Bliss –Present day

 

Rafe felt totally out of his element in expensive slacks and a T-shirt that proclaimed The Trading Post was Bliss’s one-stop murder clean-up shop. He made his way out of the bathroom, the suit coat and dress shirt he’d previously worn tucked over his arm.

“See, that looks much better,” Wolf Meyer said with a sarcastic grin on his face. “Much more comfortable than that suit.”

Rafe stared at Wolf. What kind of name was Wolf? And what the hell had happened? How was Laura engaged? His heart constricted at the thought, but he didn’t buy it. She didn’t have a ring on her finger. “I prefer the suit, but if this is what Laura wants me to wear, I’ll suffer through it. She knows the town and how to fit in. I see she likes to be comfortable, too. She used to dress even better than I do. And, of course, she loved jewelry. I’m surprised she isn’t showing off an engagement ring.”

Rafe had quickly figured out that Wolf Meyer was a possessive son of a bitch. He’d spent the last ten years of his life on a BAU team. He knew how to read people. Wolf Meyer was former military, possibly Special Forces. The man was all alpha male with a strong streak of snark. No way did the man in front of him not buy the woman he was going to marry a ring. He would want some physical mark of his ownership. Rafe would, too. If he managed to convince Laura to marry him, he would have a ring on her finger in a heartbeat.

Of course, Cam would probably take it a step further. He would want a tattoo on her ass, something that couldn’t slip off her body.

Wolf didn’t even blink. “You know how we country folk are, Special Agent. We tend to downplay things like that. Our love is far more important than a ring. At least that’s what she told me. We’re saving up for the downpayment on a bigger cabin.”

Bullshit. Rafe didn’t believe that for a second. If Wolf Meyer wanted a ring on her finger, it would be there. Rafe had a lot in common with Wolf.

Something was off with Laura’s engagement.

And something was definitely off with this town.

“Here’s some fresh baked cookies, Special Agent.” Teeny Green placed a plate on the bistro table. “I, personally, am glad you’re here. Oh, I know that everyone else will go into lockdown mode, including my wife, but something has to be done. We can’t keep having all these murders. First it was that dreadful man after Rachel and then those bikers. They needed to bathe more often, I tell you. If you’re going to murder someone, at least have the common courtesy of smelling nice, I say.”

Rafe listened to the woman go on about the grooming habits of the Russian mob and realized that he hadn’t met a single person in this town who he wouldn’t flag as potentially insane. From Wolf Meyer, who lied like a pro, to that dude who greeted them with his dick hanging out at that Mountain and Valley place.

Rafe looked around. Where had Laura gone? Two women whispered outside a curtained-off section on the second floor of the store that seemed to sell everything from souvenirs to groceries to fishing equipment. Rafe could see them from the ground floor. They were Laura’s friends, the redhead and the one who previously couldn’t speak. She didn’t seem to have that trouble now. Charm hadn’t worked on them. Maybe it was time to take a play from Cam’s book and be a bit of a bully.

He couldn’t let Laura go. If she slipped out the back, he might not be able to find her again. He needed to know she was safe. The sick feeling he’d had in his stomach every day since she’d walked out was back. He’d gotten so used to it, it had felt normal, only going away when he’d set eyes on her.

“Do you think I should make more cookies, Special Agent?” Teeny asked. “Your partner looks like a man who likes to eat.”

Cam was still in the bathroom putting on his undercover wear. Cam would probably be thrilled to do the whole assignment in jeans and a snarky shirt. “Cam can put away more food than an elephant, but he’s not the only one.”

Wolf Meyer looked up, his face a mask of innocence. All six of the cookies were gone. “They were awfully good.”

Rafe turned away as Teeny began to nag the big guy about sharing.

He clenched his fists at the base of the stairs and made his decision. Laura wasn’t getting away. All this time he’d blamed himself for her running, but wasn’t she to blame, too? He’d fucked up. He knew that. He’d fucked up, and she’d paid the price, but she was the one who left without a word. She was the one who had punished him and Cam for five long years. She was the one who hadn’t wanted to listen to explanations or apologies.

He wasn’t letting her go.

Rafe took the steps two at a time, never letting his eyes leave those women. They turned as though sensing something was stalking them. Two pairs of eyes widened. They were shocked and not a little frightened. He could sense that easily. Neither one moved, however. They stood their ground. The redhead even firmed her stance, as though guarding something precious.

“Special Agent Kincaid,” the redhead said in a too-loud voice.

Holly. Her name was Holly, and she’d given Laura away. Laura was obviously behind the curtain, and her friend wanted to warn her of encroaching danger. Nice. He didn’t mind that at all.

“I was looking for Laura.” It was a leading question. He wondered if Holly would attempt to lie to him.

Guileless green eyes looked up at him. No lies in those eyes. “She’s changing. I think she would appreciate it if you gave her a moment. She wasn’t expecting people from her past to show up here today.”

She’d placed careful emphasis on the word “past.”

“Yes, I doubt she ever expected to see me again,” Rafe murmured. He wondered if she was changing clothes. He wanted to see her again. She’d changed. She was softer, more round. She was older, but it looked good on her. She was even more beautiful than he remembered. Damn, he needed to get his head back in the game. He couldn’t think about sex. He needed to stay in control or he would lose her.

Nell, whose voice had disappeared again, patted her friend on the back, and they seemed to have a whole conversation with a series of looks and gestures.

Finally, Holly turned back. “Nell and I would like to know why you’re here.”

That was a question he needed to answer carefully. Especially since he knew Laura was behind that curtain, probably listening. What should he say? Well, he’d told Cam they needed to be aggressive. “I’m here because I love her. I’ve loved her since the day I met her, and I’ve missed her every day she’s been gone. I’m here today because yesterday Cam discovered her location. We’ve been looking for years.”

Let her stew on that for a while. Or, perhaps, she would come barging out of her hidey hole, and they could have the fight they’d needed to have for five fucking years. Yeah, he was looking forward to that. He had the distinct feeling that they wouldn’t get anywhere until they had that fight.

The curtain opened, and Laura stepped out, dressed now in tight jeans that accentuated her new curves and a plaid shirt that opened low enough to show off the slope of her breasts. Her hair had been pulled back in a ponytail. Her beauty had always been soul deep, but there was a strength in her eyes that hadn’t been there before. It was apparent that she’d been crying.

Fuck, that hurt.

“It’s good to see you, too, Special Agent Kincaid.” She stepped into her heels. They were the only thing left from the outfit she’d been wearing.

The words were said with a flat cadence that told him she was simply being polite. She was fooling herself. It was obvious to Rafe that she still had some sort of feelings for them, whether good or bad. She’d been crying. There was still something between them. He wanted to take her in his arms, but it wasn’t the time or the place.

“We need to find someplace where we can talk. Cam and I need to go over a few things with you,” he said.

She glanced down at her watch. “Sorry, I have a lot to do today. All week, actually. I have a friend who’s getting married on Saturday, and I’m in the wedding party. Tonight is the Big Game Dinner. That’s serious in these parts. If you want to talk, you’re going to have to do it at my place while I get ready.”

With that, she dismissed him. She gave her friends hugs and then walked right past him.

He felt his blood pressure tick up as she walked away. He caught her in two long strides, gently clasping her elbow and turning her to face him.

“I came all this way, searched for years to find you, and you can’t give me an hour to explain things to you?”

“I think you made everything clear to me back in DC. I understand that something has come up with the case, but I have a life here now. I have a job.”

He knew about her job. Once he’d figured out what name she was using, he’d found out everything he could about her. It had been very surprising to discover that one of the most driven, ambitious women he’d ever known worked at a place called the Stop ‘n’ Shop. “Yes, you’re working at a gas station. I’m sure that degree in psychology comes in handy when you’re using a cash register.”

She flushed but stood her ground. “I make no apologies for my life. I do a damn good job. I like the people here. If you have a problem with it, the highway can take you anywhere you want to go. I suggest you use it.”

“That would be easy for you, wouldn’t it, bella?”

“Nothing about this is easy for me, Rafe.”

At least she’d stopped calling him special agent. “I’m not going anywhere until we talk, and I don’t mean about the case. I don’t care that you’re involved with that man downstairs. I want an explanation. I want to know why you walked out on me.”

“On us.” Cam stood at the bottom of the stairs, looking up. He appeared to have utterly dumped his coat, and Rafe prayed he hadn’t actually tossed it out. The T-shirt Cam had been given was the tiniest bit too small. “You walked out on us.”

Rafe saw Laura soften for a moment, and then her stubbornness set back in. “I was fired. As I didn’t have a real relationship with anyone outside of work, I didn’t think I had to leave a forwarding address. And you should get your hand off me. You’re hurting me.”

“Hey!” Holly said.

“Put the fishing pole down, Holly.” Laura sighed as she looked over Rafe’s shoulder.

He turned to see the redhead with a fishing pole in her hand, apparently ready to defend her friend. He released Laura’s arm.

“I don’t think that would have done a lot of damage.” Laura smiled at the two women who had been coming to her rescue.

Holly shrugged as she reset the fishing pole. “Next time you get assaulted, make sure it happens deeper in sporting goods. Then I could have picked up a hockey stick or a baseball bat.”

“There won’t be a next time,” Laura promised. “I’ll see you two tonight. Holly, you’re going, right?”

“Oh, yes. Stella’s Café is responsible for dessert. And Hal has come up with something called venison tapas. I have no idea what it means, but Zane made the sheriff promise to give it a try.” Holly pointed a thumb back toward Nell. “Nell and Henry are protesting.”

“Excellent. See you there.” Laura started down the stairs.

“Laura, we’re not done here.” He wasn’t about to come all this way only to be dismissed.

“I told you, I’m going home to change. I’ll be at the Big Game Dinner this evening. It’s going to be on the fairgrounds. We can talk there.”

“If you run, I’ll come after you.”

She stopped halfway down the stairs and turned those blue eyes on him. “Why would I run? This is my home.”

“You left your last home.”

“DC was never my home. It was just a stop on the way to Bliss. This is my home and nothing and no one is going to make me leave it.” She stepped down the stairs and nodded at Cam before she walked out.

Cam turned as if to go after her. Rafe raced to stop him.

“We can’t let her go,” Cam complained.

“She isn’t going anywhere.” He understood Cam’s urgency. Now that he was close to her again, the idea of letting her out of his sight rankled. “I have it on the highest authority that this is her home.”

Cam smiled, his face opening in a way Rafe hadn’t seen in a long time. It made him look years younger. “Well, you’ve got to admit, it is kind of cool.”

“I don’t have to admit anything.”

Cam slapped him on the back. He didn’t seem at all upset with his too-tight T-shirt or the woman who spoke through interpretive dance. “Come on, it’s gorgeous. It makes me miss Arkansas. Hell, I never thought I’d miss Arkansas, but the mountains here are beautiful. And the air is amazing.”

Rafe frowned. “The air is air, Cam.”

“Nah, it’s different in the mountains. It’s cleaner.” Cam turned and stared after Laura. She almost walked out the door and then seemed to remember that she had left something behind. Her fiancé. She awkwardly returned to Wolf Meyer’s side. “What is she doing with that asshole? I don’t buy the whole ‘we’re getting married’ thing. She hasn’t got a ring on. She doesn’t look comfortable when he touches her. And did it seem to you like everyone was surprised when they talked to her and she mentioned her wedding?”

Rafe hadn’t missed the storeowner’s slight double take. He was glad that Cam hadn’t missed it either. He might have been out of the BAU for a couple of years, but Cam still knew how to read body language. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I want to take a close look at that guy. He was the only one who didn’t flinch. That makes me interested in him.”

Cam held up his phone. “Already on it. I’ll run a search on the fucker the minute I get decent access. We should have a nice-size file on him by the time night falls. I sincerely hope he’s got a record.”

“Well, we can hope.” Rafe started to walk toward the front of the store. He would check out this place Laura wanted to go to tonight, but he wasn’t going to let her shut him out for long. She was in danger. If they had found her, it was a good bet that the Marquis de Sade could find her, too. He wouldn’t underestimate the fucker again. The serial killer had gotten his hands on her once. He wasn’t getting a second shot.

Wolf casually looped an arm around Laura’s waist. He didn’t seem uncomfortable with her at all. If it hadn’t been for that small space she kept between them, he might have bought that they were a happy couple. He was willing to bet that they weren’t sleeping together.

Wolf leaned over to whisper in Laura’s ear, but something caught his eye. He moved fast. One moment he was cuddling up to Laura, and the next he was rushing out the door.

Laura turned to them, a stern look on her face. “Well, now you’ve done it.”

“What?” Rafe felt like he hadn’t done a damn thing right since the minute he’d stepped off the plane. It was unnerving. He wasn’t the guy who fucked up. He was cool and smooth. He took care of things. Cam was the guy who unraveled from time to time. It was the way their partnership had worked for years. Cam screwed up, and Rafe smoothed it over.

But Cam had been taking the lead since they crossed over the Bliss County line.

Now he wondered exactly what he’d screwed up this time. Laura stomped out of the store.

“Come on.” There was a bounce to Cam’s step as he jogged after Laura.

Rafe followed, but with trepidation. He hoped no one was naked. There was no way he would be able to unsee that. He’d thought a nudist colony would be filled with hot women. Nope. Middle-aged men. With their dorks hanging out.

Rafe pushed through the door and saw what had Wolf and Laura up in arms. A tall, thin man was walking around Rafe’s rented black SUV, an odd instrument in his hand. It was shaped like a small satellite connected by a wire to a box that beeped like mad.

“Now, you see here, Wolf, it only beeps like that in the presence of extraterrestrial materials.”

“Mel, it beeps like that all the time.” Wolf spoke in a long-suffering tone.

The older man was dressed in a mechanic’s jumpsuit. He had a trucker’s hat on, but there was a glint of thin silver peeking out from the cap. Was that tinfoil?

“Well, of course it does, son. You’re full of all kinds of alien stuff. Half your DNA is alien,” the man named Mel said with a fond smile. “It goes off around you and your brother, but you’re a good boy.”

Rafe heard Cam snort beside him. It was pretty funny. Wolf Meyer was an enormous, badass-looking man being called a “good boy” by a man half his size.

Laura’s foot tapped against the sidewalk, her pretty face masked in an irritated frown. “Mel, they aren’t aliens. They’re worse than aliens.”

“Ain’t nothing worse than aliens, Laura,” Mel argued, running his instrument over the hood of the SUV.

“They’re feds.” The word dropped like a lodestone.

Mel backed up, his eyes widening in obvious horror. “Well, hell. That is worse.”

Cam covered his mouth but walked forward. “We’re sorry to disturb you, sir. We recently got in from DC to talk to a former special agent about an important case.”

Mel’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve given the FBI at least fifty important cases, and they ain’t never called me back. You ain’t with The X-Files, are you?”

“The X-Files is a TV show.” Rafe was at a loss.

Mel nodded. “Yes, sir. That’s what they want you to think.”

“My momma loves that show.” Cam’s Southern accent was suddenly thick. “Now, I’m not an agent any more, but I still have contacts. I can call and ask about where your cases have gone.”

Mel’s eyes narrowed. “You would say that if you were an alien.”

He held out his beeper. It went off, but weakly.

“I spent all morning in that car,” Cam explained. “We rented it out in Alamosa.”

“You got the rental agreement?” This Mel person wasn’t about to give up.

Cam nodded steadily. “It’s in the glove box. I assure you, I am one hundred percent Southern boy. And self-employed. I left the FBI years ago. You can’t trust big government.”

Now Mel was all smiles. “Well, hell, I came from the south myself. I was from Georgia until the mothership picked me up and dropped me outside of Denver. Now they don’t usually do that. They’re usually real good about dropping you back off right where they took you. But they were sneaky with me. You see, I managed to stay awake through my probing. Now, that wasn’t all unpleasant. I mean, first you’re scared and all, but there are times when it feels nice. I wish they wouldn’t play all that Britney Spears. Those aliens really like that Britney Spears. Come on, son. Let’s go get some lunch at Stella’s, and I’ll tell you all about it.”

Cam turned his head and gave Rafe a helpless smile as he allowed himself to be walked off. Mel started in on what alien lubrication was like, and Rafe stood there feeling like the biggest idiot in the world.

Laura had a grin on her face that would have made the Cheshire Cat proud. “Guess your brand of charm doesn’t work here in Bliss.”

She placed her arm through Wolf’s and walked off after Cam and Mel.

The cell in Rafe’s pocket buzzed. He was grateful for the distraction. He looked down at the number. His chief. Joe’s voice cracked over the line.

“You ma…okay?”

Yeah, well it was far too much to ask for good cell reception. “Joe, I can’t hear you.”

“Wha…can’t…where?”

“You’re cutting out.” He raised his voice, somehow hoping that louder would be better.

“On his…Bliss. New information.”

“What information?” He was screaming now, frustration taking over. Was it on the case? Was it about Laura? His hand tightened on the worse-than-useless phone.

There was a click and a buzzing sound as the call disconnected.

Someone slapped him on the back. Rafe turned and saw a man with a cowboy hat on his head. He was dressed in khakis, and there was a gold badge on his chest.

“You know yelling at it doesn’t fix things. If you want to yell at someone, yell at the Farley twins. They had the brilliant idea to turn our nearest cell tower into a SETI receiver. I have no idea how those boys managed to screw it up so badly, but it doesn’t work anymore. The phone company says they’re working on it, but because we’re small, I don’t think we’re a priority. We’re all scrambling,” the man said. The badge on his chest proclaimed him to be the sheriff of the town. “We’ve had to make do. Now, if you want good reception, there’s this hill right outside the Harper Stables. You tend to have to stand on one leg, and it’s best if you take a friend with you because the really good spot is about four feet off the ledge, but as long as someone holds on, you should be all right.”

The sheriff tipped his hat and started to walk off. He didn’t look back as he said his final words of wisdom. “And watch out for bears! And Max Harper. He can be worse than a bear. If you see him coming, I would shoot first and ask questions never.”

Yeah, Rafe fucking hated this place.

 

* * * *

 

“Are you planning to tell me why we’re lying to federal agents, or have you had an abrupt change of heart? Because if the latter is true, then we have to talk about the way you proposed. A guy needs some romance with his marriage proposal. And you didn’t get down on one knee.”

Normally, Laura would have laughed at Wolf’s teasing. Instead, she found herself frowning his way. She shouldn’t be pissed at him, but he was the only one around. “If you could please play along, it will only be a couple of hours. I assure you, once they tell me what they need to say, they’ll be right back on a plane to DC. Those two are very career oriented. They don’t belong in Bliss.”

Wolf helped her step up the curb as they walked toward the parking lot beside Stella’s. Holly had driven Laura into town, but she’d decided to let Wolf drive her home, all the better to keep up her little deception. She couldn’t feel too bad about it. After all, Rafe and Cam had deceived her. At least she hadn’t slept with them before she lied to them.

Wolf walked her toward his dually. The massive black truck was a lot like Wolf, enormous, powerful, and surprisingly comfortable on the inside. He opened the door and handed her up.

“I’m surprised you didn’t listen to them.” Wolf stood outside her door. The height of the seat allowed her to look straight into his calculating, dark eyes. “If what you say is true, then one conversation could clear everything up and send those boys on their way. Makes me wonder why you put them off.”

Bastard. He shut the door and walked around the truck. She didn’t want to think about that. She wanted to stew. She wanted to rail. Why had she decided to let Wolf drive her? If she was with Holly, she could simply sit and fume. Holly would fume with her. Wolf was far too busy psychoanalyzing her.

Wolf hopped into the driver’s seat and started the truck to purring. “No answer for that?”

“Is one required?” She hadn’t meant to sound that icy, had she?

He turned to her, one eyebrow climbing up his handsome face. “No, but some courtesy would be nice.”

And she finally figured Wolf Meyer out. He’d always reminded her of someone, but she hadn’t been able to put her finger on it. That arched brow and the demand for courtesy did it. Stefan Talbot. Oh, yeah, Wolf Meyer was a Dom. He’d mentioned that his brother was in the lifestyle, but he’d conveniently left out his own interest in BDSM. She sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m afraid they threw me for a loop.” She allowed her lips to quirk up a bit. “Will you forgive me if I call you Sir?”

His cheekbones stained a slight red. “Gave myself away, did I? Well, I always knew you would be hesitant about that part of my life. It was never going to work, was it?”

He pulled out onto the road.

“Sorry, I’m afraid that’s not my cup of tea.”

“But I’m guessing ménage isn’t out of the question.”

Now she was the one blushing. “And you go there, why? Most normal people would ask which one I’d been involved with.”

“I’m not normal, and both of those men want you. They both wanted to murder me. You don’t get that possessive about a woman unless you’ve had her—or you’re completely insane. Given where we are, it could be either option.”

“It was a fling.” She heard the hollowness in her voice. Damn it. She’d been good at hiding her emotions once. Now they were hanging out all over the place.

“Do you honestly believe that?” Wolf asked as he turned toward the valley where a small cluster of cabins lay. “I don’t know if we were listening to the same conversation. I heard that they’d been looking for you. The big guy quit his precious job in order to spend all of his time trying to hunt you down. The other guy practically ate you up with his eyes. They didn’t seem to be disengaged agents doing a job.”

She wasn’t falling for their crap again. She wasn’t sure why they were here, but it didn’t matter. If anything, it was guilt that caused them to search for her. They’d felt guilty when she’d been kidnapped. She could still remember waking up after surgery to the sounds of the two of them fighting about who was at fault. Cam had blamed Rafe for selling her out. Rafe had pointed out that Cam hadn’t believed her profile either. It had been a nasty way to wake up.

And then the doctor had told her the bad news.

“When a member of one of the teams gets injured or dies, do you feel bad about it?”

Wolf’s face shut down, his jaw forming a hard line. He kept his eyes on the road in front of him. “Of course. Your team is your family.”

“Well, consider the BAU my team.”

“If that’s the way you want to play it, who am I to stop you?”

Wolf was quiet the rest of the drive. He turned down the dirt road that led to her cabin. Holly’s cabin was beside Laura’s. Callie and her husbands lived close, but Laura always felt like she was the only person in the world when she shut the door to her cabin. It was her sanctuary.

As she got out of the truck, a wave of guilt rolled over her. Wolf was a nice man, and she was using him. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I didn’t want them to think I’d been pining for them.”

She hadn’t. She didn’t think about them every day anymore. She’d gotten used to her life here in Bliss. She didn’t need them coming in here and disrupting everything. She was over them.

Liar.

Wolf smiled at her. “It’s all right. I knew it wouldn’t work out deep down. I find you incredibly attractive, and women around these parts can be a little…interesting. I would move on and ask Holly out, but I hear she’s taken, even if the interested parties are unavailable or so whacked out they can’t talk around the girl.”

It was an apt description of Holly’s plight. Wolf pulled the truck into her driveway and stopped.

Laura slid out of her seat. “Well, I thank you anyway. I’ll tell them the truth tonight.”

“Don’t. I enjoy subterfuge as much as the next guy. Let ’em sweat.” Wolf winked at her. “I’ll be back to pick you up for the dinner. It’ll be fun to see what your friend is like after a couple of hours of Mel.”

Wolf pulled back out, and she was left alone.

She tried not to think about what he’d said. After a long time staring at the river, she walked into her cabin to get dressed.