AintNoAngel Read online

  Ain’t No Angel

  J L Taft

  Jessie’s divorce from a dangerous abuser has left her wary. No man has tempted her to take a chance in a long time. But Travis lights fires in her she’d long forgotten and they agree to one smoldering night together.

  Travis was kicked off this small town’s police force years ago for asking too many questions. Now a bounty hunter, he’s returned to put away the man who fired him—the crooked police chief who desperately fought to hide his role in the murder of a young woman. But after his incredible night with Jessie, things get complicated when Travis realizes Jessie is the ex-wife of the man he’s hunting.

  Jessie hasn’t heard from her ex in years. When he suddenly demands money and makes threatening phone calls, she has no one to turn to but Travis. He vows to keep her safe and close…even as he fears their tangled past may keep them apart.

  Inside Scoop: Jessie and Travis enjoy a bit of BDSM fun.

  A Romantica® erotic romantic suspense from Ellora’s Cave

  Ain’t No Angel

  J L Taft

  Dedication

  For my mom, the ultimate survivor. Thank you for teaching me how strong women can be.

  Chapter One

  The day was hot and long. It was after six and the sun was still blazing overhead. Jessie wiped her brow with the back of her hand and fanned her shirt, trying for a little breeze. But it was useless. The heat wave was unexpected and had hit upstate New York hard.

  She had been working nonstop since early that morning. Running a landscape business was no cakewalk. Jessie and her two employees had been laboring to get the trees and plants that couldn’t withstand the baking sun under awnings and into the greenhouse.

  But some of them were already looking brown and scorched. Worried that she was going to lose more inventory than she could afford, she pushed her body until she was lightheaded.

  Finally they managed to get everything out of the brutal sun. Jessie was ready to call it a day. It was hot, sweaty, backbreaking work but she loved it just the same. She didn’t mind that she had calluses on her hands because it had been her decision.

  She didn’t take for granted the ability to make her own choices.

  It had been three years since her husband had left town in a cloud of suspicion and two and a half years since she had divorced him and reopened the landscape business. It had been the best decision of her life, even if marrying him in the first place had been her worst.

  Closing the door on her thoughts about her ex, she glanced at the guys who were spraying each other off with the garden hose. They were both mouthwateringly gorgeous. Jessie knew most of the female population of their small town of Hill Valley mourned their sexual preference.

  Marc was tall, dark-haired and had bright-blue eyes. His smile was quick and he was fiercely loyal to his friends and family. Brad was tall by her standards but Marc had several inches on him. His hair was as light as Marc’s was dark. His blond mane was always messy and his brown eyes were deep and knowing. They were striking together.

  Marc and Brad were both young and had sketchy pasts. She had taken some slack for hiring a gay couple even though they hadn’t been a couple when she hired them. But the people of this small town always left that little detail out. She was happy to have them even if watching them fall madly in love only reminded her how alone she really was.

  But that was okay. She was used to being on her own and lately she preferred it that way. Then no one could hurt her.

  “Good work, guys. I think they will be fine now and perked up for planting at that new job come Monday.”

  The guys got the weekends off even if she didn’t. Marc and Brad lived in what she still called the barn, standing to the right of the house. She had converted the large upstairs loft into three small efficiency apartments. They were usually around if she needed them and she liked having friends close. It worked well for all of them. Room and board was included in their pay, which kept her costs low.

  To the left of the house, closer to the road, stood the greenhouse that her parents had built when she was a child. She had always loved it, the smell of the fresh dirt and new seedlings. She could still picture her mom humming away years ago as she put together big pots with annuals spilling out.

  Her dad had been the driving force behind the landscape business but her mother had been the heart. Jessie had grown up with dirt under her nails and a deep love for all green, growing things. This was where she belonged.

  She still felt guilty that the house had stood empty while she had been married. The humble home hadn’t been good enough for him and she regretted leaving it every time it crossed her mind.

  Marc stood from shutting off the water and stretched. Not for the first time, Jessie gawked at him from under her lashes. Jessie glanced at Brad, who was doing some gawking himself, his eyes glued to Marc’s chiseled chest.

  “Have a good weekend, guys,” she called out to them as she headed to the house and a shower.

  “Boss!” Marc was jogging to catch up with her. “We are headed out for drinks later at the Shiny Penny, want to come along?”

  They asked her this almost every Friday night and she always declined. But she suddenly couldn’t remember her reasons for never going with them. It had been a long week and maybe she just needed to relax for a few hours.

  After all it had been years since Cyrus had taken off and she was tired of looking over her shoulder. If he intended to contact her then he would have done it by now.

  But the memory of him standing over her, his hands clenched in fists that he had just used on her face, sent a shudder down her back. He had almost killed her that last time and she constantly worried that he would show back up to finish the job.

  Maybe it was time to put it in the past and move on.

  “C’mon, I’ll buy you a beer,” Brad cajoled as he came up behind Marc.

  “Yeah, come with us. It’s been a crazy week and you deserve it,” Marc added.

  An ice-cold beer really did sound good. “All right, guys. Meet me back here at eight?”

  “Absolutely!” They both grinned at her and she knew they were happy she was going with them.

  Jessie watched them walk away until Marc pulled Brad into a passionate kiss and she turned abruptly, putting them behind her. Lucky them. It had been a long few years since she had been kissed and she didn’t remember any of them before that being that good.

  Shaking it off, she entered the kitchen and smiled at Betty, who was busy setting out dinner. Betty had been her mother’s best friend since they were kids. Jessie had hired her as a cook when she had reopened the business.

  “Betty, I’m going up for a shower before dinner.”

  “Dinner will be ready in fifteen.” Betty ruled the kitchen with an iron fist and Jessie sometimes wondered how she had ever managed without her.

  She headed up the stairs. Her steps were suddenly weary and slow. It really had been a long week. Her parents had made running this place look easy. Turning the water on in the shower and undressing, she gave herself a long, hard look in the mirror.

  She still had her looks at least, even if her face was a little pink from the sun and her hair was a little frizzy. Her freckles were really starting to come out now and she had learned long ago not to hate something she couldn’t change. Her auburn hair was long, coming down to the middle of her back, and she knew after she washed it the curls would turn into pretty waves.

  Her skin was still smooth and her breasts high and full. Her ass might be a little wider but she would blame that squarely on Betty’s cooking.

  Letting the lukewarm water run over her, she was tempted to relieve some of the sexual tension but she knew it wouldn’t make her feel better.

  She started to head for t
he kitchen, dressed in faded jeans and a white tank top. Screw it, might as well go all out. Going back to the dresser, she pulled out her silver hoops and makeup bag. She could spare five more minutes in the bathroom.

  The guys were showered and changed, seated with plates in front of them by the time she got to the kitchen.

  “Sorry I’m late.” Betty gave her a scowl but Jessie just kissed her on the cheek as she grabbed a plate. The woman was all bark and no bite and had a big heart.

  Marc whistled when he caught sight of her. “Dang, boss! You sure do clean up good!”

  Smiling, she sat and dug into her food, feeling her shoulders relax as she listened to the guys rib each other over who had moved the most trees. It was funny and she couldn’t help but chuckle with them.

  Jessie finished her food and set about helping Betty clear the table. Betty stopped to stare hard at her as soon as Marc and Brad left the kitchen.

  “Going out tonight?” Betty asked.

  “Yes, just for a little while and I promise to be a good girl,” Jessie told her with a smile.

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” Betty said as she handed her plates to put in the dishwasher.

  Jessie stopped and looked at Betty in surprise. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Exactly what I said. You are always a good girl and do what needs to be done. For once I wish you would do something for you,” Betty answered.

  “I am doing something for me. I’m doing what I always wanted to do, running Mom and Dad’s landscape business.”

  “I don’t mean work, honey. I mean finding a good man and letting your hair down a little,” Betty told her as she closed the filled dishwasher.

  “Betty, you know that I don’t want a man.”

  Betty shook her head. “You may not want one but you need one. Have a good time tonight.” She put her coat on and grabbed her purse before letting herself out.

  Jessie stood in shock for a moment. Betty knew her whole disgraceful tale so she of all people should understand that there was no way she wanted to be ruled by another man.

  Even if she wouldn’t mind doing some rolling between the sheets, she hadn’t been tempted by anyone in a long time.

  * * * * *

  Several hours and three beers later, Jessie sat laughing at Marc and Brad shaking it together on the dance floor. They were pretty good dancers and several women had asked them to dance but they only had eyes for each other.

  The Shiny Penny was packed, the music blaring and alcohol flowing like water. A man had asked her to dance early in the evening but she had declined. She was perfectly content to sit on the sidelines and be a spectator.

  It was a small town and she knew most everyone there. Most of them accepted her for who she was, having known her since she was a kid, even if the whole affair with her husband was still whispered about behind hands.

  Maybe that was the problem. She wasn’t going to meet anyone in this town who didn’t already have an opinion about her and her family. Her reputation followed her around like a dark cloud and she was getting tired of trying to prove herself.

  Heaving a sigh, she pushed those thoughts, just like everything else tonight, out of her mind and ordered another beer.

  Maybe Betty was right and she needed to let her hair down a little. She glanced around the bar and no one caught her attention. Maybe the day for that wasn’t today.

  Chapter Two

  Travis Turner entered the little redneck bar called the Shiny Penny, cursing the life of a bounty hunter. It was crowded and it took him a while to get to the bar to order a beer.

  He had once loved this little town. It had grown on him the year he had lived here and worked on the force. But the situation that had caused him to leave still left a bitter taste in his mouth.

  He was on a case, looking for the man he had once trusted. Sheriff Cyrus Parker had left town three years ago and Travis didn’t expect to learn anything new. But he did want to talk to Cyrus’ ex-wife, even if in his experience, wives, ex or not, didn’t give much away. His only hope was that the divorce had been enough years ago that the police wouldn’t contact her until they had concrete evidence that Cyrus was a threat to her. Unfortunately, sometimes the warning came too late for some.

  Cyrus had gotten in a bit of trouble again—assault against a woman who had a rich father and wanted to see him behind bars at all costs. The woman’s father was an old friend of Travis’ boss and they had gotten the case to track Cyrus down.

  After Cyrus had been arrested for a domestic dispute with his wife he had been released on bail and had fled before charges could be brought against him. The judge at the time had been a friend of Cyrus’ and it had been the defining factor in Cyrus’ release.

  Cyrus had been in hiding since his run from this small town and now that new charges had been brought against him a simple match of fingerprints had pointed the authorities to his true identity. But he had slipped the noose again.

  A man with seemingly no record had been released on his own recognizance. But hindsight was twenty-twenty. He had run again.

  Now Travis was on the case, trying to pick up the pieces. The system was slow. Too slow and now a man who Travis suspected of murder was on the loose again. With the new case and the old charges pending he might have enough to put him behind bars. If he could get the right strings pulled to reopen the murder case.

  Cyrus must have known that his past was going to come back and bite him in the ass sooner or later. If Travis could find him. He was a slippery snake who knew the ins and outs of the law and was now using it against the good guys.

  Being back in the Shiny Penny brought back memories he would have rather left forgotten. He immediately thought of Candy Marsh and the last time he had seen her alive. The murder investigation had been dropped quickly, too quickly by Travis’ standards. So he had continued with the questioning on his own time.

  That had gotten him promptly fired. The rookie on the force going against orders from the brand-new police chief? Yeah, he had been doomed. The sad thing was, he had been so blinded by seeking justice for Candy that he hadn’t even seen it coming.

  He had a hunch that Cyrus had been somehow involved with her murder. Travis had seen her that last Friday night at this same bar.

  He remembered that night vividly. He had been parked on a stool next to his partner when Candy came up to the bar to order another drink. She was obviously already tipsy and flirted with them while she waited for her drink.

  She was a looker and they both watched the sway of her hips as she had walked away. It was then that Travis had seen who she was with that night. Cyrus Parker.

  But none of that was in the report that had been filed. When Travis had confronted Cyrus about it, it had all been downhill from there.

  Travis had left town himself but well before Cyrus had. He had been forced to drop the case then but it had always stayed with him. Something felt wrong about that whole situation.

  Now here he was, back in a town that he told himself he had left forever. He had left his office in Portville later than he expected and the two-and-a-half-hour drive had taken much longer with all the construction on the roads.

  He should never have taken the job. He wouldn’t have if the money hadn’t been so good. But his partner Ian Davis had handed him the case because he knew that he had never gotten over the fact that Candy Marsh’s murderer was still out there somewhere.

  So here he was, on a wild goose chase for a paycheck. It was a job he hated but at least it gave him a chance to bring some criminals in off the streets.

  The murder case was old and no new information had been offered. But Travis had an edge. He had worked with Cyrus for several months and he had lived in the same town. So Travis figured it was worth a shot do to some poking around. Even if the case hadn’t been reopened, yet.

  His plan was to have a drink or two and go back to his hotel for some sleep. Tomorrow was soon enough to go looking for Cyrus’ ex-wife. He had never m
et her but he didn’t figure she would be too hard to find.

  Striding up to the bar, he ordered another beer and took a long swallow before he turned to gaze around the crowded space. The two men on the dance floor grinding on each other caught his eye. What the hell? Glancing around, he noticed that no one else seemed to mind. Certainty not what he expected to see in this small town.

  Then a woman caught his eye, sitting at the end of the bar, a huge smile on her face as she watched the guys dance. She had a beer in her hand and a wild mane of shiny red curls and he wondered if they had named the bar after her. Her full breasts were displayed by the tight white tank top, and even in the dim light he could see a dusting of freckles. She was tapping her toe and shaking to the music as much as the barstool allowed.

  Just the sight of her sent a pulse to the neglected part of his body that now hung heavy between his legs. She was sexy as hell and he regretted that he didn’t have the time to get to know her better, in his bed.

  The kind of sex he liked usually took time. He needed her to trust him before she could let go completely. Once she did he could tie her to his bed and learn her body from the inside out.

  But it had been a long time since he had a chance to play like that. Or the desire to do so.

  She suddenly glanced his way and their gazes collided before she quickly looked down. Damn! He hadn’t felt a surge like that in…well, ever. He was here, so there was no harm in talking to her. He finished the beer in his hand with a couple quick swallows.

  Turning to the bartender, he had to raise his voice to be heard over the music. “A couple more beers.”

  The big, beefy bartender handed him the two beers and Travis made his way to the sexy redhead at the end of the bar.

  * * * * *

  Jessie was having a blast. She knew that she was going to pay for the overindulgence in the morning but she really couldn’t bring herself to care at the moment. It was so wonderful to just relax and hang with her friends, because Marc and Brad were more than employees to her, they were friends she trusted. She was feeling sappy toward them at the moment and she was happy for them.