My Deadly Valentine - By Valerie Hansen & Lynette Eason Page 0,29

gotten emotionally involved with a victim and was therefore less able to remain objective, especially in regard to her ongoing safety.

What he wanted to do was take Rachel in his arms and hold her tight against any whisper of danger, now or in the future. And because that was physically impossible, he was so distracted that his brain was practically useless. Yes, he had implemented a clever plan. And, yes, they were continuing to keep watch, both in person when Rachel was home and by leaving the videotape running even when she was gone. Still, there had to be something else he could do, something he was overlooking.

He shook his head in disgust. As far as he knew, he and the others had taken all necessary steps. So why had they failed to nab the suspect? And how much longer were Pastor Logan and George Hollister going to be able to stand watch? Logan would probably have to back off soon in order to resume his normal pastoral duties, and then the whole task would fall to George.

If Harlan had been scheduled to take a shift it would have helped, but Jace and Rachel both preferred having Logan and her father do it, primarily because their presence lent a sense of tacit approval to the touchy situation. As long as those men were watching, they knew there would be far less criticism of their unusual sleeping arrangements once they could make the whole story public.

“And I do care about preserving Rachel’s good reputation,” Jace told himself. “She’s a very special person.”

That’s the understatement of the century, he added silently, dismayed. In the space of mere weeks she had become the most important woman in his life. If things worked out, he was hoping she would consider becoming a permanent part of the rest of his days.

He huffed. No sweat. All he had to do was make sure she survived her stalker, then change her mind about cops after a lifetime of her father’s negative influence.

Maybe tonight, as they shared their evening meal, he’d raise the subject of a possible romantic relationship, especially if George wasn’t the one on duty. That way, Jace could watch Rachel’s expression and judge whether or not she accepted his suggestion.

He didn’t know which was going to be harder to deal with in the long run: threats of danger or Rachel’s off-putting attitude. He suspected it might be a toss-up.

The rest of the day seemed to drag by. Rachel checked her watch repeatedly, then locked the shop door several minutes early. Eloise had already gone home, complaining about sore feet and worsening arthritis due to an impending storm front, and Rachel didn’t much like being left in the quiet store alone.

All afternoon she had racked her brain, trying to recall each customer who had dropped by that day. It was no use. They all ran together in her memory until she was unable to tell one from another. Besides, she reasoned, there was an outside chance that the distressing card had been placed in that rack a long time prior to its discovery. Just because no one had noticed it did not mean that its presence was new.

That thought gave her the shivers. She grabbed her keys, locked up and hurried to her car. The moment she was safely behind the wheel she locked those doors, too.

It was a few minutes after five-thirty and there was no sign of Jace or his familiar patrol car. He had probably meant he’d pick up the pizza and they’d meet at her house rather than here, she reasoned.

Yearning to be home and feel safe again, she started the compact car and pulled into the street. Once she and Jace were together again she’d be able to unwind, she told herself. At least she wouldn’t be fearful.

As far as really relaxing was concerned, however, she wasn’t all that calm in his presence. It was comforting to be with him. It was also exhilarating. And pleasant beyond reason. She looked forward to their time together as if he were her reason for living, the sunshine in her otherwise drab life.

Admitting that, even to herself, was scary. She was no fool. She knew exactly what was going on. She had stupidly fallen for a cop, of all people, and she had no earthly idea what to do about it.

Earthly idea, no, she affirmed. But God was in charge of her life so He was the one to ask. She wanted to pray.