Nella
“How are you feeling?”
Pippa turns her eyes on me and I brace for the blank look in them, but instead I see curiosity.
I called the hospital a few times yesterday to check in on her. The nurses were friendly, letting me know she had eaten, had been out of bed to use the bathroom with help, and did a lot of sleeping. Then at just after six this morning, Tracy—the nurse from earlier on the weekend—called me to let me know Pippa asked to see me. For a moment, hope flared perhaps some memory had come back but I quickly nipped that in the bud. If my sister had remembered me, she would’ve called herself.
“I’m all right, I guess.”
I take a seat beside her bed and resist taking her hand in mine. Something that under normal circumstances would come naturally, but might be perceived as invasive now. Instead I fold my hands in my lap and wait her out. After all, she’s the one who invited me here.
“Tracy mentioned you’re the one who found me?”
“Fletch and I did,” I correct her, not wanting to take all the credit. “Fletcher Boone; I got his name from a friend back in Cranbrook. He’s a professional tracker.”
“You hired a tracker to find me?” There’s a hint of disbelief in her voice.
“Of course, you’re my—” I snap my mouth shut, remembering her reaction to me yesterday.
“Sister,” she finishes for me. “I’m sorry I don’t recognize you. It wasn’t until I found you’d been looking for me for a while I realized this has to be difficult for you too.”
I swallow hard, making a mental note to thank Tracy.
“I’m just grateful you’re recovering, awake, and talking,” I reassure her, earning a faint smile.
“Too bad I don’t remember much.”
This time I don’t resist the urge to grab her hand.
“It’ll come. Don’t force it,” I echo Dr. Osborne’s words to me yesterday as I give her hand a squeeze before releasing it.
“Okay, but will you tell me a little bit?”
The vulnerability in her voice tears at my insides, but my voice is steady when I answer, “Of course.”
I feel a ton lighter when I walk out of the hospital half an hour later.
Pippa had tired quickly. I’d tried not to overwhelm her by cramming our entire history down her throat, but it still proved to be a lot to take in. So when I saw her eyes get heavy; I told her to get some rest and promised I’d be back later this afternoon to see how she’s doing.
There’d been a change of shift while I was with my sister and Tracy had already left for home. I found out at the nurses’ station Pippa would likely be moved to a regular room after morning rounds, and the nurse I spoke to promised to give me a call with her new room number.
I briefly consider going back to the cabin to catch another hour or so of sleep, but I have too much energy buzzing through my body. After what was a very tough day yesterday—and three-quarters of a bottle of wine to help me sleep—this morning definitely lifted my spirits, despite the mild hangover headache lingering.
Instead I pull my notebook from my computer bag the moment I get behind the wheel of my van. I’ll just pick up where I’d left off last night.
Sheriff Ewing surprised me by inviting me right into his office when I’d stopped by yesterday afternoon. He seemed genuinely pleased at the news Pippa was awake, but his mood sobered when I informed him she was suffering memory loss. Apparently, Ewing had hoped her statement might offer them some fresh leads on their investigation into the RV thefts.
I made a few general inquiries about the case he willingly responded to, but when my questions became more detailed—makes and years of any other stolen trailers and motorhomes—and he clued in I was making notes, he clammed up.
“I hope you’re not getting any ideas about playing amateur sleuth, Ms. Freling,” he’d cautioned me. “I understand your persistence in finding your sister, but I’d appreciate it if you left the investigating to professionals.”
He cut our chat short pretty quickly after that, but I wasn’t too discouraged. I still had Rick’s RVs to visit and whatever information I didn’t get from the sheriff, Kaylie’s uncle was able to fill in. Apparently, law enforcement had already been by there for a chat. I walked away with a list of model names and years.
Last night I was able to link my laptop to my phone’s data network and through simple Google searches was able to find mention of five of the stolen RVs, including my sister’s, on the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office blotter. That gave me dates and locations of those thefts and with that I was able to pull up some newspaper articles, which provided me with a few more details on some of the incidents.
There had been a story on Pippa as well, but by then I was too emotional and halfway drunk on the wine I’d consumed, so I saved that for another day. I fell asleep, exhausted the moment my head hit the pillow, but when I woke up at four with a lightweight’s hangover and the headache that went with it, I hadn’t been able to get back to sleep. Against better judgment I read the story in bed.
The focus had been Pippa’s dramatic rescue and it was clear the writer of the story had done his job because not only was HMT—High Mountain Trackers—mentioned, but Fletch was named specifically. Of course that got me thinking about him, something I’d tried to avoid doing the night before, and the guilt set in. If not for him, I don’t think Pippa would be alive. He had saved my bacon more than once, I’d been an active participant in the heated kisses we’ve shared, and then I’d brushed him off. It’s not fair to keep avoiding him.
But first I want to make a few stops in town.
Fletch
My mood hasn’t improved much when I walk into the barn after lunch.
I was pissed to see Nella’s van missing again this morning when I stepped outside. At the main house I asked Thomas if he’d seen her leave but he hadn’t. I’m annoyed I have no idea where she was yesterday or where she could’ve gone off to before seven in the morning. If I hadn’t seen her van parked right outside the cabin last night when I got back, I’d have thought she’d packed up without a word.
Instead of waiting around for breakfast, I’d gone home and cooked some myself. Then I’d loaded the meat into the bed of my truck and went to hang it in the breeding barn. Trying to stay busy, I cleaned out the coolers when I got back at the cabin, left them upside down on my porch to dry, and headed into town to drop off the head with the game warden.
I just got back, hoping Nella might have returned but her van is still missing.
“Get into it with someone?”
Jonas points at my hand, which looks pretty beaten up. Guess the doorpost won.
“Banged it,” I tell him by way of explanation.
Not sure he’s buying. I figure Sully probably blabbed already; things tend to get around quickly.
“Looks sore.”
“It’s fine.” I flex a few times to prove it. “Ama mentioned you were looking for me?”
“Yeah. Have you talked to Nella?”
I don’t like the stern look on his face.
“Not since yesterday. Why?”
“Got a call from Wayne Ewing earlier. He’s a little concerned. She stopped by his office yesterday afternoon, asking about the investigation and apparently was taking notes.”
Fuck. What do you want to bet she’s decided to do a little investigating of her own? I swear, I’ve never met a more headstrong woman in my life.
Frustrated, I whip my hat off and slap it against my thigh. I’m going to have to have a word with her. Jonas’s next words bring that home in a big way.
“A hiker found two bodies about fifty yards from a dispersed camping site on Forest Road 176, just north of Troy, early this morning. They’d been there for a while, predators got at them.”
“Jesus.”
I know what that looks like and it’s not pretty. What I don’t know is what this has to do with Nella, but before I can ask, Jonas volunteers the answer.
“Yeah. Ewing was calling from the scene and says a pair of fairly new camp chairs and an ax were left around a firepit at the nearby camp site. He thinks this may be connected to the RV thefts.”
And it looks like Nella is poking around that investigation. I’m gonna have to shut that down.
“I’ll talk to her.”
“That’d be good, but are you sure she’ll listen to you?” He looks at me with an eyebrow raised.
“I’ll make her,” I growl.
Fucking Sully.
“Been trying to call you for the past hour.”
She almost jumps and drops her bag on the floor at her feet.
“You scared me!”
I get up from the kitchen table where I’ve been waiting since I let myself in. She’d locked the door but that hadn’t been too much of a deterrent. I wasn’t going to sit on the porch in full view of the entire ranch or tongues would never stop wagging. Then I stalk toward her.
“How did you get in here anyway?”
“What’ve you been up to, Nella?”
“I asked you first,” she says, sticking her chin out when I stop inches away from her.
“Lock’s a piece of shit. Where have you been?” I push.
“Out.”
“Nella…”
She tilts her head defiantly and I suddenly feel the need to kiss her. So I do.
Her lips open in shock when I wrap an arm around her waist and I grab the opportunity. The moment my tongue touches hers, her hands curl around my neck and she pulls me closer.
And just like that, prim and proper Nella is on fire.
“Easy,” I mumble into her mouth, but more to myself than to her. I’m about two seconds from losing my last thread of control.
I came here to have a serious talk with her and instead her hand is slipping into the waistband of my pants. I’ve reached my breaking point when she digs her fingers into my ass cheek. Groaning, I lift my head and look down into her flushed face.
“Only one way this can end with your hand on my ass, Babe,” I growl in warning.
Something flares in her eyes and I close mine as she pulls her hand from my pants.
Shit. I’m going to need an ice bath to freeze my junk, or I won’t be able to walk with this raging hard-on in my jeans.
But then I feel her hand take mine and my eyes snap open as she starts moving us toward the bedroom. The moment we cross the threshold, she lets go and moves to the side of the bed, turning around to face me.
“I didn’t mean to come off as ungrateful yesterday,” she says, even as she lifts her hands to her top button closed tightly at the base of her slim neck. “I was overwhelmed and needed…”
I barely register the rest of her words as she methodically unbuttons the rest of her shirt and shrugs out of it. Then she folds it neatly and places it on the nightstand. I completely miss what she says next when she reaches behind her to unclip her bra, letting it slide down her arms before placing it neatly on top of her shirt. Her creamy skin looks as soft as I remember it being, and all I can think of is tasting every last inch of her.
“Fletch? Are you listening?” she asks sharply.
My gaze meets her accusing one. Damn, even that angry scowl is sexy. At odds with her prudish appearance, she seems completely unbothered by her nudity as she plants a fist in her side. The woman is a walking contradiction and I’m discovering I like it.
A whole fucking lot.
“Seriously? Babe, the moment you started taking your clothes off my ears stopped working.”
She rolls her eyes before repeating, “I said I was sorry for never properly thanking you for all you’ve done.”
Her words act like a cold shower.
That’s what this is? Gratitude?
Suddenly I’m pissed.
“So this is your idea of thanking me?” I wave my hand in front of me. “You’re gonna fuck me out of gratitude?”
Her mouth falls open and her eyes bulge. My crass words shocked her. Good.
I turn on my heel and am about to walk out of here. As much as she turns me on, I have a little pride left and I’m not about to become someone’s equivalent to a mercy fuck.
“No!” Her voice stops me in my tracks. “I mean yes, I’m grateful, but that’s not why—”
Before she can say another word, I bridge the few steps between us as I rip my shirt over my head and toss it on the floor. I reach for her and the next moment my mouth is on hers, her fingers are clawing on my back, and all of that glorious, silky skin is pressed against my chest.
“Bed,” I mumble when I come up for air.
Her pretty eyes are dark and shiny with heat as she nods before climbing onto the mattress. Her scorching gaze never leaves me as I toe off my boots, shuck my jeans and boxers, and peel off my socks before putting a knee in the bed. Her hands are fumbling with her zipper and I brush them aside, making quick work of her pants, yanking them and her panties down in one move.
Fuck me. She looks like a wet dream; sturdy thighs, rounds hips, the soft swell of a belly, and the pink blush slowly covering her upper chest and face as I drink her in.
I reach for my jeans only to realize I’m no longer the guy who walks around prepared for any opportunity with a condom in his wallet. Haven’t been that guy in years.
“What’s wrong?”
I look at her, mentally cursing myself as I formulate an apology but all I can manage is, “Condom.”
The color on her cheeks deepens. “My computer bag,” she says, her eyes drifting over my shoulder. “I picked up a box this morning.”
I’m instantly hit with an image of Nella, all buttoned up, walking up to the counter at the drugstore in town carrying a box of condoms. It puts a smile on my face as I bend down to kiss her stomach before darting out of the room to grab her bag. I’m back in a flash with the box.
“You bought a bulk pack,” I point out, ripping it open and pulling a strip free. I toss the box on the nightstand and slide in bed beside her, propping my head on my hand as I look down on her.
“I grabbed the first thing I saw,” she admits with a smirk on her lips as she glances down my body. “Be grateful they’re not extra-small.”
“Oh, I’m not complaining,” I assure her, running my palm over her skin from her neck to the patch of hair between her legs.
I love the way she sinks her teeth into that plump bottom lip and moans softly as I dip between her thighs and play with her. Liquid heat coats my fingers.
“Look at you…all pretty and flushed. Your body is ready, but are you?”
By way of an answer, she reaches out and wraps a firm hand around my shaft.
Oh, fuck yeah, she’s ready.
It takes less than two seconds to roll on a condom and kneel between her legs. I use my hands and mouth to show her how much I love her body as I slowly stretch out on top of her. Shifting her legs she makes room for me, but then throws me a curveball when she plants a foot in the mattress, flipping me on my back.
As she climbs on top of me, she has her bottom lip between her teeth again but she avoids looking at me.
“Do you mind? I’ve always wanted—”
“Whatever you want, Nella,” I tell her, my voice strangled as I keep myself from taking charge.
Then I get her eyes, hot and intense, as she carefully guides me inside her. I grind my teeth when she sinks down on me and suddenly freezes.
“You feel incredible,” I mumble digging my fingers in her hips. “But you’re gonna kill me if you don’t move.”
I groan when she finally does. Tentatively at first, but once she finds her rhythm, she seems to shed every inhibition and rides me wild. I’ve never seen a woman smile when she comes, but Nella is smiling as she cries out her release.
Fucking magnificent.