by Francis Ray
* * *
Rio thinks it’s my fault. Skylar was miserable. During the drive she kept her face averted. She had bought it all on herself by trying to entice Rio. What must he think of her?
As soon as the Jeep stopped in front of the castle doors, she got out. One of Rio’s men was there to open the front door. “I’m glad you’re all right, Skylar.”
“Thank you,” she murmured, her head down as she continued toward the stairs, very aware that, although she couldn’t hear him on the carpet-covered risers, Rio was behind her.
She didn’t stop until she reached her bedroom door. She drew upon her fledging courage and slowly lifted her gaze to his. It had to be said.
At least he wasn’t looking through her any longer. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause any problems. I just wanted you to stop looking at me as if I didn’t exist.”
The tears glistening in her beautiful eyes make his insides clench. He pulled her to him, his cheek resting against the top of her head. “Don’t. It’s not your fault some bastard can’t accept a no! You’re safe. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“I—I thought you were angry with me.” She gripped handfuls of his shirt.
“I was angry at the man who scared you.” Feeling his resistance weakening, he slowly stepped away from temptation and dropped his hands to his sides.
Staring up at him, her fingers uncurled. She sent him a watery smile.
His hands clenched and flexed to keep from pulling her into his arms again. “Go to sleep. If you get scared, just call.”
She looked up at him through a sweep of her thick eyelashes. “Can I call you if I’m not afraid?”
Frustrated by her unwavering persistence, he shoved his hand over his head. “Why can’t you let it go?”
“Because I’ve watched you for two years.” She grinned. “I’m tired of watching and ready to do some touching.”
Despite the situation, Rio threw back his head and laughed. The next instant, her arms were around his neck, her hazel eyes staring up at him and sparkling with happiness.
“I’ve always wanted to hear you laugh, among other things.”
He sobered. His hands anchored her small waist. “I’m not a forever kind of man.”
“I know that,” she said. “I’m not asking for forever. I just want to be there for you now.”
No woman and few men had ever affected him so deeply, been so unselfish. I just want to be there for you now.
“You ever heard of kissing it to make it feel better?” she asked.
“Go to bed, Skylar.”
Her smile trembled. “Hearing you say my name helped make me not so scared. I’m glad you were there in the control booth.”
His hands flexed on her waist. “I was monitoring the car’s movement.”
She grinned. “You were?”
His finger grazed her nose. “It doesn’t take that long to eat dinner unless…”
She placed her hand on his wide, muscular chest. “Not ever going to happen. I was waiting for you.”
“And rebuffing men.”
She shrugged. “They weren’t you.”
He shook his dark head. “This is not going to happen.”
“We’ll see. Good night, Rio, and thanks for coming for me.” The door closed. For a long time, Rio stood there with a wistful look on his face. On the other side of the door, Skylar was smiling.
* * *
The next morning Rio found a small envelope stuck to his door. Even before opening the thick vellum paper and pulling out the note card with Skylar’s name, he’d known it was from her.
Good morning. I hope your schedule is free to have breakfast with me at eight thirty, lunch at one. We’ll go from there.
Skylar
He should just write BUSY on the envelope and leave it outside her door. He couldn’t. With Skylar’s soft heart, he’d hurt her. He stopped in front of her door. She was wealthy and cultured with a lineage that could be traced back several generations. He had no idea who his parents were. She was outgoing; he kept to himself unless he was with Blade or Shane. They didn’t have anything in common.
It didn’t seem to matter. There was this awareness between them. He might have been able to resist her, if not for last night. Thinking of her being frightened and alone sent fresh rage shooting through him.
The door opened. Skylar stood there. Her eyes widened in surprise, then her gaze ran over him like silent fingers. Her head lifted. She wore a scarlet-colored dress and looked much too tempting. “Good morning, Rio. I see you got my note.”
She wasn’t for him. “I might—”
She held up both hands, effectively stopping him. “Don’t tell me that after my harrowing night you’re going to refuse my invitation?”
His brow lifted. She looked beautiful, happy, and ready to take on the world. He crossed his arms. “That’s beneath you.”
She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “A woman’s gotta do what a woman’s gotta do.”
Before he thought better of it, he reached out and swept his hand over her hair. This morning it was unbound and flowing down her back, and it felt like strands of silk. “You’re not going to let it get you down, huh?”
“It would give whoever it was too much power.” Shutting her door, she stepped closer. “Besides, it did something I couldn’t do.”
His hand dropped. “Skylar, this is not going anyplace.”
“We’ll see.” She hooked her arm through his. “We’re about an hour early, but I’m a pretty good cook.”
He found himself going down the stairs with her. “Why are you up so early?”
She tossed him a grin. “Waiting for you to pass. I wasn’t sure you’d accept.”
He stopped in the middle of the foyer. “I always meet my men for a report first thing each morning.”
“I just thought of something. You live here, but where do the other men stay?” she inquired.
“In the barn.”
“Barn!” she yelped, staring up at him with disbelief.
His lips twitched at the indignation in her face. She really did have a soft heart. “Converted barn, I should have said. You should know Blade treats his employees well.”
She looked abashed before recovering. “Maybe I could follow you and have breakfast with you there.”
“Off limits to women,” he informed her. “Although Sierra has tried. Not even she has been inside.”
Skylar glanced up at him with a grin. “Man cave, huh?”
“It suits its purpose.”
“I’ll bet.”
He wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not. “How did you know not to keep going?”
“Training.”
He paused on the landing. “It wasn’t in your record.”
She stuck her tongue in her cheek. “Told you you might have missed something.”
Rio lifted a brow at the impossibility of that.
Skylar rolled her eyes. “All right. My maternal grandmother’s purse was snatched when I was twelve. She was angrier than a wet hen and determined she’d never be vulnerable again. Uncle Joshua, my mother’s bother, was home on leave from the navy. He taught her and my mother self-defense. I went with them and kept on learning. That’s why it wasn’t on any of my records. We trained quietly at home.”
“Joshua is in the Secret Service now, and for a while so was his daughter,” Rio said. “I’m sorry for her loss.”
Skylar pulled her arms free and tucked her head. “We were all devastated.”
He wanted to take the grief from her eyes. “Your family is very close.”
Her head lifted. “Is there anything about me and my immediate family that you don’t know?”
“It seems I know plenty about you.”
“A woman likes to have some secrets.” On tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek. “Is twenty minutes enough time for you to be back for breakfast?”
They both knew he hadn’t accepted. She was looking at him again as if
he were the only man on the planet. “Make it thirty.”
She grinned. “I’d kiss you again, but I don’t want to push my luck. See you in thirty.”
He could have stopped the kiss if he’d wanted. That was the problem. He wanted her and, each time he saw her, the wanting increased. He’d have breakfast with her because she’d been through so much. She might appear soft, but Skylar had a hint of steel in her spine.
He watched her until she disappeared, then headed for his men’s quarters. He had a job to do.
* * *
Skylar didn’t sigh or throw up her hands or pout when Rio returned with his stoic face firmly in place. She hadn’t thought it would be easy.
“Please have a seat.” She motioned to the chair beside hers. There were two place settings side by side.
He pulled out her chair. “Thank you.” She took her seat and waited until he sat beside her. Tucking her head, she said grace and then placed a huge omelet on his plate. There was already a steaming cup of coffee and a glass of orange juice for him. “How did the report go?”
“Fine.”
Skylar picked up her fork. “Is there anything else you’d like me to get for you?”
“No, thank you.”
Skylar quietly ate her breakfast, determined to act as normally as possible. “Over half of the items are already here. By next Tuesday, everything will be in place and we’ll have the other three days to make sure everything is ready.”
“Yes.”
She wasn’t giving up. “What day will Sierra and Blade return?”
“Next Friday.”
She tried to think of a question that couldn’t be answered with one word. She smiled and leaned over to whisper in his ear, making sure he’d feel her warm breath on his skin. “What would you do if I got up from my chair, slid into your lap, put my mouth on yours, my arms around your neck, and kissed you until my head swam? Shall I find out?”
He went still. His hand on his fork clenched.
Skylar couldn’t be sure, but she thought his breathing accelerated. Hers certainly had. She was seriously considering biting his earlobe when he abruptly rose to his feet.
His nostrils flared as if he was having trouble drawing in air. “Thanks for breakfast. I’ll be outside.”
“I’ll be there shortly.” Rather pleased with herself, Skylar sipped her juice. Rio didn’t run from anything or anyone, but he’d certainly made a quick exit. He wasn’t as disinterested as he pretended.
“You can run, Rio, but you can’t hide. I’m coming after you and, what’s more, you’re going to like it. Eventually.”
Chapter 5
Rio wasn’t having a good day. Thus far, Dakota hadn’t come up with anything on the car. He was headed out the door on another call and would talk to Rio when he and Skylar came in that afternoon.
The clear, husky sound of Skylar’s laughter was like a prod to Rio’s back. Arms crossed, he kept staring toward the driveway for the next delivery. For a woman as delicate and cultured as Skylar, her laugh was bedroom-husky. It made a man’s mind wander where it shouldn’t.
“Skylar, you’re a mess,” Conner exclaimed, his laughter joining hers.
Rio refused to look over at the happy trio. Henderson was there with them. Skylar had enough sense and was woman enough not to try to make him jealous. She was just being her usual friendly self. In Tucson, she’d donated time and money to a women’s shelter. She’d flown home last year on Christmas morning because she’d helped with shopping and wrapping presents for the women and children staying there. The twenty-foot fully decorated tree in the front room had been from her. She cared about people.
She’d just picked the wrong one this time. I’ve watched you for two years. I’m ready to do a little touching. He’d laughed last night. He wasn’t laughing now. Skylar was proving to be more tempting than he had anticipated.
“Rio, I see the last delivery truck. We can make our one o’clock appointment,” she said cheerfully.
He straightened and looked at her. “I can’t make it. We’ll leave at one thirty to go see Dakota.”
Her hazel eyes narrowed. Her chin lifted. “Of course.” She came to her feet and turned to Conner and Henderson. “Time to get back to work, gentlemen.”
Both men saluted her. Rio walked from beneath the tent to meet the driver. Skylar was not going to get to him.
Five minutes later he wasn’t so sure about the delivery driver. He couldn’t seem to keep his eyes off Skylar. Usually she stayed beneath the tent and waited for Rio or one his men to bring the packages to the unpacking table. This time she was there when the man brought out the first box. He actually stopped in his tracks.
“Thank you.”
Seemingly oblivious to the man’s stare, she took the small box from his hands and went to the unpacking table.
“We’d like to get this done this year,” Conner said.
The man jerked as if coming out of a trance. “Yeah. Sorry.”
Conner and Henderson loaded their dollies and wheeled them back to the table. Skylar, ignoring Rio, unpacked the diamond-and-ruby brooch. “This is exquisite.”
Not as exquisite as you, Rio thought, and turned to help unload the dolly. They were almost finished when the driver approached with another box.
“This is the last one.”
“Thank you.” Skylar smiled at the man. “Would you like something to drink while we open these?”
“I’d appreciate it.” The man looked as if he’d just won the lottery. He stepped forward and Rio reached for the box. The man’s gaze met his. The driver’s eyes widened. He stumbled back. The box slipped from his hands.
Rio caught the package and mentally cursed. He knew his expression was ice-cold and dangerous. He also knew the reason he looked that way.
“Ah, sorry.” The man wiped his now sweaty face. “I think I’ll pass on the drink.”
There was absolute quiet as the packages were opened. Rio called out the items to Skylar, and she checked them off the master list. After the driver signed, Rio gave the man a large tip and handed him a cold bottle of water. He swallowed, took the money and water, nodded, and rushed back to his truck.
When Rio looked around, Skylar was gone.
* * *
“Where is Ms. Dupree?”
Mary, the cook, jumped and swung around from the kitchen sink, her hand going to her heart. Seeing it was Rio, she still looked ready to bolt.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” He really didn’t like frightening people unless he meant to.
Mary slowly lowered her hand. “That’s all right. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Have you seen Ms. Dupree?” he asked again. He’d expected her to come out after she finished her lunch. He’d gone to the men’s quarters and checked in with Blade.
“She’s gone.”
“Gone where?” he asked, barely managing to keep his voice even and non-threatening.
Mary shook her dark head. “She just said she had business in town and that I didn’t have to cook lunch or dinner for her.”
She wouldn’t, he thought, but he was already moving to his Jeep because he knew she would go to meet Dakota without him. He spoke into the wrist radio. “Where’s Skylar’s car?”
“Five miles from here, headed north into town,” came the answer from the control room.
Two of his men had gone to retrieve her car last night. He hadn’t thought to tell them not to let her leave unless he was with her. Opening the front door, he rushed toward his Jeep. He wouldn’t underestimate her again, but neither should she underestimate him.
* * *
Skylar followed the policeman to Dakota’s office. She would show Rio that she didn’t need to depend on him or any other man. She’d been taught to be the perfect hostess for her husband, but never subservient to him. The nerve of him trying to scare the poor deliveryman half to death after ignoring her all morning. She’d show him!
“Here it is, Ms. Dupree,” the young
officer said. “The chief is expecting you.”
“Thank you.” She knocked on the half-glass door.
“Come in,” said a male voice.
Skylar opened the door and saw the police chief rise from his chair behind a neat desk. She extended her hand. “Chief, it’s—” She whirled around to see Rio leaning against a file cabinet. “What are you doing here?”
He straightened and came to within a foot of her. “I told Dakota we’d be here.”
“I’m perfectly capable of being interviewed without you. Thank you, but you can leave.”
Rio looked at Dakota, who leaned against the front of his desk, his lips twitching. He was glad someone found the situation amusing. “The chief might have a question or two for me.”
This was not working out the way she’d planned. “You weren’t the one being followed.”
Anger glinted in his dark eyes. “I was the one you called.”
She knew the anger wasn’t directed at her, but at whoever had been in the SUV. “Because I knew the police would respond quicker to you than to me.” The words were barely out of her mouth before she realized she might have insulted the police chief. He and Rio seemed to be on good terms. She glared at Rio for making her speak without thinking and faced the police chief. To the man’s credit, he still wore that patient expression he’d had on last night and when she’d just now entered his office.
“Chief Rodriquez, I didn’t mean to disparage your department,” Skylar told him. “However, if I had called the 911 operator, he or she would have wanted to be sure I wasn’t imagining things, ask questions about the car, the reason I might be followed, before dispatching a police car. I was one signal light away from the last one out of town. I made the call that would get help the fastest.”
“The right one, as it turned out.” Dakota motioned to a chair in front of his desk. “Please have a seat.”
She looked from Rio to the door.
“Not happening,” he said flatly.
If Blade couldn’t intimidate Rio, she certainly couldn’t. She took a seat. She sensed him moving to stand just behind her. “Have you been able to find out anything more?” she asked.
Irritation flashed across the policeman’s face. “Unfortunately, not much. As you said, the car went down a side street. One of my men questioned the valets at the restaurant, and none recalls getting an SUV after you left.”