybe they didn’t know it was you,” Zach said. “Maybe it was some idiot who happened
to see an opportunity to scare the hell out of a runner.”

“Could be. But if there’s someone like that in Midnight, then he or she is one sick
bastard.”

“Well, we all know this town has got more than its share of sick bastards,” Savvy
said.

Zach pulled up a plastic chair and sat across from her. “I know you’re tired and hurting,
but your memory will never be as fresh as it is right now. I want you to take me through
what happened, step by step. Okay?”

Samantha nodded. She’d been on the other side of interrogations many times. Zach was
right. Now, while it
was still fresh, uncolored by conjecture and not dimmed by time, she needed to recall
every impression.

Closing her eyes, she cleared her mind of everything and went back to the first time
she’d heard the vehicle.

“I’m on Sweetwater, approaching the four-way stop at Bayside. It’s gone from dusk
to ink dark in seconds. I hear a vehicle coming up behind me. Even though I’m already
on the shoulder, I move farther away from the road. I’m not worried. Both my clothes
and shoes have reflectors on them. I’ve run this road hundreds of times. My mind veers
away from that and I pay little attention until I hear the vehicle speed up.”

“How far away were you from it when the speed increased?”

“Maybe thirty yards or so.”

“How could you tell it was speeding up?”

“Because I heard the engine shift gears.” She opened her eyes. “It had a small engine.
It was a small car or truck, maybe a four- or six-cylinder. The driver gunned the
engine.”

Zach nodded. “That’s good. Close your eyes again.”

Eyes closed again, she said, “I’m wondering about the increased speed. That’s when
I realize he’s right behind me. I move even farther onto the shoulder, a little worried
that he hasn’t seen me. I hear a crunching, crackling sound and know the tires are
hitting the gravel on the shoulder. He’s gone off the road. The lights are bright
and I know he’s right on me, aiming toward me. I throw myself sideways, land on my
side, then roll into a briar patch. Damn, it hurts. I’m back up in an instant. He’s
already several yards down the highway.”

“What kind of lights did the vehicle have?”

“The front lights were harsh … I’m sure they were on bright, so no way he didn’t see
me. The—” She stopped abruptly.

“What’s wrong?” Zach asked.

Her eyes opened wide as she just realized something. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice.
I couldn’t really see him because he turned his lights off after that. I only knew
he was moving away from me because I heard him.”

“He was trying to keep you from being able to identify him,” Savvy said.

“I guess so.” Rubbing her right temple where a headache was setting up camp, Samantha
asked, “Why would anyone deliberately try to run me down?”

“I heard Quinn Braddock is back in town.”

Samantha’s head jerked up at Zach’s statement. “Yes, he is. I saw him. He bought the
old Hartley place.”

Savvy gasped in surprise but Samantha kept her gaze fixed on Zach. She didn’t like
the tone of his question or the look on his face.