She rested her forehead against his. “Easy enough for you to say. Harder for me to believe considering my experiences with…rejection.”
“Fine,” he said. “You don’t have to take my word for it. The proof is in the pudding, as they say. I deal in facts. Proof. Evidence. So, allow me to show you the truth.”
“How?” she asked, narrowing a skeptical look on him.
“My mother’s birthday party Sunday. You’ve been invited by more than one family member. Come with me and meet the family.Allof the family. I think you’ll see why I’m so sure after you’ve spent time with the whole motley crew for a while. Give them a chance. And if you’re convinced, then giveusa chance.”
“I—I want to, but…can you afford to go to a family party with the investigation at this boiling point? With Scott out there—”
“The case takes priority, of course. But if we’re not actively following a tip of a sighting or other time-sensitive leads, I can take a few hours off to toast my mother’s health with the family. I’m only a phone call away if anything with the case changes. So…” Eli kissed her again, long and deep. “What do you say?”
She let out a sigh, feeling a bit of tension inside her release, as if by making the decision to move forward with getting to know Eli’s family, she was taking the weight of a years-long uncertainty off her shoulders. “Okay. You win. I’ll go with you Sunday.”
“Good.” Eli slid a leg up her calf and rolled on top of her. “Now that we’ve decided that…where were we?” He trailed his lips, his tongue along her throat. “Oh, yeah. I was about to rock you to your core, pretty lady.”
He caught her giggle when he took her lips with his. When he moved on to nibble her shoulder, she teased, “Bold talk, Mr. I-deal-in-facts. Where’s your proof you can rock anything?”
And for the next several hours, he presented his very convincing case.
The next morning, Noelle woke, sore in places that hadn’t been sore in thirteen years, but feeling a hopefulness and happiness she hadn’t known in the same length of time. She rolled on her side and watched Eli sleeping in the light that seeped in from the window.
Light from the window? She furrowed her brow. If the sun was up, it had to be almost 9:00 a.m. She hadn’t slept this late in months. And she and Eli had work to do on the investigation to find and bring in Scott Montgomery.
She was just debating whether to wake Eli now or let him sleep until she finished her shower, when his cell phone jangled on his nightstand.
Jolted awake, Eli squinted at the daylight and reached for his phone. “Yeah? I mean, Agent Colton. Oh yes. What can I do for you?”
Noelle shivered in the chilly bedroom and pulled the covers up to her chin as she listened to Eli’s end of the conversation.
“Oh? Anything helpful? Really? Uh, yeah, that should work. No, it’s no problem. Saturday or not, casework comes first. I’ll be in shortly.” Eli cut a glance to Noelle as he disconnected his call. “That was the lead investigator with the police department. As I asked, he’s been working on the evidence recovery at Montgomery’s house, and this morning they found a good bit he thinks will be helpful for the Fiancée Killer case. I’m meeting him at my office as soon as I can grab a shower.” He shifted to face her and ran a hand down her bare back, sending delicious thrills spiraling inside her. “I hate to leave you by yourself, especially since we believe Scott is gunning for you. You can come with me if you want.”
She toyed with a wisp of his hair that curled around his ear. She considered his offer but didn’t want to be dependent on him for anything. Including his protection. Dependence led to disappointment and heartbreak. Despite her displeasure over his leaving, she mustered a smile. “I’ll be fine. I’ve thought of a way to run some new analyses that will cross-reference the Fiancée Killer data with your aunt’s murder. Do you think I could get access to the old case files from California?”
“Definitely. I’ll make a call to the San Diego police and make an official request since Caroline’s murder appears to be pertinent to our case. I’ll have them copy you with any emails sent.” Eli leaned in to give her a deep kiss, then gave her bottom a playful swat. “And now I have to get moving, before your perfect lips and hot little body tempt me to blow off responsibilities today in lieu of a day in bed with you.”
A chill found her when he tossed back the covers and crossed the room. The cold had as much to do with the disappointment and the lonely void created when he removed his solid presence, his warmth and the shelter of his arms as it did the nip of the bedroom air. How quickly she’d returned to the place she’d known too briefly in college, where lying with Eli, wrapped in his arms, could make her feel safer and more complete than she’d ever known before.
Climbing from the bed, she found his bathrobe hanging on his closet door and tied it around her. She pushed the empty ache away, reminding herself of the hard work she’d done in the past decade. She’d focused on finding herself, learning to be comfortable in her independence and establishing a balance that wasn’t dependent on anyone else’s approval or recognition. The process had been slow but steady. In light of all the memories evoked by this trip north, seeing Eli and Aunt Jean and coming to grips with Allison’s death, she realized just how far she’d actually come. She refused to let old hurts and ancient memories cause her to backslide.
She inhaled the tantalizing scent of Eli that clung to his bathrobe and let herself relish the intimacies they’d shared last night. Her feminine core tingled at the reminder of his body twined with hers, his hand and lips loving her, arousing her, waking a dormant part of her soul.
Noelle squared her shoulders and set the glow of their lovemaking aside. As enjoyable as the night had been, she had to put those tender feelings back in the box where she kept her treasured memories of Eli and prepare herself for her inevitable return to Seattle. Last night had been about closure for her. She and Eli could part as friends with one last precious memory of the sweetness of their shared passion. But she’d come too far, worked too hard to risk her fragile emotions to a fraught relationship with Eli.
She would help him catch the Fiancée Killer, bury Allison and return to her life in Seattle knowing she could put Alaska securely behind her once and for all.
Eli didn’t return from his meeting with the local police investigator until that evening. Noelle had made herself a toasted cheese sandwich and tomato soup from a can in Eli’s pantry and was just sitting down to eat when he hustled in from the cold, bringing the mid-November chill with him.
“Sorry I was gone so long. After I finished at the office, I stopped by the hospital to catch Asher up on what I’ve learned.”
“Oh? And how is he?”
“Discharged, it turned out. So then I trekked by his house and found him surrounded by a gaggle of elderly neighbors who were feeding him up on casseroles and homemade sweets. I helped him shoo the well-meaning ladies away so he could rest and gave him the highlights of the new case information. When I left, he was starting an audiobook, grumbling about his doctor restricting his screentime, and enjoying the bounty of baked goods his neighbors had provided.” Eli peeled off his coat and draped it over the back of a kitchen chair. “That smells good. I missed lunch, so I’m famished.”
He started prowling the kitchen, and she waved him to her chair. “Eat mine. I’ll fix more for me while you tell me what the police found in the wreckage of Scott’s house. Anything useful for the case?”
Eli looked ready to reject her offered dinner, but hunger clearly won. He picked up half of the gooey cheese sandwich and took a big bite, groaning in satisfaction. “They definitely did.”
Noelle tried to ignore how sensual Eli’s enjoyment of the sandwich sounded as she dug in his pantry for another can of soup.
