Make Me Melt (4 page)

Colton stepped out of the room, closing the door firmly behind him and leaving Caroline alone with Jason. She watched as he locked the door, deliberately avoiding any eye contact with her.

“Where is Deputy Black going to sleep?”

“He and Deputy Mitchell have a room across the hall. They’ll take turns watching the corridor and the stairwell.”

“And you’ll stay here? With me?”

He turned to look at her. “You bet.”

“For how long?”

“However long it takes.”

“You’re sacrificing a lot, coming up to San Francisco to babysit me.” She picked up a small decorative bowl from an end table and turned it over in her hands, pretending to study it. “Doesn’t your girlfriend object?”

A ghost of a smile touched his lips, and Caroline knew her pathetic attempt to find out about his personal life had been completely transparent.

When he didn’t answer, Caroline put the bowl back and sank down onto the nearest sofa with a weary sigh. She didn’t know how she was going to bear Jason Cooper’s company for the next few days, or for however long it might take for authorities to catch the shooter. She only knew that the years had done nothing to diminish her attraction to him. If anything, she found him even more sexy and appealing than she had as a teenager.

Part of her was appalled by her reaction to him. She should be thinking about her father and what she could do to help him, not what she could do to get Jason into her bed. Especially when he’d made it abundantly clear that he didn’t hold her in very high esteem. She knew how close he was with her father, and although he hadn’t said anything, she suspected he was all too aware of how seldom she’d returned to the bay area to visit. How would he react if he knew that one of the reasons she hadn’t returned to San Francisco was because she didn’t want to risk an encounter with him? She needed to maintain her distance from him, but she doubted her ability to hide her feelings from Jason, especially if they were going to be living together. But there was no way she’d ever give him the opportunity to reject her again.

Realistically, she knew she should be grateful to Jason for volunteering to protect her. He had an important job as a U.S. marshal in San Diego, and it couldn’t have been easy for him to leave his district and travel to San Francisco to watch over her.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said, raising her head. Jason had come to stand at the end of the sofa. The windows were behind him, and, although it was growing dark outside, they hadn’t turned on any interior lights and she couldn’t read his expression. “I’m sure this is hard for you, too.”

“You have no idea.”

His wry tone caused Caroline to look sharply at him, unable to tell if he was joking or not. Before she could ask him what he meant, he turned away.

“I asked Deputy Black to order room service for us. Nothing fancy—a couple of steak sandwiches and salads.”

Caroline wasn’t hungry, but knew she should eat something. “Thanks. A salad is fine.”

Jason arched an eyebrow and swept his gaze over her in one all-encompassing look that missed nothing. His cell phone rang, and he gave a grunt before turning away to speak quietly into the phone. Caroline sighed and pushed herself to her feet, then wandered to the tall bank of windows. Below she could see the city streets and beyond that the shimmering water of San Francisco Bay beneath the setting sun.

A few moments later, Jason came to stand beside her. “I said earlier that there were some safety rules we should go over, and one of the most important is to stay away from windows. You make yourself an easy target for anyone outside, especially at night.”

“You think there’s someone standing down there, watching the hotel?” she asked in disbelief.

“No,” he admitted. “Not here, but while we’re at the hospital, I think it’s better you not go near the windows. Until we know what we’re dealing with, I’m not taking any chances. Second rule, don’t answer the phone or the door. I’ll do that. Third, you don’t go anywhere without me. If we’re at the hospital, you don’t even go to the restroom unless I’m with you. Got it?”

Caroline hugged herself around the middle, feeling a chill wash over her. “You’re scaring me, Jason.”

To her surprise, he took her by the shoulders and turned her toward him, dipping his head to look directly into her eyes. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, okay? As long as I’m with you, you’re safe.”

Before she could respond, he pulled her against him, enfolding her in his arms. He felt so solid and strong that Caroline instinctively hugged him back. His woodsy scent transported her back to being sixteen years old. Desire hit her like a sledgehammer, and she drew in a ragged breath, intensifying her hold on him. Beneath the crisp fabric of his shirt, she felt his muscles bunch and tighten.

“Caroline...” His voice was a husky rasp against her ear.

Lifting her face, she met his gaze. For just an instant, she saw the raw hunger in his eyes, and his expression gave her courage. She couldn’t deny that she’d thought about kissing Jason far more than she should have since he’d first walked through the door of her law firm. Fixing her attention on his mouth, she told herself she would give him one kiss, just to thank him for everything he’d done. There was no harm in a simple gesture of gratitude, was there?

Slowly, she reached up and pressed a light kiss against the corner of his mouth. He made a strangled sound in his throat but didn’t release her. Emboldened, she brushed her lips gently against his. For a brief instant, there was no response, and then he gave a groan of defeat and his arms tightened around her. His hand slid up between her shoulder blades to pull her closer, and he slanted his mouth hard over hers.

The kiss was so deep and so carnal that Caroline’s legs went a little weak. She melted into him, welcoming the hot, slick slide of his tongue against hers. He reached up, released her hair clip and dropped it onto the floor, then fisted his hand in her hair and tugged her head to one side. Pulling his mouth away, he trailed his lips along the line of her jaw, to the tender spot just beneath her ear. Caroline took in big gulps of air and shivered with pleasure. When he skated his mouth along the length of her neck, she gave a faint moan and clutched him closer, her fingers digging into the firm muscles of his back.

As he bent her slightly back over his arm and feasted on the sensitive skin of her throat, Caroline forgot almost everything except the way he made her feel. In that moment, she realized that her life wasn’t the only thing at risk.

4

J
ASON
DIDN
’
T
KNOW
if he’d have had the ability to do the right thing and push Caroline away.

Again.

Thankfully, a knock sounded on the door, dragging him back to his senses, and he reluctantly released her. Looking a little dazed, she moistened her lips and pressed her hands against her flushed cheeks. Drawing in a deep breath, he retrieved his weapon from the table and strode to the door. Peering through the peephole, he saw Colton standing in the corridor with a rolling tray of food. With a quick glance at Caroline, who had turned away, he shoved the gun into the back of his waistband and opened the door.

“I’ve checked everything,” Colton said, indicating the tray. “Looks good.”

“Order something for yourself and Deputy Mitchell,” Jason told him.

“Will do, boss. Oh, one more thing. I spoke with Judge Banks’s assistant, Steven Anderson, and he’s bringing over copies of the case files that the judge was working on. Everything for the past year.”

Jason nodded. “Okay, thanks. Does the FBI have any leads?”

“They found a partial footprint in the flower bed beside the front porch and sent it over to the lab for processing.” The other man paused, his eyes sharpening on Jason. “Everything okay?”

He wondered how the other man would react if he told him that he’d just had Judge Banks’s daughter—the woman he was sworn to protect—in a steamy lip-lock. Or that he’d likely be in bed with her right now if Colton hadn’t chosen that moment to knock on the door. On the other hand, the deputy would probably find the whole thing highly entertaining. After all, he’d met his fiancée, Maddie, after she’d taken him hostage, stolen his truck and his service revolver and then led him on a chase through the Sierra Nevada mountains to Reno. Even after he’d caught her, Colton hadn’t been able to actually arrest her. Instead, he’d fallen in love with her and asked her to marry him. Of course, there had been extenuating circumstances, and even Jason had found himself drawn into helping them.

But he couldn’t see a happy ending for himself and Caroline, not when they came from such different backgrounds. Not when he owed her father so much. Not when he’d bruised her young heart twelve years ago.

He should never have asked for this protective detail. But the thought of letting anyone else take responsibility for her safety had been unthinkable. Quite simply, he didn’t trust anyone to watch over her the way that he would.

“Is something amusing, sir?”

Colton’s words snapped Jason out of his reverie, and he shook his head. “No, nothing about this situation is amusing. I’m just seeing the irony, that’s all.”

“What do you mean?”

That having him watch over Caroline Banks was a little like having the wolf guard the lamb. But he couldn’t say that to his deputy marshal.

“Order yourself some supper, Deputy, and I’ll see you around midnight.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jason drew the food into the room and closed the door, securing the chain and the dead bolt despite the fact that both Deputy Black and Deputy Mitchell sat directly outside. He was acutely conscious of Caroline watching him from the far side of the room. He exhaled roughly, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“About what happened,” he began, not looking at her. “That was a mistake.”

“Which part?” she asked. “Kissing me or stopping?”

He slanted her a warning look. “Caroline.”

“What if I didn’t want you to stop?”

Her words reverberated through Jason, causing his body to harden. She’d felt so good in his arms, and she’d tasted exactly as he’d remembered from all those years ago, like wild honey. But she was no longer an impressionable, innocent girl. She was a woman now, and there was no reason why he shouldn’t take whatever she offered. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t want her.

He did.

He also knew that getting involved with Caroline would be a mistake of monumental proportions. After all, she was the precious daughter of his mentor and friend. Judge Banks had spent his life ensuring her safety and happiness. He wanted the best for her, and that didn’t include a guy like Jason. He could still hear her scathing words from that long-ago night—he was gutter trash.

He may have cleaned up his act and donned the veneer of respectability, but deep down he knew she was right. He couldn’t change who he was—the son of a drug addict, born and raised on the crime-ridden streets of Hunters Point. He’d done things that would cause Caroline to recoil in disgust if she ever knew.

Even if he could change who he was, it would make no difference. They lived on opposite sides of the country, and he didn’t do long-distance relationships any more than he did long-term relationships.

“Look,” he finally said, carefully choosing his words, “you’ve had a traumatic day, and you’re vulnerable right now. I won’t take advantage of you that way, not when I’m detailed to protect you.”

“Even if it’s what I want?”

Jason felt a wry smile tug at his mouth. Even now, after all these years, she felt entitled to have something simply on the basis of wanting it.

“I’m not sure you know what you want right now.”

Her mouth tightened, and he could almost see the walls going up around her. She was shutting down, shutting him out. “I want to go home.”

He gave her a tolerant look. “Caroline, you know that’s not possible. Not right now. Maybe in a day or two, if they clear the scene.”

Her chin went up. “What about the beach house? That’s not off-limits, is it?”

He frowned. “The beach house is no safer than the house in Sea Cliff. We have to assume that whoever shot your father also knows about the house in Santa Cruz. Even if we cleared the house, it’s a long drive. Sure you want to make that trip each day?”

“So I could stay there?” she asked, ignoring his question.

Jason didn’t like the idea of returning to the beach house, but there was no reason why she couldn’t return home, either to the house in Sea Cliff, once the investigators were finished processing the crime scene, or the house in Santa Cruz. He had enough men to provide ample security wherever she chose to go.

She stared at him for a moment, then spun on her heel and walked toward the windows. She abruptly changed course and moved to stand near the table.

“Please tell me we can go to the beach house. Even you can see that I can’t stay here,” she said, not looking at him.

With you.

She didn’t say the words aloud, but they hung in the air between them. Jason blew out a hard breath. This was his fault, and he mentally kicked himself. But there was no way he was going to give up the protection detail or allow another deputy to step in and take over. He’d pulled a lot of strings when he’d contacted his counterpart in San Francisco and asked for the assignment. He couldn’t back out now. And in all honesty, he didn’t want to. “The investigators should be done with the Sea Cliff house in a day or so,” he said quietly. “If you want to go to the house in Santa Cruz, I’ll make the arrangements. But for tonight, we’ll stay here.”

Her cell phone rang, and she reached for it, glancing at the screen before looking at him. “I have to take this call. I’ll stay here for tonight if there’s no other choice. But I’m checking out tomorrow morning.”

“Caroline—”

She’d already turned away, putting the phone to her ear as she strode into the bedroom. Before she shut the door, he heard her say, “Hi, Patrick. I’m sorry—I meant to call you earlier.”

Who was Patrick? A coworker? A friend? Or something more? Jason scrubbed a hand over his face, blocking out the image of Caroline with another man. Over the years, he’d managed to work her into his conversations with the judge, so he always knew what was going on in her life. But William had never talked about Caroline’s boyfriends. Jason hadn’t pressed him, because he wasn’t sure he really wanted to know. Pulling out his own phone, he made a call to the officer on duty at the hospital, reassuring himself that the judge was still alive and that he’d had no visitors since they had left. Then he made a call to Agent Sullivan, the lead investigator on the FBI team, to get more information about the footprint they had recovered.

He was still on the phone when Caroline came out of the bedroom thirty minutes later and quietly sat down to eat her salad. Jason ended his conversation and studied her closely. Her face was blotchy, and her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy. He wondered if she’d had a heart-to-heart with Patrick, sharing her emotions with the other man the way she refused to with him. Jason pushed down a flare of jealousy, reminding himself that there was absolutely no reason why Caroline should share her feelings with him. He hadn’t done anything to earn her trust. In fact, some might argue that he’d violated her trust in kissing her.

He sat down across from her and unwrapped the sandwich he’d ordered. They ate in silence for a moment, and Jason knew that Caroline was only going through the motions and wasn’t actually enjoying her meal, or even tasting it. Truthfully, he wasn’t all that interested in eating, either.

“Are you okay?” he finally asked.

* * *

C
AROLINE
RAISED
HER
head to look at him and nodded. “Yes. It’s just been a long day.”

That was the truth. She felt drained, physically and emotionally. After the flight from Virginia, and the three-hour difference in time, she was exhausted. Then Patrick Dougherty had called. He’d seen the reports of the shooting on the evening news. Although he’d purportedly called to offer his sympathy and find out how she was doing, Caroline suspected what he really wanted to find out was how long she planned to be away. Devon Lawton needed legal representation, and she was one of the few pro bono lawyers who knew the kid’s full history. Caroline felt guilty leaving Devon in the lurch, but right now she had no other option. She’d asked Patrick to call the district attorney’s office and have them assign legal representation for Devon. Tomorrow morning she’d call one of the paralegals at her law firm and have them bring her case files over to the new lawyer. Right now, that was the best she could do.

“I called the hospital,” Jason said, interrupting her thoughts. “There’s been no change in your father’s condition.” He nodded toward her salad. “The best thing you can do is eat and then get some sleep. We’ll head over early to see him.”

Caroline knew he was right. While she wanted to be at the hospital with her father, realistically she knew there was nothing she could do. He was in good hands, and she had to hope that his condition would improve over the next few days. But she couldn’t dispel the feelings of helplessness and guilt that had plagued her since she’d learned her father had been shot in cold blood on his front doorstep. She wanted to do something useful, something that would help him. She didn’t want to sit in a hotel room, a virtual prisoner. And she definitely did not want Jason Cooper as her bodyguard.

“Did the police find anything at the house that might give them a lead?”

“Just the partial footprint in the flower bed. But there’s no guarantee that it belongs to the person who did this. Your father employs a lawn care service, so it could have been left by a worker.”

Caroline pushed her plate away. “So exactly what’s your role in all of this? Are you only here to watch over me, or will you also help in the investigation? I mean, it would be pretty hard to just sit by and not have an active role, right?”

“I do have an active role,” he said quietly. “My role is protecting you.”

“But you’re a U.S. marshal. Don’t you usually give this kind of job to your deputies?” She leaned forward. “Why don’t you assign one of your men—Deputy Black, maybe—to stay with me? Then you can do whatever it is you do to find the sonofabitch who did this to my father.”

She watched as he pushed his own plate aside and gave her a crooked smile. That slight tilting of his mouth fascinated her, and Caroline realized how seldom she’d seen Jason smile. She didn’t even know what his laughter sounded like. During her youth, when he had come over to the house to see her father, she couldn’t recall a single time when he’d been lighthearted or full of exuberance. She’d never given it much thought, because part of his appeal had been his dark intensity and the aura of danger that had clung to him.

He was still broody and intense, but she hadn’t sensed any of the pent-up rage he’d once exhibited, except when he’d first seen her father at the hospital. But she understood that anger, because she felt it, too. Now she wondered if he’d managed to find happiness in the past twelve years. He’d certainly achieved an impressive level of success in his career.

“Do you like your job?” she asked, intercepting whatever he might have said in response to her suggestion that he switch assignments with Deputy Black. “I mean, is it everything you’d hoped it would be?”

He gave her a bemused look, and then his smile broadened. “Yeah, it is. In fact, it’s even better than I’d imagined.”

“Tell me about it.”

To Caroline’s astonishment, he actually seemed a little embarrassed. “Nah. You don’t want to hear about my job. I’ll have you bored to tears within minutes.”

She doubted that very much. The one thing Jason had never made her feel was bored.

Aroused? Frustrated and angry? Yes. But never bored.

His smiled faded, and she saw his expression change to concern. “Hey. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine. It was just a shock to see so much blood....” Her voice trailed off, and she looked down at her hands, blinking back sudden tears. “I should have been here. I should never have moved so far away.”

Reaching across the table, Jason caught her chin in his fingers and tipped her face up so that she was forced to look at him. “You have every right to live your own life, and your father didn’t want it any other way. He’s always been proud of you and what you’ve accomplished. You’re working for one of the best law firms in Virginia.”

Caroline pulled away. “It’s mostly just divorce and child custody cases,” she demurred. “Nothing exciting.”