Page 66 of Inherited Light
I held up my finger. “I’ve known her for years, Tab. We only reconnected a month ago. People fall in love at first sight. I think I’m awfully damn lucky to be one of those people.”
“Cat has some issues, Lorenzo,” she said slowly.
I chose not to bite her head off, instead decided to help her understand the woman I love. My attitude has changed since Cat and I made love. I no longer feel the need to defend who we are together and it was a fantastic feeling to be free.
“We all have issues, Tabitha. While Cat may not be able to use her legs, once you spend some time with her it never crosses your mind. She’s one of a kind, Tab. I’m lucky to be the man who gets to love her.”
She leaned over and hugged me again, patting my back. “I always knew you were special, Lorenzo. Neither you nor I have had it easy when it comes to the things our minds do. I’m happy you’re happy, but please, be careful.”
I leaned back and searched her face. “Something is going to happen, isn’t it? I can feel the anxiety rolling off you.”
She rubbed a hand over her face. “I feel like I’m going crazy trying to figure these visions out. All I can say is, you and Cat are in danger. Don’t let your guard down. If I get a better vision of the person lurking in the shadows, I’ll call you immediately. Make sure you take my call.”
I nodded and squeezed her hand. “If you get clarity on the person lurking in the shadows call Noah Jonas at the station, too. He’s working this case and they don’t have much to go on.”
At the mention of his name, I noticed her start to blush. She had a funny expression on her face which told me she hadn’t forgotten Noah either.
I grabbed my briefcase and hugged her one last time. “Wait here? I won’t be but a few minutes.”
She nodded and I climbed from the truck and whistled as I strolled into the bank with enough money to secure my future.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Saturday dawned bright as I lay with Cat wrapped in my arms. Since the first night we made love her whole demeanor had changed from fearful to confident. She took great pride in knowing she could turn me on quickly, and our lovemaking left no room for doubt in her mind. We were in love, and no one could tear us apart.
We would have to get up soon and get ready for the carnival today. Suffice it to say, the whole event made me nervous, but she’s worked hard for so long to create the images she’s donating, and I can’t stop her from going. I would have to stick to her like glue, and make sure no one tried anything. It didn’t seem likely, since we would be in public, but you never know with crazy people. After all, someone slipped Viagra in Mabel’s drink in a busy bar and it killed her. Stranger things have happened.
By the time I got back to Tabitha’s car after depositing the money at the bank, she had decided to accept my offer to take over my lease. Since her lease was month-to-month she wouldn’t suffer any penalty for leaving, so the situation resulted in a win-win for us. My meager belongings wouldn’t take long to move, and I planned to do it tomorrow once the daylong carnival wrapped up today.
Cat shifted and snuggled in tight against me, waking the sleeping monster in my groin. She had an instantaneous effect on me every time. She exuded beauty, yes. She learned quickly what turned me on, yes. But the best part was when she wasn’t afraid to tell me when something we were doing wasn’t working. We’ve explored each other more in a few short days than some people do in a lifetime. I had fallen hard and fast for her, and I had to physically avoid any jewelry stores, or I would buy her a ring and make her mine forever. She needed more time to believe I wouldn’t leave before I could count on her saying yes to my proposal.
She wiggled her butt some more and I moaned, kissing her neck just below her ear. “If you don’t stop wiggling we’re going to have a problem on our hands.”
She laughed sleepily. “We already have a problem on our hands. I can feel it.”
I stroked the hair out of her face and away from her neck so I could leave a trail of kisses across her collarbone. “I want you every minute of every day, Cat. God made you for me and I want to cherish His gift for the rest of my life.”
She turned over and lay on her pillow, running her hand through my hair while her other hand rubbed my hardness. “You’re the best thing for my self-esteem, you know that?” she asked, her voice husky when she spoke.
I chuckled, one hand on her face and the other ready to tease her erogenous zone when my phone rang. I held up my hand. “Let me check it, just in case.”
I grabbed the phone and the caller ID showed Little Ivywood Police Department. I showed it to Cat before I answered and she sat up immediately.
“This is Lorenzo,” I answered, almost holding my breath.
“Lorenzo, it’s Noah. I wanted to let you know we have a suspect in custody.”
I hit the button for speakerphone so Cat could hear, too. “What? You’re kidding me,” I said grabbing Cat’s hand.
“I’m not in the habit of calling people up to kid them about suspects,” he answered with a laugh.
I kissed Cat’s hand and let the grin fill my face. We were finally free to live again. “Can you tell me who it is?”
“You know her. She’s the coach of the Little League team from Hanover.”
“Gretchen Linus?” I asked completely shocked.
“Bingo. It turns out she had a thing for him. They had a short relationship a few years back and she’s been planning this since then. We know she can swing a bat, so it’s not too hard to believe she could swing a hammer. People witnessed her near the scene of the crime even before the ambulance arrived.”
