The Fire Still Burns (24 page)

“Which would give her the small frame of time it took to start the fire in the field and get away before the fire truck came,” Brynn admitted.  “Her mother is dead but what about her father?”

“Severe depression.  Stays in his bedroom all day and night, pretty much leaving Riley on her own to care for herself.”

“So Riley can come and go as she pleases.  It makes perfect sense.  Zeke killed Rachel and Riley killed Zeke.”  Now, all they needed was hard evidence.

Adam shook his head again, standing to pace the floor.  “I still say Stacy killed Rachel or somebody else did.  Riley went after Zeke, suspecting him because of his relationship with her sister.”

Brynn groaned.  “Adam, I don't think so.”

“He's not a murderer.”  He paused to pin her with a dark glare, his tone comprised of steel conviction.

“I'm sorry, Adam.  I know Zeke was your brother—”

“But he was also a murderer,” Adam finished, shaking his head.  “That’s what you were going to say, right?  He was a good guy, Brynn.  Cocky, arrogant, yes, but to
murder
someone?”  His voice broke.  “It’s hard enough to believe the drug dealing was real.  But this?  There has to be some other explanation.”  

“Adam, your brother hid things under floorboards,” Brynn pointed out yet again, hating herself for having to be so blunt, especially when Adam winced.

“Yeah, I know, and he'd been having a relationship with her, but to kill her?”

“He didn't want the baby.”

“He didn't have to kill her to cure the problem.”  He ran a large trembling hand through his damp hair, shaking his head.  “If Stacy didn't do it, maybe he and Rachel were arguing and something went wrong.  She fell and hit her head or something.  He was scared.  He didn't know what to do.”

“It's a possibility.”  Brynn doubted it thoroughly.  She knew the truth about how sinister Zeke could be.

“Are you just saying that to comfort me?”

Brynn looked into his desperate eyes, torn between saving him from further pain or doing what was right, letting him know just who he'd defended all these years.  But, she couldn't bring herself to say the words which would get the message through to him loud and clear.  His brother was evil.

“What do you want me to do, Adam, tell you the truth to crack this case or sugarcoat it to make you feel better and let Zeke's murderer get away?”

“I want you to make it go away,” he said softly, lowering himself back down to the couch.  “Just make it all go away.”

“I wish I could,” she replied as he laid his head against her chest and she wrapped her arms around him protectively.

You have no idea how badly I wish I could do that.

His warm breath tickled over her skin before he placed his lips on her throat, sending a thousand little fluttery sensations straight to her core as he planted gentle kisses, his way of seeking permission.  She couldn't deny him.  Not after what he'd just discovered, what he now knew to be true, what she'd always known about his brother but had never told him.  She couldn’t deny herself his touch after spending so much time with him, inhaling his earthy scent and aching to relive the pleasure she’d once shared with him.   

There were several reasons not to allow him to go further.  They had a case to solve, and they were running out of time.  She couldn't stay.  She still held a secret that would destroy him.

But, she didn't stop him when he slid his hands beneath the shirt she wore and lifted it over her head.  The reasons to let him continue were too powerful.  She loved him and he needed her.  If she could take his pain away for even a short while, it was worth the aftermath.  It was the least she could do considering the secret she still kept from him, even if it killed her inside later.

“For just a little while, Brynn, help me make it all go away,” he pleaded, laying her back against the cushions so he could ease his larger body over hers.

They fit together perfectly as though they were designed for one another, Brynn mused, breathing in the fresh clean scent of him as he dipped his head to take in an exposed nipple. 

His suckling grew stronger as she squirmed beneath him, knowing she shouldn't allow him to remind her of the powerful chemistry they'd always shared, but damning the consequences anyway.

For thirteen long years, she'd denied herself the touch of a man, believing herself unworthy after having lost the love of the only man she'd ever cared about.  But, that love hadn't been lost.  No force could blow out the flames of a love as strong as theirs.

He'd been waiting for her, waiting to reignite the fiery passion they'd shared, a blaze which had never burned out, had instead simmered patiently, waiting for its chance to explode once more.   

Suddenly, Adam went rigid above her, raising his head to look at her with such pure concern, she nearly cried in response.  She wasn't worthy of that much love. “Brynn…have you…I mean, since…”

“No,” she whispered, saving him from having to voice the question she knew was killing him to ask.

He straightened to pull away from her.  “I'll understand if you don't want to—”

“Please,” she cried, grabbing him by his powerful arms.  “If I never have sex again, please don't let my last time be the night I was raped.”

His cell phone rang, and he reached out to grab it.  Brynn felt deflated as he held the phone in his hand, knowing he would use it as an excuse to stop what he felt hesitant about doing. 

To her surprise, he turned the phone off and placed it back on the table, following that action by turning the ringer off her own cell phone.

“We might get an important call about the case,” she pointed out.

“The arsonist has never struck twice in one day or night.”  He scooped her up from the couch, easily supporting her full weight in his strong arms.  “And right now there is nothing more important than showing you just how greatly I've missed you.”  

He took the few steps necessary to reach the bed and lowered her onto the mattress, taking a moment to stare down at her, his blue eyes shining with heated admiration.

“You're making me self-conscious.”

“You have nothing to feel self-conscious about,” he said matter-of-factly as he removed his T-shirt and lounge pants to stand beside the bed completely nude.

Brynn sucked in a breath of complete appreciation and raised her hips to help him remove his sweat pants from her body, leaving her bare and ready.

“Absolutely nothing at all,” he reaffirmed, lowering to start a trail of kisses starting at her ankle and leading to her inner thigh, each light caress sending her closer to the brink of insanity.

“Are you sure?”  He rose so they were face-to-face.

“See how angry I get if you back out now,” she warned and he chuckled in response.

“Whatever my lady wants.”  He lowered his head to meld his mouth to hers, exploring her depths as though it were the first time.

His hands ran over her body, finding all the places he'd visited before.  Brynn ran her fingers along his shoulder blades, re-familiarizing herself with the body she'd once known better than her own and realized she hadn't forgotten a single inch of it even if it had improved with time.

She didn't know how long they explored each other, adoring each other's bodies with lips, fingers and tongues.  Both of them greedily tasting one another like a dessert dish they knew would be gone too soon, but neither wanting to speak of it.

Instead, they let their bodies talk to one another, throwing caution to the wind.  There was no thought of tomorrow and what would come with it, only now, this moment they had to forget the rest of the world and get lost in each other.

Then, he was inside her and the world shifted.  For a brief moment, the stars were perfectly aligned, there were no wrongs, no consequences, no secrets.  They were one, united as they were meant to be from birth and then there was a starburst of blinding white light and they both cried out in unison before crashing back down to earth, where tears glided freely down Brynn's flushed cheeks.

“Tell me those tears aren't from pain,” Adam pleaded, the worry in his tone sending a jab of pain straight through Brynn's heart.

“No.”

“Regret?”

“No.  They're from loss.”

“Loss?”  He smoothed her hair from her brow, his touch so soft it was more of a whisper against her skin.

“Thirteen years, Adam.  Thirteen years.”

The tears cascaded beyond her control as she turned against him and, perfectly in tune with her, Adam didn’t comfort her with words.  Instead, he gave her exactly what she needed—two strong arms to hold her until she cried herself to sleep.   

Chapter Fifteen

Brynn woke a few hours later, sure it was the weight of Adam's stare breaking into her consciousness.  She rolled onto her back, opened her eyes and immediately locked gazes with him.  He was propped on one elbow, studying her.

“Take a picture.  It lasts longer,” she murmured.

“I'd love to have a picture of this moment.”  He smiled unapologetically.  “You're beautiful when you sleep, more so when you're first coming out of it.”

“Oh really?  Is it the wild mane of hair or the general grogginess that does it for you?”

“I think it's the—you being naked next to me part,” he answered seriously, brushing a lock of hair away from her forehead.  “Are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” she answered.  “I'm sorry I got all emotional and female
on you.”

“It's okay.”  Adam’s mouth curved into a grin.  “Besides, after what we just did, you'd better be female.”

“Hardy har,” Brynn said through a yawn, watching as he sat up in the bed, deep frown lines appearing on his forehead.  “What is it?”

“I still can't wrap my head around the fact Cal was gay and nobody knew.  I mean, sure, this is not a very tolerable town but he could have told me.  I might not have showered with him in the locker room, but I wouldn't have been a jerk.  He didn't have to do what he did.”

“Maybe there's other stuff you don't know.”  Brynn rested her hand on his forearm.  “Let's not talk about that, all right?”

“I'm sorry.”  Adam slid back down and kissed her forehead.  “I know the memories must be awful.  Let's talk about something more pleasant.”

“Such as?”

“You and me.”

Brynn felt a ball of dread forming in her stomach, which only grew stronger when she saw the hope in Adam's gaze.  “Adam…”

“You love me, Brynn.”

“Yes, but—”

“And I love you.”

“Adam—”

“That's all we need.”  He leaned forward, his expression hard as stone.  “Don't run again, Brynn, not after all the time we've already lost.”

She let out a sigh, wishing it were that simple.  The body of Zeke’s pregnant girlfriend was found under floorboards—Zeke’s hiding place—and he still couldn’t believe his brother capable of murder with evidence slapping him right in the face.  Why would he believe her if she told him what Zeke had done to her?

Urrgh!  It’s so unfair!  Was my momentary stupidity really deserving of all this?  I was violated, shamed…and now I have to refuse the man I love despite the fact that doing so is ripping me apart?      

“Adam, I—”

“I'll go with you if that's what it takes for us to be together.  I will leave this town behind.”  He ran the backs of his fingers down her jaw, and Brynn’s eyes closed against the rush of emotion the simple caress ignited.  “Just don't leave without me.”

“You would do that for me?”

“I've known what it's like to live without you.  I'll do anything to keep from experiencing that again.”

“This is your home.  This is where your family is.”

“You and Nathaniel can be my family, too.”

Brynn stiffened automatically, the mere mention of her son's name falling from Adam's lips reminded her why she should have never given in to her heart's desire.  She should have never let Adam believe they had a chance of rekindling what they'd once had, should have never let herself believe in that, even if it had only been for a few moments.

Now that they'd made love, it was going to be even more painful for both of them when she left.  And she had to leave.  If Adam ever met Nathaniel and discovered the secret she'd hidden from him, he'd never forgive her for not telling him.  Worse, he'd never forgive himself for something he'd not even known about.

“Brynn?  Say something.”

She looked into his eyes, saw the hope that had shimmered there just a moment before slipping away, and cursed herself for hurting him yet again.  Unsure how to tell him gently that they'd never be together again, Brynn eased out of the bed with a sheet wrapped around her body and walked to the dryer to retrieve her clothes.

Whatever she decided to say would come out easier if she were dressed while saying it.

She heard Adam stirring behind her, rising from the bed and gathering clothes while she pulled on her own.  Once dressed, she closed the dryer door and took a deep breath, turning to face a very hurt, very angry half-dressed male.