“That’s great.”

  “We went to a park today. It had rides. I rode in a teacup with Jessica and a train and a roller coaster!”

  “Wow, you did a lot. My brave girl.” Hazel knew the roller coaster was a miniature version of those that adults rode.

  “And we’re having pizza!”

  Her brother was going to have corrupted her daughter by the time she went to go get her. “That sounds good.”

  “I still like your food, Mommy. You’re the best cook ever.”

  “Aw, thanks Evie.”

  “When are you coming to get me?”

  Hazel wished she could say right now, right this minute. “I don’t know yet. I’ll call you as soon as I do, okay?”

  “Okay.” Evie’s tone dimmed considerably.

  Hazel felt both loved by her daughter and sad, which put a damper on her mood.

  “What are you doing right now?” Evie asked.

  “I was watching a movie with Callum.”

  “What movie?”

  “None that you would like. An adult movie.”

  “Can we watch Brave when I get home?”

  “Of course.” She heard Owen say in the background that they had that movie there. Hazel was going to start to get jealous.

  “Can I talk to Cal-em?” Evie asked.

  Hazel was surprised by the request. Why did she want to talk to Callum?

  “Sure.” She put the phone on speaker—she wasn’t about to miss a single second of this. “Evie wants to say hi,” she said to Callum.

  “Hi, Cal-em.”

  “Hi, Evie. You having fun?” He sounded as though he was a good sport but Hazel wondered if this would be difficult for him.

  “Yes! I like my uncle and aunt’s house. They’re fun.”

  “That’s good.”

  “Did you catch the bad guy yet?” she asked.

  “I’m not a policeman. Kerry is the one who will catch him,” Callum said.

  “Did Mommy tell you I’m gonna be a police girl when I grow up?”

  “No, she didn’t. Why do you want to do that?”

  “So I can get a badge and catch bad people,” she said. “Why didn’t you be a policeman?”

  Callum looked at Hazel with a grin. Evie was full of questions today.

  “I suppose I wanted to protect people instead of catch the ones who hurt them.”

  A few seconds passed as Evie absorbed that. “I want to protect people, too. That’s what Kerry does.”

  “Yes, she’s one of the good guys.”

  “She’s a girl.”

  Callum chuckled. “Yes, she is.”

  A few more seconds passed and Hazel thought her daughter had run out of steam at last.

  “Cal-em?”

  “Yes?”

  “Are you going to come with Mommy to pick me up?”

  Callum glanced at Hazel. When the time came to go get Evie, all the danger would have passed. What would Callum do? Would he run?

  “Of course, I’ll be there,” he said.

  Hazel felt a surge of warmth and hope. Maybe there was a chance for them, after all.

  Did she want that? It didn’t take much thinking to know what her heart desired. Yes, she did. She wanted a chance to be a couple with him, maybe more.

  “Are you going to come live with us?” Evie asked.

  “I already have a place to live.”

  He lived in a mansion.

  “But you like Mommy, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I do like her very much.”

  “And you like me?” she asked in a singsong voice.

  “Yes, even more.”

  Evie laughed, a lighthearted giggle. “Nuh-uh. You like Mommy more.”

  Callum chuckled again, seeming to really enjoy the banter with the girl.

  “I see you with her,” Evie said. “You like her a lot.”

  “I said I did.”

  “Then you should come live with us, then.”

  Evie was so fond of him. Hazel would worry about her state of mind if he left them, but Evie was working her kid-charmed magic on him.

  “Pizza’s here,” Hazel heard Owen say in the background.

  “You better go get pizza while it’s hot,” Callum said.

  “Okay. See you soon.”

  “See you soon.”

  Evie must have disconnected herself. Owen or Jessica didn’t come back on. Hazel leaned back against the sofa with a sigh.

  “I miss her so much,” she said.

  Callum put his arm back around her. “She is something else. Adorable.”

  She tipped her head up and over to see him. “Yes, she’s a heart melter.”

  He smiled softly, meeting her eyes.

  “She likes you a lot,” Hazel said.

  “How does a man who leaves a pregnant woman create such a gem?” he asked.

  “That’s easy. She got most of her good traits from me.” Hazel smiled up teasingly.

  “I’d say.”

  And there they went again, falling into this sexual energy. They looked into each other’s eyes, which ended with him lowering his mouth to hers. Basking in the aftermath of his affectionate words, she grew hot all over.

  She touched his face as the kiss deepened. When that didn’t satisfy her raging desire, she climbed onto him.

  “Uh.” He grunted and then slid his hands to her rear to move her over his jean-clad erection.

  She was lost at that point. All that mattered was him and how he made her feel.

  He pulled up the hem of her long nightgown. She kept kissing him as his hands traveled slowly up her thighs to her bare butt.

  Pulling back from the kiss, he met her eyes.

  She smiled from pleasure in his heated response. Lifting his T-shirt to get it out of the way, she unbuttoned his jeans and then unzipped them as much as she could. He helped her by raising his hips, which incited her more because of the pressure. He pushed his jeans and underwear down.

  Hazel resumed kissing him and moved back on top of him. His hands returned to her rear and their breathing became more ragged. She ran her hands along his hard chest, brushing her thumbs over his stiff nipples.

  Callum lifted her nightgown and she raised her hands so he could take it off. He let it fall onto the sofa beside them. Then he gripped the back of her head and pressed an urgent kiss to her lips. She reciprocated with equal verve, moving over his erection.

  With a gruff sound, he set her down over him. She was so wet and ready for him. Shivers of sensation numbed her to all else. She had to stay still for a moment, lest the pleasure end too soon.

  She planted a kiss on his mouth. “I’ve never felt like this before.” Her voice came out as a breathless whisper.

  “Neither have I,” he answered in kind.

  That he’d confessed such a thing stimulated her passion even more. She kissed him long and deep, needing to soak every part of him into her.

  He pumped his hips. Evidently his patience had run out. Bracing her hands on his shoulders, she did the same in rhythm with him. And just a few strokes later she came with such intensity she cried out.

  He groaned his own release and she continued to move on him, not wanting this to end.

  At last she put her forehead against his. He moved until he found her mouth for a gentle kiss. The tender, sweet action captured her heart. She was beyond backing off. She could not without suffering pain. Losing Callum would be the biggest heartbreak of her life.

  Chapter 14

  The next day, Callum stood in front of the bathroom mirror and admitted to himself that he would have difficulty leaving Hazel. But he would have more difficulty losing her permanently. At a loss for what to do, how to preserve himself if the worst happened, he fell into silent contemplation. Hazel had studied him more than once but never confronted him. That made him fall in love with her even more. She gave him the space he needed without judging.

  Wait...

  Had he just thought that he had fallen in love with her?

  He finished getting into his biker disguise, wig and glasses in place. He left the bathroom to find Hazel waiting, way too sexy for his confused state. He would rather take all her clothes off and stay home.

  “You ready?” They were headed to Joe’s Bar to conduct another stakeout.

  Her white-toothed smile and animated manner warmed a nonsexual part of him. This was Hazel. Positive. Loving. Strong in so many ways.

  A mother...

  “Yes.”

  He offered his hand, more of an obligatory gesture. He was so out of sorts.

  She didn’t take it. Instead, she studied him before saying, “Last night was beautiful.”

  Beautiful.

  He had other words come to mind. Scorching hot. Heart-wrenching, in a really good way.

  “I am happy with just that, Callum,” she said. “Don’t feel pressured. I know you have been through a lot. I’ll be all right no matter what happens. Evie will be, too, because she has me.”

  The truth of what she said penetrated deep into him. Hazel would never push him. She wanted him for who he was and nothing less. She cared about him, his happiness above all else. He wanted to give that to her, as well. All of him. But he still felt so broken. So injured. A woman like her deserved the whole man.

  He slid his hand behind her head, gently, then stepped close. Kissing her, he hoped she understood the unspoken message, how amazing and charitable she was.

  When he drew back she put her forefinger over his lips as though sealing the kiss. “Let’s go catch that bad guy.”

  “Hazel...”

  “Shh.” She lowered her hand. “None of that now. Let’s go.”

  He took a moment to enjoy how beautiful she was and how sexy in that biker-woman disguise. “I must be a fool.”

  She put her pointer finger on his upper chest and ran it down to the waist of his pants. Then her striking eyes looked up at him. “You could never be a fool, Callum Colton. You just need to let go of past pain. I only hope I’m still in your life when you do.”

  She looked into his eyes, angling her head and assessing him. After she must have learned what she needed to from peering into his eyes, she turned and headed for the suite’s entrance.

  Rather than take a hired car, Callum called a cab. That would be less conspicuous. On the way, Callum phoned Kerry to let her know about their visit. She wasn’t happy with their planning something like that on their own and on such short notice, but she said she’d assemble a team to wait in unmarked cars in the parking lot. She’d also send a plainclothes cop inside in case anything went wrong.

  A short drive later, they reached the bar. Callum made sure no one saw them as they left the cab.

  He guided Hazel into Joe’s. After being seated they settled in to have an evening together, covertly surveying everyone there.

  It was much the same as the last time they were there. Dim and dirty.

  And the same biker crowd was at the pool table.

  All appeared calm, until Callum noticed a redheaded waitress who kept looking behind her and all around the bar.

  “Did you see that redhead last time we were here?” he asked Hazel.

  She looked around the bar and zeroed in on the other woman. “No.”

  Hazel moved closer to him. “Might as well look the part.”

  “Careful.”

  “Of what?” She leaned in, her breast pressing against his side.

  “Of more.” He could have elaborated but he didn’t.

  “You should give in. You have no control over this. I realized that after last night.”

  She was sure being bold. Yes, last night had been earth-shattering. He couldn’t face that right now.

  “Let’s get rid of this killer and then deal with that, okay?”

  She smiled wide and bright. “Okay.” Then she turned to survey the bar, covertly watching the redhead serve beers to a table of raucous men.

  “She’s wearing a wedding ring,” Callum said. He looked at the other female workers. There were only two and neither wore a ring. If the killer had murdered Nate Blurge for flirting with his wife, he might have shown up tonight to keep an eye on her.

  “The woman who served us last time didn’t have one,” Hazel said.

  “And the redhead wasn’t working that night, so if she is his wife, the killer probably wasn’t here.”

  “Nope.” She looked around the bar and he saw her stop short when she spotted a table with a lone man sitting there.

  He was the same height and build as the man who kept showing up at the inn and following them and shooting at them. He had no hat on and no sunglasses. In a holey pair of faded jeans and a black Deadwood T-shirt, he had a day or two’s worth of facial stubble. His longish brown hair convinced Callum he was their man.

  “He’s watching the redhead,” Hazel said.

  Yes, he was. And very intently. The killer’s face turned stormy, his brows lowered. He had all the mannerisms of an insanely jealous man, a power tripper. He looked the type to need absolute control over his woman. He was so involved with policing the redhead that he didn’t notice Callum and Hazel watching him.

  Callum looked back at the waitress and saw her smiling at one of the men drinking at a table. The man didn’t seem drunk. He was clean-cut and dressed in dark jeans with no holes in them and a nice polo. Callum watched him after the redhead left the table. He wasn’t drinking fast and when the others ordered another round, he declined. He made the redhead smile and this time laugh as he talked with her.

  “Oh boy,” Hazel said.

  Callum looked over at the killer. He had gotten up and marched across the bar toward the man at the table.

  Standing up, Callum heard the killer say in a loud, angry tone, “Why are you flirting with my wife?”

  Looking startled, the man looked up. “I didn’t know she was married.”

  “She’s wearing a ring, you idiot!”

  “I didn’t look, sorry, man. All I did was thank her for the beer and tell her she was too pretty to be working in a place like this.”

  “Why did she laugh like you said something funny?”

  The other man stood. “Dude, calm down. Nothing happened. Just casual talk. You should be flattered I think you have a beautiful wife.”

  A woman who deserved better than a killer as a husband. Callum watched that man shove the other.

  “Do you always hit on other men’s wives?”

  “Hey. What’s your problem?” The man shoved him back.

  The killer took a swing, hitting the other man. Callum stalked to them, planting his hand on the murderer’s chest and getting between them.

  “That’s enough.” Callum pushed the killer back, forcing him to step farther away from him and the clean-cut man.

  The man behind him tried to get around Callum to go after the killer. Callum lost some balance and the killer took a swing at him and clipped his jaw. Callum’s glasses went flying. The man behind him had grabbed hold of his wig, pulling it off his head. The man had meant to pull him out of the way but the wig stopped him.

  Callum gave him a shove and growled, “Back off!”

  “You!” the killer snarled, recognizing Callum.

  Callum ducked as the killer made another swing at him and the punch caught the man behind him. Callum swiped his opponent’s leg out from under him, sending him down. But the killer lunged for him, plowing into him and driving them both back into the table of drinking men. Callum landed on his back, spilling beer glasses and scattering the seated men.

  Using his feet, Callum kicked the killer, sending him flying backward and sliding on his back through the broken and spilled glasses of beer. He bumped into another table.

  Going toward him, he saw the killer get to his feet and look around, finding Hazel standing near their table. The other man sprinted toward her, causing an instant flash of fear in Callum.

  He ran to Hazel as the killer drew a pistol and she pivoted and started to head for the exit. But the killer was on her too fast. He grabbed her, spun her around and put the pistol to her temple.

  Callum stopped short, just a couple of feet from them. He looked at Hazel’s terrified eyes. She must be thinking of her daughter. Callum had failed her.

  He stood frozen for a few seconds, before anger took over. No way would he lose another woman like this!

  With a lightning-fast gesture, he knocked the gun upward. It went off but the bullet shot toward the ceiling. Callum kicked the man and sent him back and away from Hazel. As Kerry and other officers, including the plainclothes cop, burst in, Hazel ran to the bar and huddled with some other people, and Callum drew his own gun and aimed it at the killer’s head.

  “I’ve got you now,” Callum said to the man on the floor. Finally.

  Kerry approached.

  “That’s him,” Callum said. “That’s the man Evie saw hit Nate Blurge over the head.”

  Kerry glanced at him sharply. “You’re certain?”

  “As certain as I can be. He’s the same build and his hair is the same.”

  She nodded to two officers, who knelt down and searched the man, procuring a driver’s license and handing it to Kerry.

  “Billy Jansen,” she said. “Run this by Motor Vehicle.”

  One of the officers left with the license.

  Moments later the officer returned with the license and announced the plate number was a match.

  “Take him to the station,” Kerry said to the other officer.

  The officer helped Billy to his feet and cuffed him, reading him his rights.

  “The redhead over there is his wife,” Callum said, pointing to the woman next to Hazel who watched Billy with no small amount of apprehension.

  “We’ll need to talk to her.”

  “I’ll tell her.”

  Callum walked over to Hazel and the redhead.

 

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