Blazing Hotter (Love Under Fire Book 2) Page 17

  Hugging her friend tight, Cassie couldn’t help but smile. “And soon you’ll be Mrs. Thayne Bloodgood. I’m so happy for you.”

  “Why don’t you tell Frankie you might be pregnant and we could make it a double wedding?”

  “Shhh...” Cassie glanced around the hallway although she already knew it was empty. “I told you that in confidence. You can’t tell anyone, not even Thayne. You promised.”

  “Yes, I promised.” Laura held up the plastic bag she’d brought out of the gas station earlier that day. “Luckily, I also remembered to grab these so you won’t have to worry about future fun.”

  Hot embarrassment rushed to her face, but Cassie took the sack holding the condoms and shoved it in her pants pocket. “Thanks.”

  “Let’s hurry to the elevators,” Laura suggested. “I’m sure our men are getting anxious.”

  Their men... As screwed up as everything else was right now, Cassie had to admit that she liked the sound of that. The sooner the cops caught the killer, the sooner she could discover whether she had a future with her man.

  ***

  The sound of the key in the hotel’s door made Frankie weak with relief. When Cassie and Laura walked through it, he drew his first complete breath since reaching the club tonight.

  Cassie’s blue eyes were wide and frightened appearing, and rage filled Frankie all over again. To think the killer was someone who had pretended to be Cassie’s friend. Why in the world would Sandy want to harm her? Heck, Frankie had liked Sandy, seeing her as a capable nurse and one of the nicer people on the staff. She’d even come into his room when she worked the night shift and read to him if he had a nightmare or couldn’t fall asleep. The woman obviously hid the evil part of herself well.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  Cassie shook her head. “Not really, but I don’t feel like I’m going to throw up anymore.”

  Laura put her arm around Cassie’s waist, hugging her friend from the side. “It’s going to be okay. The day after tomorrow we’ll be on a plane to a tropical island and by the time we come back this nightmare will be over.”

  Thayne stood up, nodding his agreement. “You guys stay here for now, okay? We’ll stop by to pick you up on our way to the airport. I have to work tomorrow, but as soon as I take a nap we’ll head to Seattle to get us away from all this while we wait to catch our plane. Everything is going to be okay.”

  “What about clothes?” Laura asked, looking at Cassie and then gazing past her to Frankie. “I know you are both low on supplies here. I can take care of your wedding attire tomorrow, but what are you going to do for the rest of the trip? It’s generally in the seventies and eighties on the island, even at night, so you need lighter clothing and probably something to swim in.”

  Frankie didn’t want to point out that it would be tough for him to fight the waves of an ocean for swimming. Maybe the hotel had a pool he could swim in. “I can get my dad to take me back to the rehab center tomorrow to pack some things.”

  “Detective Rogers already said she’d take me to my house,” Cassie said. “They aren’t staying there anymore, but I guess they plan to monitor the surveillance tapes just in case Sandy shows up on my doorstep.” She shrugged and then let out a long sigh. “Rogers will go with me while Frankie and his dad go to the center. I don’t want to stay there longer than I have to, but I’ll be able to get clothing. Don’t worry, Laura. You’ve already done so much for us.”

  “I’m not worried,” Laura assured her. “But this vacation is going to be a lover’s holiday in addition to mine and Thayne’s wedding. I want it to be perfect for all of us.”

  “A lover’s holiday, huh?” Frankie grinned, catching Cassie’s gaze and winking. “I like the sound of that.”

  Cassie rolled her eyes and disentangled herself from Laura’s arm. “You’re so certain everyone will live happily ever after, aren’t you?”

  “Remember my rules,” Laura said, putting a hand on her hip. “No pessimism from my maid of honor.” She turned to Thayne, putting her hand in his. “Come on, sex god. Let’s go spend one of our last nights at home as single people.”

  Thayne waggled his eyebrows at her, opening the door and pulling her out of it without needing further encouragement.

  Chuckling, Cassie closed and locked the door behind them. “I have to admit, they are cute together.”

  “Not as cute as us,” Frankie said, hoping to recapture the playful mood Cassie had shown him when she first entered the club tonight. “And I seem to remember some hot vixen with red hair promising me all sorts of fun.”

  Cassie walked toward him, her hips gently swaying though she looked uncertain. “After everything we found out, you’re still in the mood for that?”

  The red hair of the wig curled around her breasts, drawing attention to them. Although Frankie used to think he wanted a woman with huge tits like Bambi’s, his mouth practically watered at the thought of having his hands on Cassie’s wonderful size Cs.

  “The more you walk and look at me, the more I’m sure I want you,” he said, breath quickening as she continued forward. “If anything, our outing tonight proved to me that I want you that much more.”

  With her hands poised on the top button of her blouse, she flicked her long lashes downward. “I brought some condoms, just in case...”

  In case what? She said she couldn’t get pregnant, and he trusted her that she didn’t sleep around so wouldn’t spread anything to him. However, if she still wasn’t sure they were committed for the long haul, perhaps that was why she wanted to be careful. It didn’t matter to him. Whatever Cassie needed to continue being with him, he’d do.

  “Get over here, sexy,” he ordered. “I’m ready to do bad things with you.”

  ***

  Cassie snuggled against Frankie’s side, trying not to think.

  “I can’t believe how active you’ve been able to get me,” Frankie said into the quiet room. “Maybe we should have tried this type of therapy earlier.”

  Willing to be distracted by that rather than think further about Sandy, Cassie giggled. “Sure, that’s a great idea. Sex therapy. Wonder if I could get a license for something like that.”

  Frankie kissed her lightly, a smile evident in his eyes. “You’re good enough to pass any tests they have for it. I give you As in everything we’ve done.”

  Cassie wiggled her eyebrows. “What do I have to do to earn extra credit?”

  “Hmmm... Sex on the beach after getting to the resort?”

  “Really?” She wrinkled her nose, not sure if Frankie was serious. “What if we got caught and they kicked us off that fancy island? We’d totally ruin Laura and Thayne’s honeymoon.”

  “That’s why it’s extra credit,” Frankie said. “The element of risk makes it better than sex in a bed.”

  “Your chair might not make it through the sand,” she pointed out. “We certainly couldn’t make a fast getaway if we were caught.”

  To her relief, he chuckled instead of becoming frustrated by the limitations of his abilities. “That’s a good point. We’ll have to see what the island’s terrain looks like when we get there. Have no fear. I’ll think of something worthy of extra credit.”

  The more Frankie continued talking about the future, the guiltier Cassie felt about having lied to him. While he didn’t question her about the reason they needed to use condoms tonight when they hadn’t yesterday, it still gnawed at her conscience. She should tell him that she wasn’t on the pill. Even if that meant he’d get mad that she lied.

  “I need to tell you something,” she said, nerves twisting her stomach.

  “I need to tell you something first,” he said.

  If she let him talk, she might lose her resolve to tell him the truth, but then again she really wanted to put off him discovering that she was a liar. “Okay, you go first.”

  “I haven’t wanted to pressure you,” he said, pulling off the wig and running his hands through her hair. “I know it’s only been a few days
since you thought of me as a potential man and not a patient, but I’ve been falling for you forever.”

  If she admitted she had wanted him for months, it would only make it worse when everything blew up.

  “Now that the cops know who’s behind the murders and they’ll catch her soon, I wanted to ask you an important question.”

  She closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of him rubbing her scalp. “What?”

  “I know we briefly discussed it before as a what if sort of situation, but can I come live with you until I find a job and a place of my own? I think you were right about me needing to leave the rehab center.”

  Cassie sucked in a breath. “You actually want to live with me?”

  “I know it’s a lot to ask.”

  “You’re the first person I’ve really let into my home,” she admitted. “The truth is, I like being with you. I’m just afraid that you’ll—”

  “Change my mind once we’ve been together longer,” he interrupted. “That’s why I said I’d get my own place. If I had my way, we’d get a place together once I’m working, something big enough for a dog and maybe an eventual kid. But I’m not going to push you until you’re sure.”

  He wanted kids? Maybe telling him wouldn’t be the complete disaster she’d imagined. “I’m not the one who isn’t sure, even though you think you know what you want. Frankie, you haven’t lived the past year and a half, not really. You need to discover who you are as a person before you decide to chain yourself down to a relationship with the only woman you spend any time with.”

  “All I’ve done the past year and a half is think and try to figure out who I am.” His mouth found hers and he nipped at her lips, coaxing and sweet until she gave in and kissed him deeply. “I’ve discovered I’m not the cocky asshole who walked into that last fire. I’m someone different, but I like the person I’ve become. I know I was quick to judge Bambi tonight, but I also finally saw her as a person and not just a sex object. It made me realize that I’m better off for having had the accident. I know what I want.”

  “But you don’t,” she protested. “There is a whole world of women out there, women who will be honest and faithful and a whole lot more beautiful than I am.” Women who wouldn’t lie to him just to get their jollies off and avoid hard conversations.

  “You think I haven’t been around women?” He shook his head. “Cassie, I spend a lot of time with the nursing staff at the center. Most of them are women. I talk to the moms of the children in the pediatric burn unit when I go there to see the kids. I talk to the other patients on my floor, some of which are female. There hasn’t been a bubble around me blocking out all other ladies.”

  He had a point. Perhaps she’d been worrying too much over his feelings because they had seemed to come on so quickly, but he said it had been months and months building. Just like hers had.

  “You don’t have to answer now,” he said, wrapping her back in his embrace and resuming his massage to her head. “Sleep on it. I’m really not trying to force you into loving me, but the facts are that I already know I love you.”

  Love? He loved her? That wasn’t something she could tell him he didn’t feel, especially not when she feared that was exactly what she felt for him. Revealing her lie could put an end to that, not because he didn’t want kids, but because she hadn’t been honest. Would it be so wrong if she kept quiet, waiting to see if she had any reason to be worried? If she wasn’t pregnant, Frankie would never know the difference. She could tell him she stopped the pill and they had to use other methods of contraception. It wouldn’t hurt him, but it could help him from being hurt if he thought she had betrayed him.

  The truth was, she had wanted him so badly that she hadn’t wanted to stop. That’s wasn’t so wrong, was it?

  “Let’s just go to sleep tonight, Cass,” he said. “We’ve had a big day. I’m exhausted, so I’m sure you are too. We can make our final decision about living arrangements when we get home from the wedding.”

  By that time, she could find out if there was any reason to worry him with talk about pregnancy or if she could brush it aside.

  “Okay,” she said. “I’m leaning towards agreeing because I really care about you too. Let’s enjoy each other’s company over the next week and see how we feel when we get home.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Being away from Cassie seemed like too big of a risk, even if it was only for a little while, but Frankie didn’t have a choice. He sat in his van the next morning while his father drove to the rehab center, knowing he had to put faith in Detective Rogers. The officer had picked Cassie up from the hotel and surely wouldn’t let anything happen to her.

  “What are you so intent about back there?” Big Frank asked. “You have a serious look on your face.”

  Frankie met his dad’s eyes in the mirror. “Worried, is all. I don’t like Cassie going outside during the day. We have to stay at that hotel a little longer. What if she’s spotted?”

  His dad shrugged and turned into the rehab center parking lot. “But you said that woman after her usually works the day shift Friday through Monday. Now’s the best time for Cassie to get her stuff. The cops will keep a close eye on her, and they know better than we do how to tell if someone’s tailing them when they drive back. She’s safer with Rogers than she would be with us.”

  “You’re right. Of course you are.” That didn’t mean he had to like it.

  Big Frank grinned and steered the van into a handicapped spot near the front door. “I think you just miss her already, being away from each other for a few minutes.”

  His dad could tease all he wanted, but Frankie simply nodded. “I think that’s the case.”

  “Well, hot damn!” Big Frank took the keys from the ignition and turned in his seat to face Frankie directly. “You’re actually falling for the smart girl with a good job and not just a pretty face?”

  “She has a pretty face,” Frankie countered.

  “Yes, she does, but you know what I mean.” The smile on his face split wider than Frankie had ever seen before. “Your mom and I figured you’d spend your life chasing after empty-headed model types and never find real love. Personally, I like Cassie. I told your mom about her, and she likes her too.”

  “You talked to Mom?” Frankie asked, momentarily sidetracked. “I left her a message a few days ago but haven’t heard anything back. Is she okay?”

  “Okay is a relative term,” Big Frank answered. “She’s wondering if we were too hasty in deciding to divorce, and I think she’s ashamed to talk to you while this is going on. I had told her you took the news pretty hard.”

  “Do you think she really wants to get back together with you or did the improvements I’ve made these past few days sway her decision?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Big Frank answered. “Whatever the reason, I think getting a divorce is the right choice. We’re both so much happier, but right now she doesn’t want to see that.” He shrugged. “Anyway, we should get inside. I know you want to be back to the hotel before Cassie finishes.”

  That was awkward, and he was glad his dad wanted to drop the subject. Frankie had never suspected his dad wouldn’t take Mom back if she changed her mind. Relationships had a lot more to them then deciding to like a person and having things turn out perfectly. What sort of challenges awaited him and Cassie? Had he rushed into asking her to live together too quickly without contemplating the potential pitfalls?

  However, they were getting ready to go on a vacation fit for lovers. Now wasn’t the time to bring up any doubts when she obviously had so many of her own. They could enjoy their trip to McCallister’s Paradise and sort out the hard stuff when they arrived home.

  ***

  It felt strange being inside her house. There was a neglected, stale feeling about the place. Coffee cups strewn about the kitchen counters from the police officers’ night spent here made everything that much sadder in appearance.

  Without saying a word, Cassie gathered the mugs and l
oaded them into the dishwasher.

  “Sorry about that,” Rogers said, leaning against the kitchen counter. “It was a long night with everyone on high alert and we needed the caffeine.”

  “I just wish it had done any good,” Cassie replied, wondering if she’d ever feel safe in this house again. “Any news about Sandy and whether you think she could be the one doing this?”

  “You know I couldn’t tell you even if I did have something.” Rogers shrugged. “However, I wish I had news to hide from you. I’m finding it hard to connect Sandy to any of this. The first murder happened while she was working a night shift at the rehab facility. I haven’t talked to her coworkers from that night yet to make sure she never left, but she probably has an alibi.”

  “I just want this thing over,” Cassie said. “My life is on hold until this killer is caught.”

  “I’m working on it, Miss Flick. I already talked to that boss of yours, Stan, to see if there was anyone he didn’t completely trust who works with you. He mentioned a few names of people who are lazy or whatever, but no potential killers. I finally had to specifically ask about Sandy and if he trusted her.”

  “And he said she’s as good as they come, right?” Cassie didn’t need Rogers’s answer to know that’s what Stan said. “That’s the thing I can’t figure out. Sandy really is the most reliable, nicest, hardworking person I know. I can’t see her having the time or the temperament to kill anyone, let alone me.”

  “Do you have any other theories?” Rogers asked. “It’d be nice to have a few things to look into while you’re out of town. I want this person behind bars before you come home.”

  “Me too.”

  Cassie made her way to the bedroom, comforted when Rogers followed close behind, keeping a watchful eye on everything. As she packed a bag, she thought hard if there was anyone in the world she could imagine holding a grudge against her. It seemed a remote possibility, but there was one person.

  “You know I used to work as a nurse in the neonatal unit, didn’t you?”