Up the Chimney Read online

  “Not today?”

  “No. Today, I just want to hold you next to me and know you’re okay. I came so close to losing you. If we made love, I’d be too rough. I need the possessiveness in me to unwind a little first.” He looked at her and sighed. “Maybe you better wash your front. If I start touching your breasts and love folds, I’ll lose all restraint.” He towel dried her hair so water wouldn’t trickle over her stitches.

  He stood. “I’ll get you some aspirins and a cup of tea. I noticed a teapot on the stove. Where are your tea bags?”

  “Two cabinets to the right of the window. I’d like chamomile, please. One spoon of sugar and a dollop of milk.”

  “You got it.” Gabby jumped from her perch to follow the stranger in her house. Ciera reached for her razor and shaved her legs. She’d just stepped out of the tub when Mason peeked in the doorway. “Your tea and aspirins are on your nightstand. Want me to dry your back?”

  She laughed. “No, I can handle this part myself. Why don’t you undress for bed? A warning. Gabby sleeps under the covers. She’s a snuggle kitty.”

  Mason shot a glance at the cat. “Guess I’ll keep my boxers on. I don’t want her thinking my pecker’s a scratching post. Which side of the bed do you sleep on?”

  “The side without the gun.”

  “Just my luck to fall in love with a sharp-shooter with a helluva right hook and a wicked way with a shovel.” He and Gabby strode across the hall while Ciera combed her hair. God, being clean felt freakishly good after all those days snowed in at the station. One could only get so clean with soap from a dispenser and wet paper towels. After slipping into a tank top and a pair of sleep shorts, she quickly applied lotion to her arms and legs, then padded across the hallway to her bedroom.

  Gabby was kneading her paws into Mason’s hair. He pointed to the animal. “Is this some kind of bedtime routine you forgot to warn me about?” His dark hair stood on end and Gabby purred in delight as she pushed her paws through it. Mason had been lying flat on his back and rolled toward her after she swallowed her pills, inhaling the wonderful aroma of the tea while she drank it. When he shifted, Gabby batted his head with her paw as if to tell him to lie still.

  “What the hell was that for?” Mason shot a dark glance at the cat.

  “You interrupted her welcome-to-the-family grooming.”

  “Uh-huh.” He pulled Ciera next to his warm, naked chest. Their legs entwined. “I love you. The cat might take some getting used to.” Gabby licked his forehead as if giving him a bath. He got the strangest look on his face. “This is normal feline behavior, right?”

  Ciera couldn’t help herself. She laughed. “Oh, Mason, I do love you.” She kissed his neck and Gabby batted her head and growled. “You know, I think she might be jealous. Look, Gabby, I did not bring him home as a gift for you. He’s mine. I’ll share to a point, but he’s mine.”

  Gabby made a warning noise deep in her throat and wiggled under the covers as if she didn’t want to hear any more of what her mistress had to say.

  “She’s laying against my back,” Mason bragged. “Guess I’ve been accepted by Gabbie, her highness.”

  Ciera snuggled closer. “She can have your back, but your front. All of this”—she swept her hand down his torso and under his boxers—“is mine. All mine.” He hardened instantly as she stroked him. “This, hero, is my bedtime ritual.”

  “Good to know.” He kissed her. “Now, sleep, baby. You need to recuperate from today and I’m physically and emotionally beat. So much happened today. I can’t get beyond that murderer getting to you. Then when I saw your reaction after the doctor read you the lab report. I nearly dropped to my knees. You wanted to be pregnant with my baby, didn’t you?”

  “I didn’t realize it until that moment but, yes, I did. Which was totally wrong.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’re so new, you and I.” She sighed. “I’ve got all these trust issues where men are concerned. How long are you going to put up with bearing the brunt of that? You know how I lash out. We know each other’s work persona, but not much about our private lives.” Her fingers trailed through the hair on his chest. “We haven’t even been out on a date yet.”

  He pulled back and stared at her. “Do you want us? An exclusive relationship?”

  She couldn’t have stopped the smile if she tried. “Yes. Oh, yes, I do.”

  “Then we’ll work on it. There’s no other woman I want than you, baby.” His one hand cupped her ass and his breathing deepened. “I love you so much…so damn much.”

  The rope snugged tighter around her neck. She couldn’t swallow. Narrow eyes of craziness came closer. The blade of a knife dug in…cutting flesh. “Mason! Mason, help!”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Mason jarred awake. Ciera was having a nightmare, her arms flailed. She kept calling his name. “Ciera! Ciera, baby, wake up! It’s me, Mason.” He lifted her on top of him. “Open your eyes. Look at me. It was a dream.” Should he kiss her or would that startle her into a panic attack?

  Her eyes opened, although one only partially. “A dream?”

  He cupped her cheek. “That’s right, sweetheart. It was a nightmare, and you’re safe. You’re home with Gabby and me. Safe.”

  She nodded. “He had his knife to my throat. I knew you’d save me. I needed you.”

  God this was going to hurt his male pride, but it needed said. To survive in this crazy world, she had to have self-confidence. Retreating behind a wall of fear wouldn’t help her. If he loved her—and he did with every ounce of his being—he had to banish her terrors.

  He shook her shoulders gently. “Look at me. Listen to my words. You didn’t need me to protect you. You were strong and smart enough to protect yourself. You, baby. You took control of the situation. You. You were aware of your surroundings. You were intelligent enough to keep a weapon, that shovel, nearby. And you used it. You didn’t allow panic to freeze you. By damn, you fought back.”

  He rolled over, tucking her beneath him. “You’re a survivor, Ciera. You lived through the scandal and betrayal Seth threw at you. And you beat off a raping murderer. Now, if he’d been holding a gun to you, then you’d have had to think of a different defense. But for this situation, what you did was perfect. I wish I’d been there to protect you because that’s what a man does for his woman.” He chuffed a laugh. “Damn, that sounds like a caveman mentality but, hey, it’s how we’re wired. To protect what’s ours. I hate that I wasn’t there for you.” He kissed her and her soft lips opened for him.

  Her arms slipped over his shoulders. Their tongues touched and taunted, swept and seduced. Suddenly a dam of emotions broke free. Each murmuring needs and desires. Clothing slipped off. Hands explored and set off chain reactions of sensual desires. He tried to be gentle; her face and neck were so bruised.

  “We can’t do this. I don’t have any condoms.” He was surprised he could think this rationally considering all the blood in his brain had flowed to his cock.

  “But I need you. Don’t you need me?”

  “Oh, baby, you have no idea. After almost losing you today, you have no idea how much I want to reclaim you, to get balls deep inside you, and hear you scream my name when you come. But we’ve got no protection.” His hand smoothed over the satiny skin of her abdomen. “Do you need some special attention, sweetheart.” His fingers settled in her moist warmth. “I’ll give you some. Let me make you feel better.” He inched down the bed and placed his hands on her thighs. “Open for me. You know you want my tongue on you. Let me hear you scream my name in the darkness of this room.”

  After he showed her she could have three climaxes, he pressed her sweaty, quaking body next to his. He kissed her curls and whispered endearments to her, something he’d never done with another woman. Sweet Lord, his balls ached. He needed relief so badly.

  She shifted from his arms and slithered down the bed.

  “Baby?”

  “Shh. It’s your turn.” Her tongue swept ar
ound the head of his cock and his toes curled. A breath hissed from his teeth. “Fucking hell!” The things she did to him for the next few minutes until he exploded were a sex-hazed blur of incredible sensations. This time, it was her name that was screamed in the darkness of the bedroom.

  It was eight-twenty when he woke up, his naked body curved against Ciera’s. He could get used to this in no time. Rolling out of bed, he scooped his clothes off the floor and headed for the bathroom. Dressed, he wrote his love a note and fed Gabby a can of salmon. He also looked over Ciera’s long black coat again. He thought he’d seen blood and a knife cut on the one sleeve and he was right. This thing would only remind her of the attack.

  ****

  The sound of Mason’s Jeep starting woke Ciera. After a quick bath, she dressed in sweats and her reliable puppy dog slippers. Propped against the almost full carafe of coffee was a note. Hero had even set a clean mug beside the coffeepot. She smiled over his thoughtfulness. Sipping the coffee, she read his slanted writing.

  Good Morning, Beautiful—

  I’ve gone to my place to pack a bag of clothes and a box or two of condoms. Don’t clean up the broken tree ornaments. I’ll do that when I get back. I’ll stop and pick up some more. We’ll decorate it together…a new tradition. Oh! Don’t let the cat con you into another can of salmon. She’s already had one. Decide on where you want to go for dinner tonight. It’ll be our first official date.

  I love you, Mason

  P.S. Take 2 aspirins.

  “He’s a bossy man, Gabby. See how he set the bottle of aspirins beside the coffee pot? Think I’ll have toast and eggs for breakfast. Then I’ll take the aspirins. Maybe.”

  By the time she heard the Wrangler back into the driveway, Ciera had cleaned the bathroom and was almost through mopping the kitchen floor. She hurried to the front door since he had no key to her house.

  One handsome freshly showered man sauntered in with a garment bag slung over one shoulder and a dufflebag in his other hand. He breezed her a kiss as he whizzed by. “How are you feeling?” He stopped. “What’s that smell? Have you been cleaning?”

  “Just mopping the kitchen floor.”

  He did a slow glance at her over his shoulder. “I might just have to smack that beautiful ass after I put this stuff on the bed.”

  She stuck out her tongue at his retreating form.

  “I felt that!”

  She gave him the finger with both hands.

  “Oh, darlin’, you are so going to pay.”

  What? Does the guy have eyes in the back of his head?

  She went back to mopping her floor, finishing up just as he strode into the living room.

  “You made the bed and cleaned the bathroom, too. Don’t you think you’re overdoing it?”

  “No, I don’t.” She opened her back door, tossed out her dirty water, and put her bucket and mop away. “I feel fine. And before you ask, I took the aspirins.”

  He shook his head and walked outside to his Jeep again. This time he carried in a large box, two bags, and a box of Krispy Kreme donuts. “The big box is for you. And if you sit down for an hour, I’ll share what’s in the smaller box.” He waved the donuts as an enticement.

  “What did you get me?” She wasn’t used to presents. She recognized the Macy’s box and removed the lid and folded back the tissue paper. It was a new coat. Bright red with black braid trim around the collar and the cuffs. “Oh, it’s gorgeous. I can retire my old black one.”

  “I threw it away. There were blood stains and a knife cut on it. I didn’t want you to have that reminder. I hope this will be a suitable substitute.” He paused, his anxious eyes on her. “I like you in red.”

  She smiled and unfolded it from the box. Tucked under it was a black woolen scarf with red cats woven into the design. “Looks like you thought of everything, hero. Even the coat size is right.” Not that she cared. His thoughtfulness had touched her so deeply she didn’t care if the cuffs hung to her knees. She’d wear it for years. Her hand swept over it. “Feels like cashmere.”

  “It is. Let me help you slip into it.” He took his time, intent on buttoning every cloth-covered button. His gaze swept over her. “Just as I suspected, you look fantastic in it. Go look in a mirror.”

  Instead, she wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed him. “I love you, Mason. Not for the coat, but for you. The man you are inside.”

  “Baby.” He kissed her again, slowly and thoroughly.

  Once she’d taken a slow turn in front of the mirror on the back of her bedroom door, she removed her new coat and hung it and the cat scarf in the coat closet. Mason picked the artificial tree off the floor and set it back on the table. He set about picking up the broken bulb fragments.

  “I’ll get the sweeper to vacuum the small shards off the floor.”

  “What you’ll do, sweet thing, is stretch out on the sofa, tell me where you keep the sweeper, and watch while I run it.”

  “You are not the boss of me.”

  He shot her a sexy-as-hell look, one eyebrow arched. All her girly bits did a come hither dance. “Do you want to rephrase that last remark?”

  “Ah…the sweeper’s in the small bedroom.”

  He took the bag of broken tree decorations out to the trash can in the kitchen. “Want a donut and some hot chocolate? I’ll play nursemaid and bring them to you.”

  Once the carpet was cleaned, they gorged on donuts and hot chocolate while they redecorated the tree with star, snowflake, and ice cycle ornaments he thought would be less breakable. He’d found some cats, policemen, and Wonder Woman ornaments. There was also one proclaiming “Our First Christmas Together,” which required a kiss before it was hung.

  While they worked on the tree, they talked about Christmases as they were growing up. His parents were still living here in Willow Bend. Her dad had died in a work-related accident while she was away at college and her mother had a fatal heart attack when the news broke over Seth. She’d thought him so perfect.

  His favorite Christmas present had been a remote control helicopter and hers had been a pair of pearl earrings along with a copy of Johannes Vermeer painting, “Girl With a Pearl Earring.” She had it hanging in her bedroom even now.

  That night, he took her to a romantic restaurant for dinner. They held hands, whispered, and danced. At home, they made slow, sweet love now that Mason had a large condom supply in the drawer of the nightstand.

  The next morning they went out for breakfast. Afterward, while Mason had a meeting with the chief of police about the murderer, Ciera visited Aleesha in her human resource office.

  “Oh, girlfriend, your face is wicked bruised. That’s a long cut on your throat, too.” Her concern changed to a smile. “I was surprised when Detective Holt called me about the two of you. I had no clue. There hadn’t been a hint of gossip.”

  “It all happened pretty fast, although he claims he’s been trying to get my attention since I came to work here. I was too devastated over my divorce to notice. The last thing I wanted was a man.”

  “I totally get that. He seemed fiercely protective of you and your relationship when he talked to me. I think he’s pretty serious. How are you with that?”

  “Now that I’ve finally admitted to myself that I love him, I’m totally fine with it. He treats me so well, Aleesha.”

  “Good. Because you deserve it.”

  The two were deep into conversation when Mason knocked on the door and opened it slightly. “Are there two good looking women in here?”

  Aleesha preened. “You just get your handsome self in my office. Tell me how you’re taking care of my girl. Is she getting enough rest?”

  “No.” His hands went to his hips. “The woman won’t keep her hands off me. I’m so weak I can barely walk.”

  She laughed hard at his remark. “You two get on out of here. Go home. Take a nap.”

  “Nap? Hell, that’s when Ms. Innocence here attacks me!”

  Aleesha wiped tears of mirth from her eyes
. “Go!” She pointed to Ciera. “You, I don’t want to see here until five days from now, you look drained. Pale. Your job is stressful. Take five more days, you hear?”

  They walked to her car hand in hand. “I gathered your crockpot and cooler. Juanita had them all washed out for you. They’re in my Jeep.”

  “Oh good. I envisioned mold over everything. I should have known Juanita wouldn’t let that happen. Five more days off, Mason. I’m used to working. I’m starting to get cabin fever. I’m going to get a manicure and then I’m stopping at the grocery store on my way home. There are things we need. Plus, Gabby only has a couple cans of salmon left.”

  “I’ll go with you. You take your car. I’ll follow in mine.”

  “No. I need to be out on my own. I’m starting to feel smothered. You told me the other night I was strong. Now let me be strong.”

  He kissed her hair. “Okay. I can see your point. I’ve got some Christmas shopping to do. Text me when you get home.” He strode away, then stopped. “If you get the ingredients for my special pasta sauce, I’ll cook for you tonight. I’ll pick up a movie to watch.”

  “Okay.” She walked to her Land Rover, pressed the unlock button on the key fob, and froze as a flashback whipped through her. Strong hands settled on her shoulders. “Make one step, baby. I’ll stay here to make sure your car battery’s not dead.” How did he know what I was going through? She took a deep breath and moved forward. “I’m proud of you. Make another step, reach out, and open your door.”

  His lips moved against her ear. And she took strength from him. “I wasn’t expecting the flashbacks.”

  “They’re normal; part of post-traumatic stress. Many in Special Forces struggled with them. I have. You have a choice. Try your best to fight through them or allow them to control you. There’s no shame in either way. You chose, sweetheart. I’ll back you up.”

  He would, too. She knew that. So she pursed her lips, pushed a long breath through them, and silently battled through the memories of maniacal eyes, decayed teeth, rancid breath, bloody clothes, threats, a knife—and worse of all—a rope around her neck. Her trembling hand reached for the door handle and opened the door.