by Gail Barrett
He scoffed at that bizarre thought. He couldn’t let his imagination run rampant, conjuring motives that didn’t exist. The Navy had sent a reconnaissance aircraft. It was his fault they hadn’t been found.
Now he had to hightail it to that ghost town, hope he could catch a signal on Zoe’s cell phone, and turn her in.
If their assailants didn’t kill them first.
Shutting down that dire thought, he slid a glance at Zoe. “How’s your head?”
“Not bad.”
He knew that wasn’t true. She’d looked exhausted before the plane crash, and they hadn’t stopped hiking since. But she hadn’t complained, had done her best to keep up. And he couldn’t help but admire her resolve.
He scowled at the shadows creeping over the desert. The cool breeze brushed his skin. He didn’t want to like Zoe. He didn’t want to respect her spirit, her determination. And he didn’t want to sympathize with her—or believe her version of the past.
But he was having a hard time holding on to his anger. He turned his head. Their gazes clashed in the dusky night, and his pulse took off at a sprint. Those baby-blue eyes sucked him in, demolishing his willpower, impossible to resist.
And that complicated everything.
He took another long pull of water. The trilling of a screech owl carried on the air. Regardless of the past, he had to figure out what to do with her now. Maybe he could convince her to hand over that flash drive. It would redeem him with the Navy if she did.
He tapped the empty plastic bottle on his thigh, determined to try. “Look, Zoe, if that helicopter does come back, you need to turn yourself in.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Because they’ll never believe me.”
“I’ll vouch for you. I’ll make sure they rescue Shaw. And if you give them the missing data, they’ll know you’re on their side.”
She shook her head. “You don’t understand.”
She had that right. “What’s there to understand? You’re out of your depth here. You saw those men. You can’t fight them alone.”
“I know it seems crazy.”
“It is crazy.”
She sighed and crossed her arms. “Let me put it this way. What’s the most important thing in your life?”
He didn’t have to think about that one. “Flying.”
“Would you ever give it up?”
“No.” It was what he did, who he was.
“Well, that’s how my grandfather feels about his work. This project is his life. It’s what he lives for, what drives him. It always has.
“And for him to do something this drastic, to put everything he cares about at risk… Either he’s gone totally nuts or there’s a reason, a good one. And I can’t trust anyone until I know for sure. Not the FBI, not the Navy, not the police. There’s just too much at stake.”
“I get that. But what if he is nuts? Or what if he’s involved in something illegal? You’re still willing to risk your life?”
“I have to. At least until I know what’s on that flash drive.” She exhaled again, more heavily this time. “Look, Coop. I know he isn’t always nice, but he’s my family, the only one left. I can’t turn my back on him.”
“I’m not asking you to abandon him. I’m saying you should let the professionals handle this.”
“I know.” Her gaze held his. “And I’m not expecting you to help me. I understand if you can’t get involved. But…just give me a chance to get away, all right? Don’t tell anyone you saw me, at least for a couple of days. Not until I can figure this out.”
He didn’t want to help her. He still didn’t fully trust her. And he had a job to do. But neither could he put her in danger—and let her face those gunmen alone.
No matter what he did, he was screwed.
Feeling trapped, he turned his face to the sky. Venus winked near the horizon. A few stars gleamed overhead. There’d be millions soon, a glittering universe beckoning him, luring him to adventure, escape…
Zoe placed her hand on his forearm, and the soft, warm feel of her branded his skin. “I meant what I said, Coop. You really don’t have to help me. And I…I still think there’s a mistake, but if my grandfather had anything to do with you losing your appointment to the Academy, I’m sorry.”
His gaze met hers in the gathering darkness. His heart tapped an off-kilter beat. He skimmed her full, feminine lips, that tempting mole, the alluring curve of her throat.
And guilt returned with a vengeance. If she’d told him the truth about the past, then Shaw had lied to them both, manipulating Zoe for his own ends. And if he’d done that, then he could also be using her now.
Which meant she had nothing to do with the espionage case—and Coop had no right to withhold the truth. She deserved to know about his surveillance job, the real reason he was here. She’d been forced into this mess the same as he had.
That was a big if, though. And until he had proof, he couldn’t assume that she wasn’t involved. The truth could send her running, ruining his chance to locate the flash drive or Shaw—and save his career.
But although he couldn’t come clean yet, he could accept the olive branch she’d held out. “I understand why he didn’t want us to marry. I wasn’t much of a prize back then.”
“How can you say that? You were great.” The indignation in her voice made his mouth curve up. So she was still a crusader, still fighting for the underdog.
“Hardly. You saw where I lived.” A dilapidated trailer in a dirt-poor town. “He probably thought I’d end up like my old man.”
“He didn’t know you like I did.”
That was true. Coop had let down his guard with Zoe, allowed her into his heart—something he hadn’t done with anyone since. “I was broke. I had four years at the Academy ahead, then flight school, assuming I made it that far.”
“Still—”
“I’m not defending him.” Far from it. Shaw had tried to ruin his life. “I’m just saying I understand his thinking.”
“He had no right to deceive us, though. If that’s what he did.”
“He did.” And now Coop was deceiving her, too. More guilt roiled inside.
She pulled her hand away. The lonely yips of a coyote rose from the desert floor, echoing his pensive mood. He cleared his throat, gazed at the emerging clusters of stars. “Just so you know, though. That night…when I was at the bar—”
“You don’t have to explain.”
“Yeah, I do.” He shifted around to face her, met her soft eyes darkened by night. “I was furious. I got drunk. I picked her up, took her home, and left her there. Nothing happened.”
Drunk or not, he could still remember every moment of that night—staggering out of the bar, blinded by fury, Shaw’s words flaying his mind. That he was worthless. That Zoe thought he’d never measure up. That she hadn’t had the heart to tell him, but she wanted him to leave her alone.
Shaw had known exactly where to strike him, discovered his most vulnerable spot. And when Zoe had appeared at the bar that night, Coop’s pride had made him lash back.
But maybe he shouldn’t have believed Shaw so quickly. Maybe he should have spoken to Zoe at the bar. Maybe he should have pressed harder to learn the truth instead of believing a man he’d despised.
He exhaled, regrets settling inside him like an anchor hooking in deep. It didn’t really matter now. All that was in the past. It was better to forget it, move on, concentrate on their current mess.
“So did you ever get married?” she asked, her voice husky.
“No.” There had been women over the years. Not as many as she probably thought. None serious. “I move around a lot with the Navy, so I’m not in one place long.” Truth be told, Zoe had set a standard no one could match. He’d never felt that connection with anyone else.
“You?” he asked.
She made a wry smile. “I’m married to my work, I guess.”
Her work. Right. The reason they were here.
>
She shivered in the chilly air and rubbed her bare arms. “You’d better put on your sweatshirt,” he said. “It cools off fast out here.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll live.”
She rose, took the sweatshirt from her bag and shook it out, then pulled it over her head. But it snagged on the knotted gauze.
“Hold on. You don’t want to knock that bandage loose.” He walked over, stretched the neck of the sweatshirt, and helped slip it over her head. Her soft hair slid over his fingers, like satin brushing his skin.
“Thanks.” She reached up to pull her braid free, just as he grabbed the bottom of her sweatshirt and pulled it down. His knuckles grazed her breasts, and he froze.
Their eyes locked. Coop’s blood made a heavy surge. And he was excruciatingly aware of how close she stood, that her warm, lush lips were just inches away from his.
He needed to move, step away. He couldn’t succumb to the urge to kiss Zoe. But everything inside him clamored to touch her, feel her, taste her again…
He loosened his grip on her sweatshirt, his gaze not wavering from hers. Unable to resist, he reached up and curled his hand around the nape of her neck, stroking her throat with his thumb. She was so soft, so sensitive, so inviting.
She quivered beneath his touch. Her gaze dipped to his mouth, kicking off a frenzied stampede in his chest. The air backed up in his lungs.
He should let her go. Go. Go. Go. The thought bleated in his mind, like a jet’s collision system warning of imminent impact. This was the wrong place, the wrong time. Zoe was off-limits, part of his surveillance case. Taboo.
But he never had obeyed the rules.
He tugged her even closer, his mind turning fuzzier yet. For years Zoe had been his fantasy—lush, sultry, hot. She had a face like an angel, a body made for sin.
And memories began to bombard him, chipping away at his resolve. The musk of her naked skin. The sensual jolt of her kiss. The husky little moans she’d made in the back of her throat.
“Coop,” she whispered. Her provocative voice held him captive. His gaze arrowed straight to her mouth. Her full lips parted, her tongue darting past that alluring mole, beckoning him, tempting him.
One little kiss couldn’t hurt.
He lowered his head, fused his mouth with hers. She tasted sweet, erotic, just as he remembered. He sank into the kiss, every male synapse firing to life, and the helpless sound she made aroused him even more.
He angled his head to deepen the kiss, and the feel of her torched any doubts. He widened his stance, ran his hands down her back, cupped the perfect flare of her hips.
She shuddered and trembled against him. Her arms tightened around his neck, bringing her breasts closer against his chest. And beyond the hunger, beyond the primal urges pulsing inside him, something long-forgotten awoke. A feeling of rightness. A deep sense of satisfaction he hadn’t experienced in eight long years.
Then a horned owl cried, its low hoots piercing the night. Coop dragged up his head, his breathing labored, struggling to come down from the kiss. What was he doing? He couldn’t get involved with Zoe. He still couldn’t fully trust her. He couldn’t compound this mess.
He forced himself to step away, shocked at the effort it took. The dazed look in her eyes didn’t help.
He plowed his hand through his hair, cleared the thickness from his throat, shaken by the intensity of that kiss. “We’d better go.” Before he lost all control and took her where she stood.
“Right.” The huskiness of her voice nearly did him in. “And put your hat back on. If anyone’s looking for us, that white gauze will give us away.”
Forcing his feet to move, he strode back to the boulder, the need for her battering his blood. He tucked the emergency kit under his arm, swung Zoe’s knapsack over his back, and set off into the dusk.
He’d wondered if she’d feel the same. Now he had his answer.
And he wished he hadn’t found out.
As far as mistakes went, that kiss had been a doozy.
Zoe staggered after Coop up the mountain hours later, her head still whirling, so overwhelmed with lust that she could hardly hold on to a thought.
Lord, but that man could kiss. She’d tried to put her reaction into perspective, to chalk it up to a moment of mutual insanity, but she couldn’t get the rough, thrilling feel of him out of her head—the erotic scrape of his jaw, the iron muscles bunching under her palms, his arousal pressing the apex of her thighs. Thick. Hard. Huge.
She closed her eyes on a sigh, aching to touch him again. She tripped and stumbled forward.
Coop wheeled around and grabbed her arm. “Careful.” His deep voice rasped in the darkness, sparking another flurry of nerves.
“Thanks.” Her voice came out breathy, to her chagrin. Her face flaming, she straightened, giving thanks for the cover of night. Bad enough that his kiss had reduced her to a muddled wreck. She didn’t need him to know.
He turned away and continued hiking, the full moon painting him with silver light. She trudged up the rocky slope behind him, eyeing his broad, sturdy back, the relentless power in his strides—and struggled to gather her scattered sense.
So she was human. So she hadn’t been kissed like that in years. Eight long years, to be precise. It was little wonder she longed to inhale his sexy scent, press her hot, naked skin to his deliciously muscled frame.
She quickly quelled that rogue thought. No doubt about it. That kiss had demolished her concentration, resurrecting needs she’d repressed for years. But it had been a mistake. A big one. She had no business thinking about sex when her grandfather’s life was at stake.
But that kiss…
“We’re almost to the top.” Coop’s deep voice floated back to her in the crisp air. “We’ll rest there until dawn.”
“I’d rather keep going.” Not only did she need to find that flash drive, but she’d be less tempted to touch him that way. “The ghost town can’t be too far away now. I checked the map when we stopped to eat.”
“It’s just over this peak. About a mile away.” He stopped, pointed to something off to the side. “But see that?”
She paused to catch her breath and spotted the outline of a shack. “What about it?”
“It’s part of the old gold mine. We’re on top of it now.”
“So?”
“So there are all kinds of hazards in the brush around here—caved-in mine shafts, machinery, rusty nails. It gets even worse closer to town.”
“We’ve done all right so far.”
“Yeah, but the moon’s about to go down. We won’t have any light when it does.”
She didn’t discount the dangers. She’d plunged through a mine shaft at the ghost town when she was ten and broken her arm. Her grandfather had stopped bringing her to the desert after that.
“But what about those gunmen?” she argued. “Shouldn’t we sneak into town at night in case they’re there?”
“If they’re already at the ghost town, we’re dead.”
“What do you mean?”
He wiped his face on his sleeve. “The first thing they’ll do is take the high ground and post a sniper to pick us off. And if they’ve got night vision devices, we don’t stand a chance.”
“But then—”
“I’m hoping we can beat them there. We know they aren’t behind us. So they’re approaching Crater Canyon from the other side. That means they’ll park below the mountain where the road’s washed out and hike in on foot. And that buys us some time.”
“All the more reason to keep going.”
“Not if we fall down a mine shaft. We can’t go stumbling around the mountain in the dark. It’s too dangerous. We have to wait until dawn.”
She understood his reasoning. And she desperately longed to sleep. Her feet had gone numb. Her thigh muscles spasmed from fatigue. But her grandfather was in far worse danger than she was. She didn’t have time to relax.
Coop continued hiking. She followed, scan
ning the rocks angled like abandoned tombstones on the moonlit hills. A few scruffy pine trees clung to the barren slopes, their twisted branches clawing the night.
It pained her to think that her grandfather was out there somewhere—frightened, worried, alone. But not for long. No matter how tired she felt, she was going to rescue him.
But could she depend on Coop to help?
She hauled air to her scorching lungs and forced herself to consider the question she’d avoided all night. She wanted to rely on Coop. He was strong, smart, armed. He had the military training and survival skills she lacked.
But he didn’t want to help her. He wanted her to turn herself in. And she had no right to involve him in her nightmare. He’d already fended off killers and crashed an airplane. She couldn’t keep asking him to risk his life, especially for a man he didn’t like.
Besides, no matter how wonderfully he’d kissed her, no matter how much she’d adored him in the past, she still had the sensation that she couldn’t trust him, that he was holding something back. Sure, he’d evaded that Navy chopper at her request—but could she depend on him to do it again?
So what should she do? Leave him behind? She balked at the though—because he was right. Those men could be waiting at the ghost town. And no way did she want to take them on alone. She didn’t even have a gun.
But neither could she ignore that flash of guilt she’d seen in Coop’s eyes. Because if there was any chance he wasn’t what he seemed…
She plodded up the mountain behind him, her mind flip-flopping through options, conflicted about what to do. She couldn’t risk getting injured. Her grandfather needed her to survive.
But she also had to meet the kidnappers’ deadline. She couldn’t waste time sleeping, couldn’t let those gunmen beat her up the hill. And she couldn’t take the chance that Coop had a hidden agenda and might be working against her somehow.
She steeled her nerves, made up her mind. She had to leave Coop and go it alone.