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Beth lounged on the couch, reading one of her newest acquisitions, while Wyatt sent a few emails and tooled around online for a while. He helped her make dinner, then they enjoyed the delicious meal.
Wyatt had taken two mouthfuls of the chocolate mousse she’d made for dessert when a large crash outside startled her and set Freya off. He went instantly into high alert and strode into the living room to retrieve the weapon he’d grabbed the previous night. He checked the clip and took the safety off. When he turned around, Beth was standing in the middle of the room, her eyes wide with fear. “Wyatt?”
“It’s okay, honey. It’s probably just an animal, but I’m going to check it out anyway.” He went over to her and kissed her. “I want you to stay here, okay? I’ll only be a few minutes.” He looked down at his dog, who was already sitting next to Beth. “You guard Beth, Freya. Bite anyone who comes near her. Got it?”
The loud woof in response reassured him. He patted her and kissed Beth one more time before heading for the front door.
“Be careful!”
He didn’t look back over his shoulder. “I will, promise.”
Stepping out onto the porch, he was grateful it wasn’t completely dark yet, although the sun had already started to set. The sky was awash with pinks and oranges and purples, but Wyatt didn’t have time to take in the display.
He was on the hunt.
Keeping his finger near the trigger, he called back to Beth. “Come lock the screen door, honey. Don’t let anyone in. I’ll be back soon.”
She rushed to obey, her face a picture of worry as it appeared in view. “I’ll be here waiting.”
He didn’t want to venture far from the cabin, so he walked the perimeter on high alert. Nothing seemed out of order, but something had caused the crash. He found it around the back of the cabin. He’d had a stack of metal crates piled against the outside of his shed, and they were now all over the ground. Someone had knocked them over.
“Motherfucker,” he muttered. He wondered if he should say something out loud in case the asshole was still within hearing distance, but he didn’t want to spook Beth any more than she already was. Wyatt didn’t bother restacking the crates; he’d do that the following day. Right now, his priority was inside, waiting for him to return.
He knocked on the back door and Freya began to bark. “It’s me, Beth.”
She hurried over and unlocked the screen door, giving him access. He closed and locked both doors behind him, and gave Freya a quick pat before kissing Beth.
“Is everything okay? Did you find what caused the crash?”
“Everything’s fine.” He kept his tone as reassuring as possible. “I had a stack of crates outside my shed, and they got knocked over, that’s all.”
“Who did that? An animal?”
“Not sure, but it’s very possible.”
She gasped. “Do you think it was a raccoon?”
He felt that was highly unlikely but didn’t want to tell her that. “It might have been. But there’s nothing there now, so let’s finish dessert and watch a movie.”
He put his weapon back where he’d gotten it from after putting the safety on again, then went and double checked the front door was locked.
Tonight would be all about Beth. Tomorrow, he would find out who was lurking near his property and do whatever he had to in order to ensure they didn’t come near him—or his woman—again.
ChapterTwenty-Two
Wyatt moved through the water with long, powerful strokes. Swimming was something he’d always enjoyed, even as a little boy. He’d taken to the water like the proverbial fish, which was why summer had always been his favorite season. So when the opportunity had arisen to purchase a business that would have him on the lake frequently, and provided a cabin near the water’s edge, he hadn’t been able to resist snapping it up.
He also loved to swim when his mind was troubled. He'd heard back from Ben about the DNA on the cigarette butt. It had come back as male, but Ben had run it through every database he had access to and there’d been no match, so he couldn’t confirm for sure that Miles Newman had been snooping around Wyatt’s home.
He’d also quietly shown the other man’s photo to the town’s residents, but nobody had been able to say for sure they’d noticed him around. Wyatt hadn’t been surprised, given how many tourists Silverbell Shore had at any given time. But it frustrated him not to know for sure.
Once he neared the shore, he slowed down until he was close enough to stand. Running a hand through his hair, he slipped his feet into the slides he’d left near the shoreline and rubbed himself down quickly with the large beach towel he’d dropped next to them. There wasn’t much point in getting dressed, as he was heading straight to the shower to wash and change.
It only took a few minutes for him to reach the cabin, and he was surprised to find his two favorite girls sitting together on the top step, waiting for him. It was early Sunday morning, and he figured Beth would still be asleep. Instead, she appeared to be sipping coffee and was clad in a short, green-and-white polka dot dress that clung to her figure.
Wyatt wasn’t the least bit surprised when his dick started to react at the sight of her. She was so fucking beautiful. “Good morning, girls.”
Freya barked as Beth gave him a smile. “Good morning, handsome.” She turned to the dog and said something in a tone low enough he couldn’t hear. Freya nuzzled her face, then disappeared into the cabin. Beth stood, placed the coffee mug on the railing of the porch, then ran down the steps and launched herself at him.
