Sunkissed (5 page)

Her lips quirked at the corners.
“Sounds good. See you then,” she agreed before saying goodbye.

Snuggling under the covers, she closed her eyes. Her final thoughts were of Grant before drifting to sleep.

* * *

Grant closed the journal, his head shaking softly. “They were in love. Why did they never say anything?”

Natalie reached out for the book, tucking it safely in her bag. Readjusting on the couch next to Grant, she tucked her legs beneath her to get more comfortable. “I don’t know. I wish I knew what happened between them.”

“And you’re sure the next journal is lost?”

“Yes. I looked in the other boxes, but couldn’t find it. Unless she kept it somewhere else, which is hard to imagine, it’s gone. I think she might have destroyed it.”

“What makes you think so?”

“Well, no other journal is missing. Just that one. The one that might have explained what happened to their relationship. I can see her throwing it out if it gave her bad memories.”

Grant couldn’t understand that. If he took the time to write something down, to preserve it that way, he would never toss it. Good and bad memories were what shaped a person. But Adele wasn’t him. “That’s possible.”

“Have you found anything else in your grandpa’s things?”

“No.
Nothing yet. I started reading through his journals, but there isn’t anything about Adele.”

“Well, hopefully you’ll find something. If not, I’m not sure we’ll ever know what happened.” A frown furrowed her brows as she stared at the
floor.

He swallowed hard. He wanted to soothe her, to see her smile.

“Come on.” He stood, taking her hands in his before pulling her up next to him. “Let me get you some dinner. There isn’t anything else we can do about this right now.”

She nodded reluctantly. “You’re right. I have a tendency to dwell on things.”

“It’s all right. Come on back to the kitchen,” he said, but continued to hold one of her hands, unwilling to let her go.

She laced her fingers through his, strengthening the connection. “I know I’ve already said this, but I really appreciate all the effort you’re putting into this search.”

“I couldn’t stop now if I wanted to. The mystery is too intriguing to ignore.” He pulled out a chair at the table. “Have a seat. I’m making chicken.”

“You’re cooking?” She settled into the chair.

He leaned down, evaluating the contents of the fridge before he glancing at her. “Yeah. Is that a problem?”

“No.
Not at all. I’m just surprised. Most men don’t cook. Especially ones that have the pizza joint on speed dial.”

That provoked a laugh from him. “I’ll never live that one down, will I?” Placing two chicken breasts, an onion, and a red and yellow bell pepper on the counter, he began to dice. “I’m single. Unless I want to eat take-out every meal, I need to cook. And if I’m going bother cooking, it better be really good.”

“And are you? Really good, that is.”

“You’ll have to wait and see.” He said it smoothly, aware of the double entendre.

Her brow arched, but she didn’t comment on the undercurrents. “How can I help? I’m not the most skilled cook, but I can manage.”

“Just sit and relax. There’s wine chilling if you’d like to have some while this is cooking.”

“Would you like some?”

“Yeah, thanks.” He gestured to a cupboard by the sink with his fork. “The glasses are in there.”

As she breezed past, her delicate scent grabbed him. She reached up into the cabinet, her body stretching toward the glassware. She was breathtaking, all sleek lines and feminine curves. He wanted her in his arms again.

Glancing over her shoulder, her lips quirked.
“You okay?”

His eyes snapped back to the food.
“Yeah. Great.” His voice was gravelly. He needed a distraction. Scraping the chicken into a hot skillet, the meat sizzled in oil before Grant gave a few deft flicks of his wrist, coating the meat. “So, do you have any other family in the area?” He figured family was always a safe subject.

She moved to the table with her drink. “No. My mother was an only child.
Same as me. Now that my grandma has passed… I’m alone.”

“I’m sorry. That must be hard.” He didn’t have a large family, but he couldn’t imagine life without them. He added the vegetables to the chicken before glancing back at her. The look of sadness on her face made him ache to go to her. But he didn’t think she would accept comfort from him. He could tell he made her nervous at times. She seemed to relax when he kept it light, impersonal.

“Thanks.” She gave him a wobbly smile. “What about you? Are your parents or brother still in the area?”

“My parents live back East. My dad’s a history professor there. But my brother is still in the area. He works at a law firm downtown.”

“Do you see him often?”

“Often enough.”
He moved the skillet off of the heat. Arranging the food onto two plates, he added a salad with a flourish next to the main course. “He usually stops by several times a month.”

“Are you close?”

“Yeah. He was always my partner in crime.” He grinned. “We used to get into so much trouble together.”

“You’re lucky. I always wanted a sibling. Most of my friends growing up moved away or we lost touch in one way or another. I imagine that doesn’t happen as often with a sibling.”

“They’re usually around in some way. I don’t see my parents as often as I would like, but we talk over the phone.” He moved the plates to the table. “Can I get you more wine?”

“No, thanks.
I shouldn’t have any more since I’m driving home.”

Cradling his glass, he sat across from her, the cooked meat and vegetables tempting his stomach.

“This looks fantastic.” She took a bite and sighed. “This is
so
good. I’d cook more often if it came out like this.”

“It’s never the same when you cook it yourself. There’s something about eating a meal that someone else has prepared that makes it taste better.”

She laughed, forking up another bite. “You’re right. I need to hire a chef.”

“I’ll cook for you any time you want. I’ll even do it for free.”

“I might take you up on that offer.”

“You should.”

She took a sip of wine, studying him over the rim of her glass. “Look, I don’t know if you want to talk about the kiss or not, but I feel like we should.”

“All right.”
He rested his wrists on the table, giving her his full attention.

She let out a pent-up breath. “We’re obviously attracted to one another.”

“You mean you find me sexy,” he drawled, provoking a laugh from her.

“And modest as well.”

His eyes crinkled in amusement. “So we’re attracted to each other. What do you want to do about it?”

“I’m not sure we should do anything about it.”

“Why not?”

“Well, we’re so different. Besides our attraction, I’m not sure what else we have in common.”

“Do you enjoy hot showers?”

“Yes.”

“How about good food?”

She sent him an amused smile. “Of course. I see what you’re doing.”

“We do have things in common. We just haven’t figured out what they are. Isn’t that the point in getting to know one another?”

“I guess. Is it really not weird for you that our grandparents were involved?”

“Not at all.
That was a long time ago. He obviously enjoyed your grandmother, just as I enjoy you. We’ll just say it’s genetic and can’t be helped.”

“I’m serious,” she said with a frown, but spoiled it with a chuckle.

“So am I.” His eyes turned intense as he looked at her. The smile slowly left her lips. “I want to get to know you better, Natalie. You feel what’s between us. Don’t we owe it to ourselves to find out what could happen?”

Hesitation filled her eyes, puzzling him. He could tell she wanted him.
Could feel it with every fiber of his body. “Why does that make you uncomfortable?”

“It doesn’t. It just makes me hesitant. I won’t pretend that I’m not attracted to you. I am.
Very much so.”

“I knew you thought I was sexy.”

She shook her head in amusement. “I just don’t know how far I want this to go. I don’t know how involved I want to get. I enjoy being on my own. Making my own decisions, calling all the shots. Being seriously involved with someone changes that.”

“It doesn’t have to.”

“But it would.”

He reached out for her hand across the table. “I would never make you do anything you didn’t want to. And whatever this is, what’s between us, it might never get to that point. I want to spend some time with you, get to know you better. If that all leads to something more, great.” He waited until her eyes met his. “I want you, Natalie. I want to find out more about you. This doesn’t have to get serious.”

Her hand relaxed in his grip as she sent him a tentative smile. “I can agree to that. Nothing serious. We’ll just enjoy each other as long as it lasts.”

“Exactly.”
He agreed with her to keep her relaxed, but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep it light. He wanted to delve into her soul, examine all the pieces of what made her, her. He was intrigued, fascinated, and utterly attracted to her. He wasn’t going to let her go, let her walk out of his life without seeing what was there. “Are you finished?” He glanced down at her empty plate. “Would you like to see the orchard?”

When she nodded, he helped her out of her chair, keeping her hand clasped with his. The gesture was friendly, but the intimacy of it shot pleasure up his arm. He could get used to this.

The rules had been laid out, the boundaries were drawn. That thought made Natalie feel safe.

The night was bright, the moon full, casting a silver glow to the trees. It reminded her of a picture book she had once read. It had been about a magical land. The trees were silver, decorated in diamonds that glimmered. That’s how the orchard looked in the moonlight. “It almost feels like another world out here,” she said, her voice hushed with reverence.

“I’ve always thought so. I like coming out here at night once everyone leaves. It’s easy to imagine that I’m the only person around for miles.”

“But not tonight.”

They stopped in a grove of trees, turning toward each other. “No,” he said softly, brushing a thumb over her cheek. “Not tonight.”

Looking into each other’s eyes, something wove around them, something as strong as magic.

They came together, both reaching out to the other. His arms closed around her, bringing her full against him.

She shivered at the contact, wrapping her arms around his neck to bring his head down to hers.

His mouth caught hers in a soft caress, exerting just enough pressure to make her sigh, opening for him.

The first taste of him lit sparks behind her eyes. She felt weak-kneed, feminine, as his arms held her tight.

Her senses swirled, spiraling out of control until they settled on Grant, on this moment.

The scents of the orchard mixed with Grant’s smoky essence, the combination tempting her to return for one more taste, one last kiss.

This was heaven. Pure, one hundred percent, nerve-singeing bliss.

Abruptly, Grant tore his lips from hers, leaving her reeling from the loss of him. His eyes narrowed, searching through the trees with an alertness that only hunters possessed.
Or more accurately, their prey.

Natalie’s heart raced. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Leaves rustled in the orchard, the sound of crunching under swift feet.

Someone was out there. Someone had watched them.

“Stay here.” Grant didn’t look at her before he took off into the trees.

Straining to hear, Natalie tensed, anxious for Grant to appear out of the trees.

Minutes passed without a sound, her heart racing as the seconds stretched by. It had been too long. Something had happened to him.

She flung herself toward the house, praying there was someone, anyone who could help her. If she went into the trees alone, she’d only get lost, or worse.

“Natalie, wait.”

Half-way up the porch steps, Natalie sagged in relief. She was down the stairs and in Grant’s arms in seconds. “What happened? Are you all right?”

He held her close to him, absorbing her tremors. “I’m fine.
Whoever it was got away.”

“You didn’t see them?”

“No.” He shook his head gently.

“Who could it have been? Why would someone watch us like that?”

“I don’t know. If it was one of my workers, which I highly doubt because they’ve been gone for hours, they wouldn’t have run.” She shook softly; the idea of someone watching them in such an intimate moment creeped her out. “Come on,” he said tenderly, his arm sliding around her. “Let’s go inside.”

They were almost through the door when something behind them exploded. Turning to protect her, he saw that a small section of trees was on fire. “Damn it! Call the police,” he called to her as he ran toward the inferno. He needed to put out the fire before it spread.

Not wasting another second, she dialed 911. By the time she was finished and running to help Grant, the fire was out.

His breath heaving, he wiped sweat off of his brow as he leaned against a shed. He was lucky that the structure hadn’t caught on fire.

“What happened?”

“Someone used an
accelerant to light up the trees.”

“Someone… the person who watched us?”

He nodded grimly. “Most likely. Did you call the police?”

“Yeah.
They should be here any minute.” Natalie tried to sound calm, but her stomach trembled with fear.

She lived downtown. Murder, robberies, and assaults happened on a daily basis. But none of that bothered her nearly as much as this. Living there, she had to constantly be on her guard. She always assumed that something bad was going to happen, so she was never surprised when it did.

Seeing this type of destruction at a place that appeared to be so far from the harsher things of the world, was like jumping into an ice cold pool expecting the hot temperatures of a jacuzzi.

Connecting eyes with Grant, he must have sensed her unease. Holding out his hand to her, he pushed away from the shed. “Come here.”

They hadn’t known each other long, but feeling the slide of his arms around her, bringing her into the haven of his body, made her feel as if nothing could touch them.

Her head leaning on his shoulder, she opened her eyes, her hazy vision slowly f
ocusing on the barn. “Grant…”

She didn’t have to finish. They both stared at the clear, chilling words scrawled in paint on the side of the barn.

You and that slut better watch your backs
.

His jaw clench against her forehead as his grip cinched tighter around her waist. “Let’s wait inside.”

She couldn’t speak, just nodded in agreement.

Settling her on the couch, he wrapped her tight in a blanket before sitting next to her, pulling her body against his. “I’m sorry. I never guessed that you would get caught up in this.”

“What’s going on? Why would someone write that?”

“Someone has been killing off trees on the fringe of the orchard. It’s happened over a period of time and no one has been injured. We’ve been trying to figure out who’s been doing it, but nothing like this has happened.” He gave her a little squeeze. “Had I known that you would be dragged into this, I would have never gotten involved with you. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You couldn’t know what was going to happen. You couldn’t have predicted this.”

“You were threatened.”

“So were you.”

“I know it scared you.”

She nodded slowly. “Of course. But I’m not going to let it frighten me away. I’m a big girl. I can handle myself.”

Her speech drew a soft laugh from him. “I’ve no doubt that you can take care of yourself. But I still don’t like that I got you into this.”

Reaching out to his jaw, she put pressure on it until he turned toward her. “I got myself into this. I distinctly remember barging into your life, hiring a private investigator, and threatening you until you let me in.” She smiled when he laugh. “I’m not saying that I’m happy that I was threatened, but I don’t regret getting involved with you.”

Grant took Natalie’s hands in his, helping her up when sirens sounded off in the distance. “This wasn’t how I wanted tonight to end.”

The suggestion in his voice was barely there, but it was enough to have her insides go on slow burn. “Me either.”

Meeting the police on the porch, Grant nodded to one of the men out of uniform. “Detective Ryan, thanks for coming.”

The young detective acknowledged the greeting with a nod of his own. “When I heard the call come through, I figured it was probably linked to your other problem.”

“Definitely.”

Grant took him over to the burned trees, making sure to show him the threat painted on the barn.

The detective whistled. “They’re escalating.”

“Looks that way.”

He gestured for pictures to be taken before Grant and Natalie gave him their statements and answered all of his questions.

Detective Ryan wasn’t what Natalie expected in a detective. At least a detective outside of prime time television. He was good looking. Almost too good looking. He had the same earthy appeal that Grant did, echoed in his clothes and gestures. But there were harder edges about him that Grant hadn’t developed.

“I would suggest that both of you take extra precautions until this is settled.”

Natalie rubbed away the goose bumps on her arms, generated by both the chilled air and her apprehension. “What kind of precautions?”

“While you may not live here and be directly involved with the orchard, Ms. Cohen, there’s been a threat against you and you need to make sure that you are sufficiently protected. That goes for you too, Mr. Walker. Don’t go out alone. Be smart and be aware of your surroundings. Don’t take any chances.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Grant said, shaking the detective’s hand. “Is there anything else you need from us? I’d like to get Natalie inside.”

“That should do it. I’ll come up to the house if I have any more questions.”

Without another word, Grant steered Natalie inside.

After a deep breath, she stepped away from him. “I’m all right.”

“Are you sure? That was enough to shake anyone up.”

“Yes. It was disturbing but I can handle it.” She tried a tremulous smile.

He chuckled softly but there wasn’t any humor in it. “You don’t have to be brave, you know.” He reached out, stroking her cheek with a finger.

“Yes I do.
If I don’t stand on my own… Let’s just say I don’t want to find out what will happen.”

“I understand.” He moved to the window, looking out into the dark night, the shadowed figures of the police were
eerie as they moved through the trees. “Look,” he turned back to her, leaning against the sill. “This obviously is a mess here. It might be best if we took a break from trying to find out about our grandparents. At least until all this is resolved.”

“Why?”

“Why? Isn’t it obvious?” He raked a hand through his hair. “There’s some psycho out there that is poisoning and burning down trees. And now they’ve escalated. You’ve been included in his threats because you’re here, involved with me. They would lose interest in you if you stayed away.”

“You don’t know that for sure.” His brow rose. “All right, so it’s likely that they’d forget me. But I’m not afraid of this.”

“You looked afraid. Heaven knows you should be.”

“It may have thrown me off. I wasn’t prepared. But now I am. I know what to expect.”

He came to her then, gripping her arms softly, speaking even quieter. “Why does it matter? Why can’t you stay away until they’ve caught him?”

Locking eyes, she didn’t shy away.
“Because I want to be with you. I want to see where this leads.”

“But still no complications?
Arson seems like a complication to me,” he said, scowling. “I don’t like thinking of you in danger.”

“I don’t mind that kind of complication. That’s just life.”

“An arsonist threatening your life is just a fact of life?”

“Of course not.”
She rolled her eyes. “What I mean is that life is complicated. I don’t expect it to be easy. I’ll admit, this is way more intense than crunching for a runway show, but if we let things come between us, we’d never get to know each other. We’d never find out what happened to our grandparents.”

“I’m not going to be able to keep you away now, huh?”

“Nope. I’m determined. Someone wants me to back away, and now I’m digging in.”

He laughed softly. “Are you always so contrary?”

She playfully considered it. “Yes. I believe I am. You might as well know that now.”

Taking his time, he pulled her against him, his eyes never leaving hers. Slowly, he bent down, brushing a feather kiss against her lips. “When can I see you again?”

“How about this weekend?”

“Perfect.” He leaned down to kiss her but stopped half-way, cursing. “I forgot. We’ll be harvesting then.”

“Could you use another hand?”

“We could always use more help.” He eyed her. “But I don’t think it’s something you’ll want to be involved in. It’s a hard, dirty mess that lasts for days on end.”

“I think I could keep up.” She wrapped her arms around his neck with a smile.

“Is this another stubborn thing?”

“Uh huh.”

He grinned wolfishly. “You have no idea what you’re getting into. It’ll be fun to watch.”