Avery closed and locked the front door behind them, then turned to face him, her gaze sweeping his face. “You look tired.”
“I’m all right.” He turned away and went back to the kitchen to take care of the glasses and bottles.
“I’ll do those.”
“It’s no big deal.” He needed a minute to fully come back to the present, and he wanted the excuse to spend more time with Avery, even if it was just being here in the kitchen with her.
He washed the crystal wineglasses by hand, giving them to her one by one to dry. Wiping his hands on a dishtowel, he watched as she lifted up on tiptoe to put the glasses away in a high cabinet, the stretch making the hem of her top ride up to expose several inches of flat, smooth stomach.
Mason moved toward her like he’d been drawn there by a magnet, powerless to resist the pull. He was all twisted up inside, fighting the blackness just under the surface, waiting to drag him under. He didn’t want to go down to his suite or be alone yet. Avery was the only one who could push back the darkness around him.
She closed the cupboard and came down from tiptoe, catching his stare. A silent tension took hold, buzzing deep in his belly.
He should keep his distance now, but he was too damn selfish to allow it. He craved her like he craved air to breathe. She made him feel alive again in a way he hadn’t in years.
Mason closed the distance between them with a single step, taking her face in his hands as he backed her up against the counter and brought his mouth down on hers. Her tiny gasp of surprise gave way to a quiet moan that made every muscle in his body go taut. Her arms wound around him, pulling him flush to her.
The darkness in him clawed at the surface, wanting out. Wanting Avery. To consume her. Make her his in every way. Strip her right here and lift her onto the counter so he could drape her legs over his shoulders and get her off with his mouth. Then carry her to her room, pin her to the bed and do it all over again, plunge into her until she was sobbing his name, her nails digging into his skin.
He pushed it back, desperate for the light she radiated. He wanted inside her body and heart. Craved it with a desperation that shook him.
Her arms were tight around him, her fingers pressing into his back while their tongues twined and teased. Mason rocked the ridge of his erection against her lower belly, a low groan rumbling up from his chest.
Stop. Stop this now, or you’ll lose her.
He didn’t know where the thought came from, but it was loud and clear in his head. If he pushed too hard, she would run, push him away and withdraw her light from him.
That stopped him cold.
With one last hungry kiss he forced himself to stop and lift his head. He stared down into those smoldering golden eyes, both of them breathing hard. Both of them wanting more.
Summoning all his strength, he let her go and stepped back. “Sleep well, angel eyes.”
He left without looking back, but once he was down in the suite with Ric, his predicament became clear. That kiss had solidified what he’d instinctively known from the beginning.
There was no way in hell he could bear to lose her now.
Chapter Twelve
The quiet, residential street a few minutes from downtown Rifle Creek was empty of traffic when Shannon turned onto it in her rental car. At eight-thirty in the morning on a Monday, everybody was either at work or busy with their weekday routines. Perfect for her purposes.
According to her research, Avery’s house was halfway up this road. She slowed as she approached it. A red-brick Victorian, with a tiny front porch and a turret on the right-hand side.
The houses on either side of it were close, but not so close that you could reach through a window and shake hands with the neighbors. Both neighbors might be retired because their vehicles were still parked in the driveway.
Impatience swelled inside her. She was in a piss-poor mood and tired after a shitty night’s sleep.
She missed Mike. It had been over a week since she’d last heard from him, and she wasn’t sure if it was because they’d suspended his email or phone privileges, or what.
She wanted to see him as soon as she was done here in Rifle Creek, so she could tell him in person what she’d done. He’d be so proud, to know that the woman he loved was willing to even the odds a bit on his behalf. She was thinking of going after other targets after this too. Figure out a way to hurt everyone who’d put him behind bars.
Shannon stared up at the house as the resentment swelled. She couldn’t target Avery here, it was too dangerous. The woman was a cop. But Shannon’s background had given her a lot of useful tools to draw from in this situation.
She was great at lying and blending in. Just look at what she’d done with old Ray in such a short time. He’d spilled his guts to her about everything going on in his whackadoodle family, and vented all his rage and hatred about this Mason guy who had shacked up with Avery.
The driveway was empty, and there wasn’t a garage, so both Avery and Mason must be gone for the day. She could drive around and find an inconspicuous place to park, then double back on foot and case the house more thoroughly.
As the thought circled through her brain, she became aware of a slight tingle at the base of her neck. Glancing to her left, she glimpsed an elderly woman standing in the front yard of a brightly-painted Victorian house across the street from Avery’s.
The woman stared suspiciously at Shannon from under the brim of her floppy hat, gardening shears poised above the neatly-trimmed hedge.
Hell. Freaking small towns and their freaking nosy neighbors who noticed anything out of place. Like her and the rental car. The woman would know Shannon wasn’t a local, and the way the lady stared was starting to make her nervous.
Looking away, she continued on up the street at a leisurely pace, watching the old lady in the rearview mirror. The woman stared after her for a few moments, and Shannon had a moment’s unease that the old busybody might have memorized her plate number.
Another meeting with Ray was in order. She would tease more intel out of him while she formulated a plan for her next move. Targeting Avery was tricky, and much easier if she was alone, without her lover around. But Shannon had to be prepared to do it no matter what.
Whatever it took to even the score. If Mike wasn’t being released then she had nothing left to lose.
****
It was just after noon when Avery finally got the call from the Billings PD about the incident at the guest ranch. “Any new evidence?” she asked.
“Unfortunately, no,” the woman answered. “I’m sending you the security feed as requested, so you’re welcome to have your own people look at it. The angle of the suspect’s face makes it impossible for the camera to get a good look, but we believe it’s a female.”
“A pregnant female?”
“That wasn’t noted during the analysis.”
So it definitely wasn’t Keely, because she had a pronounced baby bump. Not that Avery had really thought it could be her. “Did anyone on staff have any further information?”
“No, and none of them could identify the suspect on the video. Although officers did find a wig along with a staff uniform in a Dumpster a block from the hotel. Unfortunately, the resort management and security could not identify anyone in uniform that night as an imposter.”