Invoking common sense didn’t help at all, she found. Every part of her wanted what he promised—this moment and the completion it dangled before her like a long-desired gift.
He moved one hand, sliding it behind her, caressing the small of her back, exerting the tiniest bit of pressure to propel her forward.
“And then what?” she asked softly. “There’s always tomorrow to be faced.” Sadness boiled up in her from deep inside. She wanted more than a moment. She wanted tomorrow and the next day and the next….
“Shh.” His lips brushed her hair, her temple, her cheek.
She couldn’t hold her lashes up. They were too heavy. She let her eyes close. He kissed them and her nose, her temple.
Against her hands, she felt his chest lift in a deep breath. A low, throaty sound of male need caressed her ears as he exhaled. Seemingly of their own volition, her hands slipped upward, removing the barrier between them. She wrapped them around his shoulders.
Flashes of heat lightning fused them together, her breasts against his chest. Willpower, good sense, caution went up in flames. She gave a little sob and sought his lips.
He positioned his head, letting her mouth touch his, then he opened his lips and gave her the kiss she yearned for.
It was as if they became locked in mortal combat. He moved his hands restlessly over her body. She did the same, striving to become closer and closer. But each new hold was ultimately unsatisfying.
There was only one closeness that would take away the painful hunger that racked them both, she realized…and fill the emptiness that had lived in her for years.
She moaned when his lips left hers. He kissed the hollow below her ear, then moved swiftly down her neck. He pushed her shirt collar aside and nuzzled her throat, then his hot, wet kisses burned a trail down the V opening to the first button.
He hesitated, but when she said nothing, he reached between them with one hand and flicked the button free. Then another. And another. His lips followed his hands.
At her waist, he pulled the cotton loose from her jeans. She clung to his shoulders when he slipped his hands up her back. The release of her bra caused strange sensations, like Fourth of July sparklers going off inside.
With her eyes closed, she experienced the removal of her clothing through the sense of feel—the whisper of cloth on flesh as the shirt was pushed off her shoulders and down her arms, the lighter sensation, like an echo, when he whisked the bra away.
And then the breathless anticipation as he bent his head toward her. He kissed her breasts, first one, then the other.
A shudder went through him.
She cradled his head against her and stroked through the thick, black waves of his hair, loving the tactile pleasure of touching him.
When he ran his tongue over her hardened nipple, she gasped aloud at the intense pleasure. “It’s been so long,” she murmured, her voice breaking as her senses were overwhelmed.
“Forever,” he breathed against her. He drew spirals over her with his tongue, leaving a hot trail of moist desire behind.
He lavished attention on her breasts until she was weak in the knees. “I can’t stand up,” she murmured, clinging to him as her legs trembled uncontrollably.
She felt his arms close around her thighs. He lifted her from the floor, stepped up the remaining stair and proceeded into the bedroom. He laid her on the velour blanket and followed, lying half over her, his thigh nestled between hers.
“It hurts,” she whispered, “to want…like this….” She moved her head restlessly back and forth against the blanket.
He slipped his hand into the hair at her temple and held her still. His eyes as he gazed into hers were haunted by visions she could only guess at. She clamped her teeth into her lower lip, wondering if he would leave her.
Then slowly…slowly…he lowered his head until their lips came together once more. She met the kiss with trembling ardor, eager for his touch. His tongue slipped between her lips, and he stroked her mouth until she responded with wanton demands of her own.
Wildfire enveloped her, and she moaned with ecstasy. He released her mouth and spoke against her lips.
“When you do that…when you moan and let me know how much you want me, it drives me to the wall, right to the wall. I want you, too, but you can tell that, can’t you? A man can’t hide his needs the way a woman can.”
Her heart went all jumpy and nervous in her chest. She knew if they didn’t stop now, they would make love…and then it would be too late to stop.
Too late?
It was already too late. A sob broke through the yearning. She felt his surprise when she wrapped her arms around him and went wild in his arms…simply wild.
She stroked and caressed with her hands and her body, moving against him until every part of her had been touched by him. She heard the whimpering demands that escaped from her parted lips and didn’t care. It had been too long, much, much too long.
Through the red haze of wild hunger, she heard him murmuring to her. “Easy, love, easy. We have plenty of time, hours and hours of time.”
But the fierceness that glittered from under his half-closed lashes matched the ardor that consumed her.
“Now,” she demanded. “Come to me now.”
He drew a ragged breath, then cupped her face with one hand and settled his lips on hers again. He moved over her, rubbing his body against hers through the clothing that separated them. She tore frantically at his shirt until she had it open. He lowered his weight on his arms until his chest pressed like a solid sheet of fire against hers.
She closed her eyes again as savage heat poured over her and held on to him as tightly as she could.
All the bright dreams of her youth rose inside her, demanding notice, seeking satisfaction. No, no, she didn’t believe in those anymore…but it would be easy…so easy to fall into those gentle delusions once more…so very easy….
“You’re beautiful,” he murmured over and over to her. “No other woman does this to me…makes me forget everything but the moment…makes me so wild I’d die before I let you go….”
“Yes,” she whispered, barely hearing his words over the roar in her ears. “Oh, please…”
When his hand settled between their bodies, she twisted to the side to give him room. He unfastened the snap and zipper of her jeans. She held her breath as he slipped a hand inside, sliding under the lace band of her French bikinis, and caressed her abdomen.
“Judd,” she said with a sigh. She ran her hands under his shirt and stroked all along his back, then pulled him hard against her.
“I’ve dreamed of doing this,” he admitted harshly. “Every minute of every day. Thoughts of you tag along with me no matter what I’m doing. I think of your skin—how smooth it is, how pale, as pale as milk, and soft…so soft.”
He pushed lower, cupping her mound in his palm. He stroked her intimately, causing her to murmur and writhe as the terrible need drove her toward completion with him.
“Come to me,” she demanded. “Please, love, come to me.”
He took a deep breath and pushed up from her with a powerful thrust of his arms. She opened her eyes and looked at him. Their gazes locked as he stood and tossed the loosened shirt aside. His hands went to his belt, but his eyes never left hers.
She waited anxiously, afraid it was all a dream, that she was going to wake and the moment disappear.
The telephone rang instead.
They both jumped. Judd cursed, low and eloquent. He glanced at the phone in irritation.
“I have to answer,” he said.
She nodded.
He picked up the instrument and spoke his name, then listened. “Yeah,” he said. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
The magic evaporated. A shiver passed over her. She sat up and crossed her arms over her chest.
“There’s been a bad car accident. The hospital needs blood. I have to go.” He reached down, picked up his shirt and pulled it on, fastening it with angry,
impatient movements.
She looked around for her own clothing.
He brought her shirt and bra to her. “Will you stay?”
His voice was so low she had to strain to hear it. She hesitated, one part of her desperately wanting to say yes, another part glad of the reprieve and a chance to regain her senses.
She shook her head. “I think I’d better go.”
A stark expression flickered over his face and was gone. He nodded. “I’ll drop you by your place on the way.”
“Do you think…should I go to the hospital? If they need blood…” she added at his quick glance.
He shrugged. “I suppose.”
She slid from the bed and, with her back to him, pulled the undergarment on. She heard his footsteps behind her, then on the stairs.
“I’ll meet you at the truck,” he called over his shoulder.
“Fine.” She finished with her clothing and ran quickly down the steps and outside. Judd waited in the truck, the motor running, the lights on, ready to go. She ran across the lawn and climbed in.
He turned the police lights on, but not the siren as he took Route 17 to Highway 191, which ran by the county hospital.
When they reached the hospital, she saw two ambulances already at the emergency entrance. Another could be seen in the distance, coming north on the highway, its siren wailing through the night.
She followed Judd inside.
Sterling McCallum was there, talking to a doctor. When Sterling moved aside, she recognized the sharp profile of Kane Hunter. She’d known Kane on the reservation. He was a couple of years younger than she was and completely dedicated to healing.
“What happened?” Judd asked when he came abreast of the two men. He left enough room for her to join the group.
“Drag racing,” Sterling replied. “The cars sideswiped. One flipped over, the other crossed the median into oncoming traffic.”
“Kids,” Judd concluded.
Sterling nodded. “Drinking. Whites and Indians.”
Kane muttered under his breath. Tracy felt his frustration with his tribal members in particular and with youth in general. He ran an alcohol-prevention program on the reservation. “Can you guys donate some blood? We’re going to need a lot.”
Tracy said yes when the other two did.
“Hello, Tracy,” Kane said. A smile warmed his face momentarily. “I knew you were back, but I haven’t had time to look you up yet. It’s good to see you again.”
They had no chance to talk more. The third ambulance arrived and delivered its load of injured. Kane, head of the trauma team, went to check on a youth who looked about seventeen. Blood was all over him. A girl was helped out of the front of the vehicle. She held a compress to her head.
A hand closed over Tracy’s wrist. “This way,” Judd said.
A nurse took them along a corridor to another room. With quiet efficiency, she checked their vital signs, then settled them in reclining chairs rather like those in a dentist’s office. In a few minutes, Tracy and the two men were hooked up.
Other people arrived as the news spread over the town grapevine. When Sterling was done, another donor took his place at once. Tracy smiled as she recognized her old friend.
“Tracy, Judd,” Jackson Hawk greeted them. His dark eyes flashed from one to the other. “Everyone is turning out for the emergency, I see.”
Tracy felt heat creep into her cheeks. She sensed that Jackson saw much more. She had assumed everyone in the emergency room would be too busy to notice that she’d arrived at the hospital with Judd, but that was probably wishful thinking. In a small town like Whitehorn, the hospital staff would just file the information away until they got a chance to comment on it.
When she and Judd had separated before the divorce, the news had spread like a flash fire. Telephones had started ringing minutes after he’d packed and walked out the door.
“Okay, you’re finished,” the nurse announced. She removed the needle, pressed cotton and a bandage over the vein and cautioned Tracy about sitting up too quickly.
When she and Judd left the room, they went into the cafeteria, where orange juice, coffee and cookies were laid out for the donors to replenish their fluids and blood sugar. Other people—family members and those who couldn’t give blood—were there, too. As in the past, an emergency drew the county together.
Tracy remembered coming to this room for cup after cup of coffee while the surgical team tried to save Thadd. The town had turned out for them, too.
Several people called to them. She stopped and talked to former neighbors she hadn’t seen in years. A cup of juice was pressed into her hand. She glanced into dark eyes that observed her closely, but without discernible emotion.
“Thank you,” she said to Judd. She quickly drank the juice down as a slight dizziness washed over her. She wasn’t sure the dizzy spell was from the drop in her blood pressure or from the way Judd looked at her. The moment passed.
When he walked off, Tracy watched him go, aware of a tug at her heartstrings. He was silent, as attentive as ever…and wary.
She understood the latter. They were daily becoming more entangled in the hot caldron of mutual desire. She was aware of him as she moved about the room, chatting with acquaintances and finally sitting to eat a piece of cake with Lily Mae Wheeler.
“That Judd,” Lily Mae said in approval. “He’s a rare type of man, he is.” She sighed, then glanced at Tracy from the corner of her eyes. “I didn’t see that little blue car you drive in the parking lot.”
“I rode over with Judd,” Tracy admitted, giving Lily Mae a bland, innocent look.
“Working late, weren’t you?”
Tracy refrained from telling the friendly, nosy widow where to get off. “Um,” she said noncommittally, not wanting to tell an outright lie. She patted back a yawn and realized how tired she was. She glanced around the crowded room.
Judd was talking to two couples, one Anglo, the other Indian. Parents of the injured teenagers, she assumed. They looked ravaged by despair and anger brought on by the helplessness of the situation. She knew the feeling.
“He’s a handsome man,” Lily Mae continued. “Some woman is sure to nab him soon.”
Tracy forced a smile. “He’s not a stray dog to be taken in and made a pet of.”
“No, he’s more like a mustang, smart and wary as they come. But he could be roped in by a sharp woman. He’s lonely…and he’s a man, the type who feels responsible for his partner. If he were lured into bed, he’d marry the woman…if that’s what she wanted. Oh, there’s the new teacher. Have you met her?” Lily Mae stood.
“No,” Tracy said. “I think I’ll head home.”
She saw Sterling McCallum going toward the door. Maybe she could hitch a ride. She asked Lily Mae to tell Judd she was leaving, bade the woman good-night and rushed for the door.
“Sterling,” she called, racing down the steps and across the drive to catch him before he left.
He paused at his car.
“Could I get a ride home?” She steadied herself with a hand on the vehicle. Running had made her dizzy.
“Be careful,” he cautioned. “It’ll take a few hours to build your blood volume back up.”
“Yes, I keep forgetting. It’s been awhile since I was a donor.” She smiled at him. “I’m okay now. Do you have time to drop me by the cottage?”
His hesitation was brief. “Sure. Hop in.” He opened the door for her.
She felt like a criminal sneaking away from the crime scene as they reached the highway and accelerated. A few minutes later he was pulling up at the cottage.
“Jessica wants to know if you’ll come out for supper tomorrow night—”
“Oh, I just remembered. I’m supposed to go to Jackson’s house. I’ve never met his wife.”
“Um, I think Jessica was going to call them, too. Let me check with her.”
“Okay. Thanks for the ride.” She jumped out as soon as he stopped. With a wave over her shoulder, she das
hed for the house.
Once inside, she locked the dead bolt behind her. She felt as if she’d just returned from combat. And was lucky to be back in one piece.
She washed and changed into her pajamas and robe, then sat on the sofa in the living room and turned the lamp off. In the dark, she contemplated the evening just past. She wasn’t in one piece, she realized. She’d lost her heart to that wild mustang, the sheriff of Whitehorn County.
Tracy stood in the council office, a cup of coffee in her hand. Frank Many Horses—Uncle Frank to her—was seated at his desk. They were discussing the case.
“So you don’t think the bones belonged to an Indian?” the tribal chairman asked, frowning thoughtfully at her.
“Well, I can’t be positive,” she admitted. “The thigh bone has a slight twist to it, which indicates Caucasian rather than Mongoloid, which usually has more of a twist. But those are generalities.”
“Jackson tells me you could do DNA tests?”
She nodded.
“The parents are anxious to find out if the bones belong to their son. He disappeared fifteen years ago.”
“If I can find the skull, I’ll be able to tell more without running tests.”
“They will pay,” Frank Many Horses added. “Their son’s remains, if it is their son, must have a proper burial.”
“Kane can take blood samples from the parents to check against the sample from the marrow of the bones,” Jackson interjected. “If you will approve the tests.”
“Of course,” she murmured.
She stayed another thirty minutes out of courtesy and spoke of trivialities such as the weather, which was threatening rain. Jackson accompanied her outside to her car when she left.
“Jessica called Maggie and asked if we would come to her house tonight for dinner rather than trying to have a cookout. She said Sterling had already invited you.”
“Yes, he mentioned it at the hospital last night.”
“Good. Sterling said to tell you Judd would pick you up this evening around seven. Okay?”
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