Shadow in the Pines Read Online Free PDF

that.”
    He leaned forward and kissed her again, exploring her lips gently with his tongue. “I really better go,” he groaned, pulling away.
    It took all of her willpower to resist the impulse to pull him back and beg him to stay. She followed him to the front door, holding fast to the shirtsleeve near his elbow and wondering if it would be too forward to ask him to leave his shirt. Maybe if she had something that smelled like him to keep close at night, the dreams and the dreaded feeling of loneliness wouldn’t plague her when she awoke.
    “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said, jerking her back to reality.
    “Night, Noah,” she smiled as he touched her face gently with one finger before going.
    It only took a few minutes to tidy up the kitchen and she ran a hot bath, hoping it would still some of the restless feeling stirring inside of her. The bath felt good, but the feelings were still there when she turned off the light and climbed into bed. Sometime, she’d have to sort through all the emotions, but right now she just wanted to enjoy the feeling of being wanted by someone like Noah.
    He couldn’t be more different than Mark, and that surprised her at first. If she stood the two of them side by side, Mark would look like a pasty faced, insignificant wuss. He’d never been muscular and he detested working outdoors with his hands. That was one of the reasons he’d bought a townhouse. He didn’t want to mow a yard. On the other hand, Noah was physical labor personified. She’d seen him heft huge logs and fifty pound bags of potting soil without straining. Although she’d never seen him at work, she doubted there were many criminals who’d resist arrest when he was involved. And it wasn’t just the gun he carried either, he looked pretty intimidating without it.
    He had his own issues though, everybody did. He hadn’t said much about it, but she knew he’d been shot several times in the line of duty. In fact, that was the main reason he was here now. He’d been shot in the knee during a bank robbery in Austin. Recovering after surgery, he’d decided to move to a small town where he’d have less to deal with that way. He told her seeing all the violent crime tended to change people after a while. She knew he’d been married once, a long time ago, and that he was nearing forty. Maybe he was really ready to settle down now. Maybe…no, she better not start thinking that way.
    Punching her pillow, she tried to get comfortable, then jumped when the phone rang. It was almost midnight! “Hello,” she said tentatively.
    “Not asleep yet?” Noah’s voice spilled through the phone like a drink of brandy, warming her all the way to the core.
    “No,” she smiled. In those few seconds, the darkness that seemed cold and lonely was transformed into a warm and cozy place.
    “I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” he said. “You seemed a little nervous tonight.” He was smiling too, she could hear it.
    “I’m fine, thanks,” she said, wishing like hell he was close enough to touch.
    “You’ve got my number, right?” he asked.
    “Yes, it’s right here,” she assured him.
    “Good. Sweet dreams then,” he said.
    “Night.”
    ***
    For some reason, Dani couldn’t get the thought of the missing students out of her mind. Every chance she had, she asked coworkers and fellow students what they knew about the story. Most of them had no idea what she was talking about, but occasionally she got lucky and mentioned it to someone who lived in town at the time. The general consensus was vague. Some thought Dr. Atkinson had something to do with it. Others thought it was Dr. Crane. Still others thought it was some wandering serial killer passing through on his way to who knows where. When she started getting strange looks in response to her questions, Dani tried to exercise more caution about bringing the subject up. She didn’t want it to seem like she was obsessing, but it was never far from her