Shirley, who was several inches taller than Carrigan, stepped up to the camera. “She’s not crazy. I’ve worked with her for three years, and she’s a dedicated animal rights advocate.”
“Today she went too far. And she’s going to pay.”
The journalist returned to the screen. “CBA News did investigate, and Ms. Wunder has been cited on several occasions for trespassing.”
Addie let out a sound of abject frustration. “They’re making me out to be the bad guy! And Carrigan’s playing the victim!”
“Trespassing?” Risk asked.
“How do you think I verify a claim of animal abuse? I have to check it out.” She shook her phone. “I’m very careful. And I’m not crazy, I’m … motivated.”
He put his hands on her shoulders. “When you put yourself out there, you have to face criticism. That one big, well-known organization has a lot of supporters, but they have a lot of detractors, too. Hell, you can hardly do anything online these days without being rated or liked or whatever.”
His hands felt good on her, comforting and strong. “Do you think I’m crazy?” she asked.
“It doesn’t matter what I think. You believe in what you’re doing.”
She plucked his hands from her. “You do think I’m crazy.”
He appeared to be mildly amused at her indignation, which just made her more annoyed.
“I wouldn’t say ‘crazy.’ More like …” He scratched his chin and seemed to search for the right words. “Dogged, with a side of over-the-edge.”
“Hmph.”
Her phone rang, Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life” pounding out of the speaker. “My father’s ringtone.”
“Ah, yes, I see the connection.”
“The song reminds me to stand up to him. But I don’t want to talk to him right now. He saw the news. He’s going to yell at me.”
Risk curled his fingers in a gimme gesture. She thought she might love him right then and there. Well, not love-love.
“Yes, sir. This is Risk … She’s fine. She’s busy getting the animals back into their pens, so I offered to take the call.”
She moved a distance away and yelled out, “Hi, Daddy!” Just to let him know she was, indeed, all right. Then she came up close to hear what he was saying. Or yelling, as the case was.
“I know my daughter had something to do with that tiger going missing. And you were supposed to be keeping her out of trouble!”
Risk bowed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yes, sir, I certainly was. But your daughter is very … resourceful. She ducked out on me, a failing on my part.”
Uh-oh. Risk was getting into trouble. She didn’t want that, especially after everything he’d been through. She tried to take the phone, but he shook his head.
Her father used the recriminating voice she knew well. “I should have you removed from the assignment. If you can’t keep an eye on one slip of a girl—”
“You do know your daughter, don’t you?”
Addie shook her head. Her father didn’t know this side of her, not really.
“I know that she’s headstrong and passionate when it comes to those animals, but this man is accusing her of theft. Did she steal the tiger?”
“No, sir, she did not.”
Not entirely a lie. Addie grasped Risk’s arm, silently imploring him not to tell her father what had happened. If he knew how she’d been threatened, he’d throw her in a locked room for sure.
“Sir, Addie and I have talked at length about her actions. She has promised that she will not sneak away from me or there will be repercussions.” He shot her a stomach-tightening look that made her think he was talking about spanking her again. “I assure you that she will not misbehave anymore.”
“I think the best course of action, for my heart’s sake, is to have you bring her back here.”
Addie shook her head emphatically. Her fingers were still wrapped around Risk’s arm, and they felt rather nice there.
“Sir, I understand your shaken confidence, but I guarantee that I have her safety in hand. Your daughter obviously inherited her compassion and need to help others from her mother. Haven’t you considered that she inherited her strength, courage, and smarts from you?”
Oh, you’re good, she mouthed. But his words filled her with a warmth that made her eyes sting.
“Well, yes. Of course.”
“Then trust us.”
Us. The word rolled through her. She took the phone. “Daddy, I escaped from Risk because I played a trick on him. In his defense, he tracked me down immediately and wrangled an agreement out of me for total compliance.”
“Total? Or the pretend compliance you give me?”
Damn, he knew.
She met Risk’s eyes, and something in her tummy tickled. “I have pledged my obedience to him.”
“I’d like to know how he accomplished that.”
She coughed to cover the choking sound that had escaped at the thought of revealing that. “He’s very persuasive. Probably a skill he learned in the SEALs.”
“I’ll feel better about the situation when I put eyes on you at the benefit dinner tomorrow night.”
The dinner! “I don’t know if it’s a good idea to attend, considering everything that’s going on.”
“It’s a very good idea, Adeline. Considering that man’s accusations, your appearance would show my friends and acquaintances that you are not guilty. Which you’re not.” A pause. “Right?”
“Right.” Dammit, he was blackmailing her. “I suppose.”
“You’ll have Risk with you, and Chase is sending another of his operatives to guard the perimeter. With the wackos out in full force, you can’t be too careful. I suggest you present Risk as a … boyfriend would be the simplest explanation. Certainly not bodyguard. We don’t want to stir up any questions. Could you manage to appear heterosexual for the evening?”
Addie couldn’t help glancing at Risk, who was clearly hearing everything her father was saying because he wore a roguish grin. Flashes of their kiss and his hand on her derriere skittered across her mind. “I could, uh, manage that. Sure.”
“It’s not that I’m ashamed of you,” he added quickly. “I just need time to … get used to everything you are.”
Poor über-traditional Daddy. Poor Addie, too. She had formed her own charity, had dipped her toe into the political waters by lobbying for animal rights bills, but that wasn’t enough to make her father proud.
“We’ll see you at the dinner, Daddy.” She disconnected and met Risk’s gaze. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let you take that call.”
Risk was giving her an amused, contemplative look. “It’s interesting how strong and brave you are, except around your father.”
She gave him a fake smile. “Yeah, interesting.” But he was right. She leaned against the gate and scratched Rama the llama’s neck. “After my mom died, I wanted to make up for her loss somehow, by being what he wanted.” Her heart still sank under her grief. “Ultimately I couldn’t fill his expectations without losing myself completely, but I try where I can. Thanks for saying that to my dad about my inheriting his smarts and all. I’d like to think I inherited a lot of my traits from Mom.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “My mother died when I was six.”
“I’m sorry, too.” At least she’d gotten one tidbit out of him.
“I imagine it’s harder for a girl to lose her mom. She’s the one who teaches you how to put on makeup and to stay away from guys who will break your heart.”
“Guys like you?”
His smile was soft, melancholy. “Yeah, exactly like me.”
Rama nuzzled her, and Risk’s eyes glimmered with longing. She’d seen that before, when she’d been talking to Rolling Stone in the van. Maybe he needed some cheek rubbing, too.
“You don’t like talking about your childhood,” Addie said.
“Not really. It’s in the past. As Rath, one of the boys on the team, likes to say, ‘If you spen
d too much time looking back, you’re going to run into something.’ ”
“I like that philosophy.” Though, as their gazes locked, she knew she should be thinking about another piece of wisdom: Don’t play with fire.
He seemed to tear his gaze away. “Speaking of making your father happy, what’s this charity ball about?”
“It’s not a ball with dancing and whatnot. It’s more of a formal dinner with people talking about their projects or charities. It was something my mother started as a way to connect philanthropists with lesser-known charities. I was going to attend, until the hit-and-run. Then I decided to lay low.”
“That was your excuse, anyway.”
She did not like how he could see right through her with those discerning eyes. “I’m not into formal events. How do you feel about wearing a tux? Didn’t think about that, huh? If you’re going as my date, you’ll have to dress the part.”
“I suppose I’ll have to rent one.” He gave her a sardonic grin. “All mine are back on the farm.”
“You have a farm?” Yes, she was pitifully desperate to know more about this man.
“I grew up on a farm. My old man still owns it, though it’s just about ground down. He finds the inside of a bottle of whiskey much more appealing than working. We should probably go inside.”
She’d wormed a little more out of him. “I’ve got a few more things to do before we go in.” She dumped food into Rama’s bin.
Risk leaned against the gate next to her. “What’s this guy’s story?”
“He was doing the pay-to-ride thing at a petting zoo, and he was in a lot of pain. Llamas can’t bear more than fifty pounds on their spines, and the owner hadn’t imposed a weight maximum. I couldn’t convince him to set limits, so I educated the visitors. Who, in turn, raised a stink on Rama’s behalf. So the owner decided to sell Rama to me.”
Risk seemed to study Rama’s big brown eyes. “He looks happy. At least I think he does.”
“They give off a certain energy when they’re content. That’s what you’re picking up.” She didn’t pick up that kind of energy from Risk, though right now he seemed in a good place. “Rama was very distrustful at first. He wouldn’t come near me and would only eat after I left.” She grabbed a carrot from the fridge and held it out. Rama came right over and took it.
She took Risk’s hand and led him past an empty stall with wire mesh. “That’s where Freedom stayed. Shirley said the refuge picked up the kitten earlier.” She moved on to another stall, where potbellied pigs were reclining on the hay-covered floor. “This is Elma and Chew-eeze. They were two of fourteen pigs owned by one lady. Or should I say hoarded?”
“Oh, I get it. Like Thelma and Louise.”
She grinned. “Exactly. I renamed them.” She tugged him down to the stall at the end. “And this is the resident ass, Hollywood. You’ll probably hear him braying away in the night. His last owners were aggressive toward him, so he became antagonistic.” The brown donkey sauntered over and rested his head against her palm. “As you can see, he’s very sweet.”
Risk definitely had a contented look in his eyes. And something else. Her fingers were still wrapped around his, and she involuntarily squeezed.
“You are so incredibly …” He gathered her face in his hands, leaned down, and covered her mouth with his. The impact hit her like a tidal wave. It was different than the first kiss. This one was tender, sweet, but quickly grew hotter. She might have had something to do with that. Her mouth had automatically softened and opened, and he had taken that as an invitation to slide his tongue in.
Addie lost herself in the languid way he kissed, as if he had all the time in the world. Yes, decadence, like sun tea on a hot afternoon or a slab of dark chocolate melting on her tongue. She lost awareness of her surroundings. Sights, sounds, smells, all disappeared, leaving only the sensation of her heart pounding like crazy and her mouth being made love to in a slow, sensual rhythm. Her hands moved of their own volition, sliding up his chest to his shoulders … kneading them like a purring kitten!
His hands trailed down her back. Her body shifted closer to his without even asking for her permission. She felt his erection against her stomach, hard and long, and it stirred her down to her bones. He wanted her. Her, with no makeup, no curves.
He let out a low murmur and wrapped his hands over her derriere, pulling her closer yet. Now all of her was plastered against that hard, strong body. She’d never felt so safe, so alive. She drew her hands back down his chest, her thumbs brushing over the taut nubs of his nipples.
Was that humming sound coming from her throat? Yes. She was making noises, something she’d never done before. His hands moved up her hips, to her waist. She involuntarily pressed her breasts against his stomach, aching for those hands to move up higher … higher …
She fought to come back to herself, straining for a nugget of sanity. Opening her eyes didn’t help. He seemed as lost as she was.
“Zucchini,” she uttered between kisses.
He cracked open one eye. “What?”
“Zucchini,” she repeated, taking advantage of his puzzlement to step back. “I was looking for a word that wasn’t sexy. The opposite of sexy, in fact. To bring me back to my senses.” Her mouth still tingled, and she fought the urge to put her fingers over it. “To bring us back to our senses, because we really shouldn’t be doing this. That. What we were doing.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “No, you’re right. I had no intention of kissing you, honest. But you have this light in your eyes when you’re talking about the animals, and your dimples were showing as you smiled, and you were so damned compelling.”
“No one’s ever wanted to kiss me because I was talking about my animal rescues.” And no one had ever called her compelling. It made her feel dizzy, as if she were spinning on the inside.
He quirked his brows. “And no one’s ever called out a vegetable when I was kissing her. You’re definitely a first for me, Addie.”
A huge smile hijacked her face, but she quickly wiped it off. It felt very close to the smile he’d just described.
“But you do realize,” he added, “that you chose a phallic vegetable.”
Oh, geez, she had. “I used to say puppies or chickens. Safe words that would break me out of any temptation I might be feeling. But it’s been so long since I’ve felt temptation that I’m out of practice.”
“How long has it been?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know, more than a couple of years.”
“Years? So you’re against engaging in a long-term relationship?”
“I don’t want anything distracting me from my purpose. I need to give a hundred percent to my cause.” She went back a few stalls to the fridge, pulled out another carrot, and returned to Risk. “Here, give this to your new buddy.”
His fingers brushing hers, the carrot sliding from her hand, even that felt erotic. Geez, was her mind in the gutter! He held it out, and Hollywood gently took it.
“What about you?” she asked. “Ever been married or in a serious relationship?”
Risk stroked Hollywood’s mane. “When I was in the SEALs, I had no time to give to a relationship, no dedication to spare. And like you, I didn’t need the distraction.”
“No, not when you’re in life-and-death situations on a daily basis.”
“Even on those rare times when I was home, I wasn’t really there. If you’re a SEAL, your head is always in the last mission. You watch the news, anticipating when your team will be called back. It’s not fair to any of the people in your life, but especially a girlfriend. I admit that I felt relief when I had to say goodbye and head off for deployment. Cutting ties was easy because there were no ties on my end.”
“But now …” She let the words she was about to say trail off. Now that you’re not in the military, you can consider a relationship. She definitely didn’t want to go there. “Now you’re guarding little ole me. Probably a bit of a letdown, huh?”
“You are
definitely not a letdown, Addie. I had lots of reasons not to get involved when I was a SEAL, including a ninety-five-percent divorce rate in the teams. And I’m in no position to fall for anyone right now. I’m stitching my life together, trying to reintegrate into the civvy world and learn a new job. And that job is to keep you safe, which means keeping my head straight—and keeping my hands off you and my mouth away from the sweetest lips I’ve ever tasted.” His heated gaze swept over her. “And that might be my biggest challenge yet.”
Chapter 6
Risk spent the night outside Addie’s bedroom window, on the porch that wrapped around her house. He’d had to triple-assure her that he liked sleeping outside. He’d done it plenty of times in his youth and in the SEALs. It was optimal for hearing intruders. He’d heard plenty of noise: crickets, the frogs in the pond, and Hollywood’s braying. And he’d heard—or maybe sensed—Addie at her window checking on him. He was glad she hadn’t come out. That was another reason to sleep on the porch. Less temptation.
’Cause you did so well yesterday in the barn.
Oh, buddy, he’d thrashed himself plenty over that. And he’d replayed the kiss and the way her tight, sweet ass had felt in his hands umpteen times.
He’d been sexually attracted to many women, but each encounter was like climbing a new mountain—exciting in the planning and execution, empty afterward. The return of his numb state had gotten worse recently; the prospect of a one- or two-night stand left him empty before it even happened.
But when Addie stepped out onto the porch, looking deliciously rumpled and adorably sleepy in dark pink pajamas that clung to her trim body, his heart went pit-a-pat in a way it never had.
She handed him a mug of coffee. “Milk and sugar are inside if you need them.”
Their fingers brushed as he took the mug adorned with a menagerie of cartoon animals and the words ANIMAL HUGGERS. “Thanks. You’re an angel.”
Wild on You Page 7
