Kate Hoffmann - Declan

She sat up and crossed her legs in front of her. “You have a nice body,” she repeated. “The thing I really like about it is that it isn’t all pumped up. I don’t like men who look…artificial.”

“So you think I’m skinny?” he asked.

“No, you’re just right. You look like a man is supposed to look. Or at least how I imagine a man is supposed to look. That’s all that’s really important.”

“Hmmm.” Dec grinned, then closed his eyes and laid back. “I like your body, too.” He paused. “A lot.”

“What part do you like the best?” she asked.

“You mean, am I boob man or a butt man?” He sent her another glance, this time letting his eyes wander from her face to her feet. “Stand up.”

“No!” she cried.

“How am I supposed to give you an informed answer?”

Reluctantly, she did as he asked. Dec sat up and shaded his eyes with his hand, taking in her slender figure. She held her skirt up and he let his gaze linger on her legs. “It’s hard to say,” he murmured.

“There’s nothing about my body that you like?”

“No, I like everything about it,” he replied. “I can’t pick just one thing. I like your knees and your shoulders. And the small of your back. And your hair. I like everything about your face, but especially your mouth and your eyes. I’m a big fan of your breasts. And I’ve grown to appreciate your feet. And your legs are just killer.”

She flopped down in her chair. “You’re entirely too charming for your own good,” she muttered.

“And you’re too beautiful for yours,” he replied.

A tiny smile twitched at the corners of her mouth and Declan was amazed at how important that smile had become to him in such a short time. Though he took his professional responsibilities very seriously, he’d gone above and beyond his duties by watching after Rachel’s happiness as well as her safety.

It was a new and unfamiliar feeling to be so invested in the emotions of another person, especially a woman. Women had always seemed so complicated to him, but not Rachel. When she was upset, it showed, and it didn’t take much coaxing for her to reveal why. And when she was happy, his day was perfect.

“I could stay here forever,” she murmured.

“So could I.” Even a statement like that would have been too much in the past, alluding to promises that he’d never keep. But the truth was the truth. He could imagine staying in this place with Rachel, maybe not forever, but for a very long time.

“I don’t have to be back in town until Thursday,” she said. “We could stay an extra night. If that’s all right with you.”

He rolled over on his side, reaching out to run a finger along her arm. “I’d like that.”

“You don’t need to work?”

“I’ve got my cell phone. If they need to reach me, they can. Besides, I haven’t had a vacation for a long time. I deserve a break.”

“You should always take time for yourself,” she said.

“When was the last time you had a vacation?” Dec asked.

“Years ago,” Rachel admitted. “It’s no fun going anywhere alone.”

“I agree. But you’re not alone this time. And neither am I.” Dec sat up and swung his legs off the chair, then dropped a kiss on Rachel’s forehead. “I need to call the office. Can I get you anything while I’m up at the cabin?”

“I’d like another kiss, please,” she said.

He bent over her and Rachel grabbed him around the neck, pulling him down on top of her. She wriggled around beneath him until their bodies fit perfectly against each other, then nuzzled his neck. “Thank you for bringing me here,” she murmured.

He kissed her and for a long time, he didn’t want to stop. Kissing had always been a means to an end for him, a necessary part of seduction. But kissing had taken on a whole new meaning with Rachel. It was just…fun. Like eating candy or riding a roller coaster or curling up in front of a fire on a cold night. A myriad of pleasures awaited him when his lips touched hers and every time they kissed, that revelation was brought home all over again.

When Dec finally got to his feet, Rachel had a satisfied smile on her face. “Bring me something to drink, please?”

“I’ll be back in a few minutes. Don’t go in the water. Always swim with a partner.”

She gave him a crisp salute. “Yes, sir, Captain Safety.”

Dec hiked up the small rise to the cabin. He found his cell phone on the counter where he’d left it. He punched in the memory dial for the office and spoke first with his secretary and then with his office manager. Once he’d gone through the daily details of business, he asked to be put through to the investigator he’d put on Rachel’s case.

“What can you tell me, Rick?”

“We’ve done a background check on Daniel Ellsworth. Nothing came up. No extramarital affairs, no gambling debts, no complaints from colleagues. He’s very well-respected and according to a few sources on campus, his interest in Miss Merrill is completely professional. They also noted that he benefits from the relationship. According to them, until he paired up with Professor Merrill, he wasn’t published in any of the prestigious journals.”

“No professional jealousies,” Dec asked.

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” Rick replied.

“What about her research assistant?”

“Simon Lister is sleeping with his thirty-five-year-old, married landlady,” Rick said. “But we’re still looking at him. He did have a crush on one of his professors during his undergrad years at Cornell and followed her around for a while. I’ll be talking to her tomorrow.”

“Were you able to come up with anything on those letters?”

“They were all printed on an Epson printer. Most of the printers at the university are Hewlett Packard. But I sent samples to Sam Devlin over at the FBI and he seems to think the letters were written by a woman.”

“He can tell that?”

“He claims he can. Women use words differently than men do, make threats differently. He can’t be a hundred percent sure, but that was his opinion.”

“So maybe it isn’t a guy. Rachel claims she hasn’t been involved in a relationship for a while.”

“That’s the truth,” Rick said.

“You checked her out?”

“The info in the file was pretty thin, boss. It made sense.”

“So what did you find?” Dec asked, suddenly curious.

“She’s had three serious relationships, all with academic types, none lasting longer than a year. Her most recent relationship ended a year ago this last April. Strangely enough, all three of the guys are now happily married.”

“All right,” Dec said. “Call Trevor Ross and update him. And stay on it. Whoever this person is will probably get a little desperate after a few days of not seeing her. We’re going to stay up here through Wednesday night.”

“Okay, boss. I’ll let you know if we get anything.”

Dec closed the phone, then set it back on the counter, surprised by the latest development. If Rachel’s stalker was a woman, then that changed the entire complexion of the case. In his experience, women usually stalked because of envy or jealousy, men because of sexual obsession. But that didn’t make them any less dangerous.

He decided to keep the newest development to himself. Though he could question Rachel about possible suspects, he’d do so later, after Rick had a chance to gather more information.

Dec grabbed a bottle of lemonade from the refrigerator and strolled back down to the water, thinking about the information Rick had given him. He hadn’t thought much about Rachel’s past relationships with men. In truth, had any of them lasted, then he wouldn’t be where he was today.

Yet, he wondered why other men hadn’t found what he had in Rachel. There wasn’t anything about her that didn’t fascinate him. In his eyes, she was pretty close to perfect. And Dec had never considered himself that much different from regular guys. But then, maybe these eggheads she’d dated weren’t regular guys.