Serving Pride Read online

  “It’s the cleaner I use to disinfect them. I had Kevin Williams back there last week.” He watched her eyes sharpen.

  “Is he still causing problems?”

  “He’s gotten a lot worse. He and Ricky are regulars down at the station. I guess they were always heading towards trouble.”

  “Well, I’m glad I haven’t seen either of them since I left Pride eight years ago. Tell me about yourself, Robert. What have you been doing since you left Pride?”

  She had been dying to ask him that since the last time she’d seen him. So far she’d heard a few details at the grocery store, but no one really seemed to know what he’d done other than work as a cop in New Mexico. She wondered if he had traveled like he’d told her he wanted to.

  “Well, I left here and tried to find my mom in New Mexico. I worked so closely with the police, I just sort of fell into becoming one. Then I did some traveling for a few years. I went to Europe, China, and even Africa." She saw his brows crinkled in thought. “But, I came back to the States and then came home.”

  “What brought you back?”

  “I suppose I was just tired of not having a home. Besides, when I talked to my aunt, she sounded a lot worse and I thought it was time I came back to be with her. She’s the only family I have.”

  “Robert? What really brought you back to the States?”

  He took a deep breath and she could tell he was fighting something. “They found my mom’s car. Roy had abandoned it in Vegas. I actually got my hopes up that maybe I’d finally track her down. But I guess I’ve been fooling myself into thinking she was still alive.”

  They pulled into the empty parking lot at the Golden Oar and stopped by her car. She watched as he got out and opened the back door for her. She got out and closed the car door, trying not to notice how close he stood to her. She leaned back on the car and pulled her jacket tighter around her, blocking out the cold wind coming from the ocean. The parking lot was dark and she couldn’t help thinking how good he looked in his uniform jacket.

  “I’m sorry about your mother.” It came out as a whisper. He’d moved even closer to her and she was finding it harder to breath.

  “Amelia, what would you do if I kissed you right now?”

  She smiled and reached for the front of his jacket to pull him the rest of the way towards her. When their lips met, she could have sworn her toes curled. His hands were on her hips, holding her close. She could feel his heat radiating from his body and leaned even farther against him, wrapping her arms around his narrow waist.

  “Mmm, you taste just like you look.” He pulled back and looked into her eyes as she felt the chill biting into her legs. The skirt was stylish, but the stockings were doing little to keep her warm from the chill. “I know it’s too cold out here to do this for much longer, but I just have to have another quick taste.”

  He bent his head and after the kiss ended, she no longer felt the chill.

  “I have next Monday off,” he said as he walked her to the car. “I was hoping that you’d like to go somewhere with me?”

  She smiled. “As long as I don’t have to ride in the back again.” He chuckled.

  “No, this time we’ll take my personal car. How about I pick you up around seven?” When she nodded, he leaned down and kissed her again.

  “Mmm, I could do this all night, but I know how chilly it is out here. Go get in your car before I decide to follow you home and finish this.” He smiled down at her and then started to walk away.

  “Robert?” She waited until he turned back towards her. “Thanks.”

  “For what?”

  “The ride home and the kiss. I’ll see you on Monday.” She got into her car and looked back at Robert’s car in her rear-view mirror. She laughed when she saw him fist pump the air.

  Chapter Five

  It took a few days for everything to finally die down in town. Once the coast guard had officially called off the search for George Jordan, most of the reporters had quickly left. There were still several camped out in Edgeview Hospital, waiting for news of Iian who had yet to wake.

  Robert had found some time to hire two deputies. One was a young cop from Edgeview and another an older gentlemen from another small town half an hour away. Both had experience in law enforcement.

  He settled into his paperwork and his job and felt like everything was finally slipping into a pattern. There had been quite a few parties around town lately to keep him busy. It seemed the high school kids had decided to have a week long party that hopped from house to house. He didn’t mind staying busy, since it had kept his mind occupied through the week. He didn’t know why, but he was actually nervous for this date.

  He’d dated plenty over the years, but had never been in a steady relationship. It seemed every time he started getting serious, he ended up pulling out of the relationship. He knew why, too. He had a date with her tomorrow night.

  Amelia waited by the front door, feeling like a teenager again.

  “You look lovely, dear,” her mother said from across the room.

  “Thank you, Mom.” She said skeptically. It was hard to trust her mother’s opinion, since she probably couldn’t even see her clearly.

  “Don’t pull that tone with me, young lady. I may not be able to see you clearly, but there’s nothing wrong with my hearing. Besides, I know what my daughter looks like, and you always look lovely.” Amelia walked over to her mother and gave her in a light hug.

  “I’m sorry, mom. I’m just a little nervous.”

  “I remember when your father came to pick me up for our first date. Your grandpa gave him the evil eye and tried to scare him off, but David just stood there and took it all with a smile.” Her mother laughed and still managed to look a little sad at the same time. “Thirty-five years with that man and I wish I had thirty-five more.”

  “Mom, do you want me to stay with you tonight?”

  “Oh, heaven’s no. You go out with Robert, have fun. After all, it’s what your father would have wanted. He always liked that young man. Especially since he came back to town. He had always hoped that you and he would get together.”

  “I know. It’s funny how one little event could sway you both so quickly.”

  “Little event? We owe that young man a lot. I believe he saved you that day. Beside, Ricky and Kevin have done nothing but get in trouble since they were born. Their parents never really gave them much attention. What they needed was a good—” She was interrupted when there was a slight knock on the door. “Oh, here he is now. You two go off, have fun. Don’t worry about me. Betty was going to swing by later tonight and play some gin.” Amelia bent down and kissed her mother’s cheek.

  “Night, mother. I’ll see you when I get home.”

  “There’s no rush now, go and have some fun.”

  When Amelia opened the front door, she was greeted with a bunch of daisies. When Robert moved them down to peer over them, his smile faltered and she was satisfied that she’d worn the right dress.

  He looked very sexy in a gray button-up shirt with dark colored pants. His leather jacket made him look dangerous, something she knew she’d never thought about him before.

  “You look beautiful.” He handed her the flowers and smiled even more.

  He just couldn’t get over the hot red dress she was wearing. The fact that it was skin tight didn’t escape his notice, nor did the low back and the plunging neckline. Hell, anyone with eyes would easily be on fire around her. He felt the heat just from sitting in the same car as he drove towards Edgeview. Since the Golden Oar was still closed, the nearest nice restaurant was fifteen minutes away.

  He didn’t know if he’d make it through dinner with her and keep his eyes from popping out of their sockets. He tried to get his mind off her body and talked to her about anything he could think of.

  He listened to her stories about how she’d traveled after school, and how she’d gotten her job in Portland. He knew most of it already from her father, but hearing her tell it
was more interesting. He couldn’t get over how much she’d changed. She used to be very shy and had always been quite the introvert, but now, listening to her, she sounded very courageous and outgoing.

  “You’ve changed a lot since the last time I saw you,” he said over dinner. They were seated at a little place right along the beach. The dim lights and soft music added to the atmosphere. It was just what he’d wanted.

  “Really?” She smiled at this and for a second he thought she had a secret she was hiding from him.

  “Yes.” He leaned over and grabbed her hand across the table. He liked seeing the spark in her eyes when he touched her. “You seem more courageous. More…” He didn’t have the words.

  “It might have something to do with the fact that I’ve taken Judo since the last time you saw me. After what happened, I wanted to make sure I could protect myself.”

  “Wow, Judo?” He smiled as he thought about it, and he found himself getting more turned on by her. In New Mexico he’d trained in Judo and Tae Kwon Do, as well as attending a few boxing classes. He’d also had some gun classes that he had to stay up with. It had seemed at times that he spent more time attending classes than searching for his mother.

  “What do you plan on doing now that you’re home?” he asked on the way back to town. He hating thinking that the evening was coming to an end and tried to drive as slowly as he could.

  “Well, I’ve applied for a job at the veterinary clinic in town. Hopefully I will get it. After that, I hadn’t really thought about it. How about you?”

  “I’ve decided to run for sheriff next year. I’ve been looking at a few houses around town to purchase.”

  “Really? Which houses?”

  “I can drive you by the one I’ve been thinking about signing the dotted line on. That is, if you don’t mind giving me your opinion.”

  “That would be fun.” She sat up a little straighter in her seat and actually looked excited.

  “I still have the code to the front door, so we can take a tour inside, too.”

  “Really? They let you walk around without someone being there?”

  He laughed at her. “Remember, town sheriff here.”

  She smiled at him. “I almost forgot.”

  When he drove up the steep driveway, he was once again impressed by the place. The log cabin look had caught his eye right away. Tonight the front porch lights had been left on and the place seemed to glow.

  The wide front porch looked inviting and he could just imagine himself sitting out there on a large swing, maybe watching a couple of dogs play in the front yard. The nearest neighbor was about a quarter of a mile down the road, but he didn’t mind; he liked the solitude. The inside had recently been remodeled and it shined and looked brand new.

  After parking in front of the oak garage doors, he walked around to open Amelia’s door.

  “Oh, I can’t believe how lovely it is. I’ve never been up here before. I suppose there are other houses in town that I’ve never seen, but I can’t believe I didn’t know this one was here.”

  He followed her up onto the deck, but instead of going to the front door, she stood and looked out into the dark yard, leaning on the railing.

  “I bet you can see the ocean from here.” She turned and looked at him. He nodded his head in agreement.

  “Yes, just through those trees there, but I had planned on trimming them down a bit so the view was unhindered.”

  “Wonderful. It’s so far up here in the hills, too, yet still just two minutes to town.”

  He smiled. “Yes, that’s why I think I chose it. And you should see the master bathroom.” He walked to the door and entered the code in the keypad and tried the door. It opened quietly.

  “Good, I remembered it correctly. Come on, I’ll give you the tour.”

  She walked up to him and smiled. “Who used to live here?”

  “Well, the last couple that lived here had moved to Pride from Portland two years ago. I guess they decided the slow life was too slow and moved back to the city. Before that, I’m not sure.”

  She walked into the entryway and he followed. There was a large sunken living room and the spacious kitchen was off the back to one side.

  “It has four bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths. But the best part is the unfinished basement. Come check it out.” He opened a door and they walked down the stairs together.

  “I plan on building it out, maybe put in a large recreation room, a pool table, a large screen television, maybe even a built-in bar over there.” He was caught up in the image; he could imagine it all.

  “Robert, I think it’s absolutely wonderful.” She walked up and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

  Seeing her walk to him in that dress did something to him, and he couldn’t stop himself from pulling her back to him and resting his mouth tenderly on hers.

  “Just one more.” He rubbed his lips over her soft mouth and felt like he was on fire. Slowly he backed her up until she was against the wall as he continued to kiss her.

  “Mmm, I can’t believe you feel so good,” he moaned into her neck as she grabbed him for support. Then she was pushing his jacket off his shoulders and running her hands over his arms. He held onto her hips and tried to fight the urge to rip the dress from her tight body. When she started undoing his buttons, he stopped her hands with his.

  “Amelia, I don’t … I can’t…”

  “Please, Robert, I want this.” He’d imagined being with her a million times, but in an unfinished basement was not what he’d planned. Which didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy her for a little while longer.

  Running his hands up her arms, he cuffed her wrists with his hands and pulled them over her head against the wall. Her breasts pushed out towards him and he dipped his head to kiss a trail along the low line of her dress. Moving her wrists to one of his hands, he slowly pulled her dress down until she was exposed for his view. His hand traveled down the smooth line of her body as he licked his way from one breast to the other. When he reached the line of her skirt with his hand, he felt her soft skin and pushed the material up until she was exposed.

  He ran his hand up the inside of her thigh and felt her quiver as he sucked lightly on her nipple. His fingers inched up until he cupped her through her silky panties. He could feel her getting wet in his hands and almost lost control. Her wrists were still cuffed above her head in his hand and he had no intention of letting her go. He wanted to be in control, he wanted to make her come.

  Using his thumb, he pushed her panties aside and rubbed his fingers over the soft skin underneath. She bowed her back against the wall and gasped when he plunged a finger into her heat.

  “Please, Robert,” she moaned as he worked his fingers across her, enjoying the slick sounds of her excitement. He used his legs and knees to spread her legs wider, so she stood pinned against the wall, unable to do anything but enjoy his private torture.

  He moved back up and took her mouth with his, enjoying her moans and gasps as he pleasured her. She tried to get out of his grip, so he moved a little closer and pinned her with his body, easily snuffing out her ability to touch him. He wouldn’t be able to control himself if she touched him again, and he needed to be in control.

  “Robert, I can’t…”

  “Go ahead, let go, no one will hear you. God! I want you so bad.” He couldn’t control himself; he dipped his head and took her nipple into his mouth again as she screamed out his name.

  Chapter Six

  The drive back to her house was a quiet one. She couldn’t believe she’d just done that with him in someone else’s home. When she looked over at him, she could tell he was still wound up. She felt bad, but he had told her he couldn’t handle her touching him. Not yet.