“You’re fine. You’re beautiful.” And all the time he held her, rocking her, his hand tangled in her hair. Not speaking, just there for her.
It was several minutes before she could manage to lift her head to look at him. “I wasn’t … expecting that, Jock.”
“You asked me to perform a service for you.” He kissed her lingeringly. “And it was my pleasure. I considered that it was up to me how I would do it. Did I succeed?”
“Oh, yes.” She was still shaking from the aftermath. She laid her head back down on his shoulder. “But I don’t believe anyone would consider that fair to you.”
“Then they’d be wrong. It was a little like being stretched on a rack at times, but no one could say I didn’t receive certain benefits.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “But right now I believe that you should get off me and put that robe back on. The benefits aren’t as obvious with you naked.”
Naked.
She hadn’t realized that the robe had somehow completely disappeared. “I’m sorry.” She saw it in a heap on the floor at their feet. “I didn’t notice.” She slid out of his arms and picked up the garment. “I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”
“You didn’t notice?” He watched her slip on the robe and tie it. “Only you, Cara. It’s not as if I’ve ever had the chance to see how beautiful you are naked. Some stupid individuals would even think that you might be uncomfortable.”
“Why? I belong to you. I always feel comfortable with you. It doesn’t matter if I’m naked or not.” She met his eyes. “No, that’s not true. If you’re looking at me, then it would matter. Everything is different then. That’s why I didn’t want to close my eyes. I was afraid I’d miss something.”
“Cara.”
“And I did miss something. I missed being able to give you what I should have. I took, but didn’t give.” She sat down on the bed. “Before you arrived, I was thinking how difficult you were going to be, and I was right.”
He smiled. “You missed quite a bit else actually. You must know that was only the start. A small gift that wouldn’t hurt you.”
“Then we should start over.”
He shook his head ruefully. “Never satisfied.”
“You know better.” She looked down at her hands, her arms. “My skin feels as if it’s glowing,” she said wonderingly. “And my body is singing. I can hear it. Is it always like that?”
“No, only when it’s someone as special as you. The rest of us mortals have to be content with lust and just a damn wonderful time.”
“I’m sure that’s good, too.” She thought about it. “For everyone but you. You have that shining inside you. You should have everything that means.” She suddenly jumped to her feet and ran back to him. “I bet you could hear it if I showed you.” Her face was luminous with eagerness. “If you forgot all that nonsense you have stored up inside you about taking care of me. I knew we could be wonderful together, but now I know we can be magic.” She reached out to touch him, and said softly, “I want you to be with me and hear the music. It’s important, Jock.”
He shook his head. “That’s not going to happen.” He looked down at her hand on his chest. “Someday, you’ll realize I’m right. I’ll guard you, I’ll see that Svardak is out of your life, I’ll be your friend. I won’t be your lover.”
She felt a ripple of shock. She’d been so full of hope that it jarred her a little. But only a little, just another battle to fight.
She took her hand away from him. “You’re already my lover, Jock. Can’t you feel it? And next time, I won’t let you get away with anything but total commitment. I’ll take you as a friend and a companion. But I’ll guard myself as everyone should do.” She leaned forward and kissed him. “Do we have that straight?” She turned away. “And now I have to get dressed and let you take me out to dinner. We have things to discuss.” She headed for the bathroom. “But first I have to brush my hair. A dryer only does so much.” She glanced over her shoulder with a sly smile. “Unless you’d like to do it?”
“Actually, I would,” he said thickly. “I like the feel of your hair touching my hands. I … spark. But then I want my hands on you any way that I can. Which is why there’s no way I’ll do it.”
“Unless you think it will save me from pain or hurt…” She shook her head. “You’ll do it someday, and it will only be because it’s part of what we are together. But I’d really rather do something wonderfully erotic for you. However, you might have to help me with that. Think about it, Jock.”
“There’s no doubt that I’ll do that,” he said dryly.
She smiled. “I thought you would.” She started to close the door behind her. “Give me twenty minutes.”
“Make it thirty.” He rose to his feet and headed for the front door. “I’m going to need at least that long to cool down. Maybe longer.”
“Really?” She tilted her head, her eyes gleaming with curiosity. “You have such wonderful control that I would never have guessed. That’s very interesting. How close were you to—”
“Get dressed.” The door slammed behind him.
* * *
“I like this place.” Cara’s gaze wandered around the red-leather booths and black-and-white-tile floor of the Lost Canyon Diner after the waitress had taken their order. “It looks like something from the fifties.”
“Let’s just hope the food is substantial,” Jock said. “You look like you’ve lost a pound or two.”
That’s what she had thought, but she hadn’t wanted Jock to notice. He was too protective as it was. She smiled. “It isn’t as if Svardak didn’t feed me. The cuisine just wasn’t to my liking. The hamburger I ordered will be much better.” She made a face. “And you look blade-sharp and very trim. I bet you haven’t been eating much either.”
“You’d lose. I always eat exactly what I need to keep me going when I’m on the hunt.” He watched the waitress set their coffee in front of them. “It’s part of my training, and I have been very much in Reilly mode since the moment I found out you were gone.” He smiled at the waitress. “Thank you. Do you suppose you could hurry up that order? My friend here probably forgot to eat today.”
“Sure.” She smiled back at him, and Cara could see the slightly dazzled expression she had come to expect on any woman who came in contact with Jock. “Anything you say. I know how to take care of my customers.” She disappeared in the direction of the kitchen.
“Not necessary, Jock,” Cara said. “You made it sound as if I was fading away.”
“Then you did eat all your meals in that hospital today?”
“I ate a little of my breakfast. I was busy later.”
His lips tightened. “Arranging your escape. Then it was necessary, and the waitress didn’t mind.”
“She wouldn’t have minded if you’d asked her to cook the orders herself,” she said. “And if she’d thought it was you who was fading away, she’d have been in this booth trying to resuscitate you. She barely saw me.”
His brows rose as he leaned back in the booth. “Are you including her in my ‘zillions’ of women?”
“No, just a hopeful candidate.” She grinned at him. “Like me. But I have a much better chance than she does.”
He stiffened. “No you don’t.” He lifted his cup to his lips. “No chance at all.”
“Stop saying that. I can’t believe it. It would hurt too much.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Actually, I think I’ve made good progress. You said that from the minute you knew I was gone, you were in Reilly mode. What was your first thought in that moment when you came to pick me up at my suite?”
“What do you think? That it shouldn’t have happened. I should have been able to protect you.”
“And, did it occur to you that if you’d taken me to bed as I wanted you to do, that you’d have been beside me and not outside knocking on that door?”
He was silent. “Of course it did.”
“And it will keep coming back because you have that protective
gene going on.” She frowned. “It’s not something that I want to use, but I might have to go that route. The reason you came tonight was that you were afraid that I was doing something that was out of your comfort zone.”
“Comfort zone? You’re damn right. You should be with Eve at the lake cottage. And she knows it, or she wouldn’t have called me.”
“Maybe. Eve’s almost as protective as you are. I wasn’t certain if she was going to leave me here.” She lifted her cup to her lips again. “But she’s also very clever. I told her I was going to stay and keep an eye on Joe until Svardak is captured. She didn’t like the idea, but she doesn’t like the idea of any danger getting near Joe either.” She was thinking about it. “She might not believe I’d be any real help to Joe, but she knows you would be. By sending you to me, there could be a double benefit in her eyes.”
“What are you talking about?” he said impatiently. “She didn’t mention Joe. Just that you were staying until Svardak was caught.”
“She knew I’d tell you. She’s walking a fine line and doesn’t want Joe to think that she’d doubt him in any way.”
“Doubt?” He was frowning. “Why the hell should she doubt Quinn? And what the hell does he have to do with you staying?”
“Svardak will try to kill anyone I love,” she said quietly. “He told me he would. And he zeroed in on Joe while I was at the cabin. I asked Kaskov to guard them, but Joe will be almost impossible since he’ll be putting himself in the line of fire.” She met his eyes. “Just as you would, Jock. I don’t have much hope of keeping him away from you now. You were too visible.”
“What a pity.” He leaned forward, his eyes intent. “Let me understand this. You’re staying because you want to keep Svardak from killing Joe Quinn.” He snapped his fingers. “Oh, and maybe me as well? Did I forget that?”
“Yes, you did. And don’t make fun of me. I can be of value. As long as I keep close to Joe or to you, I’ll be a constant distraction.” She could tell what was coming as she looked away and put her cup back in the saucer. “Because as much as he’ll want to kill you, he’ll want to kill me more.”
“Tremendous value,” Jock said. “Why should I make fun of you? It’s a masterstroke. Anyone who saw that Skype could see how much he hated you.”
“It is a master stroke.” She was still looking down at her cup. “I worked hard to make him consider me a threat and a prime enemy while I was with him. I can use that now.”
“No!”
“Yes.” She raised her eyes and inhaled sharply as she saw Jock’s expression. “That’s the way it has to be. I’m not going to run to Eve and hide at the lake. I know I can’t stop you if you decide to go after Svardak. That’s probably what you’ve been doing since you left me at the hospital. But when you do, you’ll know you’re leaving me here and that I’ll find Joe and stay close to him … until Svardak finds us.”
She could see the myriad violent emotions flitting across his face—anger, desperation, frustration. “And what if I go after Joe myself and watch out for him,” he said through clenched teeth. “God, Joe would strangle me if he heard that. This is all crazy. But would you go to Eve then?”
“No. I won’t give you up to Svardak either. I told you, he’ll know you’re someone important to me now.”
“So you’re keeping both me and Joe tied to you in hope that we’ll be able to reel in Svardak when he goes after you.”
“No.” She had to explain it, though he wasn’t going to like this either. “I wouldn’t use you like that. That would defeat my purpose. It’s in hope that I’ll be able to reel him in. I tried to make that clear to you in the hospital. It seems a reasonable way to go about it.”
“Son of a bitch.” He was gazing at her in disbelief. “Reasonable?” He said flatly, “It sucks.”
“It has to be me,” she said quietly. “I was almost able to do it before, and I was more helpless than I’ve ever been in my life that day. I won’t be that helpless this time. I’ll see that I have weapons and a plan. It could work.”
“If neither Joe nor I cared if you’re going to come out of this alive,” he said savagely. “We do care. I care.”
“I know.” Her lips were trembling as she tried to smile. “I find that special and wonderful. But that’s what this is all about, taking care of the people I love.” She swallowed. “And making certain that I give Marian and those other victims their own tribute.”
“No, for me it’s about keeping you alive.” He was clearly fighting for control. “And finding a way to get around this idiocy.”
“You’re upset. Why don’t you cancel dinner and just take me back to the hotel?”
“Because I can’t be sure what you’re going to do at any given minute right now. I have to work through this. That means you have to work through it with me.” He drew a deep breath, then said, “We are going to have dinner, and you are going to eat well. We’ll have another cup of coffee, then I’ll take you back to the hotel.”
She nodded. “And all the time your mind will be clicking and you’ll be figuring out how to get your own way.” She added quietly, “I can’t let you do it this time, Jock.”
“You don’t know that. It might turn out to be your way, too. Stay and have dinner with me, and we’ll talk about it.”
He’d tamped down the anger and that charisma was back in full force. He was smiling that smile that she could never resist, and this was no exception. “Why not?” She smiled back at him. “I always enjoy being with you regardless of whether or not you’re plotting anything that might worry me. I just had to warn you.”
“Duly noted.” He hesitated, gazing at her face, then he reached out and covered her hand with his own. It felt warm and strong, and she found herself clinging to it. “And, as usual, you managed to disarm me just when I was ready to go on the attack. I’ll try to keep my plotting to a minimum. But I can’t deny it will be happening. You’re not helping me keep this ship on an even keel.” He released her hand and took out his phone. “But you’ll excuse me if I have to initiate the first phase of the plotting. I have to call your hotel and make a reservation. I checked while you were getting dressed, and there weren’t any connecting rooms available, but I’ll be able to get the room next door to you. I’ll have to rely on you to lock your door and keep me on speed dial. I should have booked it then, but I was hoping you’d be reasonable.”
“And that you could persuade me to pack up and follow Eve. We both realize how persuasive you can be.”
“Evidently not persuasive enough.”
“It depends.” She smiled. “You’d have absolutely no trouble persuading me to share my room with you.”
He shook his head. “And that could result in a great deal of trouble.” Then the hotel answered, and he was talking to reservations.
She sat there and listened to him, watching his expressions. He was going to fight her, and she had to accept whatever that meant. She couldn’t expect anything else from him. She hadn’t wanted him to be a part of this nightmare, but now there was no choice. At least they’d be together for a little while longer. Life was too short not to reach out for every bit of happiness that came your way. The only thing she could do was to enjoy the moment and try to keep him safe.
And to do it, she might have to do a little plotting herself before this was over.
CHAPTER
9
HIGHWAY US 41 MURFREESBORO, TENNESSEE
“Somebody’s following us, Mom.” Michael was looking over his shoulder out the back window of the Toyota. “It’s the blue Subaru that stopped at that same gas station we did outside Louisville.”
“Maybe. There are a lot of Subarus on the road these days.” She looked up at the driver’s mirror. It was the same Subaru, and it was too damn close. “Probably because of all their mushy TV commercials about love and families and such.”
“You like those commercials,” Michael said absently, his gaze still on the Subaru. “But it’s the same car. Two people in the
front seat, and the passenger is a man wearing a Jets baseball cap. I noticed the last time it slowed for that traffic light.”
And Michael always noticed entirely too much, she thought. “It’s the South, and people travel from Louisville to Atlanta all the time.” But he was still looking at her, and she couldn’t leave it at that. “Are you worried about it?”
“Only if you’re worried about it,” Michael said soberly. “I just thought I’d tell you. Dad told me to take care of you.”
“And you’re doing a fabulous job. Eyes like a hawk.” She looked at the rearview mirror. “No, I’m not worried. They are following us. They’ve been following me since I left Coal Town. Cara wanted us to be sure we had a safe trip, so she had her grandfather send a couple of his employees to make sure of it. I called Kaskov about fifty miles into the trip and verified who they were. They were supposed to be unobtrusive, but I guess they’re trying to impress him.” She paused. “You might see them again during the next week or so. Cara’s been a little nervous since that terrible man took her from us. It makes her feel better to know we’re safe.”
“It will make Dad feel better, too.”
“Yes, it will. Though I haven’t had a chance to tell him about it since we got on the road. There isn’t decent cell reception in those mountains. I got through a couple times, but then I lost him. I’ll try again once we get closer to the cottage.” She glanced at him. He’d been far too quiet since she’d picked him up at Catherine’s a few hours ago. “I’ll let you talk to him again as soon as I reach him. It’s not that he doesn’t want to talk to you. He’s just very busy. We got Cara back, but we have to make sure that man doesn’t try to hurt anyone else. Your dad will do that, it just takes time.”
“I know he’ll call as soon as he can,” Michael said. “It’s just that he’s getting so close to…” He was staring out the window. “I was hoping Cara would come with you. She could be wrong. I don’t know if she can help him.”
Dark Tribute--An Eve Duncan Novel Page 18