talking, it would make them targets.
As the sun rose, Chase could see the uneven ground even better. Cari was a trooper, keeping up with his twenty-minute-mile stride. He’d always relied on his cell phone for the time, not wearing a watch. Now, he wished he had one, but he could mentally figure out how many miles there were. Lesson learned.
The soil was dusty, peppered with lots of pebbles, a few larger rocks, a struggling cactus here and there, so he always had to watch for them and avoid them at all costs. Today was not the day to get a cactus spine through their boot or into their ankle or lower leg. They hurt like hell for hours on end, even if they were pulled out with a pair of pliers.
By the time the sun rose, around five a.m., the first rays shooting silently across the desert, Chase discovered a wash. He led Cari down into it. At the bottom of it, he brought her to one side, against the wall, and halted. Looking both directions in the gulch, the way was straight for nearly a mile on either side of them. He released her hand.
“Let’s take a break,” he said, shrugging out of his pack and pulling out a quart of water. He unscrewed the cap and handed it to her. “Drink at least half of it. We have to stay hydrated.”
Nodding, she took it.
Cari handed it back to him and he chugged down the other half, setting the plastic bottle on the ground and covering it completely with dirt, hiding evidence that they’d been here. Straightening, he turned, wanting to make sure she was all right.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“Fine.” Cari smiled a little, touching his bristly jaw. “I sure lost a lot of the soreness and stiffness.”
“We’ve walked about three miles, in my estimation, that’s why. Is my speed too fast for you?”
“No.” She looked around. The wash was about eight feet tall. “Isn’t this a good place to walk? It’s going due west.” She pointed down the wash.
“You’d have made a good tracker,” he congratulated her. “Yes, this is ideal. The sides of this wash, if they remain taller than us, hide us from anyone or anything that might be looking for us.” He melted inwardly over her sudden smile, drinking in that sparkle from her eyes. He couldn’t resist, leaned over, sliding his hand behind her neck, gently drawing her to his mouth. He kissed her with longing, with love, and he heard her moan as she stepped up against him, her arms coming around his shoulders. It was the sweetness of her mouth, the way their lips slid against one another, her moist, warm breath against his cheek, that conspired to make him want to make love to her right then and there. Easing from her glistening lips, he grinned.
“If we were anywhere but here . . .”
“Yes?”
“You and I would be making love with one another on the spot.”
Stepping back, she gave him a wicked, alluring look. “I’m game, Bishop.”
Laughing in a low tone, he released her. “I like your spunkiness.”
“I kinda like yours, too.” She pointed to the bulge at his crotch.
Chase felt his cheeks grow warm and he was sure in the low light, that Cari wouldn’t have seen him blush. “Am I seeing a whole new side to you, Ms. Taylor?” He saw her eyes glint, more the hunter than the hunted.
“Indeed, you are, Mr. Bishop. Shall we go? I’d like to get home, be back at your ranch, and be in bed with you.”
He grazed her cheek, leaning close, holding her dancing gaze. “Our ranch, sweetheart, if I have anything to say about it.” That made her brows rise and she blinked once, owlishly, studying him. His grin widened. Yeah, she got the message loud and clear, and if he didn’t know better, liked it a whole helluva lot. So did he.
Chase dropped his hand from her cheek. “Yes, that means what you think it does, Cari. I want the rest of my life with you and nothing less . . . What about you? How do you feel about that?”
Cari lost her smile, becoming serious. She reached up, grazing his jaw. “I like the sound of it, Chase.”
“Good. Come on, we have some miles to walk . . .” His heart lifted so high he barely felt his feet touching the ground. Cari’s words, the emotional look in her eyes, the soft quaver of it, plunged Chase