Sophie Oak - Lost in Bliss

Laura. He could still see her laid out on his table. He could still see the intoxicating mix of fear and outrage in her eyes. She had been a lovely woman, elegant and perfect. She’d cared for herself in a way so few of his victims ever had. He’d culled from the lowest of society.

Laura had been a bit of caviar among the hamburger meat.

She’d fought him like the others hadn’t. There had never been a plea to come from her lips. She’d cursed him the entire time. Even when he’d forced a knife through her womb.

She’d taught him he could be something more, something grander than he was. She’d moved him in such an elemental way that he’d stopped his work for years, only taking it up again when he thought she was gone forever.

His little rabbit had taught him so much.

It was almost time to take a final lesson from her. It was almost time to break free.

One of the many suited agents stood up. “We’ll be landing in Alamosa in a bit. Some of the agents from the Denver office will meet us there. They’ve been fully briefed on what’s happened and are ready to back us up if we require it. They say this town she’s in is known for being a trouble spot.”

He’d read up a little on Bliss. It seemed they liked to think of themselves as true, pure Westerners. They tried to take care of their own.

They hadn’t met anyone like him.

His rabbit thought she’d found someplace safe to hide away. She was about to find out how wrong she was.

He answered a question someone posed to him, carefully keeping on his outward mask. No one here had ever seen his real face. They never would because they would never catch him. He was smarter than all of them combined. These sad men around him couldn’t conceive of his greatness.

Only one woman had ever come close. The one who got away.

Killing her was going to be bittersweet. There was a part of him that wanted to force her by his side. She was a woman worthy of him, but her adherence to morals kept them apart.

He would kill her. He wouldn’t underestimate her this time. He would take her, let her see his real face, and he would put her down.

She was really too lovely for the world, anyway.

And when she was gone, he could finally continue his work.

Maybe he would start in Bliss.

Laura thought seriously about climbing back into bed. Rafe and Cam looked so scrumptious lying together. She stared at them for a moment, enjoying the way the early morning sunlight caressed their naked flesh. Cam was lying on his stomach, his arm outstretched. It had been wrapped around her waist, but now it looked as though he was reaching for Rafe. Rafe’s dark hair fell over his angelic face. He looked years younger while he slept, as though all of the worries he normally carried fell away when he closed his eyes. She had the urge to kiss those gorgeous lips of his, but she knew where that would lead her—on her back, where she’d spent the majority of the night before.

Four rounds of nasty, athletic, sweaty sex had left her a little bit sore. A nice, hot shower had taken care of the sweat, but she was still moving just a bit slower than normal.

Laura glanced up at the clock. Damn it. She needed to hurry if she was going to make her shift. Just because she’d broken her five years of celibacy didn’t mean that the gas station was going to run itself. If she didn’t make it in, Bart would either have to call in someone else or work himself. He was almost seventy-two. He didn’t need to be on his feet like that, so this time, Laura got to be the one who walked out the morning after sex.

Cam shifted in his sleep, a little huff coming out of his mouth as his hand found Rafe’s stomach and wrapped around his waist. Rafe turned, but his hand slipped over Cam’s. She could have sworn he called Cam “bella” in that deep voice of his, and then they stilled again. She wished so much that she had a camera.

Laura slipped out of the bedroom, leaving the men to their much-needed rest. Coffee. She needed coffee. Damn, she could even smell it. She shut the door, careful to not make a sound and then nearly screamed when she turned and saw a man sitting at her table.

“Wolf,” she hissed the words out. “You nearly gave me a damn heart attack.”

Wolf took a long drink of coffee. “Sweetheart, you have no idea.

First, I suppose this means our fake engagement is truly off. I’m deeply wounded. I expected you to take at least a few days to mourn our lost love before you hopped into bed with actual, real human beings.”

His sarcasm was getting on her nerves this morning. She strode across the room, grabbed a mug, and poured herself a cup. She had to give it to Wolf. He knew how to make coffee. “I thought we worked this out last night.”

Had she really been thinking last night? She stared out her small kitchen window as she sipped her coffee. The Rio Grande was visible, the river shining like a jewel in the early morning light. The river was always in motion. Was that what she’d craved the night before? She’d been stagnant for a while. She loved the peace of her new life, but everyone else was moving forward. In the years she’d been in Bliss, she’d watched Max and Rye find their perfect woman, Callie had come out of her shell for Nate and Zane, and Stef had finally stopped hiding from his love. Even Holly seemed to be moving on. Only Laura felt like she was stuck.

“Was it bad, sweetheart? Did they hurt you?” Wolf was studying her with a single-minded intensity.

She shook her head. “It was wonderful. I’m just thinking about what it meant. Why do I do that? Why can’t I just enjoy it? Why do I need a label on it?”

His lips curled slightly. There was a beard coming in across the skin of his jaw. He looked the slightest bit scruffy. It suited him.

“You’re not a good-time girl, Laura. You’re always going to want a home and a family. You’re always going to seek out stability.”

Was that what she was trying to do with them? Was she racing headlong into another disaster because she needed a family? She had a family. She had Holly and Nell, and even Henry. Henry stopped by Laura’s cabin at least twice a week, a toolbox in his hands. He did it because Nell loved her and Henry loved Nell. Damn it, she wanted that.

Wolf leaned forward, his elbows making contact with the table.

“Your brain is racing, but I wonder if you’re making the right connections. I want you to think about this, sweetheart. You didn’t rush into a relationship with the first man you saw. You waited. You want them. Those two men in there aren’t interchangeable for anyone who would put a ring on your finger, or you would have been dating all this time.”

“Maybe they just showed up at the right time.” She’d needed a while to get over what happened to her in DC. Hell, she wasn’t sure she would ever get over it, but last night had proven that at least she was ready to get physical again.

“Don’t fight this,” Wolf said with a sigh as though he knew his words would go unheeded. “You’re only going to cause more trouble for all three of you. Now, I came out for a reason.”

“Other than to scare the crap out of me?” He grinned. “That was a bonus.” His face lost its jovial expression. “The feds took over the Movie Motel last night. Men in suits rented out every room Gene had.” Laura felt a cold chill cross her skin. “Did Gene get them talking?”

Gene liked to talk to everyone who came to his place. The Movie Motel was the largest inn in town.

“They followed Rafe and Cam out here. According to one of the lead men, your boys were well aware that the team, as they called it, was on their way. I take it they didn’t bother to mention that they were bringing all their friends out here?” She tightened her grip on the coffee mug. There was only one real reason to bring the whole crew out here. She was pretty damn sure de Sade wasn’t working here in Colorado.

“Did they tell Gene if there had been a threat made against me personally?” It would explain a lot.

“No,” Wolf replied. “But they did ask for directions out to your place. Gene had never heard of you. Strange.” She couldn’t help a little snort. The feds were going to find Bliss a bit hard to manage until she’d gotten the word out that she was cooperating.

Was she cooperating?

Damn it. She couldn’t think straight. All she could think about was the fact that Rafe and Cam had lied to her. Again.

The sweet feeling she’d had looking at them together dissipated, replaced with a hole in the pit of her stomach.

“The minute my momma heard the news that the feds had descended, she and Mel took to the shelter. She’s sending out radio messages that anyone in town who wants protection from the coming invasion should come out to Mel’s place. On the plus side, she made pecan pie. I love pecan pie.”

Laura turned to Wolf. Her current dilemma was going to have consequences for everyone in town. Just as she had the thought, a Bronco with the logo for the Bliss County Sheriff’s Department rolled into her driveway. Logan Green slid out of his vehicle looking a bit cranky, but then he was always cranky these days. Laura was pretty sure what he was here about. If she let them, the feds would have everyone in town on edge.

“I’m sorry about it. I don’t know how long they’re going to be here. Maybe if I go to DC with them, things can go back to normal,” Laura said as she walked across the small room to throw open the door for Logan.

Whatever they wanted to do, they could do in DC. She didn’t have to upend the whole town.