Talk Me Down

“Off-limits,” he whispered. When Molly looked back at him, he just shook his head.

HE WAS FROWNING AT HER, clearly not having a good time, and Molly felt a twinge of guilt.

She’d forgotten about his issues with his father when she’d walked over here to laugh about the column. It had all happened when she was twelve and not quite tuned into the scandal of Mr. Lawson having an affair with a teenager. Mr. Lawson, the high school principal, having an affair with a teenage student. What a nightmare.

Ben gestured toward the oversize front desk. “During the summer, the station’s always manned. But in the winter, it’s just us locals. Everyone knows where to find Brenda at lunchtime.”

“Do you guys only work half-time during winter?”

“No, we have an Aspen officer who works here during the summer. It works out perfectly because they need her for their busy season, then when the pass opens in spring, she commutes here for a few months, and the rest of us get to work full-time during the slow season.”

“Quinn said there’s a lot more traffic through here than there used to be.”

Ben nodded. “The mountain biking has really taken off. The rafting companies expanded to include biking and bought more buses. They take the riders and their bikes up to the top of the trail, then meet them back at the bottom to do it again. Helluva way to break your neck, if you ask me.”

“Professor Logic as always.”

“God, no one’s called me that since your parents moved away.” He led the way back, giving cursory explanations. “My office.” He waved into a small, plain room with a neat desk. “The other offices.” A larger room with three desks crammed into it. “Holding cell.”

“Whoa, this is your jail?” She walked up to the big metal door to look through the thick glass window. Nothing very interesting, just a toilet and sink and cot.

“It’s just a holding cell. Anyone we place under arrest gets put over in the county lockup.”

“So who’s this for?”

“Minor violators.”

She glanced back to find him watching her closely.

He raised an eyebrow. “Girls who block snowy streets with their tiny, useless, stranded cars even after they’ve been warned by the police.”

“Ha!” She turned and stepped closer to him, happy when he backed up into the wall. “I’ll be nimble as a little bunny. You’ll see.”

“I do have experience in this kind of—”

“Oh, I know you have experience, Chief. But I’m no beginner, either.”

Clearing his throat, Ben pushed off the wall and headed back toward the front. Unfortunately his coat hid most of his butt, but she could still appreciate the movement of his hard thighs and the tempting sight of the nape of his neck beneath his hat. “Thanks for wearing the cowboy hat for me, Ben.”

The neck turned pink. “It’s part of my uniform, Molly,” he growled.

She was almost positive he was more than a little interested in her, but she suddenly had the fear that his blushes were more the “just leave me alone” kind than the “you’re hot, don’t tease me” variation. He’d always been quiet and almost shy, until he loosened up and got funny. So was this shyness or interest? How to find out?

Well, she’d always believed in the shortest route. “My brother says you’re single.”

Ben stopped so quickly that Molly reached out to stop herself from bumping into him. Her hand connected with a rock-solid back. When he turned, she felt muscles shifting even under the heavy coat, and then, instead of her hand resting on his back, her arm was actually curled around his waist, her hip touching his. Even Molly was startled at how she’d just made herself at home.

He raised a meaningful eyebrow at her arm until she removed it.

“Accident. Sorry. I swear I’m not a hussy.” The word hussy made her laugh until she snorted, and Ben’s eyes crinkled a little in amusement.

“Look, Molly. I think you’re cute. And I am single. But it’s a small town, you know? Too complicated.”

“Too complicated? Really? Jeez, you’re a real live wire, Professor.”

“Come on. You know how it is.”

“I was only trying to finagle a date. A date. I promise not to chain you to the basement stairs.”

“I don’t date women in Tumble Creek.”

“Seriously?” Yes, he was probably being serious. He’d always been too logical for his own good. “Come on, Ben. What do you do, fly north when the days get longer? Do you have a set migration route or do you have a different set of stops each year?”

“I…It’s complicated.”

“Huh. I’ll say.” She brushed past him, making sure to inhale his scent when she got close. Mmm. Cold air and forests. Nothing complicated about that. He reached past to open the door and his chest brushed her back. Nice. She wasn’t giving up that easy.

Grinning, she walked down the uneven steps and waited for him at the bottom. “It’s not complicated,” she finally said. “I promise you I’m a simple girl.”

He didn’t look as if he believed her. It probably didn’t help that a man across the street started shouting her name. Please don’t let it be one of Cameron’s boys, she prayed as she turned toward the sound of a car door slamming.

“Molly Jennings, is that you? I was just on my way to your house.” Mr. Randolph was heading for his trunk.

“Hi there, Mr. Randolph.”

He popped the trunk, then reappeared with a big vase of roses. “These are for you.”

“Oh, good God,” she groaned, though she did manage to paste a smile on her face.

The flowers bounced jauntily in the man’s arms as he jogged across the street. “Two dozen roses. This young man must think real highly of you.” Mr. Randolph shifted the flowers to one hand, fumbling for the note. “Was it Devlin or Evan?” He patted around for his reading glasses.

“Devon,” Molly snapped, reaching for the damn flowers. She caught the smirk on Ben’s mouth and sent him a glare.

“Simple, huh?” he muttered. “Just another Denver guy, Molly?”

“Yes. He’s a friend. From Denver.”

Mr. Randolph exploded with laughter, totally overdoing it in Molly’s opinion. “A friend! Ha! Those are long stems. Forty dollars a dozen. What’ve you been up to down in Denver, Ms. Jennings?”

“Nothing.”

“You one of them rich business women?”

“No.” She tried to leave it at that, but Mr. Randolph just waited, his rheumy blue eyes staring hard. Molly sighed. She’d been through this before. She knew the easy way out. “I do some sensitive work for a tech company. Nothing exciting though.”

“A techie, huh? Well, congratulations on the flowers. I’ll be seeing you around. Good to have you back.”

“Thank you, Mr. Randolph.”

She watched him go, ignoring the burning sensation at the back of her neck. The older man waved and disappeared into his flower, gift and fly-fishing shop, leaving Molly with no choice but to turn around and meet Ben’s hard eyes.

“So you work for a tech company.”

“No.”

“Then you’re a liar.”

“Yes. I’ve found it’s a lot easier than the truth.”

“The truth being?”

“That I don’t discuss my work with anyone.”

He rocked back on his heels a little, looking her up and down with a suspicious glare. “And why is that, Molly?”

“That’s none of your business. Plus it’s complicated, and I know how you hate complications.”

Ben didn’t look any friendlier at that. In fact, Molly felt an undignified urge to squirm under his examination and blurt out a false confession. When he put his hands on his hips, she could see his big gun, and not the big gun she was interested in, either. She clutched the flowers hard to her chest.

“I won’t have anything illegal going on here.”

“I’m not—”

“Is that clear?”

“Jeez Louise, Ben!” She threw up one hand and waved it in frustration. “Who do you think I am?”

He looked her up and down one more time, sweeping her body with little tingles. “I have no idea anymore.”

“I’m just Molly Jennings, all grown up. And hopefully charming as hell.”

“It shouldn’t be any mystery to you why I don’t appreciate the excitement of a secret life. I wouldn’t date a woman who kept half her life hidden, even if I wanted to.”

“Do you want to?”

He only gave her a frown, so with a little groan of defeat, Molly gave up. “All right, I’m leaving. Bye.” She turned up the sidewalk and headed toward her house, but she couldn’t resist one last attempt. “But I will be at The Bar tonight,” she called back. “Maybe I’ll see you there.”

A blast of cold wind kicked up and drowned out his reply. If he’d made one.

The breeze carried the scent of snow and pine and crisp, gold aspen leaves. Molly smiled despite Ben Lawson and his ridiculousness. Fall had always been her favorite season, and nothing was better than fall in the mountains. Dry leaves tumbled down the narrow street, scraping and tapping the blacktop. Clumps of red berries clung to leafless bushes, bobbing in time to the gusts. On the steep hill above town, groves of bright yellow leaves quaked against a backdrop of green pines so dark they were nearly black.

She couldn’t believe it had been ten years since she’d come home. But when she’d left for college—after hiding out from Ben for the last three weeks of summer—her parents had sold the feed store, packed up the family home, and moved to St. George, Utah (“Just like Santa Fe! Only less crowded and snooty”).

Her brother lived mostly in Aspen, and she visited him a couple times a year, but other than that…Her world had been in Denver. But not anymore. Unless she needed new clothes.

Tumble Creek was her home again, and if Ben Lawson wanted nothing to do with her that was fine. There was no history between them; she certainly wasn’t in love with the man. Okay, maybe she’d had a crush on him for a few years. And maybe she’d spent more than a few years fantasizing about his lean, strong body and big, sure hands. But she would take care of that the same way she always did.

Molly picked up the pace and hurried toward home.

HE WAS STANDING in the dim light of her bedroom, waiting in the doorway for some signal from her. Molly let him wait. She wanted to take him in first, explore his body with just her eyes. And what a body it was.

His wide shoulders curved down into arms that looked carved from stone. Dark hair dusted his chest and danced a thin line over his sculpted abdomen. Oh, she wanted to feel his bronzed skin just there, where his belly was ridged with strength. She wanted those firm muscles to jump under her touch.

His cock grew harder as she watched, and she ceased to care about his abs. He was long and thick, the skin stretched tight until it glowed like silk.

Itching for something naughty to do, Molly’s fingers drifted over her hip and pressed against her damp panties. A moan crawled from her throat as she pictured Ben watching her, getting harder, his cock throbbing with need. She wanted him desperate, delirious. She wanted him to watch until he snapped, until he took her rough and hard.

Molly’s free hand reached blindly for the knob on the nightstand drawer as her other slipped beneath pink cotton and stroked.

“Oh,” she whispered, encouraged by her own slickness and heat. God, she wanted him there, sliding in, stretching her until she begged for more or for mercy or for anything he’d give her.

Her other hand closed around her favorite toy. Not Ben, but it had been her best friend for months now.

Molly slipped off her panties and clicked the switch. The familiar buzzing made her smile, and then it made her arch her back and moan in approval. Oh, yeah. Oh, yes, yes, yes.

She began floating up into pleasure and turned back to her fantasy of Ben. He was eyeing her with hot anger, furious that she hadn’t let him near yet.

Molly stroked one of her nipples, imagining the way he—

A sudden metallic screech interrupted, terrifying her into a scream. She sprang up, flinging the vibrator across the room. It landed with a thud and writhed itself into a dim corner. “Jesus! What the—?”

The ancient phone next to her bed rang again, nearly jangling itself off the table.

“Oh. My. God.” She thought she’d electrocuted herself with a defective sex toy. Her heart was still trying its best to escape from her chest, jumping ship at the first sign of danger. She pressed her hand to it, panting to catch some air.

Brrrrrrr-ring.

It had better be Ben. Maybe the two of them had some sort of psychosexual connection. If they did, she’d been giving him a hell of a ride for the past ten years.

Molly snatched up the phone and attempted to answer with some dignity. “What?”

“Hey, beautiful.”

Unfortunately, she knew exactly who it was. Cameron, that bastard. “Go away!”

Molly slammed down the phone, hoping she broke the ancient menace in the process, but of course they didn’t make ’em like they used to. No, this phone wasn’t slapped together in China. The damn thing was probably made of pure American steel.

It jangled alive again. Loudly. Her aunt had clearly been hard of hearing.

Molly was nearly weeping with frustration when she answered. “Please, Cameron, for the love of God, leave me alone!”

Cameron just chuckled. “Pete said you were in a bad mood. I don’t think mountain living suits you.”

“I’m not coming back to Denver. Now, goodbye.”

When she hung up this time, Molly turned the phone over, searching for an off switch. But apparently Ringer Off switches hadn’t been invented forty years ago, so she just unplugged it.

Un-fricking-believable. Cameron Kasten was now officially ruining even her solo sex life. Had he known she was masturbating? Molly glanced at the windows, just to be sure, then shook her head to clear the shocked buzzing away.

The buzzing stayed. Frowning, she tugged the sheets up over her chest and glanced around the room. But of course it was nothing menacing, just her favorite toy, shaking its little blue self half to death against the baseboards. Despair slapped Molly full in the face.

She didn’t even want her favorite blue toy. She wanted Ben Lawson, and he didn’t want her.

Legs weak and heavy, Molly forced herself to get up and retrieve the vibrator. She stared down at it for a moment, but she wasn’t even close to being in the mood now. She just switched it off and headed for the shower.

Thank God she hadn’t adjusted to the altitude yet. She was going out tonight and she needed those drinks to hit her hard. It was all the hard she’d be getting for a while.

CHAPTER FOUR

PROSTITUTE.

Ben cringed even as he wrote it.

No way was Molly Jennings a hooker. She was sweet and smart and had always been a good student and daughter.

But then who were all these male “friends” she seemed to have acquired? Sure, she’d claimed she was doing nothing illegal, but she’d already lied about a half dozen other things, why not that?

He glanced at his computer, tempted to do a background check. It’d be easy enough to find out if she had any arrests on record. But it felt unethical; he didn’t really have a good reason to pry into her life.

Even if she had been a hooker in Denver, it was nothing to him. He wasn’t going to date her. She certainly wasn’t going to be turning tricks up here; she’d have moved to Aspen for that. So he just couldn’t convince himself he had a reason to look her up.

“Plus, she’s not a prostitute,” he muttered. There was no way in the world she’d be so cute and shiny if she’d been living that lifestyle. She had a sharp wit, but that was the only thing hard about her. Molly Jennings was all softness and light. And heat.

Ben crossed the offensive word off his list and let his body fall back in his chair. He cracked his neck, ran his hands over his face.

It was almost seven. He was exhausted and frustrated and jumpy. He needed a damn drink.

Leaning as far to the left as he could, Ben craned his neck to catch a glimpse of The Bar outside his office window. The h on the sign had burned out long ago; half the locals called it T-Bar now. The place was worn-out and small, and it was the only place in town to get a drink.

And she’d be there.

He couldn’t avoid the woman; there was only one gas station, one grocery store, one bar. Still, maybe seeing her tonight wasn’t a good idea. He’d been picturing her in her fuzzy pink hat and white coat and high-heeled boots…and nothing else. In his mind, she looked all wrapped up and proper, bundled against the cold. But then she untied the belt on the thigh-length coat and tossed it open and there she was in all the natural pink and white glory of her naked body.

“Jesus, I need to get laid,” he groaned, rubbing his face again. Except that he immediately thought of Molly and his body began to cast its own vote on the subject.

No, he wouldn’t date her. But drinking wasn’t dating, after all. Neither was flirting.

Ben shut down the computer and headed for home. A shower and then…bed. Probably.

MOLLY PRACTICALLY hopped down her front steps as she left to meet Lori Love at The Bar. It had been a good evening, despite her disastrous afternoon. All that sexual desperation had served her work well. She’d channeled her lust into the new story and managed to bang out twelve pages. Twelve awesomely good pages, if she did say so herself.

Hips swaying over her heeled boots, Molly hurried down the hill toward Main Street, her grin widening as she walked. Even the new e-mail from that nasty Mrs. Gibson hadn’t ruined her mood. The woman wrote to Molly and her colleagues on a regular basis to call them whores and smut-peddlers, but she was strangely well-versed in the stories. In fact, it seemed clear that she read every one. Sometimes Mrs. Gibson even provided statistics about which dirty words were used and how many times. This new book was really going to set her off.

Molly had never written anything quite so wicked before, and Mrs. Gibson wouldn’t be the only one shocked by it. Molly expected her editor to be very pleasantly surprised. Though Molly wasn’t into bondage herself, there was a huge market for that kind of story.

And heck, even if she wasn’t into being tied up, she just might change her mind after this book. That sheriff was one hot hero. Almost as hot as Ben himself.

Ben. If he didn’t show up at The Bar tonight, Molly had promised herself she’d leave the poor guy alone. If he did show up…well that was another beast altogether. She didn’t want to add complication to her life any more than he did, but there was nothing complicated about gettin’ it on.

She was giggling at her own thoughts when the night darkened around her. She’d passed all the houses on her street and walked right out of their friendly porch lights and into the small strip of forest that divided her neighborhood from Main. Her neck prickled in warning. She stopped.

She wasn’t scared. This was Tumble Creek, after all. But she did turn in a slow circle all the same, searching every shadow for signs of movement. Nothing except her city-girl imagination.

The full moon shone on the street a dozen yards ahead of her, illuminating the back lot of the feed store. The apartment above the store was where Ben and Quinn had lived together during college summers. The rent had been cheap—really cheap—and the summer jobs plentiful. And Molly had hung around as much as she could manage.

She’d made herself at home there, even to the point of bursting in without knocking.

Oh, her little heart had broken that night, even if her sex drive had roared awake at the sight of Ben naked and impressively aroused. That girl—definitely not a local—had…

Molly’s familiar thoughts froze when dry leaves crackled behind her. Her steps stuttered as she shot a look over her shoulder. That wasn’t the sound of the wind tossing dead leaves around. A twig snapped. All her muscles jumped.

“Who’s there?” No answer.

She hurried toward the lights ahead. She’d had this feeling before of being watched and followed. But that had been in Denver, where Cameron had shown up in odd places—at restaurants, at her local Starbucks, even a women’s clothing store. A complaint to his supervisor had resulted in nothing but a lecture about how she was clearly sending mixed signals.

Was he here now? Trying to scare her? Chase her back to Denver where he could control her life?

Molly rushed down the sidewalk, almost to the light, and the corner of Main Street was only a little farther. She broke free from the shadows, gasping, and dared a look back.

Dark shifted against dark, then deepened to nothing. But she was sure that shadow had been movement, and not just her imagination.

It took only seconds for her to reach the corner and dash around it. Leaning against the brick wall of the feed store, Molly drew freezing air into her lungs and watched it rush out in clouds as she exhaled.

This is Tumble Creek, she told herself. You’re in the wilderness. It was a raccoon or a possum, maybe even an elk.

Her heart seemed to believe her. It slowed to an almost normal pace, and Molly risked a glance around the corner. She saw nothing. Was it possible that cheap coffee had more caffeine in it than the good stuff? She’d been jumpy all day. Her vibrator hadn’t tried to kill her and neither had that raccoon or whatever the hell it was.

Willing herself into a shaky laugh, she pushed off the wall. The Bar was just across the street, less than a block away. As if on queue, she heard the door of the place open and tinny music spilled out. Someone pulled out of the grocery store parking lot and drove toward her. Life resumed its normal pace. Everything was fine.

Forcing a smile, she headed for The Bar.

“Molly Jennings!” the barkeep called as soon as the door swooshed shut behind her.

Molly tilted her head, studied his face, and then grinned. “Juan! You look great.” A bit of an exaggeration, but he smiled and shrugged. Juan was two years older than her. He’d been a star football player at Creek County High, but his bulky muscles had softened to something that looked suspiciously like fat. His smile was just as wide and genuine, though. Molly grabbed a seat at the bar.

“Lori called,” Juan said right away. “She’ll be a little late. Had to go pull a car out of a ditch.”

“Thanks, Juan.”

“What can I get you? Some kind of wimpy drink? Cosmo? Appletini? Pomegranate Twist?”

“Oh, um, really? You’ve got pomegranate juice?”

“Nah, not really. But I do have cranberry juice and apple sour. What’s your poison?”

Molly glanced around. Most of the booths were full and every single person had a beer or shot glass in front of them. But, damn, she wanted a cosmo.

Her sigh ruffled the little napkin Juan had set in front of her. “I’ve got to build up some street cred here, Juan. I’d better have a Coors.”

Juan glanced up and down the bar, then leaned a little closer. “How about if I make you a lemon-drop martini and put it in a highball glass with ice? Think you could pull it off as a vodka tonic?”

Molly sat straighter and laughed. “Hell, yeah. Bring it on.” This night was gonna be all right after all.

While Juan turned his back on the bar to mix the secret drink, Molly strolled over to the jukebox to check out the selections. Apparently they hadn’t been updated since the eighties; all the selections were still classic country or guitar rock. She chose George Strait and made a beeline back to her drink.

When the door opened, she turned to say hi to Lori. The sight of Ben walking through the door froze her tongue to her front teeth. Oh, hell yeah, this night was gonna be all right.

He was looking down at the floor, but he shot a glance at her past his lashes. Warmth melted from the top her head to her toes. Her tongue relaxed.

“Hey, Ben,” she drawled. “What’re you doing here?”

He raised his face to her, wearing the policeman mask. “Just dropping by to check on things like I always do.”