Reckless Pursuit Read online

  Reckless Pursuit

  RESCUE & REDEMPTION #3

  MORGAN JAMES

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Epilogue

  Dangerous Desires

  Also by Morgan James

  About the Author

  One

  IZZY

  It was like she’d vanished into thin air. I glanced around the room, looking for my partner, but she was once again absent.

  Unlike most students, Nicole hadn’t skipped a single class this semester that I could recall. She was quiet and studious, the exemplary kind of student professors loved. But for the past two weeks, she’d been noticeably absent. I hadn’t thought much about it at first, but we had a group project due before midterms, and we hadn't even started on it.

  Pushing back my chair, I approached the professor’s desk.

  His dark eyes lifted to mine as I approached. “Miss Thorne. What can I do for you?”

  “I was wondering about Nicole. She's my partner for the project, and she hasn't been here for the last couple of weeks.”

  He lifted a brow my way. “Have you tried calling her?”

  “I have.” I had called, I had texted, I had even emailed her using the school directory. I hadn't heard a single thing. “I was actually wondering if she dropped the class.”

  Professor Crawford turned to his laptop and scrolled for several minutes before slowly shaking his head. “I don't have an official withdrawal.”

  My lips pressed together in a flat line. So she was just blowing it off. “What do I do about the project?”

  He offered a bland smile. “Unfortunately, everyone else is already paired up. You'll have to make do by yourself until Nicole comes back.”

  That was crap. When she finally showed up, and God only knew when that might be, I would have the project done and she would get credit for it. I shook my head. “I'd like to be by myself then, please.” If I was going to do all the work anyway, I’d rather be by myself than with a partner.

  Annoyance flickered over his features before he gave a curt nod. “As you wish. You'll have the same deadline as everyone else.”

  “Understood. Thank you, Professor.”

  The chime signaling the end of class rang out just as I made it back to my seat, and there was a flurry of movement as everyone packed up their bags.

  Leaving my things for the time being, I moved over to the table next to me. “Hey, have any of you seen Nicole recently?”

  One of the girls shook her head. “Sorry. Sucks that she bailed on you.”

  No kidding. I turned my gaze on the other three assembled there. “You guys hear anything from her?”

  A guy named Parker shook his head. “She’s in my statistics class, but I don’t think she’s been there the last couple weeks, either. If I see her, I’ll let her know you’re trying to get a hold of her.”

  I offered a small smile. “That would be great, thanks.”

  I tossed my textbook in my bag, then headed across campus toward the main building. My next class didn’t start for another fifty minutes, so I had time to burn. I had no desire to go all the way back to my dorm; I would just grab a coffee in the café and hang out until it was time to leave.

  My gaze swept the room as I entered the coffee shop, and I spied a few people I knew in the far back corner. My new roommate, Tasha, waved at me, and I returned the gesture to let her know I’d seen her. Though we’d only met a little over a month ago, Tasha seemed nice enough.

  My previous roommate had dropped out just before this semester had started, leaving me without a roommate. I’d already selected to have a double room, so administration had paired us up. Tasha was more the party type, so we didn’t see each other a whole lot. I liked to have a good time, but I wasn’t hanging out at the frat houses every night like she was.

  I hopped in line to order my coffee, my mind turning back to the situation with Nicole. Why hadn't she at least responded to let me know she wouldn't be attending class? That irked me more than anything—the fact that she chose to ignore me completely instead of just being upfront. There was no way she hadn’t seen my calls or messages—she just didn’t want to acknowledge me.

  Frustration burned through me as I stepped up to the counter and ordered my coffee. While I waited, I studied the people flowing around me. One of them surely knew Nicole. Maybe I could track her down that way.

  I let out a sigh. Though it might make me feel better, there was really no point. I’d gotten Professor Crawford’s approval to do the assignment by myself, so it didn’t matter whether I found her or not.

  The barista slid the coffee my way, and I thanked her with a smile before cutting across the room to my friends. My gaze landed on Brock, who smiled up at me.

  “Hey, Iz.” He slid over in the booth, making room for me.

  “Hey.” I offered a wan smile as I dropped into the seat next to him.

  His caramel-colored eyes swept over me. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” I forced a smile, then changed my mind. “Do you know Nicole Ramsey?”

  He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. Why?”

  A sigh filtered from my lips. “She hasn’t been in class for, like, two weeks. We’re supposed to be working on a project together, but I can’t get a hold of her. I thought she might have dropped out, but Crawford says he hasn’t seen an official withdrawal.”

  “I’m sorry.” He looped one arm around my shoulders. “Maybe she’s just taking some time off.”

  “Maybe, but she never struck me as that type of person. She’s kind of quiet, keeps to herself, but… I don’t know.” I shook my head. “Something about the whole thing bothers me.”

  His thumb drew little circles on my shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. Everything will be fine. Just get the project done by yourself, then take some time off for the holiday.”

  I automatically tensed as he continued, “Speaking of, I had an idea.”

  I had a feeling I knew exactly what he was going to say. He’d been hinting at it for weeks, and I’d been putting him off as long as possible. “Yeah? What’s that?”

  “You should come home with me over Thanksgiving. My parents really want to meet you.”

  I squirmed in my seat. I liked Brock, and he was an amazing guy, but despite my declaration to my family that I was considering marrying him, I was nowhere ready for that.

  For a jock, Brock Zimmerman was one of the nicest, most down-to-earth people I knew. He’d earned a scholarship to play basketball for the college, and his dark hair and soft brown eyes drew me in, made me feel safe and warm. But even though I’d told my entire family Brock and I were dating, it was a lie.

  We’d gone out a few times, even kissed, I just felt restless when I was with him, like we didn’t quite fit. I knew I had to be crazy, because on paper we were an almost perfect match. We liked the same music, enjoyed the same books and movies, and we always had fun when we hung out. But that’s all it was—fun. It felt like something was missing, the deeper connection a couple should share.

  Part of me felt guilty, because I knew he cared about me and wanted us to be a couple. It wasn’t that I wasn’t attracted to him—he was incredibly handsome and smart, and any girl would be lucky to have him. The problem was me. Specifically, the fact that I was hung up on a guy I could never have.

  There was only one man I’d ever truly wanted. Unfortunately, Aiden Blackwell was my brothers’ best friend, and eleven years older than me. He’d never seen me as anything more than Gray and Drew’s annoying little sister, but I’d crushed on him for years, hoping that one day he’d feel the same. He didn’t.

  Still, I wasn’t entirely ready to give up just yet. I wanted someone to make me feel the way Aiden did. I wanted to feel those flutters in my stomach each time they walked into the room, like him being there made everything better.

  I didn’t get that with Brock. Our kisses had been good but not spectacular. I often found myself comparing him to Aiden, and I hated myself for it. It wasn’t fair to him that I’d never given him a chance. I just needed some more time to work through everything and figure out exactly what I wanted.

  “Maybe.” I forced a small smile. “But Mama always has a big spread on Thanksgiving, so I’ll have to help.”

  “We could go to your parents’ place on Thursday, then dri
ve out to my place for the weekend,” he offered.

  I sipped my coffee. “Yeah, maybe.”

  I could feel him studying me from the corner of my eye. I knew he sensed that something was off, but he was too nice to bring it up. That was one thing I both loved and hated about him. He always deferred to me, and he never pushed. Growing up with three brothers, I was used to everyone being in my business and pressing for answers.

  Being with Brock was totally different, and it was refreshing in a way. While my head screamed at me to commit to him, my heart wasn’t quite ready.

  Two very different paths stretched before me, leading to two very different men. But which to choose? The one who was safe, or the one I wanted?

  It felt like I was being pulled in two different directions, and I had no idea which way to go.

  Two

  AIDEN

  I sensed her before I saw her. The air shifted, my lungs tightened, and something flickered in my chest. It was like this every time Isabella Thorne was even remotely close. I couldn't begin to explain it—like a chemical reaction between my body and hers. It was as if we were connected in some way, like my body and soul knew her in the most primitive way that one human could recognize another.

  Izzy was as much a part of me as the blood pumping through my veins. She'd owned my heart for years, though I would never admit it out loud. There were a million reasons we could never be together, not the least of which was the fact that she was almost eleven years younger. And my best friends’ little sister.

  I was already on my feet before the soft pad of footsteps reached the door to my office, and I drew in a deep breath, steeling myself for the sight of her. A mere second later her head popped around the doorway, a tentative smile on her face.

  I hated it. Once she'd been completely open and unreserved around me. But a few weeks ago my feelings for her had raged out of control, finally bubbling to the surface. I couldn't bring myself to be around her any more than absolutely necessary, and I knew she felt the shift between us.

  I hated that I was shutting her out, but I had to keep her at arms-length for my sanity. Being so close to her but knowing she would never be mine was too much to bear. There was no way I could explain to her why I'd cut myself so abruptly from her life, so I forced myself to pretend everything was okay, even when it felt like I was being torn apart.

  “Hey, Iz.” I forced a smile. “What's up?”

  She pointed toward Grayson’s office. “Is my brother out today?”

  “Yep.” I nodded. “I think he said something about wedding stuff with Claire.”

  “Oh, okay.” She pursed her lips, looking a little lost.

  My gut twisted into a tight knot. “You need something?”

  “Kind of.” She licked her lips. “I was hoping to talk to one of them, but Drew's not here either, so...”

  She looked up at me hopefully, and I swallowed hard. Christ. I'd never been able to deny her anything when she looked at me like that. Stepping back, making sure to keep plenty of space between us, I gestured to the chair in front of my desk. “Have a seat. Tell me what’s on your mind.”

  She glanced at the open door before sinking into the chair. The other officers would never suspect anything would happen between us. Izzy was the chief's sister, after all. But I didn't dare close us in together. Just having her this close was making all kinds of stupid thoughts ricochet through my brain, my body tensing as her chest rose and fell on a fortifying breath.

  I dropped into my chair to hide the fact that my body was incredibly happy to see her. “So?” I lifted a brow her way. “Is everything okay?”

  “I'm not sure.” She gave a slow shake of her head, then laughed a little. “I'm going to sound crazy, so just bear with me. This girl, Nicole, is in one of my classes, but she's been absent for more than two weeks.”

  “Okay?” I wasn't entirely sure where she was going with this. People skipped class all the time.

  Izzy rolled her eyes, and a huff of impatience escaped her lips. “She’s never missed class before—not once. I asked my professor about it, but he has no record of her withdrawing, and it's too late in the semester to change her schedule.”

  “Maybe she's not feeling well,” I said as I leaned back in my chair. “Or maybe she just needed a break.”

  Her lips pressed into a thin line as she regarded me with no small amount of disdain. “It's not just that. No one else has seen her—no one,” she emphasized. “I asked a few of my friends, people who know her. It's like... I don't know.”

  Izzy spread her hands wide. “Maybe it's nothing. Or maybe something bad happened to her. I don’t know, but I want to make sure she’s okay.”

  I mulled that over for a moment before leaning my elbows on the desk and staring at her. “Have you checked with administration, or reported it to campus security?”

  “Not yet.” She shook her head. “I wanted to get some advice.”

  I weighed my words, trying to decide exactly what I wanted to say. “How well do you know this girl?”

  Annoyance flickered over Izzy’s features. “We're not like best friends, but—”

  I held up a hand. “Just hear me out. She's a grown woman. It's not at all uncommon for people to check out for a few days. Maybe something happened we don't know about. Sometimes life throws curve balls our way, and we need some time and space to process everything.”

  Hell, I knew that better than anyone. The source of my ire and secret desires was sitting across from me right now, obliterating my good intentions. I’d missed her so damn much over the past few weeks, and all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her and tell her how I really felt—how I’d always felt. But I couldn’t.

  Izzy's mouth parted like she wanted to say something, but I continued before she could speak. “I completely understand where you're coming from. But if her family or boyfriend or friends had reported her missing, the college would know about it already.”

  Izzy’s face fell. “I guess.”

  A twinge of sympathy moved through my chest. She had the biggest heart of anyone I knew, and she'd definitely inherited the same protective genes as her brothers. She advocated for her friends and family, and she jumped at the chance to help any time someone was in trouble. To be entirely honest, I thought she was worrying herself over nothing, but I didn't want to hurt her feelings by writing her off.

  “I can't promise anything, but...” A hopeful glint filled her eyes as she peered across the desk at me, and the sight made my chest tighten painfully. “I'll see what I can find out.”

  Her shoulders fell on a relieved breath. “Thank you.”

  I nodded. “You're welcome.”

  “I'll try her room again, see if her roommate is there. Maybe she'll know something.”

  I offered a smile. “Maybe.”

  Izzy clenched the handles of her purse as she stood, then shifted awkwardly. “If there's anything else you need from me...”

  She let the sentence trail off, and my mind took a left turn into the gutter. There was so much I needed from her, too many things to count. But dwelling on the impossible only led to disappointment, and I'd had far too much of that recently.

  Shoving the thoughts away, I willed my arousal away before I rose to my feet. “I think I have enough information for now, thank you.”

  “Okay.” A tiny smile unfurled over her lips, and my heart flipped over in my chest. “Thanks, Aiden. You're the best.”

  Emotion lodged in my throat, and I swallowed it down. God, how I wished things were different. I wished those words held an entirely different meaning. She'd always looked up to me as a kind of older brother; it was the only reason she was here today. “Right. Well. I'll let you know what I find out.”