The uneasiness in his voice told her otherwise. “What premonition? Jake, talk to me.”
He was silent for so long that for a moment she thought he wouldn’t respond. Sighing, he put his arm around her and held her tightly against him. “We were in blizzard conditions. You were running through the woods. I could see that you were terrified, but I couldn’t get to you. Then Rasmussen appeared. He was carrying a rifle. I knew he was going to shoot, but I couldn’t move. It was as if I were paralyzed. He raised the rifle.” He blew out a breath. “He shot you. I saw you fall.”
His gaze was tortured when it met hers. “When I looked down at my hands, they were covered with your blood.”
Leigh didn’t believe in premonitions, either, but a chill passed through her at his words. “I’m sorry about the nightmare, but I can tell you nothing like that is going to happen.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” His jaw flexed. “But I do.”
She didn’t want him to say it. An apology now would bring an element to the moment that she wasn’t quite ready to handle. Up until now, Leigh had used the past as an excuse. She’d clung to it as a means with which to protect herself from getting too close to Jake.
Looking into his eyes, she knew the past was no longer an issue between them. The realization that her heart was at risk of breaking again made her feel frighteningly vulnerable.
Then Jake skimmed his hands over her body, and Leigh, for the first time in what seemed like forever, lived only in the moment.
Chapter Fifteen
Leigh woke to the smell of coffee. She reached for Jake, the memory of everything that had happened between them the night before flooding back.
Sitting up, she looked around. The small bedroom was very rustic. The bed was constructed of heavy pine. She smiled when she saw the heavy robe and thick wool socks draped across the foot of the bed. They hadn’t been there the night before. Jake had done that for her….
She snuggled into the robe, slipped on the socks and padded from the room. She found Jake in the kitchen, his big hands wrapped around a mug of steaming coffee. He smiled when he saw her, and she didn’t miss the flash of heat in his eyes.
“Morning.”
She smiled back, hating it that she was feeling a little embarrassed. “Hi.”
Rising, he went to the coffeemaker and poured. “No cream.”
“Black’s fine. Smells fabulous.”
Instead of handing her the mug, he bent and kissed her. A possessive kiss that told her in no uncertain terms that she was his. “You smell fabulous,” he said.
She kissed him back, her pulse spiking.
He deepened the kiss. “You taste even better.”
Oh the counter, a portable fax machine began to hum. Groaning, Jake drew away. Looking into her eyes, he traced a finger down her cheek. “Hold that thought,” he said and went to the fax.
“All the comforts of home.” Shaking from the power of the kiss, Leigh trailed him to the counter and looked over his shoulder.
The fax was a draft of the story that would appear in the Investigator. The afterglow of last night melted away as she began to read.
A King’s Fall from Grace
Six years ago Ian Rasmussen was a successful North Michigan Avenue restaurateur. One of the Windy City’s most eligible bachelors, he owned a four-thousand-square-feet penthouse on Lakeshore Drive. He drove a cherry-red Ferrari and wore five-thousand-dollar Italian suits. He vacationed in the south of France and owned a villa in Monaco.
Then his girlfriend, Kelsey James, discovered he was selling illegal arms to terrorists. She took the information to the police. Several law enforcement agencies worked together and, using Ms. James as bait, initiated an operation that ultimately brought the Rasmussen empire to its knees. Five months later the thirty-two-year-old billionaire was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole. Kelsey James went into hiding.
It should have been the end of a long and sordid story. But three days ago, with the help of Derrick LeValley, a former U.S. Marshal, Rasmussen walked away from the Terre Haute Federal Prison. The FBI and U.S. Marshals Service has refused to comment on the case. Some speculate Rasmussen used his vast monetary resources to flee the country. The Investigator, however, has learned otherwise from Ms. James, who is staying at an undisclosed location. She has agreed to a series of exclusive interviews with the Investigator…
The story went on to detail Rasmussen’s crimes, including comments from some of his cell mates about his six-year stint in prison.
Leigh shook her head. “How is this going to help us? It doesn’t disclose my location.”
“If it were that easy he wouldn’t bite,” Jake said.
“Then how are you going to lure him to the cabin?”
“We know Rasmussen has the ability to tap phone lines.” Jake set his finger against the byline at the end of the story. “We’re counting on him to do just that.”
“You’re going to use his own technology and resources against him.”