Chapter 17

There was a boot print.

Although Jules knew in her head that there were a thousand perfectly logical, completely innocent reasons someone had left a print in the soft dirt right next to the first line of evergreens framing their backyard, her gut just knew this was bad. Really, really bad.

Had the boot-wearer been watching her last night? Had he climbed through the open window and been inside the house? No. Jules couldn’t allow herself to even consider the idea. If she did, she’d grab the kids, stuff them in the SUV, and leave. It wouldn’t matter where they’d go, though. She’d never feel safe again.

She moved around, searching for more prints, hoping to at least see what direction the person came from or went, but the rest of the ground was too rocky or hard-packed or covered with pine needles to hold a print. Jules returned to the footprint and studied it. Should she tell Theo? Even as she thought it, she dismissed the idea. Whoever had left it hadn’t committed a crime. The trees weren’t even part of her property, so she couldn’t even call it trespassing.

“Wh-what are y-you l-l-looking at?”

Jules shifted so she was standing on the print. “Caterpillar.”

Sam’s expression was skeptical, and he walked closer, scanning the ground around her feet. “Wh-where is it?”

“I stepped on it.”

Now she could tell he really didn’t believe her. “L-liar.”

She laughed and purposefully walked back toward the house, hoping her shoes had scuffed the print enough that Sam wouldn’t spot it. He worried too much as it was. “Where are the kids?”

Although he eyed the spot where she’d been standing, he didn’t seem to see anything out of the ordinary. Jules’s tight shoulders eased slightly in relief.

“Out fr-front.”

“Good. It’s a beautiful day.” It really was. The sun was warm, but the air had a crisp undertone that hinted of fall. Between the bugs and the humidity in Florida, Jules had avoided being outside most of the time, but Colorado was different. It made her want to hike and do all sorts of outdoorsy things. “We should get bikes. Let’s keep an eye on Craigslist.”

Sam just hummed, traces of his early suspicion still clinging to him.

“Jules!” Ty’s urgent shout made her heartbeat pick up immediately. He, Tio, and Dee came running around the side of the house. “We heard a car coming up the driveway!”

“Did they see you?”

“I don’t think so,” Ty said, shooting a worried glance over his shoulder, even though the driveway was hidden by the house. Although Jules hated that the kids were so suspicious and wary that they’d been spooked by the sight of an approaching stranger, it was important that they stay cautious. After all, being too trusting could get them caught.

“Good.” Jules glanced at Sam, who was already ushering the other three toward the barn. “I’ll go check it out. Remember, if you hear yelling or if fifteen minutes go by, and I don’t give you the all-clear, grab the emergency stash hidden in the loft and go.”

“W-we kn-kn-know the d-d-d-drill.”

Jules watched them for another second before hurrying to the back door. Rushing through the house and into the living room, she yanked the curtains closed until there was only a tiny space between them. The room was instantly full of shadows, reminding Jules of creepy nighttime searches, and she tried to throw off her unease and focus on the actual—well, possible—threat outside.

Peeking through the opening between the curtains, she saw the truck pull up in front of the house. It was an older pickup, its paint faded oddly to an uneven robin’s-egg blue. The sun reflected off the windshield, hiding the driver from her. She caught herself leaning closer to the window, trying to get a better look, and Jules hurried to step back before she made the curtains move and caught the attention of the person outside.

No one got out of the truck, and Jules waited, breathing too quickly. She realized she was clutching the edge of the curtain and forced her fingers to slowly release their death grip. The drapery swayed once it was free, and Jules held her breath until it stilled. Had that been visible to the person in the truck?

The pickup door swung open, making her suck in a breath, so roughly that it hurt her throat. She watched, biting the inside of her cheek, as a man climbed out and turned toward the house. When Jules saw his face, her head jerked back like someone had slapped her. It was Norman Rounds.

Although he’d seemed weird and grabby and slightly stalkerish at the diner, showing up at her house made Norman a hundred times scarier. Why was he here? How did he know where she lived? The things Megan had told her about him, about his connection with the local, bomb-loving militia group, echoed in her mind, and she took an involuntary step back.

From her new position, she couldn’t see him through the crack in the curtains. It was so much worse not knowing what Norman was doing, but she couldn’t seem to make herself step closer to the window. Sudden, loud knocking made her jump.

Jules went still, torn. She wasn’t about to answer the door, but should she wait for him to go away? Her SUV was parked behind the house, so he couldn’t be sure she was home, unless he went around back looking for her. The idea of Norman Rounds prowling around by the barn where the kids were hiding was terrifying.

She could call Theo. The idea was so tempting that her hand went to her back jeans pocket where her phone was tucked. What could she tell him, though? That Norman Rounds was at her door? It seemed like an overreaction. Maybe paying friendly visits was just a small-town thing. Maybe he needed to borrow a cup of sugar—or some plastic explosives.

A hysterical giggle wanted to burst out of her, but she clapped her hand over her mouth and swallowed the laugh. When there wasn’t a second knock, she stepped close to the window and peeked through the tiny crack between the curtains.

Norman was standing right outside the window. Lurching back, Jules sucked in a rasping breath. His head had been turned away as he’d scanned the yard, so he hopefully hadn’t seen her. She strained to listen, dying to know whether he was still standing there. If she looked out the window again, and Norman wasn’t looking away this time, he’d see her for sure.

After either seconds or minutes ticked by, Jules forced her feet to take her back to the window. She had to know where he was and what he was doing. It was worse to stand there, blind and clueless, than it was to risk him seeing her if he’d not moved from that spot.

Please don’t be there, she mentally pleaded, and then twitched the curtain aside. Her thundering heartbeat eased, and she took a long, relieved breath. Norman was gone.

Then she realized his truck was still parked in front of the house. Pushing the curtains farther apart, Jules frantically raked her gaze across the entire front yard. There was no sign of Norman. Her breath started fluttering in her throat as she hurried into the library. She ran to the window, not caring at the moment that he could see her through the gauzy curtains if he was there, and looked out over the side yard. It was empty.

If he wasn’t in front or the side, then he was in the back—where the kids were hiding. She ran for the kitchen as she pulled out her cell phone. Her hands shook as she tried to call, her fingers fumbling with too-small buttons on the cheap, prepaid phone. It slipped out of her grip and skittered across the wooden floor.

“Please don’t be broken,” she muttered, grabbing it from where it had come to rest against the hall baseboard. “Please, please, please…” Holding her breath, she pushed the send button and waited. When it rang on the other side of the call, she let out the air in her lungs in a woosh. Darting to the kitchen window, she caught a quick glimpse of someone rounding a corner of the barn before they disappeared behind the leaning structure. “Oh no…”

“Jules.” Theo’s gruff voice was the best sound in the world.

“Theo! Norman Rounds is here, and he knocked, but I didn’t answer, and now he’s roaming around, and the kids are out back, and—” She knew she was talking too fast, that Theo probably couldn’t even understand her, but she couldn’t seem to halt the flow of words.

“On my way,” he clipped, interrupting her. “Stay inside.”

“But—”

“Stay inside. I’ll be there in four.” He ended the call before Jules could argue again. It didn’t matter, though. Norman was out by the barn, and the kids were in the barn, so Jules couldn’t just stay inside and let the kids fend for themselves. Rushing to the back door, she started to push it open when she heard the rumble of an engine coming from the front of the house.

She hesitated for a second, but another glance didn’t show any movement from the barn, so she hurried back into the living room and peaked through the curtains.

The back of Norman’s pickup disappeared around the first bend in her driveway. Relief rushed through her body, leaving her feeling limp and noodley. Leaning against the wall for support, she watched for a couple of minutes, until she was sure he wasn’t coming back.

When the driveway stayed empty, Jules moved toward the back door again. It had taken so long that the kids were probably scared out of their minds, especially if they’d seen or heard Norman snooping around the barn. As she crossed the kitchen, her vision narrowed, growing gray around the edges, and Jules realized she was breathing in quick, short pants. She stopped by the back door, leaned her head against the cool glass, and took several deep breaths. She couldn’t let her siblings see her so obviously shaken up. Once she was breathing somewhat evenly and felt a little more under control, she shoved through the back door and took a step onto the porch.

There was a deep boom that Jules felt more than she heard, and the barn exploded.

She staggered back, her back bumping against the siding. Blinking, she focused on the barn—on what used to be the barn and was now a burning husk of a building. It didn’t feel real. Jules stared at the burning structure, unable to comprehend that it wasn’t a movie, that it was her barn that flames were eating, in her yard, with her brothers and sister inside…her brothers and sister…

Oh, God.

With a scream, Jules ran toward the fire.

She had to get them out. She had to save them. They were in the barn because she’d told them to go there, because Jules had thought it would be a safe place to hide, and now they were—No! She couldn’t allow herself to believe that. She’d get them out. She would save them. They would be okay. If they weren’t, if she’d torn them out of their previous lives, brought them here only to lose them all… Jules didn’t know how she’d be able to go on.

The heat was incredible. It reached out and pressed against her skin, but she still ran toward it. Every breath she took felt like she was setting her lungs on fire. The smoke was thickening, making her eyes sting and water and blur. As she ran, she blinked rapidly, trying to see, trying to make out any figures in the burning remains of the barn.

She hesitated at the entrance, a huge, uneven hole gaping where the sliding door used to be. The flames roared as the fire eagerly consumed the old wood, so loud that Jules could hear it even over her thundering heart. With the too-bright flames and rolling smoke, it was impossible to see anything—anyone.

Taking a deep breath of roasting, smoky air, Jules held in a cough and stepped into the burning barn.

She barely made it a step before she was falling backward. Something had grabbed her arm, pulling her to the ground. Jules tumbled down, her numb body not feeling any pain as her back and then her head connected with the ground. All she knew was that she needed to get up, to get to the kids, to get them out, but something was still holding onto her arm.

Turning her head, she saw Viggy had her forearm caught in his jaws. She vaguely felt betrayed, but her urgency to get back up and to the barn overrode everything else. Before she could try to pull free, there were human hands on her, pulling her back, dragging her away from the barn. With a boom that felt and sounded almost as loud as the original explosion, the roof caved in, sending flaming beams and shake shingles crashing down, burying the spot where Jules had just stood. Hopelessness flooded her, and Jules started to cry.

“Viggy, release!” It was Theo. Theo was the one keeping her from saving her family. She barely noticed that her arm was suddenly free. “Good boy. Jules! Talk to me. Where are the kids?” His hands were turning her over and pulling her into a sitting position. “Jules!”

“In there!” she sobbed, renewing her struggles. Maybe it wasn’t too late. If she told him, maybe he’d understand she needed to get into the barn to save them. “They’re in there!”

“Jules, no.” His voice had changed, the urgency shifting to shock.

“Let me up,” she demanded, trying to pull away from the gentle, yet relentless hands holding her. “I need to get them out!”

His grip didn’t ease. “There’s nothing left.” He pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her, even as she still fought to get free. “The building’s gone, Jules. There’s nothing left of it.”

He was wrong. He had to be wrong. If the building was gone, then her family was gone, and she couldn’t allow herself to believe that. Shoving at his chest with both hands, she managed to wrench herself out of his hold, only to be caught again.

“J-J-J-Ju!”

The stuttering shout made her freeze, terrified to hope she hadn’t imagined it, until it came again.

“J-Ju! W-w-we’re h-here!”

Her head whipped around, following that wonderful, wonderful yell, and she saw Sam and Ty and Tio and then finally Dee running out of the trees. She pulled away from Theo’s slackened hold and ran, not toward the burning skeleton of the barn, but toward her sister and brothers, her beautiful, living, not-burned, not-dead, not-even-hurt family.

They crashed together, falling as they collided, each one joining until they were in a five-way hug. Jules clutched them to her, her hands running over each precious head and back, pressing kisses on any place she could reach, letting her touch reassure her that they were truly alive and in her arms.

“That’s it!” she cried, her voice thick with tears. “I’m never letting y’all out of my sight ever again. Forget school. Forget going to the bathroom by yourselves. Y’all will be within reach and in view at all times, got that?”

“I like the no school part,” Ty said. “But hell no on the supervised showers.”

Jules gave a soggy, shaky laugh and kissed the top of Dee’s head. “Language.”

“Your arm is bleeding,” Tio said, and they all looked at it.

“Oh, right.” She wiped at the small trickle of blood. “That’s just where Viggy bit me.”

“He bit you?” Dee repeated, her eyes wide. “Why? What did you do?”

Her laugh came a tiny bit easier that time, although she couldn’t stop patting and squeezing the kids. “Why do you think I did something?”

“Because he wouldn’t bite you for no reason.”

Not really wanting to explain that she’d tried to run into the burning barn, Jules changed the subject. “Are y’all okay? No one’s hurt, are you?”

“W-w-we’re f-f-fine,” Sam said.

“We were far enough away to be out of the blast radius.” Tio sounded calm enough, but he leaned against her side like he used to when he was eight years younger and needed comfort. He lowered his voice so only she could hear. “We waited for you for fifteen minutes, and then we took the emergency money and started walking through the woods toward our meet-up spot, like we planned. We heard the explosion, though, and were worried that it was the house, so we ran back here.” His even tone shook slightly on the last word.

“You should move farther away from the fire,” Theo said from where he was standing a few feet away. Viggy sat next to him.

As they climbed to their feet, Jules smiled at Theo, trying to show him the heaping piles of gratitude filling her heart. His face was sober as he moved forward to help her stand on shaky legs. Now that she knew the kids were safe, her body felt limp and heavy, and she knew she was one what-if away from bursting into tears again.

The kids rushed toward the house, staying well away from the fire even as they watched it in fascination. Theo and Jules followed more slowly. When Jules tripped for the third time, Theo wrapped an arm around her back, and she leaned into him, grateful for the support…and for so many other things.

“Thank you,” she said quietly enough that the chattering kids couldn’t hear. “If you—and Viggy—hadn’t stopped me, I’d have run right into that fire.”

He pulled her even more tightly against him, and she felt the pressure of his lips on her hair.

“I’m just glad you got here in time.” The nightmarish thought of what would’ve happened if he hadn’t arrived in time made her shiver.

“Me too.” His voice was raw, hoarse, and he kissed her head again. “Me too.”

The sound of sirens caught her attention, and she looked up at him. “Did you call for help?”

“Yeah. I heard the explosion as I was pulling up in front of your house. I told dispatch to send Fire here and send everyone else to track down that bastard Rounds. Then I dropped the radio mic and ran.”

A fire truck circled around the side of the house, driving across the lawn and stopping a safe distance from the still-burning barn. Another truck joined it.

“Firemen!” Dee squealed.

When Theo grumbled something under his breath, Jules looked at him curiously. He grimaced. “Fire can be a pain in the ass.”

“But firemen are so hot.”

That just made his frown turn ferocious. “Pain in the ass.”

Squashing a smile, amazed that she could even think about smiling after the past agonizing minutes, Jules leaned against Theo and watched the firemen extinguish the remains of the barn.

* * *

Dee stood next to her as an EMT cleaned up Jules’s arm and covered the two shallow puncture wounds with Band-Aids. The three boys were sitting on the back porch, watching as the firemen put away their equipment. Theo was across the yard, examining the soggy, blackened remains of the barn with some other cops and a tall woman who’d introduced herself as the county fire marshal. Other officers were searching for Norman Rounds, but he’d disappeared. Theo’s lieutenant was working on getting a warrant to search Gordon Schwartz’s place, since they figured Norman was most likely hiding out at the militia leader’s compound.

One of the firemen approached, giving Jules a small, but friendly, smile. He was a big, burly guy, and despite Jules’s fascination with Theo, she had to admit he looked really good in his bunker gear.

“Hi,” she said. “Thank you for putting out the fire.” Her words sounded inane to her own ears, but it had been a long, hard, stressful day already, so small talk was beyond her at the moment.

“You’re welcome.” He nodded at Dee. “Want to see the fire trucks up close?” Turning back to Jules, he added, “If it’s okay with you, that is.”

When Dee turned to her with wide, hopeful eyes, Jules smiled. “Of course. Thank you…?”

“Steve Springfield.”

“I’m Jules, and this is Dee.” The EMT had finished, so Jules was able to stand and wrap an arm around Dee.

“Nice to meet you. I have a daughter about your age, Dee. Do you go to Cottonwood Elementary?”

“Yes. What’s her name?”

“Maya.”

“She’s in my class. We’re both new this year,” Dee said in her serious way. “I like Maya. She’s nice.”

He gave Dee a kind smile that made Jules love him a little. “Thank you for being friends with her. The move’s been hard for the kids.”

“Where’d you move from?” Jules asked, and immediately wanted to retract the question. She didn’t need to be exchanging life stories with anyone. Every time she talked about their made-up history was a chance to screw up and make someone suspicious.

“Simpson. It’s a small mountain town a couple of hours away. We liked it there, but things just got too…well, dangerous.”

As much as Jules wanted to ask about what he meant by dangerous, she swallowed her questions and just said, “It’s nice to meet you.”

Steve escorted a happily chattering Dee toward the fire trucks, and Jules watched them until her view was blocked by Theo.

“Hey.” Just looking at him made her smile.

“What’d the new fireman want?”

She blinked at the hostility in his tone. “To show Dee the fire trucks.”

“Uh-huh,” he said, not sounding like he believed it. “A good excuse.”

“For what?”

“For introducing himself to you.”

She snorted. “Please. He’s a married guy with kids.”

“Widower.”

“Oh,” she said sympathetically, glancing over to where Steve was helping Dee climb into the cab of one of the trucks. When she looked back at Theo, he was glowering at her.

“Don’t get all mushy just because he’s a single dad.”

For some reason, his crankiness made her smile. “I’m not. I’m mushy because he’s a hot fireman single dad.”

His expression was too much; Jules couldn’t hold in her laughter any longer.

“I’m kidding! Of course I’m kidding.” Theo didn’t look convinced, so she hooked a finger in his belt and gave it a teasing tug. “Hot firemen single dads don’t do it for me.”

“Sure, they don’t.”

“It’s true.” Another tug brought him close enough for her to lower her voice. “I have a thing for hot cops…one hot cop in particular.”

That lightened his cranky frown and made his eyes turn hungry. “Yeah?”

As crazy as it was for her to get involved with a cop, it was so, so true. “Oh yeah.”

* * *

Except for when a certain cop came for his breakfast, Jules’s shift had dragged. Her brain had bounced between elated anticipation and anxiety, depending on if she was thinking about Theo or exploding barns or the whereabouts of Norman Rounds or…well, Theo. As she wiped a recently vacated table, Jules reminded herself that she couldn’t get involved. How involved is involved? she wondered, and then frowned at the convoluted question. What if she just kept it light, just a surface relationship? Then he’d never need to know about her past, because he wouldn’t care enough to ask.

Jules snorted. Of course he’d ask. He’d been asking since the very first time she’d met him, and he’d known nothing about her. If she wanted to be with someone who wouldn’t be curious about her reasons for moving to Monroe, she shouldn’t have picked Theo. Although she really hadn’t picked Theo. He’d just sort of slipped into her life and saved her life a few times and taken over every thought in her head—well, except for the thoughts required to worry about the kids and getting caught and everything that needed to be done to the house and—

“Jules, I think it’s clean.”

Starting, she looked up to see Megan smirking at her. “You’ve been wiping down that table for the past five minutes. It’s clean. I promise. It was clean four minutes and fifty-five seconds ago. I do appreciate your dedication, though.”

It felt like Megan could see her thoughts, like all the obsessing she’d been doing was scribbled across her forehead. “Sorry.”

Megan waved off her apology. “Did you want to take off? I can take your tables.”

Frowning at her boss, Jules said, “Are you sure? It’s pretty busy.”

“Yes, I’m sure.” Megan smiled, a big, crocodile-esque grin that made Jules shift back a step.

“Why are you smiling at me like that?” she asked.

The freaky grin sagged around the edges. “Like what? I’m just being friendly.”

“No, you’re being scary,” Jules said. “Why?”

To Jules’s relief, the last traces of Megan’s fake grin fell away, and she returned to her usual grumpy expression. “Fine. Can you open for me tomorrow?”

“Was that your attempt to butter me up?” Jules laughed. “Next time, just ask. You don’t have to scare me into submission first. And yes, I can open tomorrow.” She’d opened the diner only once, but Megan had a detailed check sheet to follow, so it wasn’t hard.

“Great. Thank you.” Megan scowled. “But also, screw you for saying my smile is scary. It’s cute and endearing.”

Jules coughed. “Scary.”

“Whatever.” Megan turned and headed toward one of the booths where someone was waving at her. “Now go, before I forget my gratitude and retract my offer.”

Jules opened her mouth, about to tell Megan that she could stay and finish her tables. It had occurred to her that all she had at home was a quiet house that needed a trillion things done to it and her crazy, rampaging worries to stew over. After considering it, she’d rather continue her slow-as-molasses, endless shift at the diner.

Before she could say anything, the sound of the door sensor caught her attention. When she saw Theo standing there, staring at her with eyes so intense that she couldn’t breathe, she decided she didn’t need to finish her shift after all. She’d found her distraction from her multitude of duties and worries, and he was stretching the sleeves of his worn T-shirt in a truly beautiful way.

All she could do was stare as he got closer and closer, his long strides eating up the distance between them. In no time at all, he’d reached her frozen form.

“Hey.”

She swallowed. “Hey.” It somehow came out both raspy and squeaky, and she tried not to wince.

“How are you?”

Although she rolled her eyes just a tiny bit, his concern still made her smile. “As I said yesterday afternoon, and last night when you called, and later last night, when I brought coffee out to the nice officer you had watching my house during your shift and he asked me how I was, and this morning when you asked…was it six times or seven?” When he didn’t answer, just frowned at her instead, she continued. “I’m fine. Better than fine. Everyone’s okay, so we’re wonderful. The kids are complaining that I’m hugging them too much, but I told them they’re just going to have to suck it up.”

He was quiet for a moment, studying her as if doing a visual health check, before he gave her a tiny smile back. “You heading home soon?”

There was a weight to his words. Instead of being merely a simple question, it was heavy and sexy and nerve-racking, all at the same time. Her throat went dry, and she could only manage to nod.

“When?” Again, he managed to imbue that one word with so much more.

“Megan told me to leave.” When he cocked his head to the side, his eyebrows drawing together as if puzzled, she clarified, “Um…now.”

“Want to go?”

Did she? Did she want to go and do all those wonderful and terrifying things his husky tone suggested? “Oh yes.”

His smile came then. Unlike Megan’s, Theo’s smile was honest and gorgeous and made her stop breathing. “Let’s go then.”

He reached out and twined his fingers in hers. Between his grin and the hand-holding, Jules was lucky to retain enough presence of mind to grunt out an affirmative sound. That’s all she needed, though, before he was tugging her out the door and into the blinding sun.

The light shocked some sense back into her. It wasn’t quite enough to make her tell Theo to have a nice day and find his own ride home, but it was enough to remind her that she needed to grab her stuff. She squeezed his fingers and tugged her hand free.

His expression blanked. It startled her, how all the hope and happiness and anticipation could slip away so quickly, leaving this mask in its place. Jules felt an intense urge to take back the motion, to put her hand in his again and leave it that way forever. The only problem with that idea was she couldn’t reverse time, and also, she needed her stuff. They wouldn’t get very far without her car keys.

“I’ll be right back. I just have to grab my things.” Turning away while she still had the willpower, she hurried to the back, where she’d put her wallet, silenced phone, and keys in one of the kitchen nooks before she’d started her shift. Her stuff was tucked back far enough in the highest one that no one could see that they were there. As her fingers fumbled for her possessions, she frowned.

Had she placed them so far back that morning? It’d been early—before five—when she’d arrived, so she probably hadn’t been completely conscious. Shaking off her unease, she pulled her wallet and keys toward her, and then hopped to be able to reach her phone, which had been pushed back the farthest. Quickly, she flipped open her wallet to check that her Julie Jackson ID and the small amount of cash was still there, and her heart settled when she saw that everything was in place. Relieved, she pulled off her apron and tossed it into the dirty laundry bin. Calling out her good-byes to Vicki and Megan, she rushed toward the front, embarrassingly eager to return to the cop waiting for her.

As she hurried through the diner, her gaze fixed on Theo’s silhouetted form outlined through the door glass, the moment of oddness slipped from her mind. Everything inside her was fixed on the man standing right outside the diner.

He held open the door for her, and she slipped past him into the sunshine. Although he let the door swing shut behind them, his feet didn’t move. Instead, he stayed in place, his gaze locked on hers with an intensity that put goose bumps on her arms. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore. If he kept staring at her with those hungry eyes, she was going to jump on him in the diner parking lot and give Megan, the customers, and any passersby a show.

“Theo.” When he looked at her, she tipped her head toward her SUV. “Ready to go?”

With a clipped nod, he finally moved. Jules couldn’t drag her eyes away as he walked toward her—no, he stalked toward her. She shivered happily. When had this happened? How had this happened, that this gorgeous man had come to the diner to find her, so they could…? Her brain ground to a halt as she tried to mentally complete the question. So they could what?

Then he was there, in front of her, tracing his hand down her forearm so he could take her fingers in his, and Jules didn’t care what they were going to do. She was just happy to be here, hand-in-hand, with Theo. Looking from their linked fingers to his face, she felt her smile slip away.

“When was the last time you slept?” From the looks of it, it had been a few days.

Theo raised one of his shoulders in that aggravating half shrug that didn’t mean anything, but—she was learning—he often used it to try to dodge a question he didn’t want to answer. That meant he’d been awake for a while—a long while.

“So…” She’d automatically headed toward where she’d parked her SUV, and since they were attached at the hand, he’d gone that way, as well. “We’re taking my car, then?”

“Yeah.” Theo used his free hand to rub his eyes before sending her a sideways glance that was cuter than it should’ve been. Apparently, Theo did the guilty-little-boy look well. “Viggy’s at home, and like you said, it’s been a while since I’ve gotten much sleep. It’ll be better if you drive.”

Frowning at him, she said, “You should be home in bed, then.”

“Doesn’t help.” At her confused look, he added, “Insomnia.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.” There was a moment as they reached her Pathfinder, both pausing for a second, as if reluctant to let go so they could climb in opposite sides of the vehicle. Realizing how ridiculous they were being, Jules tried to tug her hand free with an amused snort. Theo’s fingers tightened, holding her captive, and her smile faded as her pulse sped up. For a second, they stared at each other, anticipation gathering around them in a thick fog, but then Theo released her, and the spell dissipated.

Silently, they got into the SUV, and they remained quiet for most of the drive. Inside Jules’s mind, though, the rush of thoughts was very loud, as if she had an entire fleet of sorority sisters in there who were all trying to give Jules advice at the same time at the top of their lungs. When Theo finally spoke, it was a relief to focus on something other than her spinning thoughts.

“I want someone to watch your place again tonight. We still haven’t found Rounds.”

“Okay.” Jules didn’t mind. Although it was strange having someone she didn’t know sitting in her driveway all night, it was a huge relief. If she and the kids had to stay alone in that house with Norman on the loose and mysterious shadows moving in the trees… Jules shuddered. She wouldn’t sleep at all. “I’ll bring him—or her—coffee. And maybe a snack.”

“Do that.” Reaching over, Theo poked her side with a gentle finger. Although she was normally very ticklish, shock kept her from reacting, other than to stare at him. Had Theo actually tried to tickle her? “Right now, watch the road.”

“Sorry.” Jules snapped her attention back to the street, but her brain was still whirling. Surly Theo was tempting enough. She wasn’t sure if she could handle friendly, teasing Theo without her head—and heart—exploding.

As she turned onto her driveway, her breath started coming quickly. After the first curve in the rutted gravel path, they were surrounded by rocks and trees, hidden from everyone. The isolation of the property made her so much more aware of being alone with Theo. It was a good kind of excitement, but that tiny voice in her head—a voice that sounded a lot like Sam—wouldn’t shut up about the stupidity of getting involved with a cop.

Pulling up next to the house, she turned off the engine. When she peeked at Theo, he looked back with heated eyes, a tiny smile touching his mouth.

Who am I kidding? She gave a mental sigh. I’m already involved with a cop.

Getting out of the car, climbing the porch steps, unlocking the front door…all the things that were becoming routine in her new life had a new tension now that she was with Theo. Before she could step inside, he was there first. Even though he was a cop, someone who could bring her world crashing down, could break apart her family just as easily, Theo made her feel safe. Having him as a wall—a strong, solid wall—between her and any dangers that might be lurking in the house was such an intoxicating feeling that she was afraid she’d already become addicted.

She wanted to be strong and independent. For her siblings’ sakes, she needed to be strong and independent. It was just such a relief to have a little help.

“You okay?” Theo asked, eyeing her carefully.

Jules realized she’d stopped in the doorway, half-in and half-out. Flushing, she moved all the way inside and closed the door before turning the dead bolt. “Yes.”

He was still watching her, but his expression changed. Concern morphed into focus, and he took a step closer. Jules watched, like prey hypnotized by a predator, as he moved in, not stopping his advance until every part of his body, from his legs to his belly to his chest to his lips, were just a fraction of an inch from hers. Her breaths were quick and shallow; her breasts brushed his chest with every inhale.

“I don’t want to want you,” he murmured, the heat of his words warming her lips. It took a second for the meaning to penetrate her brain. When it did, her gaze locked onto his, and she raised her hands to his chest, intending to push him away.

“Then don’t.” She meant her voice to sound challenging, rather than husky. The feel of his pecs beneath her palms startled her into stillness. Her hands flattened against his chest, but her touch turned into more of a caress than a shove.

“Too late.” He moved infinitesimally closer, and his lips barely grazed hers when he spoke. It made it very hard for her to concentrate on what he was saying. “You know what’s worse?”

“What?” Jules asked, distracted as her desire rose. If he didn’t move, didn’t close that tiny gap between them so they were finally kissing for real, she was going to either scream or kiss him herself.

“I actually like you.”

Despite her growing impatience, his words made her smile, especially the bemused exasperation in his tone that made what he was saying sound so sincere.

“You know what else?”

“What?”

“My dog likes you, too.”

Her laugh was soft and surprised. In the middle of such intensity, she didn’t think she could feel amused, especially by Theo. “And I like your dog. Not as much as Dee, though. She really likes your dog. In fact, I think she might be in love.”

At the word “love,” his dark eyes went soft and hot at the same time. Without another word, he finally, finally closed the gap and kissed her. Because of the long lead up, his extended, teasing almost-kiss, she’d expected it to be gentle, exploratory. It wasn’t.

It was explosive.

The touch of their mouths was the ignition switch, and Jules’s brain went white as all her thoughts were blown out of her head. Only Theo remained, his lips and tongue and the press of his body flattening her against the door. She burrowed her fingers through his short hair, pulling him impossibly closer, trying to fall even more deeply into him.

With a groan that set off vibrations she could feel down to her toes, Theo snaked one arm around her waist and slid the other over her hip to her thigh. With an effortless ease that Jules—even in her kiss-clouded state—couldn’t help but appreciate, Theo lifted her off the floor.

Immediately, she wrapped her legs around his waist, wanting the pressure and friction of that position. His hands ran up the back of both thighs, kneading and squeezing her hamstrings. With a groan, she pressed closer, locking her ankles behind him and her arms around his shoulders.

He leaned his weight into her, sandwiching her between his powerful body and the unyielding door. Her shoulder blades rubbed against the wood panels, an aching pressure that only drove her arousal higher. And during everything, he kept kissing her—and she kept kissing back.

Jules couldn’t stop. She could barely stand to pause long enough to suck in a quick breath before diving back in for more. In those seconds, it felt as if her physical connection with Theo was more important than her need for air.

Pressing his hips even more firmly against her, pinning her securely against the door, Theo released his grip on her legs and caught two handfuls of her blouse at her waist. He tugged upward, and Jules untangled her arms from around his shoulders to help. Impatiently, she wiggled and pulled, probably hindering his efforts more than helping, but she wanted the intrusive fabric gone. There was a pop as a button flew off and a tearing sound as a seam gave way, and then her shirt was over her head. Theo tossed it away.

Without pausing, he yanked off his T-shirt. He ducked his head to begin kissing her again, but she held him off, entranced by his chest, needing to touch the lightly furred expanse of muscle. As she looked her fill, running her palms across his chest and making him groan and jerk under her touch, Theo reached behind her and unhooked her embarrassingly serviceable bra.

As the last barrier between their upper halves fell away, Theo caught the back of her head and yanked her in for another kiss, his mouth taking over hers in that irresistibly bossy way of his she was beginning to know and love. Her breasts met his chest, skin to skin, and she gasped into his mouth at the incredible shock of pleasure that flashed through her at the contact.

He continued to kiss her in that all-consuming way, holding her with the weight of his body pressing her into the smooth wood of the door—living hardness in front of her and inanimate hardness behind—as he unfastened his jeans and shoved them down his hips. When Jules heard the crinkle of plastic and guessed it to be a condom wrapper, reality hit her, and she pulled back.

Theo went still except for his chest heaving against hers, and he eyed her carefully. “Okay?”

This was it. He was giving her an out, an escape path, if she wanted it. If she were smart, she’d take it—pull away and excuse herself and never see him outside the diner again. The thought brought such a rush of sadness that she flinched.

Misinterpreting her reaction, Theo squeezed his eyes closed and gave a short jerk of his head. “Okay.”

When he started to lower her to the floor, though, she clung, her arms and legs tightening around him. “What?” Her voice was almost nothing, a husky, scratching murmur that barely made it to her ears.

He paused, hope reigniting in his expression. “Did you want to stop?”

“No!” Her answer was out before she could consider it, before she could listen to the nagging sane voice in her head, the one telling her to put down the hot cop and back away slowly. “No. I really don’t.”

Theo waited another few seconds, watching her expression as if checking to see if she would change her mind. When Jules, her entire body buzzing with arousal, got tired of waiting, she palmed the back of his head and jerked him toward her. Jules tried out the role of aggressor, giving him the same bossy kisses he’d given her, but that didn’t last long. With a low growl, Theo took over again, his mouth even more ferocious than before.

He must have managed to get the condom on while kissing her, because the next thing she knew, his hands were under her uniform skirt. He shoved her panties to the side, and she cried out as the touch of his fingers lit her up inside. Her hands worked on his neck, kneading the tight muscles, as her body strained to get closer to his touch.

Then his hands were at her hips, holding her steady as he buried himself inside of her. They both went still, frozen against the front door, as her body adjusted to him, to the incredible sensations that he caused. It was that same mix of exhilaration and safety and affection that Theo always made her feel, only more—a thousand times more. The way he watched her, the way he held so tightly and yet so carefully, as if she was something precious, made her breath catch. Jules hadn’t expected to feel this way…not ever. Now there was Theo, and he was touching her like he cherished her, and making her dream come true—a dream she hadn’t even known she’d had. Her heart squeezed with so much love for this heroic man that it was agonizing and amazing, all at the same time.

As if he couldn’t wait any longer, Theo started to move, his hands almost painfully tight on her hips. She clung to him as they found a rhythm, unable to believe what was happening, or how right it felt, or how perfectly they fit together, moved together. The entire time, he still kissed her, as if he couldn’t stop, couldn’t tear his mouth away from hers. Jules didn’t mind at all.

He shifted his hips slightly as he drove deep, hitting a spot that sent shock waves of pleasure through her, and Jules made a hungry sound. His muscles tightened in response, and he closed his teeth on her bottom lip. The slight sting made her gasp and then moan. From Theo’s answering growl and the way he moved faster and harder, he loved her eager noises.

As she lost her grip, her hands slipping from his taut, sweat-slicked back, she tensed, instinctively worried about falling. He didn’t drop her, though. His hold didn’t waiver at all, and Jules relaxed, quickly falling into the abyss of pleasure once again. Now that her hands were free, she explored, drawing her fingers up the straining tendons of his neck and scratching lightly at his scalp.

A shiver vibrated through him, and he inhaled sharply. His kiss intensified as he thrust into her, making Jules forget about everything but the feel of his body against hers, inside her.

The pressure built in her, almost scary in its intensity, and she shifted against him. He tightened his grip, keeping her steady. That security, that strong hold, eased her worry and allowed her to let go, to let the pleasure flood her cells and drown everything else until all that was left was sheer joy.

She cried out against his mouth, gripping him as tightly as he was holding her, and he groaned, his rhythm changing, speeding up as he looked for his own climax. Still, he kissed her, not releasing her mouth until they slid down the door and landed on the floor in a sweaty, boneless, blissful heap.

It wasn’t until her muscles began protesting their position that Jules reluctantly stirred, lifting her head to meet Theo’s eyes. Her laugh was just a puff of air. It would take a while to recover from having her mind blown so completely. “You look so sleepy.”

He gave her a smile, a real smile, and what little part of her that wasn’t already in a puddle on the floor melted again. “Want to take a nap with me?”

“Yes.” Her answer was out almost before he’d finished his question, and it was Theo’s turn to give a little laugh. He stood, scooping her off the floor in the same motion, making her yelp and then giggle.

“How are you carrying me?” she asked as he headed up the stairs. “Why aren’t your muscles mush? Because mine are mush. Mushy mush.” She laughed again, giddy because Theo was holding her and they’d just had incredible sex, and she felt safe for the first time in a long, long time.

He smirked at her. “So you’re done, then? We’ll have to work on your stamina.”

When he hesitated at the top of the stairs, Jules pointed in the direction of her bedroom. “My stamina’s fine. Excellent, even. I could go another five rounds. I just said that about the mushy muscles so you didn’t feel bad if you were feeling weak.”

He laughed as he maneuvered them through the doorway. Although it was a little rusty, his laugh was the best sound she’d heard probably ever. “Nice of you.”

Jules tried to respond but couldn’t, because Theo was in her bedroom. Theo was in her bedroom. And then he took a few strides and tumbled onto the bed with her. Theo was now in her bed. In. Her. Bed. Amazed, she stared at him lying next to her.

“Five rounds, huh?” His smile was sweet and crooked, and Jules’s muscles suddenly didn’t feel like mush anymore.