He grinned and saluted her with his glass. Then he froze. Her stomach fell through to her toes. "What?" she said, voice edgy and harsh.
"A car coming up the driveway." He quickly blew out the candles. Lights swept across the curtained windows, and the sound of a car engine seemed as loud as thunder in the silence.
Alarm swept through her. He touched her hand, squeezing her fingers lightly. "Don't panic."
"But what if they come into the house? What are we going to do?"
"Nothing yet. Stay here."
He left the chair and disappeared into the darkness. A moment later she saw the curtain move slightly to one side. In the stillness, two doors slammed. Jaunty whistling moved away from the house, and a water pump kicked into gear. He's watering the stock.
What if he wants to feed them? Our car is in the shed.
He's making no move toward the shed just yet. If he does, I'll deal with it. He hesitated. Someone's moving toward us. Grab the glasses and wrap everything else in the tablecloth.
She quickly gathered everything, her hands shaking so badly she could barely hold the glasses. He was beside her in an instant, one hand full of plastic bags and wet dishcloths. He took her free hand and led her quickly down the hall. Did you leave much mess in the bathroom?
Other than a damp towel, my bag and those oils you gave me, no. Wait here. He let her go and disappeared again. She heard him moving about, then the sound of vigorous wiping. What are you doing?
Wiping the moisture off the bathtub.
Behind them, in the living room, came the sound of a key scraping in the lock. She shifted from one foot to the other, battling the urge to run. Hurry. Hurrying will get us caught. Caution is the key, believe me. Tension drew her muscles so tight they were beginning to ache. In the living room, the door opened and lights were swept on. If you don't move right now, it'll be caution that gets us caught.
He appeared out of the bathroom and ushered her into the nearest bedroom. Quick, under the bed.
She pushed aside the comforter and slithered under the old fashioned, highoff-the-floor wooden bed. Dust stirred, tickling her nose. She held back a sneeze and pulled in the bags, towels and tablecloth that he shoved in, trying to leave him some room.
He'd barely pulled the comforter back into place when the hall lights came on. Footsteps approached, loud and heavy despite the carpet. Fear squeezed her throat so tightly she could barely breathe, and for an instant, it felt like her heart was going to leap out of her chest. She closed her eyes, battling the terror pounding through her.
It's okay. We're okay. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, but his attention was on the hall outside. They were hardly out of the woods yet. The footsteps moved past their bedroom hideaway, and another light burned brightly. After a few seconds came the sound of soft tinkling. Despite her fear, laughter bubbled through her. They were using the damn toilet!
Minutes ticked by. Finally, the toilet flushed, lights went out and the footsteps moved back down the hall. But they didn't entirely retreat. From the kitchen came the sound of running water. They're filling something. He shifted around until he was facing her. Oh God, don't tell me they're settling in to have a cup of coffee. Could be. There's nothing much we can do but wait them out. He pulled her close. Then he slipped his hand down to her rear, and pulled her closer still, so that every inch of their bodies seemed to be touching. Her breath caught, and her heart raced, but not from fear this time. Far from it. Her whole body felt as if it were on fire, and part of that came from the deliciously erotic sensation of lying here in the darkness with him, while the chance of discovery loomed only a few footsteps away.
We shouldn't...this is dangerous. Lord, even her mind-voice sounded breathless.
We're only lying here. What can be so dangerous in that? But even as the words whispered into her mind, he slowly began undoing her shirt buttons. You need to concentrate on our intruders, not on trying to seduce me. She tried to add a touch of sarcasm to her thoughts, but failed miserably. They still sounded as breathy as she was feeling.
In reality, we're the intruders here. And if they move this way, I'll heat them, believe me.
She did believe him. He'd made a successful living from being a thief and had no doubt been caught in tougher situations than this.
His amusement washed through her. But never before have I had such a lovely way to pass the time.
The last of her buttons came undone. He brushed the shirt back over her shoulders, then teasingly ran his fingers across her bra and up her neck, until his hand cupped her cheek.
His lips grazed hers, feather light and tender. I'll stop if you want me to.
She closed her eyes. For an instant, she considered telling him to do just that. To back away and leave her alone. But only for half a second. He was going back to
America once the murderer was caught, no matter what happened between them. Did she really want to lose him without at least knowing his touch, without feeling his caress, inside and out?
No, she thought. Definitely not. Damn it, she'd spent most of life erring on the side of caution, and what had it achieved her? Very little. Certainly not happiness.
And if she lost her heart in the process of making love to him, what of it?
At least she would have finally taken a chance, stepped beyond the shackles of memories and mistakes and done something simply for the hell of it. Happiness doesn't happen all that often, Helen had been fond of saying. So seize it by the scruff of its neck and enjoy it while it lasts. Let the future worry about itself.
And just this once, she was going to do precisely that. Don't stop. She turned her face and kissed his palm. He shifted his hand, running a thumb lightly across her lips. She caught it in her mouth, sucking on it gently.