Starks' Reality (14 page)

“No,” he said.

“I want to catch the real killer. I’m guessing you feel the same way. So, did you see anyone or anything unusual out back Friday after the oysters were delivered?”

Skeet stared at the pot for a moment. “I went out back about six to get a can of peppers, and I seen Johnson poking around under the porch. He says his dog jumped out of his truck and he’s looking for it. I wait until he leaves, then come back in here.”

“Lou Johnson was out back Friday?”

“No, the other one. The younger one.”

“Casey. And you didn’t see him carrying anything?”

“No.”

Jake rubbed his chin. “When you brought oysters in from the storage room, did you bring in whole sacks?”

“
I brought in a bucket at a time.”

“Did you notice anything strange, like there being more oysters than you expected?
”

Skeet frowned at the stove and shrugged. “It was busy.”

Jake sighed. “Will you make an official statement about Johnson?”

The man looked up, stared for a moment,
and then nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Jake left him to his work and walked out to the bar. Heather moved things around without care, making a racket. She didn’t look at him as he sat on the stool across from her.

“You want to know what I found out?” he asked.

She glowered. “What, you want to include me now? Are you sure I can handle it? After all, you know how delicate—”

“Heather,” he said, “stop.”

When her pout appeared, he tried not to smile.

“Skeet saw Casey Johnson behind the building Friday night
and he’s willing to swear to that.”

Her pout faded.

“Now, I’ve got a few more things to do, then I’m going home. You want a ride to the courthouse tomorrow?”

She nodded.

“All right, I’ll pick you up.”

He smiled at her and she looked away. She’d come around.

Jake drove back to the dock, got out, and walked to the end of the public boat ramp. The launch had probably been used several times during the day. It seemed to be a fairly popular place to put in.

At the moment, however, he found the bay deserted and the dock quiet. Small waves lapped at wooden piers, the only sound breaking the silence. Jake sat on the edge with his feet hanging over, and studied the horizon.

Coop had probably been in about the same spot Tuesday night. He saw lights in the bay. More than likely, he saw Tran’s boat without realizing it. If it took Coop about an hour to consume the pint of Scotch on the beach, he would have reached the dock shortly after Tran went out.

What had he seen?

Jake frowned, recalling Coop’s exact words. He’d said there were lights in the bay from
boats
, not from a single boat.

Had Coop
actually seen Tran’s killer?

“Damn.”

~~**~~**~~

Skeet stuck around while Heather closed up the bar. He tried to look busy, but she knew he didn’t want to leave her alone. She locked the front, tucked away the cash, and walked back to the kitchen.

“Skeet, are you ready to go?”

“Yeah.”

She followed him out the back door and locked it behind them. “Thanks for staying while I closed.”

“It’s nothin’,” he said.

At the parking lot, they parted. Heather followed the trail to her house as Skeet headed north into town.

Her house waited, lonely and quiet. Funny, even when Coop lay passed out in his
bedroom, she knew he was there. Tonight she was definitely alone.

She pictured
Coop, miles away, lying in a jail cell. Tears burned at the back of her eyes.

Heather traversed the hall, stopping to peek into her father’s room, which was a wreck again. She’d straighten it in the morning for his homecoming.

If he had one. There wasn’t much left in the bank for a bail bond, and she couldn’t imagine letting Jake contribute his own money.

Then again, she’d do anything to get Coop back.

In her bedroom, Heather changed into a nightshirt. Then she padded to the bathroom and brushed her teeth.

As she climbed into bed, she thought about Jake. Twice during the day, he’d sent her out of the room. She couldn’t imagine anything more infuriating. The man
treated her like a child.

Why did he have to be so gorge
ous? Riding in his car had been…stimulating. And made her a little nervous. She’d halfway expected him to reach over and grab her leg at some point.

Heather rolled over and stared into the darkness.

The worst part was that she was sorry he hadn’t. Holding his hand had been comforting and fun, but not the same.

Expect the unexpected
, he’d said.

Did he practice what he preached?

Trying not to think too hard about what she might be getting into, she threw back the covers, turned on the lamp and rose. She withdrew a pair of jeans from the dresser, pulled a cotton shirt from a hanger, and tossed them both onto the bed. Then she stripped off her nightshirt.

~~**~~**~~

Jake stood before he actually woke.

What the hell was that noise?

He extracted the thirty-eight from the holster on the coffee table, held it at his side, and listened.

The noise sounded like someone knocking on his door. He glanced back at the kitchen clock. Who the hell would be knocking on his door at two in the morning?

When he pulled the curtain back and saw Heather standing on the steps, he shook his head and looked again. Hopping over the footstool, he jerked the door open.

“What’s wrong?”

She stood with her hands at her sides, dressed in blue jeans and a white long-sleeved blouse that should have been buttoned a little higher.

“Um, nothing,” sh
e said. “I just thought I’d, um…”

He rel
axed with a sigh.

She started to back down the steps. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—”

He leaned out and grabbed her arm. “Don’t you even think about leaving.”

Her eyes widened, but she didn’t resist. He pull
ed her in and closed the door. Then he returned the revolver to its holster. She waited just inside.

Jake looked around for
the shirt he’d taken off when he was working out. He found it on the floor and was about to slip it on when she touched his back.

“Don’t,” she said.

He started at her touch and spun around.

Heather stood in front of him
, lit only by the light from the kitchen. She studied his eyes, and then stepped forward and touched his chest. God, her hands felt incredible on his skin.

“Jumpy tonight?” she asked. “I thought you always expected the unexpected.”

“Your hands are cold,” he said.

“They are not.”

He stepped closer, held her waist, and pulled her to him. “Something must need warming up,” he whispered.

As he pressed his lips to hers, her hands ran up to his shoulders, sending a shiver through him. Christ, it seemed like he’d been waiting years to hold her. He wrapped his arms around
her and drew her body up to his. She clung to his neck, and her lips parted. He took her mouth, thrilling to her response. Her tongue circled his, drawing him in deeper, demanding more. He groaned as her knee rose slowly between his legs.

Nearly stumbling, he tore his mouth away. “In a hurry?”

She shook her head.

“Then, watch where you put that knee.”

She looked up at him, wide-eyed.

Holding her with one arm, he stroked her cheek with his fingertips. Her golden eyes, though barely visible, held a simple excitement that made him weak. She was beautiful, and innocent.

God, so innocent.

“This could be a mistake,” he said.

“I’m not a child, Jake.” Her hands moved gently over his skin.

“I know, but I’m no college kid.”

She smiled. “Fortunately.”

He kissed her smile,
and then pressed his forehead to hers as he unbuttoned her blouse. She wasn’t wearing a bra. Gritting his teeth to keep from growling, he slid his hands inside the blouse and skimmed her smooth skin, enjoying the way his touch raised goose bumps on her flesh. He started at her waist and moved up, letting his fingers float over each rib, pushing her blouse open with his forearms. Her lungs expanded rapidly, matching the speed of his shallow breathing. When he reached her warm breasts, she pressed them into his palms and dropped her head to his chest.

He wasn’t going to make it like this. His knees
actually shook.

He pushed her blouse over her shoulders and she loosened her hold on him long enough to
shrug it off. He kissed her, grabbed her firm ass, and lifted her until she wrapped her legs around his waist. Somehow, he found the sofa and managed to sit, although he was way too hard to be comfortable. He turned, lowered her to the cushions, and stretched out on top of her.

When Heather tightened her legs around him, Jake groaned at the pleasure of being where he’d wanted to be since
his first sight of her. He rubbed himself against her heat as they kissed.

This wasn’t working, either. One more minute of humping and he would to lose it. Releasing her mouth, he backed up and kissed the tender places on her neck. She moaned quietly.

But the distance between them proved useless when he reached her breasts. The slight saltiness of her skin made him light-headed and hungry for more. And her intense reaction didn’t help. She dug her fingers into the muscles in his shoulders, arched her back, and cried out. He wrapped his arms around her waist and circled her nipples with his tongue, enjoying her sweet agony even more than his own. He eased the fingers of his right hand into the back of her jeans.

When he realized she wasn’t wearing panties, he groaned and dropped his forehead to her chest.

“Heather,” he said, his voice barely audible, “do you have any idea what you’re doing?”

She lifted his face with a hand on each side of his jaw until their eyes met. “Jake,” she whispered, “I want you.”

He returned his mouth to hers. She locked him in an embrace hampered only by their remaining clothes. He reached between them and loosed the snap on her jeans.

That was when it hit him.

He lifted himself to one elbow. “Dammit,” he whispered.

“What’s wrong?”

“You know how hard it is to find a condom in this part of the state?”

She grinned. “I know where there’s a whole case.”

“Yeah?”

She nodded.

“Well,” he said, “I don’t think we’ll need a whole case tonight. A dozen, maybe, but not a whole case.”

Her eyebrows shot up. Even in the darkness, he saw her face redden.

Jake kissed the end of her nose, and then her lips, and then lifted his head to look at her again. “I think we better hurry, though. Another few minutes of this and it’ll be too late.”

They sat up, untangling slowly, kissing as they did.

“I’ll run next door,” she said.

“I’m going with you.”

“But—”

“Don’t argue with me, Heather. You’ll just be wasting precious time.”

She smiled as she rose, picked up her blouse, and slipped it on.

He pulled on his T-shirt,
and clipped his thirty-eight to his jeans. Then he stepped into his boots and followed her out the front door.

They walked along the edge of the road with their arms around each other.

Jake had to admit, he felt a little like a college kid again.

CHAPTER
11

S
he’d never felt as alive as she did at that moment. Heather pushed boxes around on the shelf in the storage room until she uncovered the one used to restock the bathroom dispenser. Jake stood behind her, his hands on her waist, nipping at the back of her neck.

“Ta-dum,” she said, holding up the open box.

He grabbed a handful of foil packages and shoved them into the pocket of his pants. “That’s a start,” he said.

When she turned, he trapped her in his arms by holding the shelf on each side of her, and he kissed her.

How could anything feel so perfect? She locked her arms around his neck.

When they kissed, he took control, and she didn’t mind. His tongue moved skillfully around hers, teasing her, guiding her. He sent waves of delight coursing through her body.

The bulge he pressed into her abdomen as he pushed her back into the shelves, hinted at impending pleasure like she’d never known.

He kissed her lips, and her cheek, and her ear. “We can use the first one now,” he whispered hoarsely, “but it may not be too comfortable out here.”

She raised her chin and he kissed her neck. “My bed,” she gasped.

He kissed her lips once more and then straightened, grinning down at her. “Good idea.”

Heather led the way along the path to her house. Inside the kitchen, Jake grabbed her and spun her around. He backed her down the hall as he unbuttoned her blouse and pushed it off, letting it fall to the floor. He peeled off his shirt and dropped it. When they crossed the threshold to her room, he grabbed the waist of her pants and yanked her to him, kissing her as he unsnapped and unzipped her jeans. He pushed them down, and she held his arms to keep from tripping as she stepped out of the last of her clothes.

She walked backwards in front of him completely naked. He flipped on the lamp as they passed it, left his gun on the nightstand,
and unbuttoned his pants.

The man was beautiful in the most amazing way. His body, muscular and brown, sported muscles rounded by maturity. As he loosed the buttons on his pants, his biceps and abs rippled, and the self-confidence in his grin made her knees give out. She sat on the edge of the bed and watched.

Jake dug the condoms out of his pocket and dropped them beside the lamp, then kicked off his boots and pushed his pants to the floor. Without hesitating, he removed his Jockeys.

Heather couldn
’t help but stare. He was large and aroused, and anticipation tightened the muscles between her legs. Jake stepped forward, gripped her arms, and pulled her to her feet. He slid his hands around her body like a snake coiling around its prey and drew her into him as he took her mouth again. They kissed for a long time, their entire bodies in contact, running their hands over each other’s exposed skin in sensuous, stimulating exploration.

When she reached between them and touched him, grazing the velvety skin of his erection with her fingertips, he shuddered and tightened his hold on her. He lifted her from the floor, propped one knee on her bed, and tossed her onto the mattress. Then he stretched out on top of her, his legs between hers. Nothing remained to stop him from taking her at that moment, and she trembled.

“You feel good,” he whispered, kissing the side of her face and her neck. “I want to be inside you.”

Heather drew in a sudden breath at his words. She’d never been seduced in such a sinfully thrilling way. She opened her legs
wider.

“Don’t tempt me,” he
said with a husky growl.

She pulled on his back, urging him higher, but he moved down her body instead, tracing lines of ecstasy in her skin with his tongue. She closed her eyes, fighting not to lose control. When his mouth closed on her left breast, she grabbed the bedspread and arched up into him.

Then he stopped, leaving her balanced on the edge of a chasm, and withdrew.

After a few seconds, Heather opened her eyes and found Jake stretched out beside her, leaning on one elbow and putting on a condom. He grinned, his eyes glistening like sapphires. But he didn’t move back on top of her. Instead, he just studied her face as he covered her stomach with his scalding
palm.

“What?” she asked, unable to decide what he wanted her to do.

“You are beautiful.”

“You think so?”

He nodded slowly. “Oh, yeah.”

She raised her eyebrows in challenge. “Prove it.”

He laughed. Then he pulled her closer and kissed her as his hand proceeded down her belly until it stopped between her legs.

As incredible as his fingers felt touching her, stroking her, she wanted more this time. She pulled on his shoulder to draw him on top of her. He groaned as he returned to his place between her
legs.

She lifted her knees around him. She wanted to know the secret of joining with Jake, of taking him into her, but he didn’t seem to feel the same urgency. She held him tighter and raised her hips into him.

His kiss deepened and he gripped her thigh. She gasped at the pressure as he started into her, a little at a time, giving her body a chance to adjust to his size. As it did, his thrusts grew stronger, faster. With one final lunge, he buried himself in her.

She grabbed his shoulders and cried out as she erup
ted. Every muscle exploded, every nerve detonated. She lifted herself into him again and again, unable to get enough, unable to take any more. He held her down, meeting her thrusts. She clung to him. The electrified pulses burned through her, painfully fast at first, then slowing to a blissful roll.

Jake groaned. “Stop
moving,” he whispered. “I can’t…oh, God…” He drove himself into her with unbridled thrusts until his body tensed, and then he slowed to long, satisfying strokes.

Buried inside
her, he dropped his head to her shoulder. His body stilled, except for his rapid breathing.

“Never mind,” he said.

Heather wrapped her arms around his shoulders and brushed the back of his neck with her fingertips.

~~**~~**~~

Damn, she felt good.

Jake held most of his weight on his elbows as he kissed Heather’s neck.

He’d embarrassed himself by being unable to hold out for more than a few seconds, but it had been ages since he’d been with a woman, and he’d never been with one quite like Heather.

His fantasies about her had been more stimulating than any he’d had before. And she had already surpassed them. Her body, muscular and sturdy, didn’t feel like it would break in his arms. Her
scent was clean, pure, sweet—as perfect as her taste.

The more of her he tasted, the more he wanted.

He eased his body away from hers, clenching his jaw at the effort. Her hands slid down his arms and then fell to her sides.

“You’re leaving?” she asked.

He shook his head. “We’re just getting started. It’s going to be a while before I’m done with you.”

She wanted raunchy; he saw it in her grin. She’d probably slept with her college boyfriends, young men as nervous as rabbits who knew little to nothing about pleasing a woman. She deserved better. The fire of Heather’s sexual energy burned in her eyes. He’d do what he could to awaken that power, and certainly
not only for her benefit.

Jake sat up, grabbed her wrists, and raised her hands over her head. “Hold on,” he said.

She gripped the brass bars, watching him with wide, trusting eyes.

He donned a new condom
and straddled her on his hands and knees. He kissed her lips, nipped them, and held his mouth to her ear. “Don’t let go.”

She nodded.

He moved down her body slowly, savoring every inch of her, focusing on the tender spots that made her squirm. By the time his mouth was between her legs, her hips were up off the bed and he was unbelievably hard again.

Slowly, gently, he drew her to a climax, thrilling to her pulsing muscles and holding her hips in place with his arms looped around her thighs. She cried out as she came and pushed herself against his mouth. He nearly came with her, but managed to
grasp the last thread of restraint. When she finally collapsed, panting, making soft contented noises, he looked up and found that she still held the bars.

He crawled up her body. “Good girl,” he said. “Now you can let go.”

He fell onto his side, grabbed her around the waist, and pulled her over on top of him. She sat up.

Straddling him, she took him slowly into her, surrounding him with unbearable heat, but he refused to be embarrassed twice. He pushed up the last inch and her head went back.

He grabbed Heather’s hands and laced his fingers into hers. Then he spread his arms to bring her face to his and he kissed her. Her eager mouth opened against his as her muscles tensed around him.

He smiled against her lips. “Not yet,” he whispered.

When she lifted her hips, he released her hands and grabbed her waist.

To his surprise, Heather snatched his wrists and pinned them to the bed on each side of his head. He could have wrenched them free, but it wouldn’t have been easy.

“My turn to be in charge,” she said, her face only inches above his.

“You think you know what you’re doing?”

She rubbed back and forth on him, leaving him gasping.

“I think I can figure it out,” she said.

He fought the urge to take over as she kissed and licked his neck and chest. He lifted himself into her.

She stopped, held her face just above his again, and stared into his eyes. “Don’t move,” she said.

He strained to stay still as she gripped his shoulders and rose up slowly, and then moved just as slowly back down. She tightened around him but slid easily.

Moving faster in the warmth that surrounded them, her body glistened in the lamplight as she closed her eyes and raised her head. Her motions grew almost violent. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and she breathed in stuttered gasps.

And then she came, pulling him with her into the most intense climax he’d ever experienced. She rode him hard, uninhibited and oblivious to the rest of the world, and they rose together into the dark, swirling clouds of bliss. He thought his heart would explode.

But it held out.
Finally, she slowed, pushing him back to earth.

During the last of their shared release, her frown
of passion gave way to a satisfied smile. She opened her eyes, leaned forward, and looked down at him. Her hot breath caressed his face.

“Good boy,” she said.

He laughed and pulled her to his chest. They lay together, their hearts thundering, their panting adding more moisture to the damp air.

As their bodies quieted, the peaceful world seemed to wake around them, filling the night with insect songs. Wind whistled up from the beach. A blanket of tranquility billowed and
settled over the bed.

Jake had every intention of rolling over and taking her again, but his eyes got heavier and heavier until he couldn’t hold them open. Just before he lost consciousness, he realized Heather had fallen asleep on top of him.

~~**~~**~~

Heather woke slowly, momentarily startled by the warmth of Jake’s body. He slept behind her with his arms wrapped around her chest and
waist, his legs tangled in hers, and his breath steady on the back of her neck.

She couldn’t see the clock, but it had to be late. Sunshine glared through the windows without the least hint of pink.

Using two fingers, she tried to gently move Jake’s arm in order to get out of bed without waking him. His arm weighed a ton. She grabbed his wrist and lifted, but nothing happened.

Craning her neck, she looked back and found him watching her through one blue eye.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“It’s time to get up,” she said.

He pulled her back into him.

“Jake, I need to go to the bathroom.”

He frowned and released her. “Two minutes, and you better be back here.”

She jumped up and hurried into the bathroom. He couldn’t be serious, as late in the day as it must be. They had things to do before they went to court.

Heather turned on the shower and held one hand under the spray as she adjusted it. When she had it just right, she pulled the curtain back and was about to step in. Instead, she was hoisted into the air.

Jake grabbed her around the waist and held her body to his as he stepped into the running water and jerked the curtain closed.

“You lied to me,” he said.

Heather grabbed the wall and turned her face away from the water. “No, I didn’t. I really had to use the bathroom.”

He held her as he had that first night, one hand on her breast, the other sliding down between her legs. “And now?” he said.

“I…I thought I’d…
take a shower,” she said, reacting to his touch.

“Umm, good idea,” he whispered.

She fell forward to the wet tile, swelling as he teased and caressed her. He lifted her hips higher and entered her from behind, continuing to stroke her as he did.