C.J. Miller - Capturing the Huntsman

Then everyone should have plenty to say about the murders. Hang out long enough, and after the last of the dinner crowd left, the drinking crowd would linger. Once the beer and wine had been flowing for a couple of hours, turning the subject of the barroom conversation to the murders would be easy. Francine might even do it for him.

A song he recognized with a slow, steady beat played from the speakers. “Why don’t we dance?”

Autumn looked around. “What? Here?”

“No.” Nathan pointed to the empty dance floor. “There.”

She started to shake her head, but Nathan stood and took her hand, drawing her to her feet. “Come on, this will be fun.”

“I don’t see how this will help the case.”

“It won’t help the case. But you seem tense.”

She pursed her lips. “Dancing will make me more tense.”

“Give it a chance.” Surprised she didn’t refuse again, he led her to the dance floor, threading through the tables of people. He drew her into his arms, bonding her to him. She held herself rigidly against him.

“Relax,” he whispered into her ear. “Everything is fine.”

She relaxed, if only slightly, making it easier for him to move her around the small space. The wood floor was scuffed and worn. Autumn was the perfect height for dancing. If she laid her head down, it would rest in the crook of his neck. Her lips would be close to the part of his skin he loved to have kissed and her hair would be soft against him.

An image of Autumn naked in his bed sprang to mind. He could picture how their bodies would fit together, her long leanness and soft curves molding to his body. As quickly as the image surfaced, guilt snuffed it out. He had to stay focused on finding the Huntsman. With every moment that passed, they were closer to another kill.

She stepped on his toe and apologized. “Remember I mentioned I didn’t go to prom? Lots of reasons for that.”

Her breasts brushed against him and heat arrowed to his groin. “Doesn’t mean we can’t dance now.”

“We’re the only ones.” She spoke through gritted teeth.

Didn’t bother him to go against the grain. “Don’t worry about what other people are doing. If it bothers you, close your eyes and I’ll make sure we don’t walk into anything.”

She shut her eyes and he moved with her, holding her close. He inhaled, the scent of her hair like the outdoors, like pine, or juniper. Where that description came from, he couldn’t recall, but it fit her. Juniper, fresh, clean and invigorating.

Nathan had thought he had a plan for tracking the Huntsman.

Nowhere in his plan did he factor in becoming attracted to Autumn Reed.

* * *

Autumn hated gossip and yet here she was, in the arms of a stranger, starting rumors. Her engagement to Daniel had ended six months before and even though he was already dating Francine, they were keeping it somewhat quiet. Daniel had jumped into bed with Francine the day after he and Autumn broke off their engagement. Or maybe Francine had been one of the women Daniel was seeing all along. She didn’t want to know.

Autumn knew tongues would be wagging about her and the sexy stranger, yet she couldn’t find the strength to pull away from Nathan. His sexual magnetism was a powerful lure, and she found herself agreeing to every word his silver tongue spoke. Though she didn’t remember saying yes, she was out with him and she was dancing with him. Autumn didn’t dance. She chopped wood. She cleared trails. She walked her dog.

The band of Nathan’s arms around her back was strong as he held her, and it was too easy to sink against him. After what she’d been through in the past twenty-four hours, she needed this. He radiated confidence and it was easy to let him lead. With her head on his shoulder, she heard the sound of his heartbeat thundering in his chest, almost as loud as her own.

He brushed her hair behind her ear. “Our food’s on the table.”

The heat of his breath tickled her ear. She lifted her head. “What?”

“Francine brought our food.”

Did he want to stop dancing? Had the song changed? She couldn’t remember the song that was playing when they’d started. Nathan holding her was all that was on her mind. “We should eat.”

She stepped away from him, her body instantly feeling colder. Refusing to let an awkward moment pass, she turned and walked to their table, feeling the burn of his eyes at her back.

“Autumn, what brings you to town?” A friendly, familiar voice. Hilde Sinclair lived close to the trail and maintained one of the trail shelters close to the Trail’s Edge. She had been friendly with her parents when Autumn was young and she had been kind to Autumn after her father passed away, sending over dinner a couple of times.

“Having dinner with a friend,” Autumn said, nodding over her shoulder at Nathan.

Hilde smiled and waved. “I’ll come by this week for a visit, okay?”

Autumn nodded and smiled. “Sure, that sounds good.”

Moving to their table, she slid into her chair and examined her food. Nathan sat to her left and scooted his chair close to her. Why did he keep doing that? When they’d come into the restaurant, the chairs had been on opposite sides of the table and now they were inches apart.

The door to the lounge opened and Roger Ford stepped through. He scanned the crowd and sauntered to where she and Nathan were sitting.

“Looks like you two have gotten close.”

His tone left no doubt that he didn’t like what he was seeing. Why did he care so much? What was his grudge against Nathan?

“What do you want, Ford?” Nathan asked.

“I want you to leave town,” Ford said.

“Not going to happen.”

Ford slipped his thumbs through his belt. “You may have convinced Ms. Reed to help you, but does she realize who you are and what you’ve done?” The threat in his voice was strong, but Autumn wasn’t following.

She glanced at Nathan. He looked unaffected. “She knows everything she needs to.”

“About what?” Autumn asked, not liking the idea of being in the dark.

Ford grabbed a chair from an empty table and swung it around, joining their table. “Bradshaw and I go way back. You want to tell the story, or should I?”

Nathan gestured for Ford to continue. “You tell the story however you’d like.”

“Bradshaw met my sister at a fund-raiser for our unit. Two years later, they’re married and then he left her.”

Nathan’s face was unmoving, but his eyes conveyed his anger. “Are you done airing my dirty laundry?”

“Sure am.” Ford stood. “Enjoy your meal.” He walked away from the table and toward the bar, leaving a wake of curious stares in his path.

“You can ask me about it if you want to know,” Nathan said.

Autumn didn’t think it was her business. Nathan’s ex-wife didn’t factor into the investigation and opening the door to their personal lives wasn’t something she wanted to do. For now, she was happy with that door staying firmly closed.

* * *

Autumn and Nathan drove past Lookout Point, a cliff drop-off with an amazing view of the Appalachian Mountains. High white peaks dived to lush valleys filled with evergreens and streams. Clouds dotted the sky, translucent puffs that turned dark before it rained. The Point was one of the reasons her grandfather had decided to build the Trail’s Edge in this location. It looked different every time the seasons and weather changed, sometimes overcast, sometimes deep green and alive, sometimes white and icy with snow. Every scene was as beautiful as the one before.

Nathan turned into the Trail’s Edge campground, their headlights the only illumination. She’d meant to leave an outside light on at her cabin. She had locked Thor inside. Usually, she preferred to let him wander outside, but she couldn’t risk it with a killer loose.