Page 11 of Scorched (Killer #2)

The sun dipped below the horizon, the last lingering hints of daylight glowing a dull gray, casting the world in deep shadows.

Not quite dark, but hard to see, nonetheless.

Paul parked in Elise’s driveway and climbed down from his truck.

Rustling and voices sounded from the back corner of Elise’s house, making the hairs on his arms prickle.

Though it could be a cat mewing for his supper, Paul didn’t want to take the chance that it might be something else.

He vaulted over the picket fence, landing softly in the grass.

Slipping into the shadows beside the house, he hurried in the direction of the sound.

A small dark form hovered near the very back of the lot, leaning into the bushes.

A giggle sounded like that of a child.

“Luke?” Paul called out .

A gasp was followed by the rustle of leaves in the bushes between the back of Elise’s property and the house behind it.

The little boy raced for the back door, his small feet making little sound in the grass. The rustling on the other side of the bushes faded and disappeared in the opposite direction.

Luke had his hand on the door handle when Paul caught him by the collar of his pajamas.

“Let me go!” Luke’s arms flailed, his feet hammering against Paul’s shins.

Paul chuckled. “It’s okay, it’s just me. Paul Fletcher.”

Luke continued his frenzied effort to free himself. “Let me go or Mom will be mad.”

The back porch light blinked on, and the door swung open. “Luke!” Elise stood in a silk robe, her hair twisted up in a towel, her eyes brilliant blue saucers in her pale face. “Paul!” The older child stood behind her, his eyes round and anxious.

“Did you lose this?” He smiled, hoping to wipe some of the fear off her pretty face.

She opened the screen and folded her son into her arms. “Luke, baby, don’t ever scare me like that again!”

Brandon stared up at Paul over his mother’s shoulder, his gaze narrow, unfriendly.

Paul had his work cut out for him. The boy didn’t trust him. It was his job to figure out why and turn him around. The child’s life could depend on it .

“Mom, I had to tell George about the puppy.” Luke struggled against his mother’s hold.

Elise loosened her arms enough to look into his face without letting go. “I told you, you couldn’t go out in the yard without me anymore.”

“But George is my friend,” Luke wailed.

“I don’t even know George.” Her eyes narrowed and her forehead creased into fine lines Paul wanted to smooth away. “Until I meet him and talk to his mother, you aren’t to talk to him again. Do you understand?”

Luke’s face pinched into a frown. He pushed away from his mother’s arms. “Mom! George is my friend!”

Paul stood on the back steps, feeling the boy’s pain but understanding the danger involved.

“Your mother is right. We need to meet George and his parents before you play with him.” How could he keep the little guy from playing in his own yard without telling him that a really nasty bad guy might steal him away?

The boy would have night terrors for the rest of his life.

As if just remembering who Paul was, Luke glanced up at him, his frown turning upside down into a face-splitting grin. “Are you really going to build a fence for our puppy?” His hand slipped into Paul’s, and he pulled him through the door into the kitchen.

Broadsided by Luke’s question, Paul allowed himself to be led to the kitchen table.

Brandon backed away, not having uttered a single word thus far .

“What’s this about a fence?” Paul asked.

Elise’s mouth twisted. “Sorry, I’ll explain in a minute.” She leaned down to her son. “Go wash the dirt off your feet and get to bed. It’s way past your bedtime.”

“But—”

“No buts. Go.” She stood with her arms crossed over her chest, her face set in stern lines. The entire effect was muted by her soft pink robe and makeup-free face. If Paul wasn’t mistaken, her lips twitched at the corners.

Luke’s body drooped so much even the faces of the cartoon cars on his pajamas appeared dejected. “I want our puppy now.”

“We can’t get one until we get the fence up and that isn’t going to be tonight. Go on.” Elise swatted at the little boy’s bottom, urging him toward the hallway leading to the bedrooms.

Brandon stood at a distance, his body stiff and unmoving.

“You, too, Brandon. You have school tomorrow and need to get some sleep.”

Brandon shook his head. “ I’m the man of the house. I shouldn’t have a bedtime.” He glared at Paul as if daring him to disagree.

So that was it. Brandon was feeling threatened by a new man in the house. That explained the immediate animosity toward him. How to fix it? Paul hadn’t a clue, not having dealt with children before.

“Part of being the man of the house is knowing when to do as you’re told.” Elise didn’t talk down to him as though he was a baby. She spoke to him like any other adult, presenting the facts without discouraging the boy. “Paul—Agent Fletcher and I need to talk about...the fence.”

When Brandon still didn’t move, Elise tipped her head slightly. “I’ll be just fine and I’m not going anywhere. Now go to bed, please.”

Brandon sighed and turned toward his bedroom. As he passed through his door, his glance shot toward Paul, his eyes narrowing. Then he disappeared.

“And close the door,” Elise called out.

The door closed with a soft snick.

Elise sighed and pulled the towel off her head.

Long strands of damp hair dropped to her shoulders.

“I’m sorry. I meant to be more prepared for when you got here.

” She buried her fingers in the lengths and shook them, the scent of strawberries filling the air around him.

“When I couldn’t find Luke, I swear I almost had a heart attack. ”

With Elise standing so close in little more than a silk, calf-length robe, the teasing scent of her shampoo wrapping around his senses, Paul fought to concentrate on her words. “You don’t have to ‘be prepared’ for me. I’m here to make sure you and the boys are all right.”

“I know, but still...” Her hand waved vaguely, and she stared around at the clutter of toys littering the otherwise neat living room. Tears filled her eyes, and she sniffed, a pathetic whimper like a dog who’d been abused .

The hint of tears glazing her cornflower-blue eyes was his undoing. “A little mess never hurt anyone.” Paul gave up the fight and grabbed her hand, pulling her into his arms.

She stood stiff at first, then her fingers clutched at his shirt, and she leaned into him. “I’m so scared, I don’t know what to do.”

“That’s why I’m here. We’ll figure this thing out and you can get back to your normal life.”

“I don’t think my life will ever be normal.” She sniffed and leaned back, tears staining her cheeks. “How can it be when you’re the wife of a serial killer?”

Paul didn’t have an answer for her, not when all he wanted to do was kiss the tears from her cheeks. Now wasn’t the time to take advantage of Elise. She was vulnerable, scared and likely to cling to anyone. But those eyes, the full, trembling lips...

Before he could think through another thought, Paul’s head tipped forward.

Elise’s eyes widened briefly, then she stretched upward on her toes, her eyelids sinking to half-mast, her lips rising to meet his.

He might have pulled back at the last minute if she hadn’t met him halfway.

Like kinetic energy unleashed, he couldn’t stop himself once he’d committed to kissing Elise Johnson.

The scent of strawberries wafted around him, lured him into a deeper embrace, his hands resting on her lower back, pulled her against him.

If she didn’t know she’d aroused him before, she’d surely guess it now.

Instead of backing away, Elise’s hands climbed up to his shoulders, lacing into the hair at his nape.

His lips slanted over hers, his tongue pushing past her teeth to taste the sweet depths of her mouth.

Mint toothpaste tingled against his tongue, dragging him deeper.

His hand slid up her back, the silk of her robe like a promise of the smoothness of the skin beneath, her damp hair evoking images of her naked in the shower.

He wanted more. He wanted to swing her up into his arms and carry her to her bed where he’d make sweet love to her, pushing aside all her worries, if only for a moment.

Elise gasped against his mouth, planted her hands against his chest and pushed him away.

All too soon, the fantasy ended.

He let go, shocked at his own loss of control.

Elise staggered backward, her knuckles skimming across swollen lips. The front of her robe hung open, giving Paul a peek of one fully rounded, naked breast.

He groaned, battling the urge to pursue her and take more of what he’d just tasted. Clenching his hands into fists to keep from reaching out to her, he nodded. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” He kept his voice low so as not to disturb the boys.

Her eyes, round and blue, stared at him for a long moment, like a deer caught in the path of a predator.

Then she turned away, gathering the lapels of her robe close around her.

“No, I’m sorry. It wouldn’t have happened if I’d been stronger.

I’m such a wimp.” She laughed softly with no hint of mirth reflected in the sound.

His arms rose to pull her back against him, but dropped to his side before he could follow through. “You’re not a wimp. You’re a worried mother. And rightly so.”

“Rightly so?” She spun to face him. “Tell me something new. Did you find out who’s doing this? Is it Stan?”

The hopeful look on her face made him want to tell her they’d nailed the bad guy. “We don’t know much more than before.”

“Stan killed five women before you caught up with him in North Dakota. Please tell me he won’t kill five more before they find him this time.”

“We can only do the best we can. We haven’t got much to go on. It’s not even in the FBI's jurisdiction, yet. Look, I’ll check on this George kid and his parents for you. And I’m meeting with the sheriff tomorrow to offer our assistance in the case.”

“He has to let you help. You and Mel are the only ones who understand what Stan is capable of.”

“Elise, we don’t know that it’s Stan. The killer could be a copycat.”

“But he wrote the note to me !” she beseeched in a hushed whisper. “How do you explain that?”

He couldn’t. “Honestly, that’s what has me worried. ”

She snorted. “You and me both. Only a few people were supposed to know of my whereabouts and name change. How does someone get that information?”

“I have your brother-in-law working on that.” It wasn’t much, but between Mel’s hospital search and Nick’s check on her file, those were the only leads they had to go on.

Tomorrow, he’d meet with the sheriff and get on the inside of the case.

“Look, Elise, it’s getting late. You might as well turn in and get some rest.”

Her answering chuckle ended in a choked sob. For a moment, she stared at the ground, her fingers clenching and unclenching. Then she straightened and looked him square in the eye. “I’m tired of being scared.”

“I know.”

How could he know? She’d been the one targeted with the note. Someone had walked right into the school and stuck it in her cubby. She couldn’t have the police checking at the school or her cover would be blown.

Paul stared across at her, his brows dipping low. “You’re not planning on doing something crazy, are you?”

Her gaze slipped to the side and downward. “No.”

“Good, because I can’t be with you all the time. I need to know you’re not going to go off anywhere and investigate on your own.”

“I’m going to school and home.”

“If you want me to, I can come into the school and ask around about the note. ”

Her gaze shot back to him. “No!” Heat rose up her neck and spread across her cheekbones. She pressed her palms to her face. “I don’t want the principal or the other teachers to suspect anything. I want a chance to live here in peace. No one can know about my past.”

Paul sighed. “Sure makes it hard to follow up on that note.”

“I know,” she said. “But that’s the way it has to be.”

“You might as well hit the sack.” Paul rolled his shoulders. “Mind if I look around before calling it a night?”

She dipped her head. “Please do. I’ve checked that all the windows and doors are secure, but it wouldn’t hurt to double-check.”

“Exactly. Plus, I want to look for other vulnerable areas.”

A shiver shook the woman, standing there in her robe, reminding Paul that Elise was practically naked in front of a virtual stranger. Though somehow, he didn’t consider them strangers even though they’d only been in each other’s company no more times than he could count on one hand.

His lips were still warm from the kiss they’d shared. When he glanced down, he realized Elise’s nipples were poking out against the thin silk of her robe, the turgid peaks glaringly obvious.

She wasn’t immune to his presence. Nor was she unfazed by his kiss, but he didn’t need to take advantage of the fact .

Elise’s cheeks blossomed with color, she crossed her arms over the evidence and ducked her head, refusing to meet his gaze. “I’ll go to bed now.”

“I take it I can have the couch?”

“Oh, right, yes. I’ll get you a blanket.” She hurried toward the cabinet in the hallway.

As her hand reached upward to open the upper cabinet door, Paul’s hand caught hers. “Here, let me get it. You know you don’t have to wait on me.”

Her heat radiated warmth through the silk clinging to her skin. Although he wasn’t touching her, he could sense the soft curves of her body only a breath away. All she had to do was lean back and he’d take her into his arms.

Unable to stop, his hand slid down her raised arm, his fingers brushing against the curve of her breast. “You feel it, don’t you?” His body ached for hers, heat pooling in his groin, begging for release.

Elise sucked in a breath, her body stiffened. When she turned, she rested a hand on his chest and stared up into his eyes.

Before Paul could gather her into his arms, a door opened behind them.

Paul backed away, his hands coming away with a blanket and a pillow from the top shelf.

Elise ducked beneath his arm and confronted her oldest son.

“Mom?” Although he spoke to his mother, Brandon stared up at Paul. “Something made a noise outside my window. I’m scared.”

Immediately on alert, all thoughts of making love with the beautiful Elise flew from his mind. What had he been thinking anyway? He was there to protect Elise, not force himself on her.

Paul headed for the door, determined to focus on the security he was there to provide.