The world, the danger, ceased to exist, if only for a few moments. Sarah lost herself in Wolf’s searching, heated mouth. Immersed in a kaleidoscope of surprise and pleasure, she sank against him.
“I love you,” he said hoarsely, pulling back and drowning in her tear-filled eyes. There was no need for further words, Wolf realized humbly as tears streaked down Sarah’s grimy features. He framed her face with his shaking hands, touching her as if he didn’t know whether she was real or a fevered figment of his tortured imagination.
“You’re alive….” Sarah choked out. “Oh, Wolf…”
He touched her lips with his fingers to silence her. Holding her tight, he lifted his head and began to search the darkness. Wolf was relying on his dog’s acute hearing and smell more than anything else. Skeet sat nearby, alert, through his silence telling them they were safe—if but for a moment. Removing his fingers from her lips, Wolf touched Sarah’s hair. There were so many pine needles in the fine golden strands that they’d have to be removed by hand, not with a comb.
The moment Sarah’s hand came to rest on Wolf’s shirt, she gasped. The wet, sticky stuff was blood. Her eyes widened enormously as she drew away from him and saw the dark stain across his belly.
“You’re hurt….”
“Just a graze. I’m okay. Sarah, we’ve got to get out of here.”
Shaken, Sarah couldn’t tear her gaze from his wound. A graze? Half the shirt was bloodied, and it was torn where the bullet had ripped into the fabric. She remembered that Wolf was a mercenary by trade, that his soldiering instincts were finely honed, but nevertheless he was surely in pain.
Taking Sarah’s hand, Wolf squeezed it to get her attention. “Your feet?”
“Th-they’re fine.”
“Sore?”
“A little.”
“What do you mean, a little?”
Wetting her lips, Sarah tried to think coherently. “I—They hurt, Wolf, but I can walk on them.”
Convinced she was telling the truth, Wolf looked around. “I don’t know where Summers and his gang are anymore. I blacked out after I fell over that ledge.”
Sarah eyed the jagged rock far above them. A chill swept through her. Wolf was far tougher, and far luckier, than any man had a right to be, and she was grateful for that. Holding his hand tight, she whispered, “I don’t know where Summers is, either. I haven’t heard them for over an hour.”
Nodding, Wolf checked out Skeet. The dog remained passive, and he was sure none of their enemies were close. “Are you hurt in any way?”
Sarah shook her head. “No…Noonan jumped me from behind, but when he tried to cuff me I broke free.” She gave a wobbly smile. “I was never so scared…. But I was more scared for you. They were firing those rifles in your direction, Wolf.”
Relief came on the heels of Wolf’s terror over Sarah’s trembling admission. More than anything, he wanted to hold her and keep her safe. She was shaking like a leaf. But then, so was he. There were several small scratches across her brow and cheek, plus a bruise on the side of her neck. He wanted to kill Noonan. Realizing that he was gripping Sarah’s small hand too tightly, Wolf released her.
“We have to get to the cabin.”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know how far we are from it,” Wolf admitted.
“It doesn’t matter. We have to make it.”
His mouth pulled into a sour grimace. “We’ll go slow and quiet, honey. Skeet will be our ears and nose.” Stroking her hair, he saw her rally at his barely whispered words. Sarah had courage, true courage.
“Let’s go,” she said, and gripped his large hand once again.
Wolf swiveled his head and caught Skeet’s attention. Instantly the dog was on his feet and hobbling out in front of them. There was little brush between the huge Douglas firs, so it was relatively easy to walk hand in hand with Sarah. Slowly Wolf’s heart settled down into a steady rhythm again. He still had his rifle and ammunition. The odds were against them, but they definitely had a chance.
As Wolf guided Sarah through the maze of darkened trees, his thoughts moved back in time. Back to Peru, to the fact that Maria and her people hadn’t stood a chance against Ramirez and his men. At least Sarah was alive and had escaped. A resolve more powerful than any emotion he’d ever felt in his life tunneled through him. Even if he had to die in the process, he was going to make sure that Sarah wasn’t hurt or captured by Summers. This time, things were going to work out.
They were resting beneath a huge tree when the muted sound of gunshots echoed in the distance. Sarah stiffened, and instantly she felt Wolf’s arm tighten around her shoulders. Both of them looked toward where the sounds had originated from.
“What do you think?” Sarah asked in a low voice. They’d taken a break from their walking to catch their breath. She knew Wolf had done it for her, not for himself.
Wolf stirred. “Probably Summers. His men are jumpy, and a deer might have made them start shooting.”
Hope sprang through Sarah as she leaned forward on her crossed legs. “How far do you think we are from the cabin?”
Wolf shrugged. “I don’t know.” He gazed down at her uplifted features. Exhaustion was written across Sarah’s face. “Could be a mile or so. We scattered and ran, so it’s hard to tell. I want to get to the road, because it’ll be easier going.” He added grimly, “We can’t walk on the road, though, because Summers and his men might be waiting to ambush us again. We’ll parallel it from the safety of the tree line.”
With a sigh, Sarah relaxed against Wolf’s body and pressed her brow against his shoulder. “I wish we could sleep….”
Leaning over, he pressed a kiss to her hair. “I know.”
“But we can’t.” Sarah slid her hand around his waist. The bleeding from the bullet that had grazed his torso had finally stopped, much to her relief.
Getting to his feet, Wolf growled, “No.” The last thing he wanted to do was leave. After admitting his love to Sarah, all he wanted was to know her reaction. Had she even heard his words? Wolf felt terribly unsure, and he was trying to combat the feeling of panic deep within him. Gently he helped Sarah stand.
“By the time we get back to the cabin, it’s going to be dawn,” he told her in a hushed tone. Picking several pine needles from her mussed hair, he smiled and held her shadowed eyes.
Then he placed his arm around her shoulders, drew her near and whispered, “Let’s go. Dawn will shed new light on the situation.”
Sarah nodded, feeling numb inside. The shots worried her. Who had fired them? Were Summers and his men hanging around, waiting for them to appear? Everything seemed so tentative, so extraordinarily fragile.
Sarah halted, her heart beating in triple time. “Wolf?”
He frowned and halted. Automatically his hand went to her arm. She looked forlorn. Frightened.
“What? What is it, honey?”
Just the endearment gave Sarah the courage she needed. “Wolf…I…I’m scared, and I love you….” There—the words were out. She stared up into his craggy, drawn features, her breath jammed in her throat. Croaking, Sarah forced out the rest of what had been begging to be said. “I—I know it’s too soon, that we haven’t known each other very long, but I have to tell you how I feel. I didn’t want to trust you, to care about you, but I couldn’t help it. I was afraid to admit I loved you, because I was so afraid I’d lose you….” Sarah looked down at the ground and bit her lower lip. “I still might,” she said with a sob. “Inside, I feel so vulnerable and frightened that we could die at any moment.” Afraid that she’d said too much, or hadn’t said it right, Sarah halted. It took every last bit of her courage to lift her head to see the effect her words had on Wolf.
Trying to steel herself against possible rejection, Sarah lifted her lashes to meet and hold his hooded stare. In that instant, she knew that even if Wolf rejected her she would never love another man as she loved him. No one could possibly match Wolf in stature, in his understanding and complete acce
ptance of her. But was the love he’d professed to her earlier a fleeting thing? An affair? Sarah couldn’t stand that thought. Her feelings ran too deep, and she looked at commitment as a long-term thing.
Wolf raised his hands to Sarah’s face. There was such hope and anguish in her eyes. Tears jammed his, and he didn’t try to hide his reaction to her low, unsteady admission.
“It’s me who should be down on his knees to you, Sarah, not you to me.”
Confused, tears brimming her eyes, Sarah whispered, “What are you talking about?”
His smile was tender as he caressed her temples and cheeks. “I’m scarred and wounded, Sarah. I have huge chunks of myself that still aren’t healed, but you love me anyway.” Unshed tears blurred her face in front of him. Choking out the words, Wolf rasped, “Sarah, I love you. I meant what I said tonight. I’d been feeling that way ever since I met you. And, yes, it hasn’t been a long time, but it doesn’t matter. What matters most is that you gave me your trust and I gave you mine.”
Blindly Sarah moved into his arms, a small cry escaping her lips. “We could die at any time. I—I just wanted you to know, Wolf, to know I love you.”
With a groan, he took Sarah’s full weight against him, holding her, holding her love forever. “I don’t deserve a second chance,” he said thickly, his lips near her ear, “and I certainly don’t deserve you.”
“Yes, you do,” Sarah said with a little laugh that was partly a sob of relief. She looked up, his glistening eyes melting her heart. “I just wanted you to know, in case something happened to me—to us.”
“We’ll get through this—together.” He leaned down, capturing her tear-bathed lips. “Together…”
Chapter Fourteen
“Wolf, look!” The words escaped Sarah as they neared the cabin. Dawn had come and gone, and the strong morning light was now sending blinding shafts through the fir trees on Blue Mountain. Beside the cabin were several cars, among them a black Jeep. In addition, there were three state police cruisers, and another black car Sarah hadn’t seen before. She saw two men in expensive suits, and two other men, in jeans and short-sleeved shirts, who looked dangerous and alert.
“It’s Morgan!” Wolf said, coming to a halt, disbelief in his voice. “And Killian. And Jake.”
She twisted a look up at him and saw the joy leaking into his exhausted features. “Your boss?” she croaked.
A slow grin started across Wolf’s mouth as he looked down at Sarah and brought her hard against him. “Yes, and my team. I’ll be damned,” he whispered, and kissed her long and hard. As he broke free of her lips and saw her stunned expression, he said, “Morgan must have sensed all hell was going to break loose and decided to come after I called him. If I’m not mistaken, the other guy in the dark suit is a top FBI official. Come on, honey, we’re saved!”
Sarah needed no coaxing. She knew they both looked disheveled, and the blood on Wolf’s shirt gave the appearance that he’d been wounded much more seriously then he had. The first to sense their approach was a cougar-lean man with black hair. He swiveled around, instantly on guard.
“Wolf!” Killian called to the other men and then trotted toward them. A quarter of a mile separated them. The rest of the men raised their heads, stopped talking and looked with amazement in their direction.
Realizing just how tender Sarah’s feet were, Wolf decided to halt on the slope and give her a well-deserved rest. He watched his friend’s approach. Although Killian never smiled, Wolf could see his friend’s green eyes dancing with silent welcome as he trotted up to them. “We’re okay,” Wolf said, extending his hand in greeting.
Gripping Wolf’s hand, Killian’s narrowed eyes swung from Wolf to Sarah, then back to Wolf. “Thank all the saints, you’re alive. We were worried. Summers wasn’t talking after we apprehended him and his men earlier this morning down the road from the cabin. We figured, with the arsenal they were carrying, that they’d been hunting you.”
Wolf nodded. He kept his eyes on the group of men at the base of Blue Mountain. “That’s exactly what happened. Who’s with Morgan and Jake?”
Killian briefly turned his head. “State troopers, and FBI agent Kyle Talbot.”
Relief plunged through Wolf. “Good. When did you arrive? And what the hell’s happening? You said you nabbed Summers?”
“Morgan can fill you in on the details, but after you called him yesterday, he rounded us up. We caught the first flight out to Anaconda and rented a car. Kyle came with us. Morgan pieced things together. He figured you’d be at Sarah Thatcher’s cabin, so we came up here. We met Summers and his men, running around like idiots with rifles in their hands, about three miles from here. Kyle arrested them, and then after we checked out Ms. Thatcher’s cabin, we figured they’d been hunting you.” His mouth pulled into the slightest of smiles. “Morgan said if you were still alive you’d eventually show up here at the cabin. He was right.”
Sarah sagged against Wolf, dizzy with relief. “It’s over,” she murmured.
Wolf studied her anxiously and kept his grip firm around her waist. He glanced over at Killian. “Sarah, this is Killian, one of my men.”
Killian nodded. “Ms. Thatcher.”
Sarah tried to smile, but she was incredibly exhausted. “Hi, Killian. Thank you for coming….”
“Then Summers and his men are in jail?” Wolf demanded.
“That’s right. All of them, including Sheriff Noonan.”
Sarah pressed her hand against her heart, relieved. “I’m so glad….”
Concerned for Sarah, Wolf glanced at the rest of the men coming to greet them. “We’re going to make some fast introductions, and then I want to get Sarah cleaned up. We both need to rest,” he told Killian.
“Looks like you may need to go to the hospital,” Killian warned, pointing at the rust-colored blood staining Wolf’s shirt.
“Just a graze,” Wolf muttered. “Right now, I need a hot bath, bed and—” he smiled down at Sarah “—this lady at my side.”
Sarah fought grogginess as she emerged from the shower and wrapped herself in a thick, fluffy towel. Outside the door, she could hear the Perseus men talking in low tones in the living room of her cabin. It was over. All over. Meeting Morgan Trayhern and the other men had been little more than a blur in her spongy state. She remembered shaking hands, but that was all.
As she pulled on her cotton gown and donned her robe, she heard the men leaving. Glancing out the bathroom window, she saw Morgan and his men climb into the black Jeep. The FBI agent stood talking with Wolf for a moment before he got into his dark sedan. With a sigh, she opened the door and stumbled toward the bedroom. What she needed was Wolf to hold her. The need to be in his arms was overwhelming.
Sarah pulled back the covers and lay down. Before she could even pull the sheet over her, she fell into a deep, spiraling sleep.
Wolf rubbed his eyes. They were burning from lack of sleep. His steps echoed through the cabin. Spotting the bathroom door open, Wolf moved slowly toward the bedroom door. At the entrance, he hesitated, a slight smile tugging at his mouth. Sarah lay on her side, curled in a fetal position, her hands beneath her cheek. She was fast asleep. Just the soft parting of her lips stirred him, made him want to love her as he’d never loved another woman.
Quietly he tiptoed into the room and pulled the sheet and blanket across Sarah’s sleeping form. Her hair, still damp from being recently washed, framed her face. Gently Wolf touched her cheek and felt the velvet firmness of it beneath his fingers.
Forcing himself to move away from her, Wolf knew he desperately needed to bathe before joining Sarah in bed. As he left the room and closed the door, nothing had ever seemed so right to him. He was drained in a way that left him weaving across the floor to the bathroom, and he knew he’d be lucky to make it to bed and gather Sarah into his arms before he keeled over from sheer exhaustion.
The impertinent chirp of an upset robin outside the raised bedroom window awakened Sarah first. Evening light filtered in t
he window, telling her it must be close to nine o’clock at night. She’d slept a long time. Wrapped in a sense of being protected, she groggily turned and realized that she was pressed against Wolf’s entire length. His arm was wrapped around her shoulders, and her head lay in the hollow of his shoulder. Just his soft breathing, the rise and fall of his massive chest, stirred her. Wolf was alive. She was alive. How close they had come to dying less than twelve hours ago, she thought.
Tentatively she slid her hand across the massive breadth of his darkly haired chest, allowing all of her senses to absorb the exploration. There was such latent power to Wolf, and yet he had been nothing but gentle and sensitive to her, to her needs.
Raising up on one elbow, Sarah gazed down at Wolf’s sleeping features. The beard lent his face an even more dangerous quality. She rested her palm against his heart and felt the slow, powerful beat of it beneath her hand. His hair was tousled, and it gave his face a vulnerable look. Her heart expanded with such joy that she blindly followed womanly instinct and leaned forward.
The first, tentative brush of Sarah’s lips on Wolf’s mouth eased him out of deep slumber. Was he dreaming again? But this was too real. He barely opened his eyes as he lifted his hands. Her mouth was warm and inviting, softly exploring his. A groan rumbled through him as Sarah artlessly pressed herself to him, a signal to his spinning senses that she wanted much more than just a kiss from him.
Sleep was torn from Wolf as he eased Sarah onto her back against the bed covers. The evening light through the window was muted, giving the room a quiet sense of surrender to the coming darkness. The gold of Sarah’s fine, silky hair as he ran his finger through the strands satisfied Wolf even more. Her eyes were lustrous with allure, and his body hardened in response.
“Sarah…” he rasped, cradling her cheek. “Honey, wait…”
Sarah’s hand skimmed Wolf’s bearded cheek. She took pleasure in his sweetly sleepy state. There was such unexpected vulnerability in him. “We’ve waited long enough,” she whispered.
Heart of the Wolf Page 20