“No! Stop!” Noah’s voice broke into Annabel’s thoughts, and guilt struck her. Noah rushed to Jesse and threw his arms around his waist. “He didn’t do anything. This is Blake’s fault. Blake ruins everything.”
A torque tightened around Annabel’s heart. She hated to do this to Jesse and Noah. Grace looked devastated. Tom appeared miserable. Only Blake seemed to be seething with anger. Where was his guilt and remorse? Annabel wished she had been the one to hit Blake.
Jesse looked at Noah. “I’m fine, buddy. Officer Colton is doing her job. Stay here and look after your mom, okay?”
“I’m coming with you to the station,” Grace said. “I want to make a statement about what happened. You did nothing wrong.” She swiveled her gaze and glared at Blake.
Blake swore at her, and Annabel dragged him to his feet. “Shut your mouth, or I’ll make this as difficult as possible for you.”
With the assistance of several other officers, Annabel drove Blake, and Sam drove Jesse to the police station. Annabel didn’t have time to tell Sam to go easy on Jesse or to voice her dissent about Jesse being cuffed.
It certainly wouldn’t help his reputation around town, and it wouldn’t help their relationship. Blake was ranting in the back of her police cruiser, making it difficult to think, but Annabel wondered what she could say to Jesse to make this right.
* * *
Violence against women was intolerable. Jesse had seen his mother battered by her husband and by lousy boyfriends. He had hated it, and when he had been young, he had been too small to stop it. The times he had tried, he had ended up badly beaten, as well. Now, as an adult, and a fairly large one, he had vowed to himself to never, ever knowingly allow a woman in his presence to be harmed.
Seeing Grace manhandled by Blake, and especially while Noah was watching, brought to the surface too many emotions. Though Jesse had seen Detective Colton and Annabel on the scene, he’d felt compelled to act. Jesse would have been wise to keep his hands to himself and let the police handle the situation, but he hadn’t been thinking clearly. He had wanted Blake to stop and for Noah and Grace to be physically and emotionally all right.
Sam removed his handcuffs and told him to sit on a bench in the main room near the desks. Jesse could have walked out of the police station, but Sam knew he wouldn’t. Jesse wouldn’t go on the run over an incident like this. He’d face the music for the choices he’d made, no matter the consequences. If Sam Colton wanted to throw the book at him because he was Regina Willard’s brother, then fine. It wouldn’t be the first time Jesse had been treated unfairly, and it wouldn’t be the last.
Annabel was walking toward the exit of the police station. Seeing her brought back painful memories from the night they’d spent together. She had run out on him, and he wasn’t entirely sure what to do with that.
Ignore it? Address it? Pretend what they’d had was meaningless sex? Jesse had had one-night stands before, but they had been in an entirely different context than what he’d experienced with Annabel. He couldn’t file those encounters together.
Knowing he was already in trouble, Jesse stood, moving into her path.
Annabel stopped abruptly, avoiding hitting him in the chest. It was reminiscent of the first time they had met. They hadn’t exchanged names, but something more powerful had happened in that moment. Here they were again, with miles and hours between them, and it felt as powerful, the connection as strong.
“Hey, Jesse,” she said. Her voice was soft and low.
“Hey, you,” he said.
She looked around nervously. “I need to get back to the Spring Fling.”
“You’re not sticking around to deal with this?” he asked.
“Not my domain.”
She was running away again. Couldn’t she level with him? Wasn’t he owed her honesty? “Are you planning to tell me why you left the other night without saying anything?”
Annabel inhaled, as if surprised he had questioned it directly. If he didn’t ask the difficult question, he wouldn’t have answers. “I have a lot going on in my life right now. I was feeling confused and overwhelmed. Maybe it was a mistake to do what we did.”
Her words said one thing, her body language another. She leaned toward him, reached to touch his arm and then stopped herself.
“A mistake? It didn’t feel like a mistake to me.”
Annabel glanced over her shoulder. “After I left, I didn’t know what to say to you.”
“How about telling me why you left?”
She bit her lip. “It’s complicated.”
He’d simplify to the heart of the matter. “How much of you leaving had to do with my sister?”
Annabel rubbed her forehead. “Some of it.”
That stung. He had thought she was someone whom he could confide in. He had believed she was open-minded and nonjudgmental.
“But not the way you’re thinking. I don’t think less of you because of who you’re related to. Regina is the subject of an active investigation, an investigation I’m supposed to be professional about.”
“I see.” That had been true since the day they’d met. Why was she making it a problem now? He thought they had crossed this bridge.
“Do you? Because you look angry.”
“I’m not angry.” He couldn’t find the right word to describe what he was feeling. Frustrated? Disappointed?
“We’re both going through a lot. Maybe the timing is bad. I don’t think you’ll be charged for hitting Blake. He deserved it.”
She was finished talking about them, and that frustrated him. “Either way, I’ll accept whatever punishment is meted out.”
“No more fights,” Annabel said. “Try to control your temper.”
“It wasn’t my temper that got the best of me. It was seeing Grace and Noah scared. I can’t tolerate that.”
Annabel nodded in understanding. “See you around.”
“You’re running away again,” he said, loud enough that several heads turned in their direction.
Annabel stopped, but she didn’t face him. Her shoulders sagged, and she hurried out the door of the police precinct.
With a heavy heart, Jesse took a seat on a long bench along the wall and waited for his fate.
* * *
Thanks to the surprising recounting of the situation from Sam Colton, Jesse was released a few hours later. Blake Hernandez had wanted to press charges, but Jesse had been acting in defense of Grace and Noah, and the state had declined to prosecute him.
Jesse was glad to be back on his farm. He was upset about what had happened with Annabel. He sensed she needed space, and he could give her that. When she was ready to talk, if she was ready to talk, he was open to hearing from her.
Tom must have been spending all his spare time preparing the carriage house for Grace and Noah. Grace was moving her things into the house that day, and Jesse was happy she would be close. He could keep an eye on her.
Blake Hernandez was in custody, but Jesse didn’t trust that he wouldn’t try again to hurt Grace if he was released. Jesse wouldn’t let that happen.
Jesse was on his way to the barn. A Granite Gulch Police Department vehicle was parked at the end of his driveway. He ran a frustrated hand over his face. How much more of this could he take? Would the authorities ever leave him alone?
Whistling for his dogs, he waited. They bounded from the barn and came to his side. As he walked, they stayed near him. As he grew closer to the police car, he saw it was occupied by Annabel.
He had come this far, and she had seen him approach, but now he wanted to return to the barn. He’d resolved to give her time and space. His feet had ideas of their own.
When he reached her car, she rolled down the car window. “Hey, Jesse.”
Such a casual remark while he was still concealing hurt and anger. “I’m surprised to see you here,” Jesse said.
“Surprised?” Annabel asked.
“You hotfooted it out the other night and ran away from me at the precinct. I wouldn’t think you’d be back. I figured you needed space. Being at my place is the opposite of space.”
She blushed but held his gaze. “I’m working. We’re still looking for Regina Willard.”
Same old song and dance. “She isn’t here,” Jesse said.
“I know,” Annabel said.
“Then why are you here?” he asked.
“Because it’s my job. I was assigned stakeout duty at your farm.”
“Why don’t you come with me and I’ll show you around?” He didn’t love the idea of anyone poking around his farm, but he wanted to see Annabel. Maybe he could draw her out and get to the bottom of why she was pulling away from him.
“You’re offering to let me look around?” she asked. “I don’t have a warrant.”
For the opportunity to be with her, he would allow it. “You don’t need a warrant because I’m inviting you. Come see what we do here and see I don’t have anything to hide,” he said.
Annabel climbed out of the car. “Thank you. I would like the tour.”
They walked up the driveway. Jesse was proud of what he had accomplished with the farm. He was an open book. If Annabel was worried about him lying to her or being like Regina, she had to see that Jesse was an honest, hardworking man.
As they walked, Annabel asked questions and took her time peering in stalls and behind walls. He didn’t let it bother him. He’d expected it.
“I’m sorry about what happened with Blake,” Annabel said. “I didn’t want to arrest you, but I had no choice.”
For a split second, he thought she had been apologizing for sneaking out in the middle of the night. “You were doing your job.”
“How are Grace and Noah? Holding it together?” Annabel asked.
“They moved into the carriage house this morning. They had a shockingly small amount of stuff. I’m planning to talk to Noah and get my hands on whatever they might need. Table and chairs, maybe a couch or a television,” Jesse said.
“I would offer you a few things, but my personal belongings are smoke-damaged and charred,” Annabel said.
“Insurance company helping?” Jesse asked.
“I’m on the wait list for one of their certified renovation teams to work up a few quotes,” Annabel said.
“That’s good.”
Annabel stopped. “Jesse, will you please look at me?”
He pivoted to face her and met her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“We’re acting like strangers, and after what we did the other night, we’re not strangers. Definitely not,” she said, looking him up and down.
When she stared at him with hunger plain in her eyes, he was confused. What did she want from him? No-strings-attached sex? He couldn’t give that to her. “No games, Annabel. Tell me what you want.” He wouldn’t be jerked around, having her change her mind and waffle about what she wanted.
“I’m looking at you this way because I want you.”
She launched herself at him, and he caught her in his arms.
Questions flew out of his head. He didn’t know the reasons why she was in his arms, but he wouldn’t deny her. They had this and it had to be enough.
* * *
Whenever Annabel was with Jesse, something switched in her head. They’d had an instant connection from the first time they’d met, and that attraction had grown and changed into more. Everything about Jesse enticed her. He was salt of the earth, a good man who worked hard and looked out for the people he called friends. He was big and strong, and she felt safe with him.
Safe because he wouldn’t let anyone hurt her and safe because he didn’t care about her past, Matthew Colton’s crimes or her connection to a killer. She had been fighting this, trying to convince herself she wasn’t good enough. Not being involved with him meant she wouldn’t get hurt if it ended. But it hurt not being with Jesse, and that left her with a simple choice: take a chance on happiness or accept the loneliness.
Annabel had complications—the Alphabet Killer investigation, her impending visit with her father, Dylan Morris—and now might not be the best time to start a relationship, but when wasn’t life complicated? If she waited until her world was problem free, she would be waiting forever.
She kissed Jesse, threading her fingers through his hair and holding his mouth to hers. His hands went around her waist, and he lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his hips.
He carried her behind a stack of hay inside the barn, next to a pallet of horse feed. “Give me a minute.”
He returned with a plaid blanket and spread it on the ground. She crawled on top of it and paused only a moment when she realized she was wearing her police uniform. She was on duty. Crossing into a gray area with Jesse had happened before, and while this was absolutely the most unprofessional thing she had ever done in uniform, she couldn’t stop herself.
Jesse took off his hat and set it on the blanket. He covered her body with his. Though it was early in the day, it was already warm outside, cooler in the shade of the barn.
Jesse unbuttoned her shirt, pushing the sides open, and brought his mouth to her breasts. She was wearing a plain white bra, but he stared at her and she felt like a swimsuit model on a photo shoot.
He moved lower to her belt, unfastening it. She reached to his and did the same. Sliding out of his pants, he kicked them off. He removed her pants and underwear at once, and she parted her legs, wanting him, welcoming him.
“Please, hurry,” she said.
The possibility of being caught and that this was utterly forbidden had her heart slamming hard and heat smoldering through her.
Jesse grabbed his jeans, pulling his wallet from the pocket and removing a condom. She snatched it from his hand.
“Let me.” She tore it open and rolled it on, tossing the wrapper over her head.
Jesse shifted to align their bodies. Their eyes connected, and he pushed inside her. She felt his fierce need to take her, dominate her. Maybe he was harboring some anger from how she had left the other night, but she didn’t question it now. This was moving them in the direction of making it right between them.
He moved rapidly inside her, and she couldn’t get enough. Her ponytail was rubbing against the blanket. She removed the elastic holding her hair.
Relaxing into the sensations that washed over her, she lifted her hips into his, unable to do anything except feel.
Then he stopped, holding her close and flipping onto his back, their bodies still joined.
She adjusted her legs, bracing her knees against the ground and setting her hand on his chest for leverage. He massaged her bare breasts with his hands, and she rode him hard, pushing her hips against his. Bouncing wildly on him, she felt the tightening of her body, and she convulsed, pleasure washing over her.
She let her orgasm pulse over her, and Jesse joined her. Annabel rolled to the side and lay on the blanket, sweat covering her body, her muscles relaxed.
“Want a shower?” he asked.
Her hair was sticking to her back. A shower might be a good idea. “Sure. Race you?”
They scrambled to pull on their clothes, Annabel giving Jesse a playful shove to knock him over and get a head start to the house.
* * *
“Were you listening to the radio today?” Sam asked.
Annabel jolted. She had been lost in thought about Jesse, picturing his handsome face, his muscled body, and reliving her entirely inappropriate romp in the hay with him. “What? The radio?”
Sam gave her a strange look. “While on stakeout. Gets pretty boring. I didn’t know if you’d heard about Henrietta Bell.”
The Coltons were gathered at Ethan’s place again. It was a rare evening when Sam and Zoe, Ethan and Lizzie, Ridge and Darcy, and Annabel, Chris and Trevor were free for dessert.
Annabel shook her head. “What about her?”
Trevor set a pitcher of lemonade on the table. “Turns out, she’s not the Alphabet Killer’s latest victim. The GGPD released a statement today. Her husband is missing and is being charged with her murder.”
“Is her husband suspected of being involved with the Alphabet Killer?” Chris asked, pouring himself a glass of lemonade.
Lizzie had baked a layer cake with meringue buttercream frosting. She had made the extra effort to tint each layer. When the cake was cut, it was a rainbow of colors.
“As far as we know, the husband used what he could gather about the Alphabet Killer from the news to copycat the technique. He was hoping to have the murder pinned on the Alphabet Killer, and he could go free,” Trevor said.
Annabel hadn’t heard. “That’s awful. I’m sorry to hear it.”
“We don’t have any recent leads to track the killer,” Sam said.
“How’s the stakeouts at the Willard’s Farm been going?” Ridge asked. “It must get tiring out there, watching crops grow for hours.”
Annabel felt her face growing hot. She busied herself pouring more lemonade into her cup. Too bad it wasn’t wine. She might need it to get through this evening. “Not really. Today, Jesse asked if I wanted to look around the farm.”
“Did you?” Trevor asked.
“Yes, and I didn’t see any signs of the Alphabet Killer,” she said.
Her brothers exchanged looks. Was she acting funny? “What’s the matter?” she asked.
“You’re spending a lot of time with Jesse Willard,” Chris said.
“I’ve been assigned stakeouts at this house,” Annabel said.
“Is that the extent of it?” Trevor asked.
“Usually, police officers don’t fraternize with the subject of a stakeout,” Sam said.
She didn’t want to be profiled and her actions scrutinized. “Don’t dig around my psyche. Jesse has become a friend. Someone I trust.”
“Trust?” Sam asked.
“He protected me when someone took shots at me. And most of you have met him. Didn’t you like him?”
The members of her family, with the exception of Sam, nodded their heads in agreement.
“Then why the questions?” Annabel asked, trying to stay calm. Talking about Jesse riled her up, and when she and her brothers discussed these topics, she felt attacked. “When each of you met your significant others, I didn’t ask questions. I was happy that you seemed happy. Why can’t I get the same respect?”
“Are you saying you’ve fallen for him?” Darcy asked.
Annabel didn’t know how to answer that question. That had been the implication in her statement, but she hadn’t meant to reveal so much. She and Jesse were working on their relationship, and Annabel had high hopes. “I like him. It’s complicated because of who his sister is. She’s involved in an important case, and it’s difficult to have a close relationship with Jesse right now because of that.” As she said the words, she felt an ache in her chest. She hadn’t spoken aloud about her feelings for Jesse before, and now that she had outwardly acknowledged the barrier between them, she knew they were unavoidable.
Silence filled the room.
“You aren’t technically assigned to the Alphabet Killer case,” Sam said.
Stunned her brother would look for loopholes for her, her gaze swerved to him. “Meaning?”
“Meaning, Chief Murray is trying to keep us out of the investigation to the greatest degree possible, and I don’t see the big deal if you tell the chief you’re now invested in the case in another way,” Sam said.
“I would think hiding it would be the problem,” Chris said. “If you put it in the open, then it can’t bite you later.”
“Makes sense to me,” Ridge said.
Trevor nodded his agreement.
“Are you telling me you are okay with me seeing Jesse Willard?” Annabel asked.
Darcy, Lizzie and Zoe voiced their agreement enthusiastically and her brothers a bit less excitedly.
“We’ll still worry,” Trevor said.
“And be overprotective,” Chris said.
“But we want you to be happy,” Ridge said. “I met the guy. He seemed decent.”
Not over-the-top praise, but from her brothers, it was amazing to hear. Emotion tightened her throat. “Your support means a lot to me. Thanks, guys. It makes it easier to think.”
“It’s good that you can think, because you’re scheduled to see Matthew soon, and you need to bring your A game,” Trevor said. “He’ll try to mess with you. He’s had time to look for ways to screw with you.”
Thinking about seeing her father made her feel ill. One visit per child per month, and she was up next. She expected the worst. “I’ll remember everything he says and repeat it to you guys. Maybe we can read between the lines and find out what he did with our mother.”
Silence fell around the room as was often the case when their mother was mentioned.
“I hope I can pull more from Matthew than a one-word clue,” Annabel said.
“Good luck with that,” Sam said.
“He is tough to crack. I wanted to crack his head. He seemed delighted that I wanted to know more and that he wouldn’t tell me,” Ridge said.
“Delighted or just out-of-his-mind crazy? Because he seemed crazy to me,” Ethan said. Lizzie patted Ethan’s hand.
“Both,” Annabel said. She was prepared to face whatever Matthew was handing out. One skill she had learned while in foster care was how to stuff her emotions under a mask of indifference and how to control her reactions. “I can deal with Matthew. I can’t think of anything he would say to me that would shake me. I’ve read it all. I’ve thought it all.”
“He’s a twisted man, Annabel. We may have written him off, but he’s made it his business to know about us. He’ll know how to get into your head and which buttons to push,” Trevor said.
“I’ll be ready for him.” Getting her clue from Matthew about the location of their mother’s body would close that chapter of her life, and she was more than ready to say good riddance to Matthew Colton.