Keepers of the Cave (13 page)

Paige lifted her chin defiantly. “I’m not comfortable with this, okay? I don’t want you touching me. I certainly don’t want you kissing me.”

“No. That’s not it. You’re pissed at
me
because
you
responded to my kiss. That’s it, isn’t it?”

Paige glared at her. “I did no such thing. I told you, I don’t want you to kiss me. Ever.”

“Oh, come on, Paige. What was it? Was it too real? Did it remind you of that night?”

“I assure you, I never think about that night.”

“And I know you’re lying.”

“I’m not. I have no need to recall that night. It meant nothing.”

CJ’s laugh was bitter. “Oh, right. Because I’m
so
not your type. What? Am I not refined enough for you? Am I not proper enough? Is my hair not perfect? My clothes? Am I too butch for you?” She was surprised that some of the anger left Paige’s eyes.

“That’s not it and you know it. We’re pretending to be lovers, but no, you are not someone I would date. And it has nothing to do with your social status or your clothes or whatever. It’s because of who you are,” Paige said. “You pick up women and then discard them like they’re nothing. I don’t think you know how to treat women.”

CJ would be lying if she said that didn’t sting. It did. And perhaps it was true. After all, she had her father as a role model. Her anger at her father bubbled out and she took it out on Paige.

“Right. And your perfect partner wouldn’t have any of the terrible past history like I do. I’m not quite good enough for Paige Riley, am I? Your lover would be someone with a better paying job than mine. Your lover would always be nice to you, do everything for you, make love to you slow and easy. She would treat you like a lady. Is that it?”

Paige held her gaze but didn’t say anything. CJ leaned closer.

“Except for that one night,” CJ said quietly. “You didn’t want it slow and easy. You didn’t want it like a lady. You just wanted someone to fuck you that night.” Paige’s eyes flashed at her and she tried to walk past but CJ stopped her. “No. I was good enough for you that night, right? You wanted me to fuck you until you couldn’t think, until you couldn’t feel, couldn’t see. Couldn’t walk. You wanted someone to chase it all away. I was good enough that night.”

Paige jerked her arm away. “Yes. Yes to all of that. I was just like you that night.”

“Yeah. Yeah you were. I guess we both got what we wanted.”

“Problem is, you’re like that every night.”

CJ let her brush past. The bedroom door didn’t slam shut like she expected. Instead, Paige closed it quietly behind her. CJ turned, staring at herself in the mirror, her anger turning to sadness. Paige was right. She didn’t know how to treat women. Oh, she could play the seduction game. She was good at it. And once she got a woman into bed, she knew exactly what to do with them. She was good at that too. But Paige was right. That’s as far as it went. She didn’t bother with their names, she had no interest in seeing them again. She had no interest in a
relationship
. She had seen firsthand how those things turned out. The yelling, the screaming...the hitting. And when that failed, turning to the kids to take it out on.

She turned away from her memories. It would do no good to travel down that road again. God knows she’d done it enough in the last fifteen, twenty years. She sighed, then went about her own nighttime routine. Maybe she would take the sofa tonight. She doubted Paige wanted her in the same room with her, much less the same bed.

They had no extra pillows and the other set of sheets was in the bedroom so she rested her head against the rounded side of the sofa, trying not to think about who—and what—had been on it before her. She wasn’t fastidious by any means, but sleeping on a used sofa was disgusting. She twisted and turned, trying to get comfortable, but sleep eluded her.

She was no closer to falling asleep when, an hour later, headlights flashed across the window. She got up, peering quietly outside. The car stopped next door. Fiona? She squinted into the darkness, seeing a man—the hulk from the café—open the passenger door and help a woman out. He waited at the front door, never going inside the house. When she closed it behind her, he took off on foot, disappearing into the woods.

“What the hell?” she whispered. She made a mental note to check with the chief tomorrow to find out who was working the gate. She eyed the sofa again, then glanced at the bedroom door. The bedroom seemed the lesser of two evils.

Paige was asleep, taking up more than her share of the bed. CJ stared at her, her face so calm, peaceful. Beautiful. And so not her type. CJ tended to gravitate toward women who were a little on the raunchy side. Ill-mannered and foul-mouthed, the sex always rough and raw. Paige was just the opposite. Clean, refined. Stylish. Truth was, what started out as rough and raw with her had ended up being slow and languid. Down and dirty sex gave way to leisurely gentle lovemaking. Something she didn’t think she was capable of.

She stared a few seconds longer, then quietly slipped in beside Paige. To her surprise, Paige mumbled something in her sleep, her hands reaching out for CJ. CJ’s heart beat just a little bit faster as a warm hand curled around her arm. She should move, she knew. Paige would be embarrassed. But it felt good. She felt...needed. So she stayed where she was, her eyes slipping closed as Paige’s hand tightened reflexively.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Paige waited impatiently while the secretary, Ms. Miner, called the director. No, she didn’t have an appointment but really, was it that big a deal?

“He’s not answering.”

Paige looked at the closed door. “Are you sure he’s in?”

“Yes. I brought him coffee earlier. Now, Ms. Riley—”

“Paige, please.”

“Paige, then. I think I need to remind you that we’re having a state audit this fall. Your
lesson plans
are sorely lacking. I mean, Zumba? The girls need activity, games. Sports. Not dance class.”

“Excuse me, Ms. Miner, but you’re a secretary, right? Not an educator?” She flashed a smile. “Perhaps I should discuss my
lesson plans
with the director and not you.” She looked pointedly at the phone. “Please try him again.”

She made no move to pick up the phone. “You’re new here. I’m not. I’ve seen people come and go. I’ll be here long after you’re gone too. So I think I’m qualified to pass along advice.”

Paige was five seconds away from smacking the snotty little woman when her cell rang. She took a deep breath, excusing herself. She was surprised at the number that popped up.

“This is Paige,” she said quietly.

“I need to see you.”

Paige looked at the closed door, then back to Ms. Miner. “I’m right outside your office,” she nearly whispered.

“Okay. I’ve been avoiding her. Ask her to call me again.”

Paige put her phone back in her pocket as she approached Ms. Miner’s desk again. “Do you mind giving him another call? I really need to speak with him this morning.”

“He’s obviously occupied with something.”

Paige gritted her teeth. “Please. Once more.”

“Very well.” Ms. Miner looked surprised when he answered. “Sorry to bother you, Director Avery, but Paige Riley is here to see you.” She looked at Paige. “Yes, sir.” Disappointment showing clearly on her face, she motioned to the door. “He will see you now.”

“Thank you.”

Paige opened and closed the door quickly, leaning against it. Avery’s back was to her, the coffee cup that Ms. Miner delivered earlier appeared to be untouched.

“Avery?”

He turned slowly and she gasped, moving quickly from the door.

“What the hell happened?”

“I had a visitor last night.”

She lifted his head gently, seeing the split lip and swollen, discolored eye. “The bodybuilder guy from town? The one they call Belden?”

He nodded. “How did you know?”

Paige pulled her phone out, scrolling through her contacts for CJ’s number. “CJ saw him.”

“Who are you calling?”

“CJ.”

“No. It would look odd for me to summon her here without going through the chief.”

“You’re not summoning her. I am.” Paige stood, waiting for CJ to answer, wondering if she was in a classroom or not. When she did answer, it wasn’t her normal “Hi, baby” but rather a very businesslike greeting.

“What’s up?”

“Can you come to the director’s office?”

“Did you tell him?”

“Didn’t have to. He had a personal visit.”

CJ paused, her voice low. “I’m watching some damn training movie on how to be a good little prison guard. I’ll be there as soon as I can think of an excuse to leave.”

Paige smiled as she disconnected, but it faded as soon as she looked at Avery.

“Did he threaten you?”

“I suppose that’s what it was, yes. A reminder to keep my staff out of Hoganville.” He touched his lip and grimaced. “Couldn’t even drink my coffee.”

“Why didn’t you call us last night?”

“It was very late. I didn’t want to cause a scene. You leaving your house at that hour to come to mine would have caused a fuss.” He touched his lip again. “I’m not a field agent,” he said. “I don’t have the training to—”

“You did what you were supposed to do,” she said. “You played the part of a director of this school, nothing more.”

“I was scared, I don’t mind saying.”

Paige actually felt sorry for him, and she touched his shoulder reassuringly. “He brought Fiona home last night. CJ was—” What? She couldn’t very well tell him they’d had a fight and she was sleeping on the sofa. “She was still up,” she said lamely. “He walked her to the door, then left on foot. That’s why I came here this morning. CJ wanted to see how closely the gates are monitored.”

“There’s a record of all traffic. It’s logged. Quite sophisticated, actually. The ID tag has a bar code, much like toll roads do. But on Sunday night, the gate should have been locked at ten.”

“Can we pull that information?”

“The chief would have it. I can request his secretary to pull it. Say it’s for an audit or something.”

His phone rang a second before the door opened and CJ waltzed in, a furious Ms. Miner holding her phone uselessly behind her. CJ slammed the door in her face.

“Nosey little biddy, isn’t she,” CJ said.

“Yes, Ms. Miner, it’s okay,” Avery said to the fuming secretary on the phone. “I understand. I’ll tell her.” He tried to smile as he hung up. “Office protocol,” he said.

“Whatever,” CJ murmured as she bent down, surveying his battered face. “Gonna have a nice shiner there. What did he want?”

“A warning.”

CJ raised her eyebrows.

“For us to stay away,” Paige supplied.

“What makes them think you won’t call the sheriff and press charges?” CJ asked. “That’s kinda ballsy of them, isn’t it?”

It was a question that didn’t require an answer. Paige watched as CJ paced, her hand running through her hair time and again.
She’s so damn attractive.
Paige blinked several times, trying to get that thought from her mind. Of course, on the heels of that came the reminder of the predicament she’d found herself in that morning. In bed. With CJ. Her arms—not CJ’s—had wandered inappropriately during the night. She woke to find herself snuggled close to CJ, her hand wrapped possessively around CJ’s arm. Thank God she woke first. She could only imagine the merciless teasing if CJ had been the first to wake and found Paige nestled against her.

“How about this?” CJ said. “I go into the café in uniform. I confront him. Find out what the hell is going on.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Avery said. “We would like to think the school is secure, but apparently it is not. Having the gates unlocked after hours requires special permission from me. Obviously that was not the case.”

“If they did this as a warning, I can only imagine the retaliation should you confront them,” Paige said.

“So we just let it go?”

“I think that’s what they’re used to,” Avery said. “They control Hoganville, they control the school.”

CJ looked between the two of them. “Yeah, but who is
they
?”

***

Fiona sipped her coffee, listening to the concerns of her friends.
Friends.
That thought struck her as funny, and she looked up, smiling as Robbie rubbed her arm affectionately.

“You just look so pale, Fiona. Have you been to a doctor?”

“Yes,” she lied. “Just a bug. I couldn’t keep anything down.”

“Well, do you need anything? I can ask Charlotte to make some soup,” she offered.

“Thank you, but...” Fiona was about to decline, but she was genuinely touched. “That would be nice,” she said instead.

“Great.” Robbie paused. “I don’t suppose you’ve met your new neighbors yet, have you?”

Fiona shook her head. “It was late when I got home. Are they nice?”

“Yes, they seem nice. They’ve joined us at our get-togethers. I wish you would stay one weekend, Fiona. We have so much fun.”

“I know. But my mother expects me home.”

“You’re over thirty, Fiona,” Jules said. “Surely you can do your own thing.”

Fiona shook her head. “It doesn’t work that way,” she said, recognizing the sadness in her voice. She immediately felt guilty, knowing she owed Mother Hogan everything she had. “I mean, family comes first.” Maybe more so now, she thought.

“Okay. Well, if you need anything, you let us know,” Jules said.

“And I’ll bring some soup over this evening,” Robbie added.

Jules rubbed her shoulder as she passed by. “I hope you feel better.”

Left alone again, Fiona set her coffee aside. Yes, they were her friends. Not in the traditional sense, of course. She essentially led two lives, which she’d resigned herself to years ago. She was one of very few who had to leave the security of Hoganville to venture out in the world, all to keep Hoganville—and the caves—safe. There was a certain safety in numbers, and she’d known for some time that their flock was shrinking. She never made mention of it, not even to her own mother. It seemed a little late now for Mother Hogan to be concerned with it. She instinctively ran her hand across her belly, rubbing lightly. It was growing in there, she knew. She could feel it. But a chill ran over her as she remembered the blood between her legs and the cold, reptilian hands on her body. Even though Mother Hogan insisted it was Antel who visited her each night, she knew better. Antel took her innocence in the chamber during coupling. She suspected Antel had never touched her again.