by Terry Spear
She smiled up at him. “I didn’t think you’d come back. Everyone knew I was not myself when I returned. They tried to make me feel better, and I’d heard whisperings that folks figured I had fallen for the hot cougar who had taken me hostage.”
“You told them that?”
She snorted. “No. But it doesn’t take a brain surgeon to figure that out.” She tightened her hold on him. “I couldn’t stop thinking of you either. I swear I’ve been in a fog the last two weeks, worrying if you were okay, thinking you might not be because I never heard from you. Hoping you were running as a cougar like before and still trying to catch up to Butch, hoping you would take him down and not be injured again. Then you didn’t leave a message on my answering machine!”
“I’m undercover. I never leave messages.”
She shook her head. “If I say yes, will you promise me that if you get injured, you’ll listen to doctor’s orders?”
He just smiled and kissed her again. “I take that as a hot damn yes!”
“I didn’t think you’d ever ask.”
“You’ve made me the happiest cougar alive,” he said, sweeping her up in his arms and heading to the bedroom.
She loved that he was, that for the first time in their relationship, they would have the comfort of her soft mattress while making love. Although, she reminded herself of the last time she was in bed with him there and just how “hard” her mattress had become.
“I love you,” she said, kissing his cheek.
“I love you, Kate, with all my heart.”
He set her down on the floor next to the bed, and jerked the comforter aside, then began stripping her clothes off her as if she might change her mind about this. No way would she. She was struggling with his belt buckle in earnest, and he finally yanked it free, sat on the bed, and began removing one of his boots. She helped with the other, now wearing only her purple panties and bra. But he was way too dressed.
As soon as his feet were bare, she tackled him, sliding her body up his, licking his throat, her hands drawing his arms above his head, pinning him. His eyes were already dark with lust, his mouth curving up just a bit.
She rubbed her body against him, arousing him, his cock already rock hard beneath his jeans. Her blood was hot with the smell of his arousal, the scent of his pheromones doing a hot blooded tango with hers as she leaned in for a kiss.
He kissed her mouth, licked it, and drew her down for more. She slid her hands down his arms, releasing them, and he quickly took charge of the situation. He moved her onto her back, straddling her waist as he jerked off his shirt.
“Hmm,” she said, running her hands up his thighs. Ever since she’d washed his beautiful body in her shower when he’d been injured the first time, she couldn’t get his chiseled features out of her mind.
He rose on his knees and begin sliding his jeans down, then unable to get them off all the way, he moved off her to sit and pull them off.
He had them down to his ankles when she moved on top of him again, and he smiled at her, a wicked look that said he was going to pay her back. She rubbed her silk-covered mons against his briefs’ covered erection, her hands sliding up his torso, palming his nipples, enjoying the feel of them tightening against her skin.
She leaned down again and licked his smiling mouth. He was trying to kick off his jeans still caught at his ankles.
She nipped his mouth, one of her hands planted on his chest, the other reaching down to rub his erection. He stilled for a second, all but his cock that jumped under her strokes. He growled, tried more vigorously to kick off his pants, but when he couldn’t, he moved her onto her back, taking charge again.
She loved it, loved him, as he quickly yanked off his jeans. Before he realized what she was going to do, she tugged his briefs down, his fully engorged cock springing free. He growled and hurried to dispense with those before she took advantage and pinned him down again.
Then he was kissing her, stroking her tongue with his, and then pulling her to sit so he could unfasten her bra, and tossed it aside. Like a man with an important mission, he quickly dispensed with her panties. Then he covered her body with his, pressing his erection against her, showing her just how much he craved having her, how much she turned him on.
His scent and taste and touch and the sound of his soft growls filled her senses to overload as she ran her hands over his thighs and he began to stroke her naked nub.
She groaned in a happy and sexy way, loving the manner in which he drew her to the top of the world with his sweet and powerful strokes whether they were in a car wrecked to pieces in the middle of nowhere, a hastily-made lean-to under the wide-open night skies, in a sleeping bag built for two, or on her soft mattress—now…their bed.
She felt the climb all the way to the top as if she was running as cougar, leaping toward the sun. Then it hit all at once, the sunburst of joy, and she clung to him as she cried out in relief and bliss. He was entering her then, pushing his broad head between her folds, claiming her for his own.
Leyton meant it when he said Kate had made him the happiest cougar in the world. He had no doubt of that as he pushed slowly into her before he began to thrust, thinking of all the other times, but because they’d declared their commitment to each other now, that made this time all the more special. His blood was sizzling as he pumped into her, loving the way she moved against him, trying to draw him out, holding him tight in her wet grasp. She spread her legs further, her knees higher, allowing him deeper. Settling into the core of her, then pulling out again, he began to kiss her, their tongues touching and stroking and teasing, their breaths ragged.
He savored the taste of her warm mouth, sweet and wine flavored, the smell of their heated sex, the feel of her soft skin against his, and the sound of their accelerated heartbeats. Their senses were attuned to all things and the whole while they were making love, he’d been processing every one of them, all tantalizing him and making him savor the minutes.
He felt the climax coming, stilled himself, shaking, trying to hold onto the moment, then diving in, driving hard and fast and furious. He growled right before he released, and continued to thrust until he had fully come. He pulled out and began to stroke her again, feeling the tension in her body and seeing it in her face, before she groaned with release again.
He collapsed on his back and pulled her on top of him, and just lay there, wanting nothing more than to hold her close the whole night through.
“Shower, next time,” he said. “After you applied your doctoring skills in there when you were washing me, I’ve never been able to get it out of my mind.”
She laughed. “I’ll have you know, I don’t normally give my patients baths.”
He smiled. “Well, for a novice, Doc, you sure have magical hands.” Then he sighed, not wanting to leave Kate for anything, but he worried about Travis being on his own. “I’ve got to call Travis and let him know I’m coming home. I hate to leave you, but…”
“Understandable. With his leg in a cast, if Butch or his men come around the place, Travis has a big disadvantage.”
“I kind of doubt they’ll be coming into town to take us out with so many knowing who he is, but better be safe than sorry.”
“Agreed.”
“They’ll probably put me on the guard detail for Dottie, but wanted to wait another day for me to heal up a bit. Will you put in a good word for me with Dan?”
She groaned. “Leyton…”
“Come on. You know I can take the bastard down if he shows up at Dottie’s place.”
“What about the kids?”
Leyton shook his head. “I don’t want to do it in front of the kids, naturally. Or Dottie either. Just as I imagine no one wants to. It’s going to be a tough call. One minute, he was just a bad guy. Now he’s a dad with a couple of kids, even if he never raised them, and he’s as ruthless as they come? It just turns the once clear water a little murky. If I could have taken him down before, out in the wilderness, that would have been pe
rfect. But now? The bastard has been nothing but trouble. And he did kill my informant.”
“Oh, Leyton, you never told me that before.”
“I was undercover before. Now the whole sheriff’s office knows, including Dottie. He framed me, putting my fingerprints on the gun used to kill my informant. I still have to locate it.” He let out his breath, caressing her arm, loving the silky feel of her, the softness of her body pressed against his. “I didn’t think I’d ever love a woman the way that I love you.”
She took a deep breath of him and let it out. “I’ll say you can serve on guard duty, but only during the day. I want you either here, or with Travis at night. And you can only have short shifts. I don’t want you overdoing it.”
“But this is okay, right?” He leaned down to kiss her again.
She greedily accepted the kiss. “This is good for you. And for me.”
Then he made the call to Travis. “Hey, dude, I’m on my way back.”
“Don’t worry. You can stay there. I’ll be fine. Just getting ready to tuck myself in for the night.”
“No way. I’ll be over there in a few minutes.” He ended the call, groaned, and said, “I’ll be back before you begin your work day so we can have breakfast in the morning.” And he didn’t mean just omelets.
“What do you want to do about telling everyone we’re tying the knot?” she asked, rubbing her hand over his bare chest.
He smiled. “Tell them it’s a done deal. Quickie marriage, or the works. Your choice.”
“We’ll have the wedding here. The roses are in full bloom, and so are the rest of the flowers. We can rent a party tent and have it set up in the back parking lot, tables, cook the meals here. When do you want to do it?”
“Whenever you want, Kate. I’ll leave it all up to you.” Then he frowned a little. “Formal?”
“Absolutely. Only time I’ll ever get married, and I want you to wear something nice.”
“Okay, for you, I’ll do anything.” He got out of bed and got dressed, trying not to groan as his shoulder hurt all over again. He’d been so careful not to show how much it was paining him, but she was watching, and she most likely saw him wince.
She shook her head. “I’ll tell Dan you have two hours to watch Dottie, no more than that. And when you’re at home, I want you to get some rest.”
He smiled. “And then I’ll work off all that sleep over here.”
She got out of bed like a slinky cat and gave him a hug and kiss. “Wait, before you leave, I’ve got a key for you.” She fished a spare key out of her bedroom drawer. “See you in the morning. And sleep well.”
“Thinking of you? I will.”
Then he hurried back to his car. If he hadn’t had so many groceries to carry, he would have just walked over from his place. Next time he would.
He headed back to his place, thinking it wouldn’t really be “his” place, except as an office. They’d have to hire a couple of new agents too to help with workload in the area. Even though he was thinking about what he’d wear to the wedding, who he’d invite, the boss, Travis, he was still watching out for any signs of trouble, Butch or any of his men lurking about.
He saw nobody, thankfully, and entered the house a few minutes later, saying, “She’s mine.”
Travis groaned. “Hell, Leyton, you woke me up to tell me that? I could have told you that before you even decided it.”
“I had decided it. I had to let the doc decide if she was ready.”
“Congratulations. Long wait for the wedding?”
“I doubt it. She’s making all the arrangements. We need to get us a couple of tuxes. And I need to call Chuck and tell him to drop everything and be ready for the wedding.”
“I’m ready. What about this place? You won’t be staying here then.”
“The house is the field office, and it’s yours otherwise. We need to sell our houses, move our stuff, so we still have our work cut out for us. How are you doing?”
“Been better. I was sleeping.”
Leyton smiled. “Okay, off to bed.”
“You really didn’t need to come home and leave her behind, you know.”
“Yeah, I did. I’ll be leaving early in the morning to have breakfast with Kate.”
Travis smiled. “Sure wish Chuck would have sent me on the job instead.”
* * *
Three weeks later, the wedding was all planned. Kate hadn’t wanted to wait that long, and neither had Leyton, but he was being super patient, staying with Travis at night after Leyton and she had made love, so he could watch out for him in case Butch came back to kill his witnesses off. Butch had to know that Leyton and Travis would be back on his trail, together this time, as soon as both of them were completely healed. Travis was doing great, the walking cast off, and he was walking without a limp now. Leyton had a little shoulder stiffness, but their faster healing abilities had really helped in healing him up more quickly. They were going to begin searching for Butch again after the wedding and Leyton and her camping trip honeymoon, so that was a little dark cloud on the horizon that she tried not to think of too much.
Everyone had become so involved in the wedding preparations and were so enthusiastic, she felt she had become the queen of Yuma Town. But she loved them and was glad to have some joyful tidings, because everyone was still on edge with not knowing if Butch was going to return to see his kids and Dottie. The worry was that he might try to grab them and run. But he had to know they’d catch him then.
Tomorrow was the big day. And then she and Leyton were off to make that camping trip really memorable.
She had just finished rounds and was headed home, expecting Leyton to arrive about an hour later. He always gave her time to unwind, which she appreciated, before he came over for supper, making it or helping her to prepare it.
It was still light out when she made her way through the gardens, her ever blooming roses just as beautiful as earlier in the summer and they’d be just perfect for the wedding tomorrow. Leyton has said he wasn’t going to make love to her tonight, because he wanted to give her the night to relax and prepare herself for the big town event of the year tomorrow. But she knew Leyton better. At least she thought she did as she unlocked the back door, walked inside, closed, and locked her door.
She headed for the kitchen to get a glass of orange juice. As she approached it, she saw a man reflected in the mirror hanging in the dining room. Jeffrey Brown, or Butch Sanders—there was no mistaking him even if he had changed appearance since the last time she’d seen him.
Her heart was beating a hundred miles a second as she whipped around to return to the back door, unlock it, and run off screaming. She prayed he didn’t realize she’d seen his reflection, but he was looking straight at the mirror and must have caught hers too. She was glad she left Sheba at the clinic for the big day tomorrow, afraid she’d get stepped on with all the traffic there would be in the house.
She ran for the door, but he was on her in a heartbeat. She screamed, and he took her to the floor, pinning her arm behind her back, his voice snarled. “I don’t want to hurt you, Kate. But I need you to call Dottie for me and have her bring the kids over. You’ll do it without alerting anyone I’m here, do you understand?”
She nodded, feeling the muscle strain in her arm and shoulder where he was pushing her arm up so severely.
“Okay. I’ve got a gun, and I don’t want you making any false moves, warning anyone, or else your wedding day with that damn cougar Leyton will be your funeral he’ll be attending instead.”
She nodded, trying to think of what to do. She was afraid Butch would kill her too, if nothing more than to prove to Leyton he had no power to stop him. She was wracking her brain on what to say to Dottie that would clue her in to stay away. And then what? She’d have to wing it.
But then Leyton would be on his way over and Butch would kill him for sure. Why hadn’t she smelled the bastard in her house already? Hunter’s spray. Had to be.
Butch let her up
, but as soon as she was standing, her phone rang. She glanced up at Butch’s hard face, more gaunt now, his eyes brown, but she could see they were contacts, the roots of his hair blond while the rest was dyed brown.
“Get it, but put it on speaker.” He glanced at the caller I.D. and snorted. “Lover boy. Maybe you should just tell him to come right on over.”
She knew she couldn’t. She had to warn him that she was in trouble. If Butch killed her, well, she was really trying hard not to think of worse-case scenarios, but she wanted to give Leyton a chance to take this bastard down.
She answered the phone, putting it on speaker. That might clue Leyton in that something was wrong. She never did that. In fact, the only time she did was the time that Leyton had made her do it when Dan had called her that one day. But Dan had never realized she had been held hostage. She had to be careful, but not so much that Leyton couldn’t figure it out.
“Hey, Leyton, listen, Dottie’s coming over with her kids. We’ve got some final wedding plan stuff we wanted to discuss. Since you weren’t going to stay the night anyway, why don’t we just see each other for the big day, okay?”
Leyton hesitated to respond, and she was sweating out that he was going to ask her if something was wrong and then the gig would be up.
“Ah, hell, Kate. All right. The guys had asked if I wanted to do one last bachelor fun night out and I said I’d make it later after supper, but that’ll work for me. I’ll just give them a call and tell them there’s been a change of plans. I’ll just see you tomorrow at the wedding. I just want you to know—I love you. And I’ll always be there for you no matter the difficulties.”
“I—“ She had to say something more. Leyton had rattled off too long. She couldn’t believe he’d just plan to go out with the guys. Damn it. But Butch gave her the kill sign, hand slicing across his throat, telling her in no uncertain terms to end the call. She thought of not telling Leyton she loved him, in case that might clue him in. But then she decided she couldn’t do it. Not when it might be the last time she could say it to him. “I love you, Leyton. Have fun.”
