Page 25 of Vanished in the Mist (A Mystic Lake Mystery #2)

Shanna turned from the kitchen sink as Kaden stepped inside the cabin with his overnight bag. He immediately shut and locked the door, then surprised her by sliding one of the kitchen chairs under the doorknob.

She tossed the dishcloth she’d been using onto the counter, having just finished cleaning up from their dinner. “Paranoid much?”

“I’m getting that way.” He set his bag down on the table.

“Something happen while you were getting your stuff from your boat?” She looked toward the front windows, then remembered that he’d insisted on shutting and locking all of the shutters over them when they’d first arrived and after he’d searched the tiny cabin to make sure that Troy, the Phantom, or any other possible bad guy wasn’t inside.

“What is it?” She glanced at the covered windows again, starting to feel uneasy. “Did you see someone outside?”

“I checked the perimeter before coming in. It seems to be all clear.” He shoved his hands in his pants pockets. “Dawson called. As expected, the initial search of the public boat ramp down the road from Stella’s came up empty. No sign of Sam or Jack.”

“Hopefully they’re safe and just hiding out somewhere like we talked about. What about Peyton? Did she narrow down the area where they had that last bonfire? Will you and Dawson be able to take the boat out in the morning to search for Tanya?”

“She cooperated, gave a specific location. Dawson’s meeting me here around nine.”

“That’s good news.”

“Yes.” His expression was tense, in spite of what he’d said.

“Kaden? Is something else going on?” She pressed a hand to her chest. “Did Dawson…did they find another body?”

He shook his head, then slowly crossed the room, stopping so close to her that she had to tilt her head back to look him in the eyes.

“Kaden? What’s wrong? You’re worrying me.”

He drew a ragged breath but didn’t say anything.

She frowned in confusion. She’d never seen him this way, so tense, so…

keyed up. Then again, they hadn’t known each other all that long.

And how was that possible when she felt as if she’d known him forever?

They’d been together almost 24/7 since the moment they’d met, spending far more time than if they’d been casually dating for weeks, or months.

Maybe that’s why she felt so in tune with him.

And yet, this morose, tense man standing before her was a side of Kaden she’d never seen.

She didn’t understand his mood, or know what had caused it.

She touched his chest to get him to look at her.

He jerked as if she’d branded him, giving her his full attention. Slowly, ever so slowly, he placed his hands on either side of her against the countertop, trapping her with his body, his heat, his jaw so tense he seemed to be in pain. And then, she knew. She understood.

Her pulse quickened, her belly tightened deliciously as she slid her fingers across his shirt over his heart. It was pounding just as fast as hers. He was a man on edge, struggling for control.

She smiled.

He swore even as he feathered his hand across her cheek, sending a shiver down her spine. That slow caress continued down the side of her neck. Her skin flushed hot and cold everywhere he touched. Since when had her neck ever been that sensitive?

His throat worked as he leaned down, closer, his mouth angling toward hers. She stood on tiptoe to meet him halfway. Suddenly he let her go, swearing again as he strode away from her, stopping in front of one of the shuttered windows beside the couch.

She blinked in surprise and settled back on her feet. Disappointment and confusion warred with each other as she pushed away from the kitchen counter and followed him. “What was that about?”

He slowly turned around, his hands shoved in his pockets as if to keep himself from reaching for her. His eyes had darkened to the color of midnight and practically blazed with heat. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”

Her breath caught at the hungry look in his eyes, the rough rasp in his voice.

Her pulse began to race, her belly tightening with desire.

It was a heady feeling, knowing he wanted her as much as she’d been wanting him for what felt like forever.

But she’d just embarrassed herself by responding when it seemed that he was going to kiss her.

She wasn’t putting herself out there again.

The ball was in his court. It was up to him now.

He drew a ragged breath, then shook his head. “I’m sorry. I know I’m being a jerk. I don’t mean to be, I just…do you have any clue how utterly frustrating it is that we’re both going to sleep in the same tiny cabin tonight and knowing I shouldn’t touch you?”

She had to curl her hands at her sides to keep from reaching for him. “Shouldn’t? Why?”

He frowned, as if the answer was obvious. “Why? I live in Charleston. My business is there.”

“So?”

His frown deepened. “You live in West Virginia.”

“Yes. And? What’s the problem?”

“What’s the problem? Seriously? Our businesses, our livelihoods, are a day’s drive apart.

We could never be… It wouldn’t make sense to…

Ah, hell.” He yanked his hands free and scrubbed his face that was already showing signs of needing a shave.

“I’m sorry. This is… I never should have said anything.

I was just sitting on my boat and thinking about you here, and me, tonight, and I couldn’t…

I wanted… Damn. I’m trying to be a gentleman. ”

She took a step closer, then another, until her breasts pushed against his chest.

His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat as his gaze dipped down.

“Kaden?”

He shuddered and seemed to struggle to force his gaze up until he was looking at her face. “Shanna?”

The way his voice caressed her name had her flushing hot all over. This time, she was the one who traced the outline of his cheek, feathered her hands down the side of his neck, then across his lips. A bead of sweat ran down his cheek even though it was cool inside the cabin.

“Shanna, I don’t… It wouldn’t be right to start…something between us that has no future. You get that, right? I don’t want to hurt you, or treat you with anything but respect. You deserve to be protected, cherished, not used for a night when there’s no possibility of a future relationship.”

She stared up at him, searching his smoldering gaze. “You want me.”

He swallowed. “Yes.”

“And I want you.”

His nostrils flared, but he remained silent.

“But you’re holding back because you feel I deserve respect, and to be…cherished?”

His hand shook as he reached for her. Then his fingers curled against his palm and he dropped his hand to his side without touching her. “You deserve so much more than I can ever give you.”

She stared at him in wonder. “Wow. Why couldn’t I have met you when I was sixteen?”

He frowned. “Sixteen?”

“When I was a champion swimmer with a gazillion swim-meet medals to my name. Did I ever tell you that?”

He slowly shook his head. “No. I thought you were terrified of the water.”

“I am. But back then, I wasn’t. I loved the water, swimming, diving, anything I could do to feel it rush through my fingers as I pulled myself forward faster and faster.

I wanted to be an Olympic champion. But it wasn’t meant to be.

” She cupped his cheek in her hand, unable to resist the desire to touch, to treasure.

To cherish.

“What happened?” His dark eyes searched hers, the desire tempered with concern.

Because he cared about her.

It was a heady knowledge to have.

She slowly slid her hand down the side of his neck, as he’d done to her earlier, delighting at the feel of his pulse speeding up beneath her fingertips.

“For my sixteenth birthday, my parents threw a pool party at our home and invited all my friends. Once everyone left, I was in the pool getting all of the floats out, when one of my friend’s brothers who’d come with her to the party suddenly appeared in our backyard.

He’d made advances earlier. But I told him I wasn’t interested. ”

Kaden’s eyes darkened, the heat tinged with anger as he gently took her hand in his. “Please tell me he didn’t…that he didn’t—”

“Attack me?”

He nodded.

“He kissed me, or tried to. But I turned my head and told him to leave. The rest of it happened so fast I don’t remember all the details.

He…shoved me under the water, grabbed my breast. I kicked and swam away.

But he was a strong swimmer, too. He dove, pinned me to the bottom of the pool, yanked down my bikini bottoms and…

” She drew a shaky breath. “I haven’t spoken about this to anyone besides my parents.

And the police. And my therapist. Ever. Not even with my little sister, Cassidy. ”

His hand was shaking now as he held hers, his thumb gently rubbing her palm in a soothing motion. “And you don’t have to tell me this, either. I don’t want you to relive something so awful.”

“I want to tell you. I want you to understand. He didn’t… The boy didn’t do what he wanted. My dad saw him from the kitchen window and dove into the pool. He jerked him off me and hauled him out. That’s when it happened.”

He frowned, his thumb stopping its soothing motions against her palm. “What happened?”

She drew a bracing breath before continuing.

“When I pushed off the bottom of the pool to swim to the surface, my hair got caught in the drain. I don’t think that would happen in a modern pool, but it was an old house, with an old pool.

My hair was long and…well, I woke up in the hospital.

My dad had realized what was happening and grabbed a knife from the kitchen to free me.

I don’t remember that part. I’d lost consciousness by then.

But I do remember waking up with a really bad haircut. ”

She chuckled but he didn’t smile back. His expression was a mixture of anger, shock and sympathy.

“That’s why you’re afraid of the water,” he said.

“Apparently. I haven’t been able to get near it since without feeling nauseous. My therapist at the time told me it was like riding a horse, that I needed to hop back on to get over my fear. But every time I tried… I couldn’t. So I gave it up. I never went near a pool again.”

“Please tell me the jerk who attacked and almost killed you got what was coming to him.”

“We had a security camera that caught everything. But I didn’t want to go to court, be victimized all over again.

I’m sure his lawyer would have made me out to be some temptress or something equally stupid to justify his client’s actions.

We settled out of court, kept it quiet, even though I promise you my dad wanted to kill him.

” She smiled. “But that’s not why I told you.

I told you because I trust you enough to tell you the worst thing that ever happened to me.

Well, aside from Troy. He’s the second worst thing to happen to me.

But that’s different. And I don’t even want to go there right now.

Kaden, you say I deserve to be protected, cherished.

You make me feel that way, already, just by being here, wanting to keep me safe.

And by denying yourself something I would freely give, because you care about me.

You’re worried that it will hurt me to spend a night in your arms when there’s no possibility of a future relationship. But isn’t that my decision to make?”

“Shanna—”

“We don’t know what the future holds. But I do know how I feel tonight, right now. I care about you, too. Hold me, Kaden. Cherish me. Make me forget everything else if only for a night. Erase the hurts, the pain, the struggles. Love me, Kaden. Even if one night is all we ever have.”

He made a strangled sound deep in his throat. Then she was in his arms, cradled against his chest as he carried her into the bedroom.