He was too casual, too accepting of his sudden role as rescuer and guardian until Taber showed up.
“Why are you doing this?” She turned back to him, watching him carefully. He looked at her, his eyes glimmering in surprise. “Doing what?”
“Helping me, so certain Taber will show up. What’s in it for you?”
He arched a flame-colored brow, amusement replacing the confusion. “I was just helping, Roni.”
“Bullshit,” she muttered, shaking her head in denial. “I’m not stupid. There’s more to it. What?”
She needed to make sense of something, even if it was the only helping hand that had been offered to her.
He sighed heavily. “More or less, that’s all there is to it,” he told her firmly. “I help Taber and the others when I can. That’s all. Besides, you’re a friend. I would have helped you anyway.”
Which still didn’t completely answer her question.
“Why is he coming here?” She pushed her fingers through her tangled hair, ignoring the trembling in her hand. “That mark didn’t mean anything when he made it. Why should it now?” This was the question that plagued her more than most.
“You can ask him when he gets here. I’m going out to make sure we weren’t followed. Stay in the cabin.” He unclipped the cell phone at his side. “Taber’s number is the first one keyed in. If something happens, you call him. You hear?”
She glanced down as he laid the phone on the table, feeling her mouth dry out with fear. “What could happen?”
She met his gaze as she raised her head, her heart racing in warning. He watched her, his expression somber.
“Like I said, others would have seen that broadcast. And some of them are a hell of a lot closer than Taber was. I just want to be cautious.”
She swallowed tightly. “Mercenaries?” She had heard the reports of the constant battles Taber and his family had fought through the years with the men sent to either recapture or kill them. A glimmer of sympathy lit his eyes. “Yeah,” he finally muttered. “But we should be secure. Only a few people know about this place, and by the time anyone figures out where we are, Taber should have you safe and sound wherever he thinks is best. You’ll be fine.”
He turned before she could comment and left the shelter. Only then did she notice the gun he carried in his other hand. It was black, lethal, and he sure as hell carried it like he knew what he was doing with it. Great. She collapsed into one of the dusty kitchen chairs and stared around the one-room cabin with a sense of despair. Mercenaries were after her. Just what she needed on top of everything else. She lifted her hand, rubbing the mark on her neck that had caused so many problems. It ached more than normal. Not a painful ache, rather one with the remnants of pleasure, reminding her of the incredibly sensuous feel of Taber’s mouth there. His teeth scraping her skin, his tongue laving it heatedly. She shivered uncontrollably at the memory.
Jerking her hand back down, Roni stared at the cell phone for a long second before she rose to her feet and paced to the small, dusty window beside the door. She could call him. She should let him know just how much she appreciated the mess she was in right now. Dammit, he wanted her out of his life, had made that plain. How was she was supposed to feel good about any help he would give her now?
She stared out the window, knowing that for now, there was nothing she could do. That sense of helplessness ate at her. She hated being dependent on anyone, especially for her life. As she stared into the forest, she could see John canvassing the thickly forested area. His body weaved in and out of the trees, relaxed, yet on guard. He reminded her of some of those military types she had seen profiles on during the few times she found time to watch television. Time was passing too damned quickly. There was no chance to think, to become accustomed to the sudden changes sweeping around her. No time to prepare herself to face Taber again. It seemed mere minutes before John re-entered the cabin and picked up the cell phone. He glanced at her as he coded in the call.
“I hear a ‘copter. That you?” he asked quietly, his pale blue eyes cold and confident. “Good. We’re safe and sound so far. I’ll have her waiting in the clearing.” He disconnected then looked over at her. “Ready to go?”
“No.” She pushed her hands into the pockets of her jeans. Wake up now, she thought desperately. Come on, Roni, time to wake up.
“Too bad.” He grinned as though he was more than aware of the fact that she was desperate to deny any of this was taking place. “Time to move.”
Chapter Five
It was surreal. Roni stood at the edge of the small clearing, watching as the helicopter swooped in and executed a perfect landing. Motioning her to stay back, John ducked and ran to the small aircraft while Roni tried to still the racing of her heart.
She wanted to turn and run; to escape back to the life she had led before the fateful trip in to town no more than an hour ago. But instinctively, she knew there was no escape. She wondered a bit distantly if she even wanted to escape. Hadn’t she dreamed of him nightly, ached for him every minute of the day since he had walked out of her life?
When Taber jumped from the helicopter, every cell in her body sprang to life. Between her thighs, an urgent pulse of desire began to beat, moisture pooling, gathering, preparing her for him. Her breath caught in her chest and not for the first time, she was caught completely off guard by the rough sexuality that seemed to shimmer around him.
He wore jeans. They rode low on his lean hips, lovingly conformed to his muscular thighs and long legs. The wide, dark belt accentuated the white shirt and the flat contours of his abdomen. His shoulders were wide. His devil’s black hair was tied back at his nape, giving him a savage, earthy appearance that speared straight to her pu**y. She felt her juices spill from her hot vagina, her body beginning to ache, to throb for him.
She backed up as his gaze stayed locked on hers, his long legs covering the distance between her and the helicopter. She could see the fierce purpose on his darkly tanned face, his intention to claim her. She shuddered in sudden fear. This wasn’t the man she had known before. The man who had been gentle, considerate, his kiss a whisper of passion, his touch restrained. She felt the sobbing breath that escaped her throat as she continued to back up, her legs weak, her mind consumed with the vision stalking toward her. He was acting on instinct. He was no longer controlled, as she had always known him to be. He was harder, savage. And he terrified her.
“Taber.” She stopped suddenly as her back met the rough bark of the tree behind her. He stopped inches from her, his eyes a brilliant jade-green, intense, overpowering. In that moment, fifteen months of pain and anger overwhelmed her. Here he stood, staring at her as though he could devour her in a single bite, after destroying every dream she ever held in her heart. Her fist clenched, and before she knew what she was thinking she struck with all her strength into the hard, tight muscles of his stomach. She had a feeling she hurt her fist more than she hurt him.
“Dammit,” she yelled as he barely flinched, his body tightening, his eyes narrowing in anger. “Look what you’ve done to my life. Thanks for nothing, Taber.”
“Mine,” he snarled. The sound echoed through her body, her soul, as she felt her breath falter, her eyes widening at the sheer animalistic sound.
Before she could react, he caught her hands in his, pushing them back against the tree, ignoring her frantic struggles, her strangled curses.