Dead by Midnight - Beverly Barton [122]
What the hell was he doing?
He was checking on Lorie, making sure she was all right.
She’s fine. She’s sound asleep. Now get your ass out of here pronto.
Walking backward, he eased out of her bedroom and left the door open. If she needed him during the night…Once out in the hall, he turned and moved quietly toward the guest room.
He dumped his dirty clothes in a loose pile beside his bag, then partially opened both window blinds to allow in a little moonlight. After turning off the overhead light, he crawled into bed and pulled the covers to his waist. He lifted up his arms, entwined his fingers, and slipped both hands under the back of his head. He lay there and stared up at the shadows dancing on the ceiling.
Why, Mike? Why are you doing this? Lorie’s words played repeatedly in his mind.
He had told her the truth, or as much of the truth as he had been able to admit to himself. He was here because he had to be here. If he didn’t do everything within his power to keep Lorie safe and the Midnight Killer murdered her, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself. He had let Lorie down more than once, first when he hadn’t been able to make himself leave Dunmore and go to LA with her. And the second time had been when she came home, her life in shambles, her pride destroyed and her reputation ruined. The first time, she had been equally at fault. She could have stayed with him. But the second time, when she returned to Dunmore nine years ago, he could have, at the very least, treated her with human kindness. His mother had pleaded with him to befriend Lorie. Even his wife had wanted him to offer Lorie a helping hand.
A man couldn’t tell his mother and certainly not his wife that his bitter hatred for his former girlfriend was deeply rooted in one unbearable fact—deep down in the depths of his heart and soul, he still loved Lorie as much as he hated her. He didn’t want to love her. God knew he tried not to love her, not to want her, not to need her on some basic, primal level. And over the years, he had been able to convince himself that all he felt for her was hatred and contempt. Odd, how a man could lie to himself so easily and could make himself believe what he wanted to believe.
So, what now? Now that he had finally admitted the truth to himself?
He could stop hating Lorie. Actually, he’d already done that.
And he could keep her safe. He could protect her from a deranged killer. He could do what he needed to do. This time, he wouldn’t let her down.
Mike tossed and turned, flipping from one side to the other in an effort to relax and get comfortable. He tried resting flat on his back, but that didn’t work. He flopped down on his stomach and flung his arms, elbows bent, on either side of his head. Damn it, he needed rest, needed sleep. But sleep wouldn’t come.
When this was all over, when the Midnight Killer had been stopped, when he knew for sure that Shelley Gilbert’s murder wasn’t in any way connected to Lorie, then he could resume his normal life. But in the meantime, he had to keep reminding himself that he and Lorie had no future together. It didn’t matter that his mother liked her or that his kids adored her or even that he still loved her. And it really wasn’t about forgiveness. He could forgive her and maybe she could forgive him. He might even get past the fact that every man in the county, including his friends, employees, and neighbors, had seen Lorie naked in Playboy. But how did he erase the memory of watching her having sex with two other guys?
Face it, Mike, some things just weren’t meant to be.
She lay in his arms, her back to his chest, her naked butt pressed against his arousal. He nuzzled her neck and breathed in the sweet, floral scent of her hair, still damp from the shower they had taken together. He kissed her neck and her jaw and then moved up to circle her ear with his tongue. She moaned softly and cuddled closer as she grasped his hand and brought it to her mouth. She licked up and down each finger and laughed when he groaned deep in his throat.
“You’re wicked,” he told her as he turned