think I’ve had enough.” She moved to stand and slipped on the bottom of the tub. Going down, she landed back on the seat, the jolting movement causing sharp pain. The wound felt as though it tore apart.
Strong, gentle arms scooped her up.
“There you go again, getting ahead of yourself.”
She stared up at him, her hero. He made a good one. Without knowing him very well, she sensed an inner power about him, a toughness that didn’t come from the street. His dominating presence came from a barometer of right and wrong and he stood only for right.
She looped her arm over his shoulder as he carried her out of the tub, her fingers resting on the back of his neck. Her breast mashed against his hard bare chest, smooth olive skin sloping over the manly ridges. The pleasurable sight eased the intense ache that radiated from her healing wound. She returned her gaze to his face and saw he’d been busy admiring her the same way.
The moment changed in an instant. Going hot all at once.
He stood with her outside of the tub, on the stone floor, unhurried to put her down.
Having caught several glimpses of him in her limited movement around the house, each time had caused a flutter. She thought he might be trying to keep their relations professional and give her time to recover. But there was an electrifying undercurrent linking them. Whenever they were close or their gazes connected, the current crackled to life.
Now in his arms, her body pressed to his, the heat of desire mushroomed to life. He held her gaze in an inescapable stare. She wouldn’t have looked away even if he had. He absorbed her face as she did his.
With the sound of the water fountain, he lowered his head and kissed her. She inhaled sharply with an unexpected jolt of desire.
The suddenness of his kiss and her reaction gave her a scare. She was always so careful about who she welcomed into her life. She hadn’t dated since coming to Jackson Hole, nor did she have any plans to. Not that she’d plan that. She just wasn’t ready for the complication.
He lifted his head and she fell into another long stare. Then he slowly, gently put her down. She left her hands on his chest, still mesmerized by him.
“I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s okay.” She quickly dropped her hands. Lord, what a gorgeous body. “I better go.”
Turning, she walked away. Solve Bernie’s murder. No romance. Romance terrified her with all its unknowns. She loved her house in the Tetons because no one bothered her and she didn’t run into anyone unless she chose to. She’d like to keep it that way.
* * *
Later that night, Jasper sat up in the family room with the television on low. He didn’t know why he bothered. This house was big enough that Sadie wouldn’t hear the sound. He could have gone to the theater room or the living room, but the family room suited what he was used to most. The staff had gone home. Sadie had her home to herself at the end of each day.
He couldn’t get her blunt question out of his head. He’d never thought of women in the context of excitement. Aside from sex, of course. Sex was exciting, but did he need women to excite him at other times? Granted, no one would fault him for not wanting a dull relationship, but to constantly need to be stimulated? Keeping a relationship new and sizzling became a challenge after several years with the same person, but if the foundation was strong, then those calmer times came naturally. Was he different? Maybe subliminally he sensed if a relationship with a woman would eventually go flat. Maybe he ended relationships when the woman no longer interested him...because she didn’t excite him. It seemed shallow, but he had to admit much of his life had been shaped based on the level of thrills he received. Fighting for good had always taken precedence. Maybe his ambition bled into other areas of his life. Now he wondered why.
He’d always thought he’d do the marriage thing later in life. He’d never made a conscious decision, just forged ahead with his desire to be a hero. That had stuck with him since he was a kid. As a man he enjoyed women, and yet no one in particular stood out. Well, one did, but his relationship with her had been different...or had it? He’d definitely been excited with Kaelyn. Things had ended on a rocky note, the rockiest of all his relationships. Perhaps that was why she stood out.
He’d rather not travel too deep into that piece of his past. Someone had tried to kill Sadie and a man’s murder had to be solved. He represented DAI now. He had a job to do.
Turning off the television, he left the family room and headed for Sadie’s fairy-tale stone castle-worthy stairs. A shadow in the foyer stopped him.
Dwight had just entered. He turned on a lamp on a table between two wing backed chairs. “I hoped to find you still awake.”
The way the man regarded him put him on alert. He stepped into the foyer.
“Finley says you’re getting rather cozy with the miss,” Dwight said.
Had someone seen them in the Jacuzzi? He didn’t respond. There was a reason Dwight had sought him out and if it had anything to do with Sadie, it was none of his business.
“I spent some time going over your background.” Dwight stepped forward until he faced Jasper. “Quite impressive.”
Still Jasper waited. The man had yet to reveal his purpose.
“Except one part.”
Jasper looked away. So he’d bring that up, that dark piece he could never manage to shed. It followed him, haunted him. Then he looked directly back at Dwight. The man didn’t trust him and was highly protective of Sadie. While he appreciated that, he also needed someone he could trust.
“My past has nothing to do with why I joined DAI,” Jasper said.
“That’s debatable,” Dwight said. “You resigned from the Detroit PD. Why?”
That sounded like a leading question Dwight already had the answer to.
Jasper didn’t talk about why. Dwight must have read some news article covering what happened.
“It was best for everyone involved.”
“You shot a man while you were off duty. The details were kept real quiet, but it was your uncle. Who shoots their uncle, and why? Seems your boss liked you enough to spare your reputation.”
“I left Detroit with my reputation intact.”
“How is anyone supposed to know that? News said it was a family dispute. Your uncle attacked and you shot him.”
“I just gave him a warning. I didn’t kill him.”
“A warning for what?”
That he wouldn’t discuss. “He didn’t press charges. My uncle realized his mistake and backed off. That’s all that matters. He came to his senses and I didn’t have to kill him.” And he would have. His uncle had known it and thankfully he’d chosen to salvage what might be left of his relationship with his favorite nephew.
Jasper would never understand why his uncle had favored him. It could have been because he’d been the only boy in the family who’d pushed limits. Nothing scared him as a kid. Maybe that’s all it took to please his uncle. But Jasper hadn’t pleased his uncle. He’d never tried and up until he’d left Detroit, hadn’t cared. He’d never respected his uncle, first of all. He was the polar opposite from his father. Jasper’s dad had taught him how to be a real man, not one who needed money and women to feel like one. Jasper needed to impress no one. He only needed to stand up to evil in all its forms.
“Why did you shoot him?”
“My uncle had been drinking and lost control, just like the news said.”
Dwight contemplated him a moment. Then he took an intimidating step forward, as though not satisfied with Jasper’s vague explanation.
Jasper wasn’t intimidated. He’d stood up to