As a medical professional, Lisa tried to look at sex in a practical way, as nothing more than a biological function. Its only real purpose was to reproduce, after all. The reason orgasms existed was to encourage people to have sex. She’d enjoyed sex in the past, but had never gotten carried away with it. After watching her mother treat love and marriage like a competitive sport, she’d chosen a different path. She didn’t want her life to be a series of dramas and heartbreaks. Sex was fine, but she’d skip the romance and flowers. “Friends with benefits”—that was the way to go.

She’d made it to the age of twenty-eight that way. Then she’d left Houston, met Finn in a tower, and now everything felt different.

“Friends with benefits” had absolutely nothing to do with what she’d just experienced with Finn. That wasn’t just an orgasm. It was an earthquake. It completely shook up all her ideas about sex and intimacy.

“Friends with benefits” was so much less confusing than this.

How could Finn Abrams, with his easy charm and ruined face, make her feel something so powerful? She wanted to do it again, as soon as possible. But she also wanted to run for the hills. Literally.

Maybe she could hide out in the Breton lookout tower again. No one would find her there—except possibly an armed thug with a can of gasoline.

She slept uneasily that night, curled under the covers of Finn’s bed, soaking in the unfamiliar bliss of a male body radiating heat next to her. She kept waking up, panic flashing through her, imagining someone outside the window with a match.

But every time, Finn would mumble something and fling his strong arm across her waist, and its heavy weight would soothe her back to sleep.

In the morning, she stole out of bed and got dressed while he was still sleeping. The covers twisted at his waist, exposing his long torso and muscular shoulders. Maybe some women would fixate on the grotesque scars riding his rib cage. But she barely noticed them anymore, except to find patterns in them, as if they were clouds. A rearing dragon. An erupting volcano. That sort of thing.

She left a note next to his coffeemaker.

Went to talk to Knight. Xo Lisa.

She deliberately left out any mention of her plans after that. She didn’t know what would happen next. At this point, everything she owned would fit into her car and still leave room for a family of four. It would be so easy to slip out of town.

And yet, so hard.

She drove down the long, winding road that led from Rollo’s cliff-top house to the valley where Jupiter Point was nestled. On the way, she called Will and asked him to meet her for coffee.

The Venus and Mars Café was just opening when she pulled up to the curb. Someone had washed the sidewalk and the front patio with its ironwork fence, so it sparkled in the fresh morning air. A jasmine vine spilled over the black-painted bars, the pink-edged flowers still closed, awaiting full sun. Under the cheerful blue awning, the front door was propped open to welcome the first customers of the day.

Lisa sighed sadly as she got out of her car. It was going to be so hard to leave.

From the moment she’d first set foot in Jupiter Point, she’d felt safe. The little town was just so cheerful and charming, with its historic downtown and quirky star-themed business names. She’d driven the twenty miles from the Breton tower for supplies and found herself enchanted by the cedar-shingled buildings and vintage lampposts lining Constellation Way. The highlight had been a tour of the observatory. After all that time watching the stars from her perch in the lookout tower, she’d wanted a closer look.

How had the senator found her here? She had no idea. The man had resources she couldn’t even imagine.

“Morning, Lisa,” Will’s voice rumbled behind her. He was dressed in cutoff sweats and a faded t-shirt from the athletic department of Florida State University. She wondered if he used to be a football player, with that long-boned, powerful build. Then it occurred to her that he probably wasn’t even on shift yet.

“I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking. This is your time off, isn’t it?”

“Always on the job, that’s me.” His slow smile put her at ease. “In a town this size, we have to be. There are only a few of us. Anyway, I always have coffee before I run. Have you ordered?”

She shook her head and followed him inside. They both ordered black coffee and a muffin, then sat down in a corner table as far removed from the other early customers as possible.

Will didn’t waste any time. He fixed his penetrating gray eyes on her. “So what do you have for me?”

“A name. Senator—” She swallowed hard. Taking this step, revealing names—after this, she couldn’t go back. “Senator Tom Ruiz. He’s a senator from Texas. I helped his wife get away. He was abusing her but she didn’t want to go to the police. I don’t know where she is, but maybe he thinks I do.”

“Hm.” He flipped open his notebook and scribbled the name. “So your theory is that this senator hired people to track you down so you can tell him where his wife is?”

She broke off a piece of muffin and crumbled it between her fingers. “I suppose so. It’s all I can think of.”

“Why not just hire people to find his wife?”

Trust a police officer to put his finger on the exact same question that had bothered her. “Maybe he did that too. I really have no idea. I’m not in touch with Maria now.”

Knight pulled a smartphone from his pocket and tapped at it. He scanned through the results of his search. “It says in Wikipedia that Senator Tom Ruiz is recently divorced. He’s a sponsor of a new bill to help domestic violence victims.”

“Ugh, what a hypocrite. When did he get divorced?”

Knight was still staring at his phone. “Back in Houston you worked in an ER, right? Houston Memorial?”

“Yes.” So he’d done his research. Of course he had.

“Says here he’s funding a new wing of that hospital.”

“Wow.” Her mind raced with this new information. “So maybe he made a deal with Maria during the divorce that she wouldn’t bring charges against him if he sponsored this bill and gave money to the hospital.”

“Sure. That all fits.” He closed his phone and frowned in concentration at his notepad. “The only piece of the puzzle that doesn’t fit here is you. Why the gunman at Breton? Why the fire?”

“Maybe the fire was an accident.”

He shrugged his broad shoulders. “It was no accident. It was definitely arson, but it might have had nothing to do with you. I called around and two other campgrounds have had incidents like this over the winter. No injuries, just damage. There’s a chance the perp thought the motorhome was empty and just wanted to make some crazy firebug statement.”

Lisa’s heart soared with a sudden surge of hope. If Senator Ruiz wasn’t behind the fire, maybe she wasn’t in any danger. If the Breton gunman had reported back that she wasn’t in the area, maybe she wouldn’t have to leave Jupiter Point. Maybe she wouldn’t have to leave Finn. Maybe she could stay in his guesthouse and take care of the turtle and see him when he came back from fighting fires and they could dive back into bed and gorge themselves on more mind-blowing sex…

Almost as if he’d read her mind—but hopefully not the X-rated bits—Will said, “I’d prefer it if you didn’t leave town. I have a buddy from law school who works in the Houston DA’S office. I want to find out what I can about Ruiz, and the more we know, the safer we can keep you. This is a small town where people watch out for each other. If you’re staying with Finn up at Rollo Wareham’s place, that’s a pretty good setup. The hotshots are good guys and they take care of their own.”

She felt her face heat. “Their own?” She wasn’t anybody’s “own.”

“If I stay, I’ll probably try to find another place.”

He smiled slightly, as if he didn’t quite believe her. Which made sense, since she didn’t quite believe herself either. “Whatever you decide. Just make sure I know where you’re staying.” His gaze drifted past her, and she turned to see Merry stroll into the coffee shop, her laptop under one arm, her other hand covering up a huge yawn. A purple headband held back her curly hair and she wore the kind of sweat suit you wouldn’t dream of getting sweaty.

She spotted them and came toward their table, bending down to give Lisa a hug. “I heard about the fire, Lisa. If you need anything, you be sure to call me, okay?”

“Word to the wise, Ms. Peretti.” Will closed his notepad and stuck it back in his pocket. “That’s a ploy. It’s a trap to get a scoop out of you. Merry Warren lives for scoops. She’ll do anything for them.”

Merry narrowed her eyes at the officer. “I’m not falling for your bait. I have work to do, unlike certain law enforcement types who get to roam around town in sweats.”

“Matter of fact, I am working,” Will said. “Which means you’re interfering with a police investigation again.”

Lisa nearly laughed at the outraged expression on her friend’s face. No doubt, Will really knew how to get under Merry’s skin. “Actually, I think we’re pretty much done here, right?” She collected her coffee cup and rose to her feet.

Will followed suit, unfolding his long body from the little table with impressive grace for a man his size. Merry definitely noticed the same thing—or at least she was looking in the same direction. “If anything comes up, be sure to call. And let’s keep this out of the news for now.”

“Thank you, Will.” She and Merry watched him stride out of the coffee shop, tossing his muffin wrapper into the trash on the way out.

“Keep what out of the news?” Merry asked as soon as he was out of earshot.

Lisa raised an eyebrow at her. “Aren’t you the news?”

“I don’t have to be. I can just be a friendly ear. I can put you in the Cone of Silence. I’m pretty good at separating my reporter side from my friend side.”

Her friend side. Warmth bloomed in Lisa’s heart. Having a friend would feel so good right about now. Not a “friend with benefits.” Just a friend. Someone to help her decide what to do. Stay in Jupiter Point? Get into her Mercedes and leave?

“Maybe I just wanted a few minutes with the hot cop,” she said lightly.

“He’s not that hot,” Merry grumbled. “Definitely not as hot as he thinks he is.”

Lisa laughed. “He’s been great, actually. Don’t rope me into your anti-Will club. Team Cynic is one thing. But Will’s a good guy. And he was looking pretty fine in that workout gear.”

“Didn’t notice.” Merry smirked.

“Uh huh. Look, I really shouldn’t talk about it right now. But as soon as I can, you’ll be the first, I promise.” She changed the subject. “What are working on today? Anything exciting?”

Merry’s phone rang, and she fumbled with her laptop to get to it. “I’m doing a big feature on the Star Bright Shelter. Suzanne’s supposed to meet me here for the interview.”

She finally got her phone to her ear. “Sure thing, girl. Yeah, I totally get it. Hey, can I bring someone with me? Great.”

She hung up and tucked her arm into Lisa’s elbow. “Suzanne’s feeling too bulky to leave the house. Says she’s afraid she’ll make the sidewalk cave in. Want to come with me and see how a future Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter does her thing?”

Lisa hesitated. Her Mercedes was right out there, waiting for her to hop in and steer it north. But hanging out with Merry—that would be fun. And she should really thank Suzanne for the clothes. And what about Molly? She should at least say goodbye.

One more day in Jupiter Point—what harm could it do?

“Sure. I’ll bring the sticky buns.”