Explosive Reunion. Karen Kirst

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СКАЧАТЬ to be the windshield. Black smoke rolled and curled high into the sky, aiming for the branches high above their heads. Her car was nothing more than a hulled-out shell.

      “My car,” she breathed, choking on the acrid taste invading her mouth.

      Cade curved his arm around her waist and helped her stand. “Are you hurt?”

      “I don’t understand. How? Why?”

      “Tori?” He shoved his face close, his ocean-blue eyes churning.

      “I’m fine.”

      Her car wasn’t, though. Rushing out the front gate, she strode to the end of the driveway for a better view.

      Cade followed on her heels. She pointed to the detached garage, thankful it was too full of overstock and gardening tools to be used for parking. “Do you see any damage?”

      “Nothing obvious.” He nodded grimly to the side of the house. “Your upstairs window’s broken.”

      “My bedroom. I should make sure whatever busted the glass doesn’t catch the house on fire.”

      “I’ll come with you.”

      In normal circumstances, she would’ve refused the offer. Memories of Cade permeated the house. Her mom had purchased it fifteen years ago, when Tori was just thirteen, and transformed the first floor into a paradise for dogs and the second into a rentable apartment. Cade and his family had helped with everything from tagging merchandise to installing bathroom tile. After a renter had been found and the shop opened for business, he’d continued to pitch in whenever he could. He and Tori had swept floors, passed out sales flyers and even convinced Barbara to carry bakery-grade dog cookies.

      But right now, Tori appreciated the company. Her heartbeat hadn’t yet resumed its usual rhythm and her legs felt rubbery. She kept expecting something else to go boom.

      Inside, she ascended the stairs hugging the left of the foyer. Cade’s heavier tread pelted behind her. She quickly unlocked the door at the top of the steps and entered the short hallway.

      “Doesn’t smell like anything is burning.” She tapped a pile of cardboard boxes. “Watch your step. I haven’t gotten around to unpacking everything yet.”

      “You’re to be commended, Tori. Leaving your position at the library and your home in Tennessee in order to come back and give your mom a break couldn’t have been easy.”

      The admiration in his eyes put a lump in her throat. “She needed me.”

      “Not everyone would be willing to make that sacrifice.”

      While it was true her mom’s lupus diagnosis had been the primary motivating factor, there were other reasons she’d craved a break from her life there. Reasons she’d rather keep private.

      Tori led the way into the corner room that she’d designated as the master bedroom. Bits of glass littered her bed. A twisted piece of metal lay on her throw rug.

      “There’s the culprit,” she said.

      Cade crossed to the broken window and pulled out his phone to call emergency dispatch.

      She hung back, soaking in the changes time had wrought. He’d been handsome as a teen, the combination of inky-black hair, vivid blue eyes and a winsome smile earning him scores of admirers. More athletic than studious, he’d possessed an energy that couldn’t be tamed. But he hadn’t let his popularity go to his head. He’d been kind to everyone, no matter their status, a hero even before he’d donned the uniform. No wonder she’d fallen for him.

      He’d matured into an intriguing, gorgeous man. His military regulation haircut, buzzed short on the sides but long enough to run his fingers through on the top, lent him an intimidating edge. He was taller than she remembered. Broader. In top physical condition—able to scale walls, leap out of helicopters, wrestle bad guys or whatever the Marine Corps asked him to do. She really didn’t want to know specifics. She’d worried about him during every deployment, praying for his safety and experiencing a rush of relief with every homecoming. Tori may have turned her back on military life, but thanks to her mom’s regular reports of Cade’s movements, she hadn’t escaped the emotional rollercoaster. If Jason enlisted, she’d be worrying about him, too.

      He ended the call. “The fire department will be here soon.”

      She joined him at the window. From this angle, the burning vehicle looked even more ominous. “This isn’t commonplace, is it?”

      “Commonplace? No. But not impossible, especially considering the age of your vehicle. I doubt it had an electric fan. The catalytic converter could’ve been clogged. Or there could’ve been a fuel leak.”

      Those options sounded reasonable. Far more reasonable than the paths her mind were taking. She had to reconsider her choice of reading material. There was no one after her. She sold pet supplies, not classified information.

      Cade turned toward her, his gaze narrowing. “Do you suspect this wasn’t an accident?”

      “Of course not.” That would be ridiculous.

      His gaze dropped deliberately to where she was fiddling with her ring. “Is someone giving you trouble? A customer? Neighbor? Boyfriend?”

      She studied his face for clues. Did he know about her former boyfriend and the activities that landed him in prison? Tori had made her mom promise not to tell anyone in the McMann family.

      “None of the above.”

      Seemingly satisfied with her answer, he peered through both windows. “People are congregating on the sidewalk.”

      “I should go down there and reassure my neighbors.”

      Outside, they found a gathering crowd, shock reflected on their faces. Her next-door neighbor wove his way to her side. “Tori, are you okay?”

      Her wrist throbbed and she was without transportation. It wasn’t the best day, but it could’ve been much worse. She was grateful that the house and her mom’s beloved shop were still intact.

      “I’m fine, Kenneth.” She introduced the harried tax man to Cade. The two nodded to each other in greeting. Slightly older than her, the reed-thin bachelor with owlish features seemed to always be at loose ends. But he had a steady stream of customers, so he must be good at his job.

      “I was putting my frozen dinner into the microwave when I heard the explosion.” Blinking behind the thick glasses, he tried to smooth his riotous curls. “You’re fortunate this didn’t happen fifteen minutes later.”

      Cade shifted his stance. “Why do you say that?”

      “Tori drives to the bank every day after she closes the store, like clockwork.”

      He blanched. Their gazes locked, and the questions surging in his eyes mirrored her own. Who else besides Kenneth had taken note of her habits? Had the destruction of her car been, in fact, an act of deliberate violence?

       TWO

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