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“Us?”
“Yes, us. We’re both going to eat. I’m not going to let you waste away. Not on my watch.”
Because his concern seemed genuine, she fought a wave of confusion. He was big and strong, and a part of her wanted to cling to him. But she’d made that mistake with David. No matter how lonely she was, no matter how much she longed for a friend, she wouldn’t allow herself to need another man. Not even her field inspector.
“You don’t have to fuss over me,” she told him.
“Good grief, woman. It’s just a sandwich.”
No, she thought. It was more than that. So much more.
Zack got out of the car, leaving her alone with her thoughts. He disappeared into the eatery, and she recalled the first meal David had bought her. She’d been a love-starved teenager living on the streets, seduced by the comfort of one simple lunch.
Zack returned a short while later. He put the sodas he’d purchased in the cup holder between their seats and handed her the bag. “You can have your pick. Ham and cheese or roast beef and avocado.”
When their gazes locked, she realized her stomachache was gone. In its place was a warm little flutter. God help her, she thought. She was attracted to him.
Stunned by the sexual pull, she glanced at his left hand. She didn’t see a ring, but that didn’t mean anything. David hadn’t worn a ring, either. In the beginning, she hadn’t known her lover was married.
“Ham and cheese is fine,” she said, guilt clouding her mind. She’d left David when she’d learned the truth, but it hadn’t taken long for him to convince her to return to him, to be his mistress. And that shamed her most of all.
Zack started the car, and she realized he was taking her to her new home. She’d been told that he would rent her a place, a temporary dwelling until she could find a house of her own.
Natalie kept the sandwich bag on her lap, crinkling a corner of the paper. The rustling sound was better than silence, she decided. Better than the strange energy between her and Zack.
He headed toward the lake, and she rolled down the window to breathe in a gust of fresh air. She could see a glimpse of the water, sparkling in the distance. A body of blue, she thought. As tranquil as a tourist’s dream, as active as a child’s imagination.
Her view of the lake disappeared when he turned onto a tree-lined street. Natalie had never lived in an area like this. She’d been welfare poor; she’d been mistress rich. But she’d never fit into the white-picket-fence world.
He guided the car down a long driveway and stopped at a cozy guest house. Her heart bumped her chest. The windows were trimmed in yellow and the lawn was freshly mowed.
“Is this mine? I expected an apartment.”
He parked his sedan and cut the engine. “It rents by the month, so it didn’t require a lease. The owners live up front. They’re a young family. They seem like nice folks.”
“What did you tell them about me?”
“That you’re a friend of mine who plans to open a boutique in Coeur d’Alene.”
That was close to the truth, she thought. Except for the friend part. “Did you mention that you’re a deputy?”
“Yes, but no one outside the Marshal Service knows I’m with WITSEC. As far as your landlords are concerned, I’m just a local deputy.”
Natalie fell silent. It was obvious his badge had closed the deal. Who wouldn’t trust a federal lawman?
When he exited the car, she followed suit, carrying the sandwich bag. He turned to look at her, and when that little flutter returned to her stomach, she struggled to temper it.
The June air was warm, and a mild breeze blew. Zack stood tall and dark in a black jacket and matching trousers. The sun had bronzed his skin and his eyes were marked with tiny lines. Frown lines, she thought. He shifted their sodas, then handed her one, searching his pockets for the keys to her new home. She wondered if he’d been raised in this area. Maybe he was a member of the Coeur d’Alene Indian tribe. Zack looked as if he might be part Native American.
Finally, he located the keys and unlocked the front door. She stepped inside and tried to contain her excitement. The living room presented a stone hearth, and the kitchen had French doors that led to a barbecue deck. Already she loved it.
“There isn’t much here by the way of furnishings,” he said. “I got you a bed and a dresser. And a dining room table. Just a few things to help you get by. You can pick out whatever else you need.”
“Thank you.” When their eyes met, an indefinable moment passed between them. Heat? Hunger? A stream of tenderness? Natalie couldn’t tell.
“But just remember that you’re on a budget,” he added. “WITSEC will foot the bill for your furniture, but they aren’t going to provide the fancy-ass stuff Halloway used to buy for you.”
She tried not to flinch. “Excuse me?”
“Excuse you for what? Being spoiled? Don’t worry, you’ll get over it.”
Natalie’s heart fell. Yes, she had slept with a married man. And yes, she was guilty, shamed to the bone. But wasn’t it enough that David’s wife vowed to see her dead? Did she have to be judged by a U.S. marshal, as well? Summoning the strength to defy him, she held his gaze. “At least I have enough money to start a business.”
“By selling off everything lover-boy gave you? That’s not the same as earning it.”
She held her ground. “I’m sure it’s more than you have.”
He didn’t back down. “I’ve made some investments.”
She pushed the issue. “I probably still have more than you.”
“Maybe, but I’m not a hot-looking blonde.” He shrugged, then made a silly joke, turning the tide with his offbeat humor. “Can you imagine some mobster putting me up in a condo? Dressing me in sexy lingerie?”
She rolled her eyes, and he laughed.
“You’re a jerk, Deputy. And you’re not funny.”
He grinned at her. “Then how come you’re fighting a smile?”
Because I’m an idiot, she thought. And she’d been charmed by jerks before. Refusing to break down and smile, she grabbed her drink and sucked on the straw.
“So what do you think of this place?” he asked.
Feigning indifference, she swallowed the soda. “It’s okay.”
“Just okay? I thought it was perfect for a single woman. It even has one of those glamour bathrooms. Big sunken tub, lights around the mirror.” He took the sandwiches from her and placed them on the dining room table. “Come on, I’ll show you around.”
She accepted the tour, but she kept her distance, making sure their hands didn’t accidentally touch or their shoulders didn’t brush when she squeezed past him in the hallway.
The curtains in the bedroom matched the carpet, and the brass bed he’d provided was made up with a fluffy white quilt and lacy pillows. She shot him a curious glance.
He defended his choice. “What the hell do I know? It seemed like something a woman would like. Besides, it was on sale.”
She thought the bed was pretty, but she wasn’t about to admit it. “Where do you live?” she asked, wondering what sort of furnishings he favored.
“I commute between a cabin in the mountains and a house in the city.”
But he wasn’t going to tell her what mountain range or what city, she realized. He knew everything about her, but she wasn’t privy to personal information about him.
“You have my pager number, don’t you?” he asked suddenly.
Natalie nodded. WITSEC had provided it.
“It’s a satellite pager,” he said. “I won’t miss your calls.” He moved toward the dresser, where a telephone sat. “I left a list of local numbers, too. Fire, police. But if you think you’re in danger, call the one at the top. That’ll bring a squad of marshals to your door.”
Her pulse jumped to her throat. She hoped and prayed that she would never have to use that number, but she knew the possibility existed.
As Zack continued the tour, she followed, trying to keep her fear in check. In a fit of anger, David had killed one of his associates, then forced her to help him clean up the mess. The blood, the—
“Check out the bathroom.”
She blinked. “What?”
“The bathroom.”
She peered around his shoulder, and he moved out of the way. The tile-lined tub, she noticed, was big enough for two, and a floral-print curtain shielded a separate shower stall.
Speaking of flowers. An artistic bouquet decorated the sink. Pink, purple and red blooms flourished in an elegant glass vase. “Are these from my landlords?”
“No.”
“Then who ordered them?”
“I did.”
Stunned, she merely stared at him. “You?” The man who’d criticized her character? “Are flowers a standard WITSEC procedure?”
“No, but I thought they would brighten up the place.”
“Thank you.” Up until now, she’d been living in a safe-site center, where the doors were electronically bolted and hallways were monitored with security cameras and motion detectors. It hadn’t felt like home.
He finished showing her around and suggested they eat lunch. She sat across from him at the table, confused by his ever changing moods. He seemed judgmental one minute and compassionate the next.
He unwrapped the roast beef sandwich. “I made sure the kitchen was pretty well stocked. Dishes, pots, pans, silverware.” He motioned behind him. “The fridge came with the place. We can go to the market later if you want.”
She picked the onions out of her sandwich. “We?”
“You don’t have a car yet. Who else is supposed to take you shopping?”
Who indeed? Zack Ryder was her only contact in Coeur d’Alene. But that didn’t mean she had to make herself vulnerable to him, she thought. So he’d bought her flowers. So what? It was his job to help witnesses adjust to their new surroundings.
“When can I meet my landlords?” she asked.
“Next week. They’re on vacation right now.”
“What are their names?”
“Steve and Carla. He’s an accountant, and she runs after the kids. A couple of towheaded boys.” Zack chuckled. “From what I gathered, they keep her pretty busy.”
Already Natalie felt a pang of envy. All of her life she’d wanted to be a loving wife and a good, caring mother. But instead, she’d become a toy, a blow-up doll for her lover’s amusement. “I used to be a brunette.”
He gave her a perplexed look. “I’m aware of that, but what does your old hair color have to do with your new landlords?”
“Nothing. You called me a hot-looking blonde earlier. But I was a brunette when I was with David.”
“I wasn’t making a literal statement. And you’re beautiful either way.”
“I don’t need you to compliment me.”
He frowned at her. “I’m not stroking your ego. I’m just stating the facts. You’re going to get a lot of attention no matter where you live. You’re going to turn some heads.”
Was she supposed to downplay her appearance? She’d tried to create a classy image, to mold herself into someone new. “Does that bother you?”
“Why would it?” he responded a bit too defensively.
“No reason.” She tasted her food and battled the annoying little flutter in her stomach. The telltale sign that she was attracted to her field inspector, a man who made her much too aware of her past as another man’s mistress.
Two
Zack didn’t like the sexual vibe that stretched between him and Natalie. He wanted to blame her for it, to tell her to knock it off, but how could he? All she was doing was sitting across from him, rejecting the onions in her sandwich.
But somehow she still managed to stir his imagination. Then again, he’d heard all sorts of things about her. Hot, erotic things. Mob rumors, he supposed. Stories the FBI had passed on to the Marshal Service. Not that Zack normally lent an ear to gossip, but he’d been weaned on organized crime. His uncle had worked for the Marshal Service when the LCN—La Cosa Nostra—had been riding high. And although the West Coast Family wasn’t part of the Italian Mafia, they’d patterned their organization after the guys his uncle used to tell him about.
Zack couldn’t remember who’d circulated the rumors about Natalie. It wasn’t Uncle Joe. He died before the West Coast Family had come into power. But either way, Zack recalled hearing about Nancy Perris. And now here he was, helping her relocate.
According to legend, Nancy was every mobster’s dream. She was good with her hands and even better with her mouth. She got off on arousing David Halloway in public places, in putting her head in his lap.
Was any of that true? Zack didn’t know, but like the red-blooded, sexually obsessed male he was, he had weird fantasies about finding out, about straight-out asking her.
“Is your sandwich okay?” he asked instead.
She nodded and reached for her napkin.
He watched her wipe a drop of mayonnaise from her lips, and while she dabbed at the creamy condiment, his groin sent a dangerous signal to his brain. He nearly cursed out loud. The last thing he needed was to fall under her do-you-want-me-to-put-my-head-in-your-lap? spell. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had done that to him.
“Is yours?” she said.
He shifted in his chair. “Is my what?”
“Sandwich good?”
“I get these pretty often.” He picked up his drink and tried to douse the unwelcome desire. If Zack had a lover, he would go straight home and get laid.
Natalie looked up. “How much time am I going to have to spend with you?”
Too much, he thought. “That depends on how long it takes to get you settled.” For the first month, he normally dealt with a relocated family on a daily, Monday through Friday basis, but he never really knew what to expect. Some witnesses required more guidance than others. “We need to work out a schedule so I can familiarize you with the area, find you a car, help you scout locations for your boutique.” Pausing, he glanced around. “And finish furnishing this house.”
“I want to enroll in school, too.”
