Chapter Fourteen
Jameson glanced at the clock on the nightstand before turning his attention back to the window. It was just past midnight. That meant it was officially the anniversary of his parents’ murders.
Since he could see the old house where they’d died from the window, that wasn’t exactly a calming thought, or sight, to settle his nerves, which were already on edge.
Neither was the fact that Jameson was second-and third-guessing himself about coming here. It wasn’t just the danger—that would be a factor no matter where they’d gone. But having Kelly here was reminding him of old feelings for her that he’d thought were long gone.
They weren’t.
And now she was under the same roof he was. In fact, she was just next door. Mere steps away. Steps that he forced himself not to take. For one thing, he wanted to keep watch a while longer. There’d been no sign of Mandy, or anyone else for that matter, but Jameson figured it would help to have an extra pair of eyes on the grounds just in case someone did try to come after them.
However, there were other reasons for him to stay put. Any time Kelly and he were within ten feet of each other, the heat kicked in, and Jameson found himself making questionable choices.
Like kissing her.
And wanting much more than just a kiss from her.
He felt his body tighten and respond to that thought, and a certain part of him was urging him to go see her. Jameson told that part to take a hike. After all, Kelly wasn’t alone in the room, and she might even be sleeping. Even if she wasn’t, he could still wake up Erica or the baby.
Gabriel’s house was huge, six bedrooms, but with all the “guests,” it’d practically taken a flowchart to work out the sleeping situations. Jodi was in the master, where Gabriel would join her whenever he happened to make it home from work. Ivy and Jameson were in two of the guest rooms. Cameron was in another guest room, where he was resting to take the surveillance shift over from Edwin. Erica and Kelly had decided to share a room with the baby since Kelly wasn’t exactly confident of her mothering skills just yet.
His phone buzzed, and Jameson answered it right away when he saw Gabriel’s name on the screen. “Mandy hasn’t shown,” Jameson volunteered.
“Good. Maybe she’ll stay away. Are you okay?”
There’d been enough of a hesitation before his brother’s question to let Jameson know what that was really about. Their parents. Gabriel had no doubt been watching the clock, too.
“That old house needs to come down,” Jameson settled for saying.
“Agreed.” Another hesitation. “Do you ever think August could be right, that Travis could be innocent?” Obviously, the anniversary of the murders had put his brother in a contemplative mood.
“All the time,” Jameson admitted. “I wish Travis could just remember what happened that night. Gaps in memories, especially those kind of memories, aren’t a good thing.”
“Are you talking about Kelly now?” Gabriel asked.
“Yeah.” Now it was Jameson who hesitated. “I have feelings for her.”
It sounded as if Gabriel laughed. “And you’re just now figuring that out. You’re slower than I thought you were. Still, I get what you’re saying. Feelings don’t always make things easier.”
No, and Gabriel was a living example of that. After all, he’d fallen in love with Travis Canton’s daughter. And Ivy had fallen in love with Travis’s son and had a child with him. In the grand scheme of things, Jameson’s relationship with Kelly was far less complicated than theirs. Or at least it would be if she had her full memory.
“I had another reason for calling,” Gabriel said a moment later. “I’m sending you a picture. I think this might be Boyer’s daughter, Amy.”
Of all the things Jameson had thought his brother might say, that wasn’t one of them. With everything else going on, Boyer’s child wasn’t even on Jameson’s radar. He waited a few seconds for the photo to come through, and he saw the blond-haired little girl. She was obviously a little older than Gracelyn and looked healthy.
“I pressed the CI who told me about Mandy and Boyer,” Gabriel continued, “and he’s the one who came up with the picture.”
Jameson had a lot of questions, but he started with the obvious. “Where has the baby been this whole time? And who took her?” Before Gabriel could answer, there was a knock at the door. “Hold on a second.”
He hurried to answer the knock just in case it was one of the deputies with bad news. But it was Kelly. She was standing there, not looking at all certain that she should be there. She glanced around, rubbing her hands along the sides of her jeans. Clearly nervous.
Jameson figured he seemed uncertain, too. But only because he was surprised. His body certainly liked the idea of her paying him a late-night visit.
“Gabriel’s on the phone,” he explained to her. Jameson motioned for her to come in so he could shut the door. That way, their conversation wouldn’t disturb the others. “He just sent me a picture of a child who could be Boyer’s. He got it from the CI.” He showed it to her, and Kelly’s eyes widened.
“As for where the child has been for two years,” Gabriel went on, “the CI didn’t know that. He got the picture from the baby’s nanny. A woman he knows only as Sissy. But as to who had her, well, the CI claims it was Mandy.”
Hell. This was not a twist that Jameson wanted to hear. Neither did Kelly, and she groaned and shook her head.
“The CI is certain?” Kelly asked. She joined Jameson at the window.
“He says he is, but he’s a criminal informant. Emphasis on the criminal. But he was right about Mandy and Boyer being lovers.”
Yeah, he was. But that only led Jameson to another question. “Why would Mandy take Boyer’s child?”
“Don’t know, but it’s something I intend to ask her when we find her. I’ll ask Boyer, too, but I’m going to wait until morning to do that. Get some sleep,” Gabriel added.
“You should do the same,” Jameson said right back to him. “When will you be home?”
“In a couple of hours. Be safe,” Gabriel tacked on before he ended the call.
Jameson took another look at the picture before he put his phone away. “I’m sorry,” he said in case she was upset about what she’d just heard.
Kelly lifted her shoulder. “I don’t remember a lot about my sister, so I don’t know if she’s capable of taking the baby. Especially considering she had a relationship with Boyer.”
It sounded as if she had plenty of distrust for Mandy. Even if it turned out to be unwarranted, in their case it was better to be safe than sorry. That’s why he didn’t want Mandy to get near Kelly or the baby.
“I wanted to check on you. To make sure you were okay.” Her gaze drifted to the old house before Jameson moved her back away from the glass. The odds were the ranch hands or deputies would spot a gunman before he could strike, but like having Mandy around, it was an unnecessary risk.
“Gabriel wanted to know the same thing. Yeah, I’m fine,” he repeated to her.
She stared at him. “You’re lying.”
He hated that she could see through him so easily. Most would have bought that lie. “Once the anniversary has passed, maybe the threats will stop.”
Of course, the threats could get a whole lot worse before they ended, but Jameson didn’t spell that out for her. She knew.
“Is Gracelyn okay?” he asked.
She nodded. “Erica says she’ll likely sleep through the night. I was on the pallet on the floor with her, but she never even opened an eye or stirred around.”
Good. Though she was probably the only one in the house who would get much sleep.
It suddenly got too quiet, and Jameson could think of plenty of things they could talk about. The investigation. The safe house where they’d soon be going. Or how they were going to work out custody arrangements for Gracelyn. But before he could say anything, Kelly fluttered her fingers to the door.
“I should leave,” she said, her voice showing some strain. She dragged in a long breath. “But if I do, I’ll just want to come back over here.”
He knew exactly what she meant. “It’s because I kissed you. It brought back a lot of old stuff to the surface.” And it brought it back with a vengeance.
Cursing himself, Jameson slipped his arm around her neck, pulled her to him and kissed her again.
Even though he’d been the one to start this, it still gave him a jolt. The feel of her in his arms. The need she created inside him. He kissed her too hard. Too long. And yet it didn’t feel like nearly long enough when they broke apart for air. Jameson would have gone right back for another kiss, too, if his phone hadn’t buzzed again.
He glanced at the screen, expecting it to be Gabriel again, but the caller had blocked the number.
Hell.
“The gunmen,” Kelly said, her breathing already too fast.
It probably was one of them, and that’s why Jameson moved her even farther away from the window. “If things get bad, take Gracelyn into the bathroom and get in the tub with her.”
Kelly gave a shaky nod, and he hit the answer button. However, it was a familiar voice.
It was Mandy.
“I need to talk to Kelly,” the woman immediately said.
“I’m here,” Kelly answered before Jameson could consider if that was a good idea or not. Of course, Mandy would have known Kelly would be with him.
“Where are you?” Jameson demanded.
“As if I’d tell you that. You two obviously don’t trust me, and that’s why I’m calling. I’m not responsible for what’s going on. I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Jameson wasn’t so sure of that at all. “What about taking Boyer’s daughter?”
Silence. For too long of a time. “That was a mistake.”
“A mistake?” Kelly repeated. “You took a man’s child. A man who’s a federal agent. And don’t say you didn’t know he was one because Boyer insisted that he told us.”
“He did,” Mandy reluctantly admitted. He heard her give a heavy sigh. “But Hadley convinced me that he was bad news, that he wasn’t fit to raise the child. She said he was a dangerous man.”
“Hadley might have been right,” Jameson said. “But you committed a felony.”
This time Mandy groaned. “I know, and that’s why I haven’t given her back. Because I’ll go to jail.”
Jameson wanted to point out that she deserved to be locked up, but if Boyer truly was dangerous, then maybe Mandy had done the right thing.
Maybe.
And if so, he would help her work her way through the legalities of this. But only after he was certain she wasn’t the one who was after Kelly.
“Tell me what happened between Boyer and you,” Kelly insisted.
“Nothing much to tell. It was just sex.”
Jameson had to mentally shake his head. “But you just said you didn’t know if he was a dirty agent.”
“Not at the beginning. Not after his daughter was born. Later, though, things just sort of happened between us, and before you say it shouldn’t have—I already know that. That’s why I broke it off.” Mandy paused. “I think Boyer was using me anyway. He was always pressing me for info about Kelly and that damn file she stole.”
Yeah, that. Jameson certainly hadn’t forgotten about it. “Were you telling the truth when you said you didn’t know where it was?”
“Yes,” Mandy answered without hesitation. “Kelly vanished without so much as a word. She didn’t trust me to help her.”
Jameson heard the hurt—and the bitterness—and he had to wonder if there was enough hurt to give Mandy a motive for coming after Kelly. Or maybe all of this was just a ploy to get her hands on the file so she could give it to Boyer.
“Mandy, you need to tell us where you are,” Kelly said. “That way, we can get you some protection.”
“No.” She sounded adamant about it, too. “I’ve got to look into some things.”
Kelly shook her head, clearly not liking the sound of that. “What things?”
“Just some things I have to do. I’m sorry, Kelly, but what I’m about to do might make it more dangerous for you. For others, too. I might be handing you over to a killer.”
And with that warning hanging in the air, Mandy ended the call.
* * *
KELLY COULD ONLY stand there and stare at the phone. Oh, God. What had her sister done? Worse, what was she going to do to stop whatever it was Mandy was planning?
“I won’t let Mandy hand you over to anyone,” Jameson assured her. He sounded exactly like the tough lawman that he was. But maybe no one was tough enough to save her.
She felt the tears burn her eyes and blinked them back. Or rather she tried. “You could die trying to protect me. I don’t want that to happen.”
“I don’t have any plans to die.” He blew out a weary breath, and maybe because he’d spotted those stupid tears, Jameson slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her back to him.
Not for a kiss this time. He just stood there and hugged her. All in all, it was an effective way to comfort her. Some anyway. There’d be no real comfort until the person responsible for the attacks was in jail.
Even if that meant putting her sister in prison.
“I’ll bet you’re regretting I came back into your life,” she muttered.
He didn’t answer right away, but he did ease back so that he was looking her in the eyes. “I’m not regretting it nearly enough.”
It was a puzzling answer, but Kelly didn’t even have time to process it before his mouth came to hers. Unlike the kiss that’d happened minutes earlier, this one was gentle. Like a whisper. So soft that there was no urgency in it. No demands. Just one incredible kiss. Of course, all of Jameson’s kisses fell into the incredible category.
“If you leave now, we won’t do something we might regret,” he said with his mouth still against hers.
It sounded as if he was having the same debate with himself that she was. True, if she left, they wouldn’t have sex. That might help them stay focused on the investigation. But leaving didn’t exactly feel like an option.
And that’s why Kelly pulled him back to her for another kiss.
She knew the kiss wasn’t going to make this decision easier. Just the opposite. But she was tired of having this panic rising inside her. Tired of wanting Jameson more than her next breath. Sex wouldn’t fix that. However, it could give them a reprieve from the relentless pressure. This heat, too.
He made a sound. Almost a protesting grumble. That didn’t stop him, though, from snapping her even closer to him. Until her body was right against his. Kelly could already feel him hard and ready behind his zipper, and while she hadn’t needed anything else to fire up every inch of her, that did it.
She had been the one to start the kiss, but Jameson seemed to be on a mission to finish it. He turned her, pinning her against the wall so he could lower those kisses to her neck. Then, lower. He kissed her breasts, first through her top, and then he shucked it off. Her bra, too.
The pleasure spiked through her when his mouth landed on her bare skin. The memories spiked as well, and she recalled another time they’d done this. It all came flooding back, the new images filling in the gaps, and she remembered in perfect detail the last time they’d been together. That didn’t cool the fire. Just the opposite. Because she remembered what Jameson was capable of doing to her.
With the need building and building inside her, Kelly reached between them to unbutton his shirt. Jameson helped by taking off his shoulder holster, but it still took some more fumbling on her part to get the shirt off him.
He immediately came back for another kiss, and she got the pleasure of feeling his bare chest against hers. Yes, that was another pleasant memory, too, and they were making more of those memories right now.
The kiss made things better. And worse. Better because it was so good but worse because it made her realize she had to have him now. Thankfully, Jameson was on the same page, and the battle started to get them undressed. They managed the jeans before Kelly froze.
“Please tell me you have a condom,” she said.
Jameson cursed, and for a moment she thought that meant he didn’t. But he stooped down, fumbling with his jeans, and finally came up with one from his wallet. The relief came, briefly, but the pressure-cooker heat quickly took over again.
Kissing her, Jameson pulled her to the floor, moving on top of her. It seemed to take forever for him to get on the condom, but even a few seconds seemed like way too long. Not with this need she had eating away at her.
She got another slam of memories when he pushed inside her. Yes, she definitely remembered this, and it didn’t take her long to slide right into the rhythm of his movements. Of course, this would all end too soon. No way could it last with them starved for each other.
Jameson upped the pace, moving inside her until Kelly could take no more. Even though she wanted to hang on to this as long as possible, she had no choice. She had to let go. She felt herself shatter. Felt the pleasure ripple through her. It rippled through Jameson as well, because he gathered her into his arms and surrendered right along with her.
It was perfect. The slack feeling in her body. Jameson’s taste in her mouth. His scent on her body. But in that moment, Kelly had a stark realization. This wasn’t going to satisfy that fire inside her.
Not for long anyway.
The need would return, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t have Jameson again. No. It wouldn’t take long for the regret to take hold of him. Kelly was certain that’s what was already happening when he moved off her and landed on his back on the floor.
“We should check on Gracelyn,” he said. He turned toward her, hauled her back to him and kissed her. “Give me a minute, and we can do that.”
So maybe not regret after all. He gathered up his clothes and headed to the en suite bathroom. Since Kelly really didn’t want to be lying around on the floor naked, she dressed, too. She braced herself for some awkwardness when Jameson came back into the room, but there wasn’t any.
Probably because he kissed her again. His kisses had a way of tamping down everything but the attraction. Not only was it still there, but it was stronger than ever.
“I remembered some things,” she said while she put on her shoes.
That got his attention. “What?” he asked, hesitation in his voice.
“Us being together.” Which probably wasn’t much of a surprise since she’d had plenty of visual reminders what with seeing Jameson naked.
But that wasn’t all.
It didn’t come to her in a flash as the last pieces had, but it came, and she had to shake her head. “I didn’t steal that file for Boyer. In fact, I wasn’t the one who took it at all. Mandy did. She’s the one who brought it to me.”
“What?” He pulled his eyebrows together. “But she said you stole it.” He paused. “No, wait. Mandy didn’t say that. When she was talking to you, she said as soon as you got your hands on it. I guess that means she gave it to you?”
Yes, her sister had used some clever wording, but with each passing second the memories of that were getting clearer.
“I took it from her,” Kelly corrected. “Mandy had sneaked into your house the night we were together and she took the file back to her apartment. The following morning, I dropped by her apartment and saw her reading it. I was furious and took it from her.” Now it was her turn to pause. “I wonder if she shared any of what was inside it with Boyer?”
Judging from the frustrated sound he made, the answer to that was yes. But that led Kelly to one very big question.
Why was that file so important?
“I went through all the data you’d collected,” Kelly went on, “and I added some files and notes of my own. I’d also talked with some possible witnesses and such. I had even interviewed one of the people involved in the money laundering operation that both Boyer and your father were investigating. I’d intended to take everything to you, but then someone attacked me when I went out to my car and I ran.”
Jameson took a moment, clearly processing all of that. “Someone must have thought you learned something pretty damn important to try to kill you. Did you?”
She had to shake her head. “But I had the feeling that something was there. Some kind of...inconsistency.”
“I know what you mean. I had the same feeling. That’s why I kept digging.” He paused again. “Tell me about that chat you had with the money launderer.”
Kelly blew out a frustrated breath. “The guy’s name was Lionel Rouse.”
“Yeah, I tried to talk to him, too, but he wouldn’t see me. My father had been investigating him.”
“Yes, that was in your notes. I’m not sure why Lionel agreed to see me. Maybe because he thought I would help him get out of jail. Anyway, he said the wrong man was behind bars. I asked him who should be, and he said it was the head honcho. He wouldn’t say more so I started looking for a money trail, something that would tell me who’d paid off this guy. Nothing.”
“But the man or woman who paid him could have believed you found something.”
His phone rang, cutting off anything else he might have added to that, and Jameson frowned, then cursed, when he saw the unfamiliar number on the screen. He answered it but didn’t say anything. However, it didn’t take long for the caller to speak.
“I’m so sorry.” It was Mandy, and her words were rushed together. “I really screwed up, and you have to help me.”
“What’s wrong?” Jameson snapped.
“Some men took Amy. They have Boyer’s daughter, and they took her to your family’s ranch. God, Jameson, you have to save her.”