curiosity. A ray of sun broke through the clouds and turned them several shades lighter.
Men—bad men—were chasing them down a mountain.
There was no place to hide. Nowhere to escape.
What did he do? He kissed her.
Not a good-bye. Not an invitation. Not just because she was close.
His girl was in his arms and her lips were smooth against his parched ones. Their tongues did a short dance and he felt more confident. She restored something in him that had been missing the past year. He lifted his head, unable to help the smile that spread across his face. He expected a stern set down from her about how they were in a hurry.
But, shoot, from the way she looked at him, maybe he’d given something back to her, too.
The wide-eyed moment was gone. She looked up and behind them, steadying herself with her hands on his shoulders. “We should probably get...”
“Moving. Right. You going to be okay?” he asked, really curious if the near fall had bothered her as much as the thought of losing her had bothered him.
Small rocks skittered past their heads. “Great. More than great. Excellent. Let’s go while we can.”
Choosing or creating a path where the javelinas didn’t traverse was hard enough without the added thoughts about Beth. He could hear the grumbles about being caught off guard, about not doing her job, not protecting her asset.
“Is that me? Am I your asset?”
“Of course you are.”
“Beth, I’ve told you this before. I can look after myself.”
And just like it had been scripted, he heard the lone shot of a gun and zipped back to the cliff wall, covering Beth’s body.
“There’s something to be said about perfect timing.” Beth drew her handgun from its holster.
“My father always says timing is the essence of all comedy, but there is nothing funny about getting shot. Nada .” He took out his .38 from under his coat.
“We fired over your head, Burke,” a man shouted from below them. Another bullet spat up dust next to Beth’s feet. “Next time, maybe my man hits something that bleeds.”
“Do you want to discuss this or will you admit that we’re out of options?” Nick asked.
Beth whipped her head around, her hair wrapping itself around her neck. He stowed his gun at his back and lifted his hands into the air.
“Don’t take too long,” the stranger shouted. “You have an appointment with my boss.”
“What if we just stay here?” Beth glanced at her watch. “I know it takes forever to get anywhere in this country, but shouldn’t Pete and Cord be here soon? We’ve been climbing for an hour.”
He shook his head. “It would take an hour to get to my place. Another forty minutes to get to the cabin, longer to get around to this side of the ridge. And that’s if they brought ATVs like these guys.”
“I don’t believe this. There’s got to be another way out of here.”
He shook his head but didn’t lose contact with her eyes. She had to know he was telling the truth. “We do what they say. We stay alive. We fight them later. Understand?”
“I didn’t mean—” She shook her head. “We can’t just give up.”
“If you think I want to turn myself over to these guys, you’re flat out wrong. I have a good idea what’s going to happen to me. Just the thought of what they might do to you is already freezing my insides.” He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her just a little before he stopped himself. “I know you can recover whatever they throw your way, but dying is worse. Dying is permanent.”
Chapter Ten
Blindfolded, bound, knocked around and stuck on a chopper—Beth had thought the ride had been confined. Then they were dropped off in the middle of nowhere and stuck in a hole that wasn’t as deep as one of her apartment closets.
“Do you think this cave is natural? It’s barely big enough for an animal or one person. I can’t believe they stuck us both in here.” She shifted, attempting to relax her legs. There was barely room for them to sit
Men—bad men—were chasing them down a mountain.
There was no place to hide. Nowhere to escape.
What did he do? He kissed her.
Not a good-bye. Not an invitation. Not just because she was close.
His girl was in his arms and her lips were smooth against his parched ones. Their tongues did a short dance and he felt more confident. She restored something in him that had been missing the past year. He lifted his head, unable to help the smile that spread across his face. He expected a stern set down from her about how they were in a hurry.
But, shoot, from the way she looked at him, maybe he’d given something back to her, too.
The wide-eyed moment was gone. She looked up and behind them, steadying herself with her hands on his shoulders. “We should probably get...”
“Moving. Right. You going to be okay?” he asked, really curious if the near fall had bothered her as much as the thought of losing her had bothered him.
Small rocks skittered past their heads. “Great. More than great. Excellent. Let’s go while we can.”
Choosing or creating a path where the javelinas didn’t traverse was hard enough without the added thoughts about Beth. He could hear the grumbles about being caught off guard, about not doing her job, not protecting her asset.
“Is that me? Am I your asset?”
“Of course you are.”
“Beth, I’ve told you this before. I can look after myself.”
And just like it had been scripted, he heard the lone shot of a gun and zipped back to the cliff wall, covering Beth’s body.
“There’s something to be said about perfect timing.” Beth drew her handgun from its holster.
“My father always says timing is the essence of all comedy, but there is nothing funny about getting shot. Nada .” He took out his .38 from under his coat.
“We fired over your head, Burke,” a man shouted from below them. Another bullet spat up dust next to Beth’s feet. “Next time, maybe my man hits something that bleeds.”
“Do you want to discuss this or will you admit that we’re out of options?” Nick asked.
Beth whipped her head around, her hair wrapping itself around her neck. He stowed his gun at his back and lifted his hands into the air.
“Don’t take too long,” the stranger shouted. “You have an appointment with my boss.”
“What if we just stay here?” Beth glanced at her watch. “I know it takes forever to get anywhere in this country, but shouldn’t Pete and Cord be here soon? We’ve been climbing for an hour.”
He shook his head. “It would take an hour to get to my place. Another forty minutes to get to the cabin, longer to get around to this side of the ridge. And that’s if they brought ATVs like these guys.”
“I don’t believe this. There’s got to be another way out of here.”
He shook his head but didn’t lose contact with her eyes. She had to know he was telling the truth. “We do what they say. We stay alive. We fight them later. Understand?”
“I didn’t mean—” She shook her head. “We can’t just give up.”
“If you think I want to turn myself over to these guys, you’re flat out wrong. I have a good idea what’s going to happen to me. Just the thought of what they might do to you is already freezing my insides.” He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her just a little before he stopped himself. “I know you can recover whatever they throw your way, but dying is worse. Dying is permanent.”
Chapter Ten
Blindfolded, bound, knocked around and stuck on a chopper—Beth had thought the ride had been confined. Then they were dropped off in the middle of nowhere and stuck in a hole that wasn’t as deep as one of her apartment closets.
“Do you think this cave is natural? It’s barely big enough for an animal or one person. I can’t believe they stuck us both in here.” She shifted, attempting to relax her legs. There was barely room for them to sit
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