CAROLINE FOCUSED ON the changing scenery outside the window. They’d parted ways with the Pacific Ocean not long after they’d crossed over the Oregon-California line. The trees loomed larger and more imposing as they headed closer to Eureka. Picturesque towns continued to dot the windy road, but she’d stopped noting the names.
I don’t feel like Wonder Woman anymore.
She’d abandoned turned on hours ago, not long after Josh steered the car back onto the road. And she’d tossed empowered and sexy out the window after California’s famous redwoods replaced the Douglas firs. The reality of what she was doing, driving closer and closer to a man who might be waiting to hurt her . . .
Logic—and a detailed private investigator’s report—told her that Dustin had never tried to hunt her down after that one threatening visit to her sister’s home. She doubted he’d let go of his anger. And she still woke up wishing he were in a jail cell instead of roaming free. But he hadn’t contacted her sister or her again.
Still, I’m here. In California. On his turf. . .
If he saw her, he might come after her. But if he did, she’d kick his ass. She would put an end to this. She wasn’t powerless. She was no longer under his command. And she didn’t answer to him.
Of course a fight could land her in jail. And a run-in with the local law enforcement would lead to a stint in a military prison for her. Not exactly her ideal location for a fourth date.
“We’re getting close to the exit,” Josh said.
“Ready to stretch your legs?” she asked.
He’d been behind the wheel since they left the cottage this morning. She glanced at the dashboard clock.
Only two hours had slipped by? Anxiety was like a time warp, drawing out each minute, making the seconds feel like ticking time bombs.
“I thought this was just a drive-by,” he said as he shifted into the right lane and veered off the scenic highway.
“You can stand beside the car and eat your doughnuts,” she murmured as the muscles in her shoulders formed tight knots. The memory of Josh’s massage, the feel of his hands working to ease her body’s determination to stand guard, her need to be ready to fight or flee . . . that memory flew away.
They drove in silence listening as the strange female voice from Josh’s cell phone guided them through California suburbs.
“Arrived at your destination,” the phone announced.
“Thanks, Siri,” Josh muttered as he pulled into the parking lot beside a two-story apartment building.
“He’s in unit 1B. First floor.” After reading it over and over, searching for a clue, she’d memorized the investigator’s report. She reached for the truck door. “Let’s go take a look.”
“Hold up a minute.” Josh placed his hand on her arm. “I don’t think this is a good idea. We can’t just walk by the guy’s home and peek in his windows.”
She leaned forward and withdrew a battered Seattle Seahawks baseball cap from her backpack. “I borrowed it from Noah’s dad,” she explained as she pulled her ponytail through the back of the hat.
Josh raised an eyebrow. “We need to work on your superhero disguises.”
“Most people only see what they’re expecting to see,” she said. “And I doubt Dustin’s been looking over his shoulder, wondering if I’m waiting outside his window. As much as I wanted to, I never threatened his safety. And believe me, there were nights when we were deployed that I wanted sneak into his bunk and hold a knife to his . . .” She stole a glance at Josh. “Well, not his throat.”
“Caroline, I’ve wanted to threaten this asshole with the blade of a knife since I met you. And I’m being completely honest when I say that I’ve never had an interest in touching another man’s junk.” He cocked his head. “What stopped you?”
She shrugged. “He was bigger and stronger. He’d overpowered me before and I knew he could do it again. Also, he’d trained in hand-to-hand combat and he slept in a room filled with men who would have taken his side.”
“I would have taken yours,” he said, leveling her with a hard, fierce look. “I am on your side. You know that, right?”
She nodded.
“I want to hurt this asshole. But I have a personal interest in keeping you out of jail,” he continued. “So I have to ask. Where’s your gun, honey?”
“Locked in its case,” she said with a regretful sigh. “And tucked in my pack. I thought it would be too tempting.”
“Let’s keep it there,” he said. “Now I’m ready for a walk by if you are.”
The steps bled together—getting out of the truck, taking his hand, and walking up the sidewalk—and she focused on the rush of adrenaline. She refused to acknowledge the fear. It had been the same when she’d driven a truck down a road potentially lined with IEDs in the Middle East. Focus on the rush of energy. Hone in on the mission.
They walked up the cement path leading to the front of the pale yellow building. Steps from the strangely pleasant looking structure, the path divided, leading to two separate ground level units. Stairs ran up both sides providing access to the second story.
A brown cardboard box stood in front of the door on the right. Caroline stopped and stared at it.
Just a box. Not a threat.
The door to the unit on the left swung open and she turned her attention to their destination—unit 1B. But the young blonde in the doorway wasn’t her target.
“Hi there,” the blonde called as she shifted a toddler clutching a stuffed penguin to her other hip. “If you’re looking for Angela, she moved out last week. Her mom’s ill so she picked up and went home to San Diego. But I’m forwarding her mail if you want me to tell her that you stopped by.”
“Hello,” Josh said, firing up his charm. He grinned at the woman in the doorway before turning his smile to the shy child in her arms. “I’m Brody.”
Oh really? she thought.
“We’re not looking for Angela. My girl and I were just passing through and wanted to look up an old friend,” he continued.
Or spy on him. . .
“Do you know Dustin?” he asked. “He lived in 1B—your unit—a while back.”
The blonde shook her head and shifted the child a second time. “Sorry, he must have moved on. I’ve been here six months and I know everyone.”
Josh wrapped his arm around Caroline and pulled her close. “I told you we should have called first, sweet pea,” he said in mock chastisement.
She nodded and turned to the nosy mother who hadn’t offered her name. “Sorry to bother you. My silly idea to drop in on him. Back to the truck, honey pie.”
With Josh’s arm still wrapped around her, she spun on the heel of her combat boot and headed for the truck. “You should stick with logging and baking,” she muttered. “Your acting skills need work.”
“Yeah, I’ve never been good at lying,” he said as he unlocked the passenger side door and held it open for her. “But at least we confirmed that he’s moved on.”
She nodded as she climbed into the truck. The door closed and she took one last look at the sunshine-yellow building.
Dustin wasn’t there.
A fresh wave of fear hit her and threatened to draw her under. It was a like a current that could hold her down until her lungs begged for air. But she fought back drawing a sharp inhale.
Inhale, my ass. That was a sob.
And if she didn’t get herself together, another would follow. Tears would flow. And once they started, she’d lose her last vestige of control. She’d melt into a weeping, wailing mess. She knew the way down that path. She’d followed it before, dissolving into a crying mess in the bathroom stall on a remote military base in Afghanistan while Noah waited outside determined to escort her safely back to her bunk.
She’d been prepared to fight on those nights too, but instead she’d run up against failure. Just like today. Her eyes filled with tears, but she fought to hold them back.
Don’t cry!
She looked away from the house and fought to control her breathing. Dustin hadn’t been here for six months. But if he wasn’t here, where had he gone?
JOSH WAS PRETTY damn sure closure didn’t lead to a stoic, teary-eyed Marine sitting still as a freaking statue in his passenger seat. And if he didn’t act soon, she would really begin to cry. He’d known her for over a year. He’d rushed to Caroline’s aid after Josie was attacked in Noah’s barn not long after she appeared in Forever. He’d removed a shaken Caroline from the scene when the police showed up. He’d witnessed wild panic in her green eyes but never anguish. And she sure as hell had never shed a tear in front of him before.
“Where to next?” he asked. “Do you have another address for him? Work? Maybe his ex-wife?”
Action. She needed to focus on doing something. Looking forward, taking that next step—it was the only way to fight back when life seemed hell-bent on pressing the ‘overwhelmed’ switch. Hadn’t he learned that the hard way, moving from one damn game to the next hoping he’d be able to reclaim his memory? In the end, he’d recalled only the feelings, the frustration, but never the events or games. Some nights he’d been close to tears too.
Caroline nodded and reached for her pack. Withdrawing a manila folder with worn edges, she flipped through the pages. “His ex-wife lives nearby. That’s the only other address in here.”
“Work?”
She shook her head and drew her lower lip between her teeth. For a second, he thought she’d start crying in earnest.
“No,” she said finally. “When Noah hired the investigator, Dustin wasn’t working. He probably thought he could get the decision reversed and the Marines would take him back.”
“Doesn’t hurt to swing by his ex-wife’s place.” He turned the key, put the truck in gear, and steered onto the two-lane road. “Enter the address into my phone and see if there’s a drive-thru along the way.”
Thirty minutes later, with a bag full of double-bacon cheeseburgers and fries between them, he parked across the street and two doors down from a split-level ranch. An American flag hung beside the front door. Flower beds separated the neatly mowed front lawn from the house. And a man stood in the center of the trimmed grass holding a baseball.
He was a big guy, with a build that suggested he could have played football if he lost the beer belly. A boy of eight or maybe nine waited on the far side with his glove.
“Mom’s going to be mad that you let me play catch when I’m sick,” the child called out.
“Looks like you’re feeling better now,” the man said with a laugh. “And the fresh air is good for you. Ask any doctor.”
“Oh my God.” The faint whisper filled the cab of the truck tearing Josh’s focus from the all-American family scene outside.
“Caroline?”
“That’s him,” she murmured. “That’s Dustin. And he’s . . . he’s playing ball. After everything . . .”
A familiar rage pulsed through him. If he let go, he’d climb out of the truck and attack that bastard. He’d—
“He went back to his family. His wife and kids. He went back as if . . . as if nothing happened,” she murmured.
“Why don’t I go and talk to him?” Josh said. And we’ll have another date after you bail me out of jail.
He knew she couldn’t walk into a police station. But spending a night or two behind bars before his brothers came for him seemed a small price to pay.
“No,” she said firmly. “Just drive. Please.”
And this time it wasn’t a command masquerading as a plea. She was close to begging. With one last look at the bastard who’d stripped away her security, who’d made her feel like she needed to be fucking less—less beautiful, less bold, less brave—he turned the key and revved the engine.
Dustin looked over, his brow furrowed in fucking concern as Josh peeled out of the parking space.
About time you worried about something, Josh thought.
The bastard couldn’t see them. Not with the midday sun high in the sky and the dark tint on Josh’s truck windows. Logic told him that was a damn good thing. He didn’t want her former CO coming after them. But the other part of him wanted to send a message to Dustin.
She hasn’t forgotten, asshole.
And now she had a whole team, or whatever the hell they called it in the Marines, on her side. She had him. She had Noah, Josie, and the rest of the staff at Big Buck’s. And she had his brothers and his sister on her side. Even if they didn’t know her full story, they’d fight for her. She was family. She was his, dammit. Not to possess, but to love and protect with everything he had.
“Where do you want to go?” he said as they turned the corner and the all-American rapist disappeared from sight. He wanted to get her away from here and find a place where he could take care of her.
“The beach,” she murmured. “Take me back to the ocean.”
“As you wish, Caroline.” He headed for the highway, determined to put a few miles between them and the man who’d managed to do what Caroline couldn’t—move forward.