Page 81 of Ultimate Justice

He set the phone and condoms on the bedside table. A corner of Marlie’s mouth lifted as she watched him shed his pants. “At the risk of sounding corny, we make great music together.”

“That we do.” In so many ways he’d never thought possible. “Do you know how all the great composers made their mark in the music world?” When she shook her head, he slipped in next to her, grazing his lips over hers. “Practice. Lots of practice.”

She smiled against his mouth. “I agree, but I need to tell you something. It’s important.”

“What can be more important than this?” He nuzzled her ear, loving how her hair smelled, her skin, how her body fit so perfectly with his.

“I’m thinking of adopting Noah,” she said. “If he wants me to, that is.”

He lifted his head. “Why would he not want you to? I think that’s great.”

“Me, too, but there’s more. I learned the hard way life’s too short to waste time, so here goes.” She took a deep breath. “When this is over, we’ll be going back to my place to live, but I’d like you to be part of our lives. Under normal circumstances, that is. Maybe someday, we can be…”

She broke off, but he could see what she’d been thinking, because there was a part of him—a very real part—that was thinking the same thing.

Be a family.

The war that had been ongoing between his mind and his heart escalated to the point where his head hurt and his heart somersaulted faster than a gymnast. Still standing at the top of that emotional precipice, he teetered back and forth, indecision preventing him from saying what his heart wanted him to.

His phone buzzed. SAIC Mimoa. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and took the call. “Brian, what’s up?”

“You are,” he said. “One of our choppers just got freed up for Monday. They’re coming down from the border to fuel up at Cheyenne Regional Airport. They’ll meet you there at two p.m.”

Evan fisted his hand. Finally. “I’ll be there.” Unable to sit, he stood and paced back and forth at the foot of the bed. First thing tomorrow, he’d stop by the office to grab a camera. The chopper would be outfitted with aerial surveillance and infrared cams, but equipment had been known to go on the fritz before, and he wanted immediate access to still photo imagery.

“Evan?”

He was so close to getting answers. Stopping now wasn’t an option. No matter how long it took.

“Evan?”

He stopped pacing to find Marlie watching him, frowning and biting her lower lip. Her life was finally on track. His wasn’t and maybe never would be. Didn’t matter that he was falling for her. It killed him to think it, let alone say it, but the best thing he could do was not get in the way of her happiness. The only thing he could give her now was the absolute truth. “Monday morning, I’m doing a flyover of that property Noah thinks is the camp.”

“That’s good news.” She gave him a hesitant smile. “So why do you look so horrified?”

Because his heart was breaking. Because he was about to lose what could have been the best thing in his life. The future he so desperately wanted. And could never have.

Chapter Twenty-Four

No. Please, no. But the look on Evan’s face said it all.

He didn’t want her. Didn’t want what she’d taken as a giant leap of faith to offer him on a silver platter—her love.

After all this time, finally, she’d fallen in love again. It was too bad the man she loved didn’t want her. Maybe he didn’t have it in him to want anyone.

Slowly, he shook his head. “I can’t give you what you need. What you deserve.”

“I don’t understand.” She sat up, letting the covers fall to her waist, then grabbing them to cover her nakedness. Stupid, really, since she’d just done all sorts of intimate things with him. “All I said was I wanted you to be part of our lives when this is over. Maybe I’m naïve, but I don’t think so. I thought you wanted that, too. What changed in the span of one short phone call?”

“Everything.” He hung his head. “Maybe nothing.”

Judging by how he couldn’t even look at her, she doubted it was nothing. She hadn’t treated a patient in years, but that didn’t mean all her training and experience had disappeared. The “everything” he’d been referring to had to be his sister. “This is about Grace, isn’t it?”

He nodded, his eyes filled with the same sad, haunted look she’d glimpsed the first night they’d made love, when he’d confided to her about the day his sister had gone missing. “There’s a lot I haven’t told you.”

Her heart skipped a beat. What could be worse than what he’d already confided? Like any good psychologist, she waited, even though she wanted to scream at him to spill it and get it over with. Whatever it was.

“I know who took my sister. It was Frank Manello.”