Switchback by Catherine Anderson Page B

think you can?”
    â€œOf course I do. You and I are going to find that key and get the package. We can find it. After that, getting Emily back will be simple.”
    He drew her back into his arms and after a long while, she quieted. When she did, he rose to his feet and pulled her up with him. She swayed sideways and he caught her, tucking in his chin to look at the tattered toy between them. A little-girl smell drifted up from the lop-eared dog, shampoo and powder and fresh-washed flannel. He could picture Emily fast asleep with the toy nestled in the crook of her arm. Moving toward the bed, he whipped back the covers and lowered Mallory to the mattress. For an instant, she looked startled to find herself lying down, then she peered up at him through the gloom, her eyelashes fluttering. Mac knew exhaustion was about to take its toll. As he straightened, he hit his head on the canopy frame. He bit back a word that should never be uttered in a little girl’s bedroom and shot a glare at the ruffled contraption above him. The child obviously had no father, or he’d have gotten rid of the darned thing.
    With the back of her hand, Mallory made a halfhearted swipe at her nose and sniffed. There weren’t any tissues on the nightstand. He felt for his handkerchief and couldn’t find it. Sighing, he drew the covers over her and sat down. She sniffed again and made another swipe. He wasn’t sure where a bathroom was, and he was afraid to leave her just yet. Tugging up one corner of the sheet, he mopped at her face. She was beyond caring, and so was he.
    â€œBlow.”
    She made a snuffling noise into the sheet and he gave the tip of her small nose a careful squeeze.
    Mac sighed and smoothed her hair back from her cheek. The strands were every bit as soft and silken as he had always imagined.
    Her eyelashes drifted downward, wet and spiked. He watched as her lips parted slightly and her breathing changed. Her hand relaxed its hold on Ragsdale and slid partway down the dog’s back. Mac touched her hair again. Rubbing it between his fingers, he smiled to himself. Definitely salon-conditioned, he decided. Hair didn’t come that soft naturally.
    His gaze dropped to the unused half of her pillow. Weariness and the soft sound of her breathing made him yawn. There was room enough for two. If he slept beside her, he wouldn’t have to worry about her getting up in the middle of the night. The house was locked up. He stripped off his shoulder holster and laid it beside the bed. Just for a few minutes, he thought, as he stretched out next to her. An hour, tops...

Chapter Six
    Just before dawn, Mallory awoke alone in Emily’s bed. In the farthest reaches of her mind, she remembered the feel of Mac’s body stretched out beside her during the night, the heavy warmth of his arm slung across her waist, his other hand cupped beneath her head. She lifted her lashes slowly, aware of the relentless ache in her chest before she fully opened her eyes. She had escaped the pain for a few hours, but now she had to face it.
    She didn’t want to. Part of her longed to stay unconscious until Em was home. Ah, but that was the catch, wasn’t it? There was no guarantee that Em would ever return. Mac’s reassurances had worked their magic last night, giving her hope, but now that her head was clear, she had to accept facts. The odds weren’t good.
    Determination filled Mallory. It was up to her to tip the scales in Em’s favor. And she would. Somehow... No price was too dear, not even her own life, if it came to that.
    The room was cast in shadow. As she rolled over in bed, the covers slipped down her arm and exposed her to the predawn chill. She had forgotten to turn up the thermostat. Passing a hand over her eyes, she blinked to clear her vision. As her surroundings came into focus, she spied Mac’s silhouette at the window, his shoulders delineated against the charcoal gloom of the sky. She