Page 35 of Ranger Belief
As if he’d felt the call of her thoughts, Jonah’s head swiveled toward her. His blue eyes locked on hers. She suddenly felt very warm and incredibly self-conscious. Ignoring the flare of heat in her cheeks, she squared her shoulders and forced her feet to move forward. Scout stayed at her side. The rain had lessened to a faint misty drizzle.
“Bad start to the morning,” Laney joked as she drew closer, keeping her attention on Ryker. She purposefully kept from looking at Jonah, knowing that if she did, it would deepen her blush.
Gosh, this was so awkward. She wanted the earth to swallow her whole.
“You can say that again.” Ryker gave her a brotherly, one-armed hug. “Glad you’re okay.” He reached down to pet Scout. “All of you.”
Laney’s cabin looked like a slice of Swiss cheese. A tremble shook her insides as she gauged just how close she’d come to being shot. Jonah too. There was a concentration of bullets near the corner of the house where he’d taken cover. It was a miracle they all survived, and she sent up a prayer of thanks to the Good Lord. “Whoever did this wasn’t messing around.”
“No.” Ryker’s expression was grim. “Jonah said you chased the shooter through the woods.”
Regret stabbed her. “It wasn’t a smart move on my part, but yes. He knew exactly where he was going and had no trouble navigating the woods even at a full-on run. I didn’t get a good look at him, but his boat was a silver dinghy with a black motor and rust spots along the left side. He took off westward.” She paused. “Deputies were monitoring Garrett, right? So it couldn’t have been him.”
“Actually, it may have been.” Ryker planted his hands on his hips but kept his voice pitched low to prevent the deputies who were stringing up crime scene tape from overhearing. “Chief Deputy Williams informed me that Garrett’s lawyer demanded they remove the deputy sitting outside Garrett’s house. He threatened them with a harassment lawsuit. She was forced to comply, but tried to manage the situation by having frequent patrols, but?—”
“Garrett got past them,” Jonah growled.
Ryker nodded. “He slipped out of his house this morning, and hasn’t shown back up yet. No one knows where he is.”
What were the chances that Garrett evaded the deputies on the same morning her house was shot up? It could be a coincidence, but if so, it was an unlikely one.
Laney took note of the rabbit still hanging from her porch. Mindful of the crime scene and the broken glass, she ordered Scout to stay in the grass and then climbed the porch steps to take a closer look. The poor creature’s neck had been broken, likely from being caught in an animal trap.
Be careful, little bunny. Be very careful.
“He used it to lure you outside.”
Jonah’s footsteps had been silent, and she jolted at the sound of his voice, so close to her. The hair on her arms rose as her pulse kicked up a notch. It felt like every cell in her body was attuned to him as he came to stand next to her. She kept her gaze on the rabbit, unwilling to look him in the eye. “Hunting and poaching in the park is illegal…” Her voice trailed off as a memory niggled.
“I doubt this guy cares about what’s illegal. Killing wildlife is the least of his crimes?—”
“The raccoon.” She inhaled sharply as her mind connected a clue she hadn’t known was important.
“Excuse me?”
“On the day that Ava and Tyler were killed, I came across a dead raccoon in a remote part of the park. The animal had been shot.” She turned to look at her house. The shooter had used a high-powered rifle. Different weapon, but he’d lost his handgun in the weeds near the lake while killing Ava. And most gun owners had more than one kind. “I forgot about the raccoon, but…” She gestured to the rabbit. “Maybe it’s connected after all.”
“Can you tell me where you found it?” Jonah asked, his voice carefully neutral. Professional. As if they were just colleagues discussing a case. As if he hadn't kissed her less than an hour ago.
Laney hesitated. Being alone with Jonah right now seemed like the worst possible idea. But they couldn't avoid each otherforever, and they certainly couldn't solve this case without working together. If there was any way to save their relationship, they would have to talk about what happened. And that conversation…it needed privacy.
Bracing herself, Laney forced her gaze to meet his. “I’ll take you there.”
SEVENTEEN
Jonah held onto the handle over the door as Laney’s SUV bounced over the rutted, gravel road. Trees towered over them, creating a canopy that shielded the weak sunlight filtering through the cloudy skies. The silence inside the cab was deafening. Loaded with unspoken words and unanswered questions. Jonah had always been an expert at reading Laney, but right now…he had no idea what she was thinking.
She'd kissed him back. He hadn't imagined that. The way her fingers had curled into his shirt, the desperation in the way she'd pulled him closer…She felt everything he did. She wanted it as much as he had. But the memory of Laney pushing him away, the fear in her eyes, told him everything he needed to know about where she stood.
He couldn't regret it, though. Fifteen years of buried emotion had finally broken through, and despite the mess they were in now, he couldn't bring himself to wish it hadn't happened. It’d been honest.
The question was what happened next. Laney ran from serious relationships as if they were a disease. She'd walk through actual fire to protect someone she cared about, but askher to commit to a romantic relationship and she'd be halfway across the county before you finished the sentence. Would she run now? Or would she try to patch over what happened, pretend it was just adrenaline and fear?
He didn't want to lose her. He also didn't want to lie about his feelings anymore. If she just wanted to be friends, he'd live with that. But pretending he didn't love her? That option wasn't on the table any longer. He was done wasting time. Done pining for a woman who may never want the same thing he did.
Because in the end, that’s what he’d been doing. He’d compared every woman to Laney, and they’d always come up short. He’d been holding out for her. The timing couldn’t have been worse—they were in the middle of a homicide investigation and Laney’s life was being threatened—but Jonah knew nothing short of seeing her in mortal danger could've shattered his careful restraint. It had taken the sight of those bruises on her neck, the sound of gunfire tearing through her cabin, to make him finally understand how easily she could be ripped from his life forever.
And suddenly, playing it safe wasn’t the worst choice. Losing her without ever telling her the truth, never having the chance to know what might’ve been…that was the real risk he couldn't bear to take.
