It was uncanny how well they fit together. From their desire to have four children to her love of the same kinds of books he liked to the way they were both perfectly happy hanging out at the cabin without a phone, internet, or TV. She was made for him, and he’d do everything in his power to treat her so well, she’d never want to leave him.
Four days had passed since she’d reached out to her mom and best friend, and as much as he wanted to continue to hide away from the world, the messages on her phone were constantly in the back of his mind. He needed to get the ball rolling on figuring out who was stalking her and make sure it stopped. Make sure both Carlise and her loved ones were safe.
“Riggs?” she asked. “Is everything all right?”
He forced himself to concentrate on the here and now. “Everything’s fine. I’ll probably be gone for at least five hours. Will that be okay?”
“I’ll be fine. And I don’t want you spending a ton of money on my car. I can pay for whatever needs to be done.”
Chappy nodded, but in his head, he was already making plans. She wasn’t paying for the repairs on her car. He didn’t want or need her money. If she wanted to spend it on Baxter or their kids or their friends, he had no problem with that, but the neanderthal inside him wanted to provide for her. Wanted to give her everything she wanted or needed.
“You’re totally ignoring me, aren’t you?” she asked with a roll of her eyes.
“I hear you,” Chappy told her.
“You hear me, but you aren’t gonna let me pay for my car, are you?”
“Nope,” he said cheerfully.
“You’re impossible,” she told him with a shake of her head.
“No, what I am is madly in love with you, and I want to treat you like you should’ve been treated in all your other relationships. It makes me happy when you’re happy, and I want to make sure your car is safe for you to be driving around in Maine.”
He loved the tender look on her face. It was obvious she wasn’t used to being taken care of, and he wanted to see her wearing that expression for the rest of their lives.
“Be careful out there. I heard you talking to JJ yesterday about the increased risk of avalanches because of the warmer weather we’ve had. And the snow isn’t all melted off the road yet. If you run off the road, Baxter won’t be there to lead you home,” she teased.
“I’ll be careful, because for the first time in my life, I have someone to come home to.”
“I love you,” she whispered as she went up on her toes to reach his mouth.
He lowered his head and kissed her with all the love he had in his heart. He pulled away long before he was ready. “If I don’t get going, I’ll never leave,” he said, running his thumb over her swollen lower lip. He couldn’t help but remember how her lips had looked stretched around his cock. His dick twitched in his pants.
“You’re showing the messages and stuff to the chief of police, right?” she asked, biting that lip he’d just been admiring.
“Yes. It’ll be fine. Promise. We’ll figure out who’s been harassing you.”
“I hope so.”
“We will,” Chappy vowed. Because the alternative wasn’t even an option.
“I’m hoping maybe he’ll give up soon,” she suggested.
Chappy didn’t answer. They both knew better, and he wasn’t going to lie to her by suggesting otherwise.
She sighed. “Right. Well, don’t get so upset at the messages that pop up on my phone the moment you get service and end up wrecking. Okay?”
“I won’t. And now I’m really going to get going. If you need anything, I’m leaving the satellite phone for you. You can call my cell, or yours for that matter, and I’ll turn right back around. And Bob, Cal, and JJ’s numbers are all programmed in as well. April’s too.”
“Baxter and I will be fine. I’m just going to be here working. You want me to make dinner for when you get back? Anything you’re in the mood for?”
“You.” The word popped out automatically.
She grinned. “I think I can manage that.”
“I love you, Carlise. So much, you have no idea.”
“I do,” she said, her smile fading as she got serious. “I never thought I’d have this. A man who respected me, liked me, and genuinely wanted to make me happy.”
“I feel all those things and more,” Chappy said. He kissed her again, hard and fast, before forcing himself to step away. He was two seconds from saying “Screw it” and hauling her back to their bed. But he needed to take care of her car. Tow it down the mountain and talk to Chief Rutkey. The sooner he left, the sooner he could be back, and the sooner he could have her again.
“Are you sure there’s nothing you want from town?” he asked.
“Nope. Just you to get back safely.”
Lord, he loved this woman. He was already planning on getting her all sorts of things from the grocery store. Chocolate, the flavored tea she said she liked, strawberries, garlic chips. He’d learned a great deal about her likes and dislikes during their many lengthy conversations. And he liked the thought of spoiling her.
“Go,” she said with a smile.
“I’m going.”
“Be safe.”
“Always.” Then he headed toward the door, making a detour to the couch, where Baxter had taken up residence. He ran his hand over the pit bull’s fur, nodding in satisfaction when he felt how much the dog was filling out. “Watch after her, boy,” he said.
Baxter huffed out a breath as if he understood what was being asked of him. Then Chappy continued to the door. “Lock this behind me,” he ordered.
Carlise rolled her eyes but nodded. “I will.”
He left the cabin, and every step away from her felt . . . wrong.
He wondered if it would always feel like this. He hadn’t felt this particular trepidation when he’d left her before, to check the messages on her phone. So why now? Maybe because before, he was only going down the road, and for a short time. Today, it would take him hours to do everything he needed to get done.
He’d hooked the trailer for her car to the back of his Jeep earlier, so it was just a matter of starting the engine and leaving. But Chappy took the time to study the lay of the land. The sun was out once more, and he could see water dripping from the eaves of the cabin and from the trees.
The snow was melting, and he’d lived in Maine and had the cabin long enough to know that JJ’s warning was spot on. The rains that had softened the ground before the snow started, the extreme amount of heavy snow dumped on them during the storm, and now the warmer weather . . . it all made for the right conditions for avalanches.
He was confident that his cabin wasn’t in any danger. It was close to where slides normally occurred on Baldpate Mountain but not in the direct line of fire, so to speak.
And Carlise wasn’t going anywhere. She wasn’t a huge fan of the cold—which he thought was somewhat amusing since she lived in Cleveland—and she’d reassured him that she and Baxter were going to stay snuggled up inside until he returned.
Taking one last look around, and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Chappy climbed behind the wheel of his Jeep. The uneasy feeling stuck with him as he drove down the drive and out onto the road. The faster he got his errands done, the faster he could get home and reassure himself that all was well.
Hours later, Carlise was happy about how much work she’d gotten done. Thanks to the quiet cabin and zero distractions, her translation work was going much faster than when she was at home. She’d caught up and was back on track to finish the book by the deadline the author had requested.
She was taking a break, snuggling with Baxter—who’d turned out to be quite the cuddle bug once he’d gotten over his fear of her and Riggs—when a noise outside caught her attention.
Recognizing the sound of a vehicle engine, she frowned slightly. Maybe it was Riggs getting home a little early. He’d only been gone for about four hours, but maybe he’d finished all his errands.
Carlise stood and headed for the window at the front of the cabin. To her surprise, Baxter followed her. He was usually content to stay on the couch, stretched on his back with all four of his paws in the air, when she got up to use the bathroom or get a snack. But this time, he was right at her side, and she noticed the hair on his scruff was actually standing up.