LITMIR.BIZ

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stood. The sheriff’s department had found her? How? She hadn’t used a credit card.

      This was the problem with living in a relatively small town. There were no secrets. One call from the police to the front desk in a systematic search and the clerk would undoubtedly have remembered her and told them. It was pretty odd for Vanessa to be at a hotel of this caliber, since most people knew her face and reputation—the Outer Banks princess—but didn’t really know anything about her. They assumed she still lived off her parents’ money, just as Liam had assumed in the bathroom.

      She didn’t. She hadn’t for more than eight years.

      It really didn’t matter how the officer had found her. She had to figure out what to do.

      They couldn’t get out the one window of the room; it was right next to the door. There was no window in the bathroom, either.

      The pounding on the door came again. Not obnoxiously loud, but firm enough to know whoever was on the other side meant business. “I need to speak with Vanessa Epperson.”

      Tears were running down Karine’s face but she made no sound. Vanessa glanced frantically around the room before her gaze settled on Liam.

      Who was taking his shirt off?

      “Get her into the bathroom, then come back out here.” He looked at Karine. “Stay very quiet in there. We’ll take care of this.”

      The young girl nodded and ran to the bathroom. As soon as she turned away, Liam kicked off his shoes and socks and started unbuttoning his jeans, before pulling them, and his underwear, all the way off.

      Liam was naked.

      Vanessa pulled the bathroom door closed behind her and tried not to stare but could not help herself.

      Liam was naked.

      He ruffled his own hair so it stood on end, then turned and walked to the door, opening it a few inches.

      “Man, what is going on? Do you know what time it is?” Liam looked down at an arm that didn’t have a watch on it. “Neither do I. But it’s like the butt crack of dawn.”

      “Um, excuse me, sir.”

      Vanessa couldn’t see the officer but could hear the discomfiture in his voice.

      “We were told that Vanessa Epperson was staying in this room.”

      “Well, she is, man.” Liam yawned and ran a hand through his hair. “But she’s a little worn out right now if you know what I mean.”

      Liam opened the door a little farther, his nakedness causing the man to step back rather than step closer to look inside.

      “Um, could you put some clothes on, sir? I’d like to talk to Miss Epperson, please.”

      The officer wasn’t going to be deterred, although Liam was doing his best. Vanessa wasn’t sure if the officer could enter the room without a warrant, since it was a hotel, not a home, but she didn’t want to find out.

      She pulled off her pajamas—T-shirt and shorts—so she was also naked, grabbed the sheet off the bed and wrapped it around herself. She wasn’t as bold as Liam and willing to answer the door buck-naked.

      “Hey, baby.” She walked up behind Liam and slid her arms around his chest, running them over his pecs and abs, feeling them tighten under her fingers. “What’s going on?”

      This is all just an act. This is all just an act. This is all just an act.

      Liam put an arm around her and pulled her in front of him so the sheet was covering them both from the officer outside.

      But her very naked back was pressed to his very naked front. All of his naked front. Vanessa couldn’t stop the shiver that ran through her entire body when he reached down and kissed the tender skin joining her neck and shoulder.

      This is all just an act.

      “This officer of the law was looking for you,” Liam said in that friendly mocking voice only he seemed to be able to pull off without offending people. “Have you been a naughty girl?”

      Vanessa could tell the more intimate she and Liam pretended to be, the more uncomfortable the young officer became. She turned partway in Liam’s arms so she was half facing him. “What if I have?”

      He leaned down and kissed her, biting her lip with his teeth and pulling on it before letting it go. “Well, I’d have to do something about that, wouldn’t I?” He nipped at her lip again. “First I’d have to—”

      The officer cleared his throat in an embarrassingly loud manner, stopping whatever scene Liam was about to describe.

      This is all just an act. This is all—

      “Excuse me, sir...ma’am. I’m Officer Atwood. I just have a few questions. Then I’ll let you get back to your...business.”

      Vanessa kept the sheet clutched at her chest, making sure it didn’t fall too low. But she could feel Liam’s hands on her waist, rubbing tiny little circles with his fingers. Moving down to her hips and back up again. The feeling was delicious. She wanted to push his hands away but couldn’t if she didn’t want to give the officer of the law a peep show.

      Liam pulled her back, flush against his body. Vanessa barely kept in the moan that wanted to escape her.

      This was all just an act.

      “Yes, Officer Atwood. What’s your question?”

      Evidently the act was working, because the poor officer standing in front of her didn’t know where to look and barely seemed to know how to pose his question.

      “Um, last night, did you have a teenage girl with you?”

      Liam’s fingers stopped their rubbing and gripped her hips tightly in warning. She knew she couldn’t totally deny being with Karine. Obviously the sheriff’s department already knew that, had probably been told that by Judy at the hospital. There wouldn’t be any reason for her not to tell them.

      “Yeah, that runaway kid? Bless her heart. She was not looking so good. I picked her up off Highway 158. We went by 7-Eleven to get some food—I don’t trust runaways with cash, it’s often used to immediately buy drugs—and then I took her to the hospital, since it looked like she might have some injuries or something.”

      Liam’s fingers resumed their circles.

      “Did she tell you her name, where she was from?”

      Vanessa shook her head. “Katy or something, I think? She didn’t really talk much at all. I think she might have been on something. Why? Did she do something bad after I left her at the hospital?”

      “You just left a minor at the hospital? Don’t you work in social services, Miss Epperson?”

      Uh-oh. The officer was right. Vanessa would never have left a teenager alone at the hospital. She felt Liam’s fingers tighten again.

      “Yeah, but I’m not a social worker around the clock.” She smiled at the officer. “It was after eight. I had other plans that very definitely did not involve a teenage girl.” Vanessa allowed herself to melt back into Liam. He pulled his hand up from her waist to tilt her head back against his shoulder so he could kiss her.

      She was instantly thrown back into old times. The heat between them had always been almost palpable. They might have yelled at each other, fought and wanted to kill each other at times, but whenever they had been this close, an undeniable passion had flared between them.

      Vanessa couldn’t help herself; she twisted, trying to get closer to him.

      Until she heard the officer clear his throat once more.

      Damn it. This is all just an act. Remember that.

      Liam brought his lips up from hers. “I was her other plans,” he said to the officer, winking, deliberately downplaying his intelligence.

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