at the table. The sun was just beginning to peek up shy, faint beams over the horizon.
Although they had been unable to connect with the two people they most wanted to speak to, the hours of the days hadn’t passed with inactivity. Yesterday they’d spent the entire day in the Mystic Lake sheriff’s office, interviewing every single person who had worked under Cole’s command.
They’d learned that Cole was considered a tough but fair boss. While some of the deputies seemed to have a healthy fear of Cole, it was tempered with an enormous amount of respect. No red flags had presented, leaving Marjorie and Cole to come home each day still confused about who was behind whatever had happened to Amberly and Cole.
It bothered him that they hadn’t found their bodies. It was just like the case he’d been working on in Bachelor Moon, where Sam and his wife and their daughter had been missing now for weeks, and their bodies had never been found. The case remained unsolved.
He and Maggie had fallen into a routine, and he knew he probably had about half an hour before she’d make her morning appearance in the kitchen.
Maggie. He took another sip of his coffee and closed his eyes. He had yet to see her bedroom, but last night in the middle of the night they’d accidently bumped into each other in the hallway. The tiny night-light she kept plugged into the socket next to the bathroom had been enough illumination for him to see that she’d been clad in a short deep purple silk nightgown that had fired the red in her hair and showcased every curve she possessed.
Jackson had nearly fallen to his knees with desire. Their eyes had locked in the dim hallway, hers gleaming with a light that made him want to reach out, to pick her up in his arms and carry her into a bedroom and make love to her.
But before he’d been able to move a muscle, she’d scampered like a rabbit back into her bedroom and closed the door behind her.
He’d had a feeling that if they’d remained in that hallway for a second longer, she would have awakened in his arms this morning after a long night of lovemaking.
He blew out a sigh of frustration, both mental and sexual. He felt like a powder keg about to explode. Taking another drink of his coffee, he smelled her before she entered the room, that sweet floral scent that ramped up his testosterone to caveman levels.
“Well, aren’t we informal today,” she said as she entered the kitchen and her gaze took in his jeans and white polo shirt.
“Yeah, with this heat I didn’t feel like doing the whole agent kind of dress code.” He gazed at her navy slacks and white blouse. “You know, you could do casual with me...maybe some shorts and a blouse that actually has some color to it. I have to admit, you look amazing in purple.”
He grinned as she ignored him and strode over to the coffeepot. “You can pretend you didn’t hear me, but the flames in your cheeks tell me otherwise.”
“A gentleman would never mention a lady’s nightgown,” she replied.
Jackson laughed. “I don’t remember ever confessing to be a hundred percent gentleman, and do you realize how often you blush?” He waited until she was seated across from him at the table. “Are you a virgin?”
She slapped a hand across her mouth in an obvious effort to prevent herself from spewing coffee. She swallowed and coughed, all the while glaring at him with those amazing green eyes. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I’m not a virgin. Why are you even thinking about things like that?”
There was a new wariness in her eyes that told him to back off. He wrapped his hands around his coffee cup and shrugged. “Because I figured it was easier than thinking about this damn case. If it wasn’t for that shooting at the motel, I’d be feeling more than a little bit of déjà vu.”
“What do you mean?” She was obviously relieved by the change in topic.
“If Cole and Amberly were kidnapped, then so far we
Although they had been unable to connect with the two people they most wanted to speak to, the hours of the days hadn’t passed with inactivity. Yesterday they’d spent the entire day in the Mystic Lake sheriff’s office, interviewing every single person who had worked under Cole’s command.
They’d learned that Cole was considered a tough but fair boss. While some of the deputies seemed to have a healthy fear of Cole, it was tempered with an enormous amount of respect. No red flags had presented, leaving Marjorie and Cole to come home each day still confused about who was behind whatever had happened to Amberly and Cole.
It bothered him that they hadn’t found their bodies. It was just like the case he’d been working on in Bachelor Moon, where Sam and his wife and their daughter had been missing now for weeks, and their bodies had never been found. The case remained unsolved.
He and Maggie had fallen into a routine, and he knew he probably had about half an hour before she’d make her morning appearance in the kitchen.
Maggie. He took another sip of his coffee and closed his eyes. He had yet to see her bedroom, but last night in the middle of the night they’d accidently bumped into each other in the hallway. The tiny night-light she kept plugged into the socket next to the bathroom had been enough illumination for him to see that she’d been clad in a short deep purple silk nightgown that had fired the red in her hair and showcased every curve she possessed.
Jackson had nearly fallen to his knees with desire. Their eyes had locked in the dim hallway, hers gleaming with a light that made him want to reach out, to pick her up in his arms and carry her into a bedroom and make love to her.
But before he’d been able to move a muscle, she’d scampered like a rabbit back into her bedroom and closed the door behind her.
He’d had a feeling that if they’d remained in that hallway for a second longer, she would have awakened in his arms this morning after a long night of lovemaking.
He blew out a sigh of frustration, both mental and sexual. He felt like a powder keg about to explode. Taking another drink of his coffee, he smelled her before she entered the room, that sweet floral scent that ramped up his testosterone to caveman levels.
“Well, aren’t we informal today,” she said as she entered the kitchen and her gaze took in his jeans and white polo shirt.
“Yeah, with this heat I didn’t feel like doing the whole agent kind of dress code.” He gazed at her navy slacks and white blouse. “You know, you could do casual with me...maybe some shorts and a blouse that actually has some color to it. I have to admit, you look amazing in purple.”
He grinned as she ignored him and strode over to the coffeepot. “You can pretend you didn’t hear me, but the flames in your cheeks tell me otherwise.”
“A gentleman would never mention a lady’s nightgown,” she replied.
Jackson laughed. “I don’t remember ever confessing to be a hundred percent gentleman, and do you realize how often you blush?” He waited until she was seated across from him at the table. “Are you a virgin?”
She slapped a hand across her mouth in an obvious effort to prevent herself from spewing coffee. She swallowed and coughed, all the while glaring at him with those amazing green eyes. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I’m not a virgin. Why are you even thinking about things like that?”
There was a new wariness in her eyes that told him to back off. He wrapped his hands around his coffee cup and shrugged. “Because I figured it was easier than thinking about this damn case. If it wasn’t for that shooting at the motel, I’d be feeling more than a little bit of déjà vu.”
“What do you mean?” She was obviously relieved by the change in topic.
“If Cole and Amberly were kidnapped, then so far we
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