His adorable pixie tasted like peppermint. He decided peppermint was his new favorite flavor. At some level, Kaleb knew he was crossing the line, but he couldn’t seem to make himself care.
This was what he’d wanted the first moment he’d seen her standing in the doorway holding a gun trained at the center of his chest. He’d thought about kissing her, but his imagination hadn’t done her justice. She tasted incredible.
He’d never wanted a woman more.
When Sierra nudged him, he wanted to push the dog away, but Charlotte broke off from the kiss. Her breathing erratic, much like his own.
“Wow,” he murmured, trailing the tip of his finger down her silky cheek. “That was amazing.”
“I—uh—need to . . .” Her voice trailed off, and he couldn’t help but grin at her inability to formulate a coherent sentence.
“Drink your Sleepytime tea?” He badly wanted to kiss her again but figured he shouldn’t press his luck. For one thing, he didn’t want to scare her. He shouldn’t have pounced like a drowning man gasping for air.
But the most important reason was that he refused to take advantage of the situation. They were only here together because some abuser was seeking revenge.
“Yes.” She pulled out of his embrace and stared blankly for a moment at the small box of tea sitting on the counter. Then she picked it up, took out a tea bag, and grabbed a mug from the cupboard. The way she avoided his gaze as she went through the process of warming up the water in the microwave made him pause.
Maybe he had scared her or did something to bring bad memories floating to the surface. Idiot, he silently rebuked. Couldn’t you have handled that with more gentleness?
“Charlotte. Do I need to apologize? I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“No!” She spun away from the microwave to face him. “You didn’t. It’s just—” She waved a hand. “I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting that.”
“The kiss? Or the impact of it?”
Finally, the corner of her mouth tipped up in a wry smile. “Both.”
“Okay, I can work with that.” The moment he said the words, she shook her head and took a step back.
“No, Kaleb. We both know this isn’t going anywhere. I’ve dedicated my life to protecting women and children, providing them a safe place to live. At this point, I’m not interested in anything else.”
“I see.” He didn’t really understand at all, but now that he was thinking more clearly, he knew she might be right. He didn’t particularly care for Los Angeles and hadn’t planned to stay other than to find Ava. Still, a stab of disappointment hit hard. “Thanks for letting me know.”
She narrowed her gaze, planting her hands on her hips in a defiant stance. “Come on, Kaleb. You don’t have to act like you were looking for a relationship. You could have any woman you wanted, why pick one that has more baggage than a jumbo jet?”
“Everyone has a past, Charlotte. A history.” He hated that she felt unlovable. Or maybe unworthy of being cared for. “You know my past, I was married once, when I was young and foolish. I know your life must not have been all sunshine and roses either. Maybe one day you’ll be willing to share what you endured, but no pressure. You should know that you’re an attractive woman, Charlotte. And any man would count his blessings to have you in his life.”
Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth, then closed it again as if she had no clue what to say.
The microwave dinged, and she turned away to make her tea.
Sierra nudged him again, harder this time. He sighed and glanced down at her. “Okay, okay. We’ll go outside.”
Cradling the mug in her hands, Charlotte leaned against the counter. He wanted to stay, to see if she might reveal more about her past, but she remained silent.
He offered her a smile. “Enjoy your tea. I’ll be back soon. Come, Sierra.” He led the dog to the front door, deactivated the alarm to take her out, then keyed the code in to activate it again.
Since they were outside, he walked the perimeter of the property. He estimated the house sat on a half an acre of land, unusually large for the Los Angeles suburbs. Then again, it appeared the homeowners had plenty of money.
He liked that the house wasn’t sitting on top of a neighbor’s house. Even better, he was relieved to find everything was fine. No sign that an intruder had been there.
As much as he was glad they’d gotten away from the previous safe house without being followed, he wished the guy hadn’t seen the bus at all. Kaleb had given up his original plan to sit at the safe house, hoping the gunman would return. After the guy had basically watched them get onto the bus, Kaleb had known that trying to trap the guy into coming inside the safe house would be a useless endeavor. The guy would be stupid to return to their previous location, knowing full well it was empty.
He desperately needed a new plan. Unfortunately, without a name, or even a clear photograph of the guy, he couldn’t come up with one.
Lifting his gaze to the sky, he silently prayed. Please, Lord, grant me the wisdom and strength to find this evil man!
As always, Kaleb felt a sense of calm after praying. When he’d finished the perimeter check, he led Sierra back inside.
He was disappointed, though, to find Charlotte had gone back upstairs, leaving her empty tea mug on the counter. He hoped she’d finally fall asleep, getting the rest she needed.
Something he needed to do as well.
Sierra followed him to the living room. The sofa was too short, but he bent his knees up to his chest and slept on his side. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, his bum knee didn’t love it, but he’d slept in worse conditions.
One minute he was listening to Sierra’s breathing, the next he was flailing in the water, trying to survive after an underwater bomb exploded meters from their SEAL team.
Can’t breathe! Can’t breathe! His world was upside down, he couldn’t figure out which way to go to reach the surface. His BUD/S training came back to him, but trying to see the direction the bubbles were rising was much harder when the entire ocean was rolling in turmoil.
The pressure in his chest increased to an intolerable level. His head throbbed painfully. Just when he thought he might die, his head broke through the surface. He gasped seconds before the turbulent water sucked him down again.
No!
Kaleb woke with a start, his body sticky with sweat. He was breathing heavily, as if he truly was drowning again. Sierra licked his face. He reached out a hand to stroke her, realizing the dog had once again woken him from the horrific nightmare. His head still hurt, but not with as much force as he’d experienced in the past. A sign he was getting slightly better? Maybe.
“Kaleb? Are you okay?”
He winced, turning to see Charlotte standing at the end of the sofa. “Yes, fine.” His voice sounded rough, as if he really had swallowed half the ocean. “Sorry I woke you.”
“You didn’t, I normally get up early.” Her eyes were full of concern.
He belatedly realized dawn was peeking over the horizon. Somehow, he’d managed to get a solid seven hours of sleep. Until the nightmare had struck again. “Ah, that’s great. I hope you slept well?”
She nodded. “The Sleepytime tea worked. Maybe you should have tried some.”
He scrubbed his hands over his face. “No need, I slept fine.” And he had, until the past came back to haunt him.
Charlotte didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t press for more. “I usually enjoy a cup of coffee before everyone else wakes up. Care to join me?”
“I’d love to, but I need to take Sierra out first.”
“That’s okay, by the time you return, the coffee will be ready.” She headed into the kitchen.
He took a moment to rub Sierra, kissing her nose. “Thanks, girl. You’re a lifesaver.”
Sierra wagged her tail and licked his chin.
After he finished cleaning up after his best friend, he brought Sierra back inside and headed into the kitchen. He needed a shower, but he wasn’t about to give up even one minute of alone time with Charlotte.
“Black, right?” She glanced at him, holding up the pot.
“Yes, please.”
Charlotte handed him a mug of coffee, then doctored hers with cream and sugar before joining him at the breakfast bar. “I only drink it for the caffeine,” she joked.
He chuckled. “Trust me, that is not unusual. Coffee is a staple in the navy, and the other branches of the military too, I’m sure.”
“I can imagine,” she agreed. “I’m sorry you suffered a nightmare.”
He shrugged and sipped from his mug. “I don’t have them as often as I used to.” He looked down at Sierra, lying at his feet. “Sierra has been a huge help. She keeps me grounded and always wakes me up before I—” He caught himself before blurting the word die.
“Oh, Kaleb.” Charlotte reached out to cover his hand with hers. “That sounds awful.”
It wasn’t fun, but he really didn’t care to dwell on it. “I’m alive, and that’s what matters.” He took another sip of his coffee. “What’s the plan for today?”
“You know the kids will want to swim at least for an hour or so. Otherwise, no big plans.” She frowned. “I feel like we should be doing something, though, to figure out who this guy is.”
“I understand. I’ll call Detective Grimes, see if he has any updates.” He thought about the knit hat. “I can try heading back to the safe house, see if Sierra can track the guy’s scent.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened. “She can do that?”
“I’m not sure, but it can’t hurt to try.” He wouldn’t lie to her. “I’ve only just started doing some scent training with her. She’s a smart dog, but I don’t think she’s at the level of a police or military K9 yet, either, so don’t get your hopes up.”
“Right now, doing anything is better than sitting here and worrying.” Charlotte braced her elbows on the table. “I’ve been thinking maybe I should go back to the safe house, make it look as if we’ve returned.”
“No!” He tried to dial back his panic. “There’s no need. Let me see what Sierra can do first. And we’ll follow up with Grimes too. After all, he’s the one who should be out searching for this guy.”
“I’m sure he’s doing his best.”
Kaleb knew she was right, but Grimes’s best wasn’t good enough. But before he could say anything more, Milly entered the room.
“Char, you’re up early today.” The sweet housekeeper beamed at him. “You too, Kaleb.”
“Military habits,” he said with a grin. “I’m happy to see you too, Ms. Milly. I believe your being here is an indication that breakfast is right around the corner.”
Milly giggled. “Of course, I’m planning to make French toast this morning. It’s a favorite with the kiddos.”
“Sounds good to me.” Kaleb couldn’t remember the last time he’d had French toast. Maybe as a kid growing up, but now that his parents were gone, both dying of different forms of cancer—breast cancer for his mom and colon cancer for his dad—he hadn’t thought about those Sunday breakfasts in years. The navy tended to stick with the basics, powdered eggs and toast, maybe bacon or sausage on a rare occasion. His mouth watered with anticipation. “Thanks.”
Soon the rest of the residents emerged from their rooms.
Kaleb decided to wait until later, after he’d taken the kids outside to swim, before heading back to the original safe house. Yesterday, when he’d watched the kids play while the women chatted amongst themselves, he had to admit that Charlotte’s mission was an honorable one.
Not that her doing this meant she couldn’t have a meaningful relationship of her own, but he appreciated what she’d accomplished here. To see these abuse survivors talking, smiling, and even sometimes laughing was heartwarming.
God had clearly brought him to Los Angeles and Charlotte’s safe house to protect them. He was more than willing to accept the challenge.
The morning went by fast, and once they’d finished with lunch, the kids were begging and pleading to swim. The sun had warmed the temperatures to seventy-five, which wasn’t hot, but it wasn’t freezing either.
The kids and several of the women enjoyed the pool. Emma flirted with him, but he pretended not to notice. He and Sierra walked around the pool like sentinels on duty.
Charlotte didn’t swim, which was a disappointment. He told himself to be thankful for small favors. It was difficult enough to forget the impact of her peppermint kiss, and seeing her in a swimsuit would not help.
The kids were shivering by two o’clock in the afternoon. Their mothers forced them to come out of the water to dry off. Once everyone was inside, he activated the alarm and went to find Charlotte.
“Sierra and I are heading out,” he informed her. “I need you to keep everyone inside with the alarm system activated.”
“I will.”
His phone rang. Seeing Detective Grimes’s name on the screen, he quickly answered, putting the call on speaker so she could hear. “Hello?”
“Tyson? I have another photo array I’d like to show Ms. Cambridge.”
He locked gazes with Charlotte. “Yes, I’m here, Detective. Kaleb and I can be there in thirty minutes.”
“Sounds good. I’ll be waiting.”
Kaleb disconnected the call and stared at her. “Are you sure about this? Leaving them here alone?”
“Milly can watch over them. It’s more important for me to help identify the man responsible.”
He nodded. “Okay, it looks like we’re both going into the city then.” He moved away to call for a rideshare.
Oddly enough, he wasn’t disappointed that she’d be going with him. Which only told him he was in trouble.
Deep, deep trouble.
The feeling of anticipation was out of proportion with the task before her. Charlotte knew she was only going to identify a suspect, there was no reason to be giddy about spending time with Kaleb.
But she was.
She blamed the kiss. The incredible, toe-curling, thought-spiraling, desire-provoking kiss. She’d spent most of the day reminding herself that kissing Kaleb again could not happen. She liked her life the way it was, thank you very much. The last thing she wanted was a relationship fraught with complications.
Besides, when she’d pointed out that things between them couldn’t go anywhere, Kaleb had not disagreed. The moment the danger was over, he would leave to continue searching for Ava. Or doing whatever former SEALs did.
While she continued managing a safe house for abused women and children.
“Ready?” Kaleb asked as a blue SUV rolled down the street.
“Of course.” The rideshare driver stopped at the end of the driveway. Kaleb held the door open for her, then gestured for Sierra to hop in before he followed.
“Thanks for the ride,” Kaleb said as the guy pulled away from the curb.
The driver shrugged. “Just make sure the dog doesn’t mess up my car.”
“She won’t.”
Charlotte stroked her hand over Sierra’s fur. “She’s incredibly well behaved.”
“She’s a great companion,” Kaleb agreed. He leaned closer, lowering his voice. “After we meet with Grimes, we’ll head over to the safe house. See if she can pick up the scent from the knit cap I found.”
“I’d like that.” Truthfully, Charlotte was looking forward to watching Sierra in action. She felt good about the possibility of getting the gunman behind bars. The dark-haired man had to be a former boyfriend or husband of one of the women in the shelter. Personally, she hoped it was Tommy’s father, Willow’s ex-husband. The guy deserved to be locked up for beating Willow and giving his son a black eye.
Despite the notorious Los Angeles traffic, the trip to the police station didn’t take as long as she’d feared. When they arrived, Kaleb called Grimes to let them know they were there.
“I have Sierra with me, and I’m armed,” Kaleb said. “You may want to meet us outside the building.”
She assumed the detective agreed because less than two minutes later, he strode out of the police station looking annoyed. “Why would you bring a gun here?”
“Because, like you, I don’t go anywhere without it.” Kaleb waved an impatient hand. “What does it matter? I have a permit. Now, show us what you have.”
Grimes muttered something under his breath and held out the photo array. Charlotte took it from him, staring intently at the photos. She examined one photo at a time, trying to remember the brief glimpses she’d gotten of the dark-haired man.
As she moved from one picture to the next, she grew disheartened. One photo in particular was close, but she honestly didn’t think it was the same man.
“See something familiar?” Grimes asked as if reading her indecision.
“Wait, let me look them over too.” Kaleb took the photo array from her hand. He scanned them carefully, then glanced at her. “Okay, which one did you think was a possibility?”
“This one.” She pointed to the last photo on the card. “I can’t be sure, but he’s similar to the man I saw.”
“There is a resemblance,” Kaleb agreed. “But I can’t swear it’s the same man either.”
“If he’s a possible suspect, I can bring him in for questioning,” Grimes said with a shrug. “Can’t hurt to hear what he has to say.”
Charlotte frowned. “Do you really think he’ll confess to shooting the safe house?”
“No, but I’ve been doing this a long time, I can often pick up when I’m being lied to.” Grimes took the photo array back. “It’s worth a try, right?”
“Right. Are there more suspects to track down?” Kaleb asked.
“No.” Grimes glanced at her. “Unless you can give me more victim names, this is all I came up with.”
She swallowed a stab of disappointment. “I gave you all the names of the women who’d been here the past two months. We can go back further, but it seems odd that this guy would be looking for her after all this time.”
“I don’t know, I think you should do that anyway,” Kaleb said. “It could be that he’d been doing jail time, and if that’s the case, you should not underestimate the power of revenge.”
He had a good point. “Okay, I’ll compile another list and get that to you, Detective.” She forced a smile. “Thanks for all your help on this situation.”
“Not a problem. I want to find this guy too. I’ll keep you updated if I come up with anything more.” Grimes began to turn away.
“Wait.” Kaleb lightly grasped his arm. “Can you tell us the name of that guy? The one we both thought resembled the man we saw?”
Grimes hesitated. “I shouldn’t tell you, we don’t know that he’s guilty of anything.”
“I’m not going to stalk him,” Kaleb said. “I’m just curious which of the women he’s connected with.”
Grimes was silent for so long she doubted he’d admit to anything. Finally, he said, “His name is Thomas Acker, but you didn’t hear that from me.” Grimes shook off Kaleb’s hand and headed inside.
“Thomas Acker!” Charlotte grasped Kaleb’s hand at the revelation. “That’s Willow’s ex-husband. Tommy’s father!”
“The kid with a black eye,” Kaleb murmured, nodding slowly. “Maybe he is our guy.”
“Oh, Kaleb. I wish we could prove that one way or the other. I know Willow and Tommy are scared to death of him.”
“Let’s head back to the safe house. We know the guy wearing the knit hat was there, so that’s a good starting point. We’ll see if Sierra picks up his scent.”
Charlotte knew pinning their hopes on a partially trained dog wasn’t smart, but what choice did they have? The more she thought about the gunman being Thomas Acker, the more convinced she was that he was the stalker.
“Don’t, Charlotte,” Kaleb said as they began walking. “Neither one of us could say with any degree of certainty that he’s the guy.”
“I know.” She blew out a breath. “You’re right. It was close, but not exact. I wouldn’t be able to swear to it under oath.”
“I couldn’t swear to it either. Which is why we need to be careful and keep an open mind. To consider other possible suspects.”
Kaleb was right. She glanced at Sierra trotting along between them. “I promise to keep an open mind.”
“Technically, Grimes shouldn’t have given us the suspect’s name,” Kaleb said. “I knew I was pushing it, but I didn’t expect him to comply.”
“Why do you think he did?”
Kaleb smiled. “Honestly? I think he respects the fact that I served our country as a Navy SEAL. I wasn’t a cop the way he is, but I did my fair share of tracking down bad guys while fighting for justice. In some ways, the cop mentality is very similar to the military mindset. We both put our lives on the line every day to protect others.”
“That makes sense. And I want you to know how much I appreciate how you served our country.”
Kaleb nodded but didn’t say anything. Remembering the horrible nightmare he’d suffered earlier that morning, she couldn’t blame him.
He’d given his life for others. Similar in some respects to what she was trying to do with the women’s shelter.
She silently hoped Thomas Acker would be caught doing something illegal. If he wasn’t the gunman, she would still rest easier knowing he was behind bars.
When they reached the safe house, Kaleb paused at the corner and pulled out what looked like a poop bag from his pocket. He opened the bag and offered it to Sierra.
“This is Bad Man,” he said in a stern voice. “Seek! Seek Bad Man!”
Sierra took a long time sniffing at the knit cap, then wagged her tail when Kaleb pulled a tennis ball from another pocket. He showed it to her, then gave the command again. “Seek!”
Sierra put her nose in the air, then began trotting. She moved from side to side, then went straight over to the side of the building where the man had stood while they were getting everything packed on the bus.
“Good girl! Seek Bad Man!” Kaleb said.
Sierra continued going, following the side of the building. At the next intersection, she turned to the right. Kaleb and Sierra set a quick pace, forcing Charlotte to run to keep up. They dodged pedestrians who eyed them curiously.
“Is this the right way?” she asked breathlessly.
“So far, yeah.” Kaleb looked pleased. “Seek!”
Sierra came to a sudden stop, sniffing along the ground for several minutes before sitting down and staring at Kaleb.
“Good girl!” He pulled the ball out of his pocket and tossed it in the air. Sierra jumped up, snapping her jaws around it before the ball could hit the ground.
“What is this place?” Charlotte asked.
“This is the exact spot where I found the knit cap,” Kaleb explained. “I need to reward her, then we’ll keep going.”
Charlotte was impressed with Sierra’s ability so far. Was it possible the dog would lead them to the dark-haired guy?
She instinctively turned to prayer, even though she didn’t normally do that.
Please, Lord, help us find him!