by Arianna Hart
Jared wanted to run his fingers through those flames, to push his hands into the heart of it and see if it burned as hot as it looked. The thought of a woman’s hair had never aroused him before. Was there any part of her that wouldn’t get him worked up? She looked squeaky clean from her shower with no make-up to hide her creamy skin or freckles. She probably hated those freckles, but he found them enchanting.
“Would you like some coffee this morning?” Macayla asked. “I’d love a cup. Black please. So what’s on the agenda for today? Another discussion of bodily functions? More poking at me with needles perhaps? Maybe another session of peeling my skin off slowly and painfully? What other delights do you have in store for me today?”
“As fun and exciting as those things sound, I think that we will have to find some other amusements. I’m hoping Connor has had a chance to come up with a location for you. The farther away from Samara and the baby we are, the happier I’ll be. It’s been over twenty-four hours since you fell out of my truck, I’m sure whoever is after you will have an idea of where you are by now.”
“I’m sure of it too. If we don’t hear from Connor today, I’m going to need you to drive me somewhere, anywhere, so I don’t endanger you or the O’Riley’s.”
“Why don’t you tell me a little more about who is after you. Under the circumstances, I think I have a right to know.”
“If it’s up to me, you will never have to have any contact with them whatsoever. The less you know, the better.”
He could see Macayla gearing up to argue with him when the phone rang.
“Hello?” Macayla answered, giving Jared a look that promised their discussion was not over.
“Hey Cayla, it’s Samara. Do you think you could baby-sit for me today? Connor has some locations he wants to scout out, and I need to do some shopping.”
“Sure, what time do you need me?”
“As soon as possible.” “I’ll be right over.” “Thanks, you’re a life saver!” “I’m going over to Samara’s, I think she has a plan. Why
don’t you eat a little of this toast, I’ll be back as soon as I know what is going on. You might want to take a nap, we may be traveling when I get back.”
“I hope so. The sooner we get moving, the better.”
Chapter Seven
Macayla got to Samara and Connor’s house in record time. She was getting that itchy feeling in the back of her neck again. She wanted to be on the move, and figured Connor had come up with a plan.
“Hey Sam-Sam! Where is that beautiful god-child of mine?” Macayla asked as soon as Samara opened the door.
“Boy you got here quick!” Samara said as she handed over the chubby eight-month-old baby.
Caitlyn Alexandra O’Riley had her mother’s blond hair, and her father’s cobalt blue eyes. The devilish personality was hers alone. She had four teeth, and was crawling, climbing, and basically getting into everything she could reach. Macayla knew she would be walking before long. Again, time was flying by faster than she could handle.
“Well, I figured you had more than shopping on your mind.”
“Why don’t you come into the kitchen where we can talk?” Samara suggested. “Good, now we don’t have to worry about anyone listening in on us,” she said when they sat down at the kitchen table.
“Connor put up some sort of scrambler that deflects listening devices. The only problem is that it has limited range. Here is the plan. Connor already left, he is running mindless errands all over the place, trying to pull off any tails that might be following us. I am going to go to the grocery store, like I said. Connor has already arranged for a safe house to be made ready for you, but it is all the way in Maine. Jared is not running from the government, so we can use their safe houses without worrying about that.”
“How do you know he isn’t running from the government?” Macayla asked.
“Jared called Connor last night and they discussed what was going on.”
“That’s nice, he didn’t bother filling me in. Guess I’m too much of a liability to know what is going on under my own nose,” Macayla growled as she got up and stormed around the room.
“Well don’t feel too bad, Connor didn’t tell me more than that either. I didn’t have time to worm the rest out of him. Anyway, as I was saying; I’ll go grocery shopping, while I’m there I’ll pick up some supplies for you. I’ll take your truck, and put the maps and directions in there too. Connor has a back pack for Jared, I think it has a gun in it, so be careful.”
“I’m always careful with guns.”
“I know, but it probably is already loaded, so don’t drop it or anything.”
“Oh brother.”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me, I’m just worried about you. I’m not going to see you for three weeks, and I don’t know who is after Jared, or what you are up against. I hate stuff like this!”
“Don’t get upset, I understand. I remember what it was like when you and Connor were on the run. But things turned out okay for the two of you. At least this time we know how long it will last, and we know, or at least the men know, who is after Jared. It will be over before you know it, and life will go on as usual.”
“I don’t know. . .”
“Trust me, I have everything under control.”
“Famous last words,” Samara said with a wry grin.
* * *
Everything went the way they had planned it. Macayla took the truck filled with groceries back to her place, parked it in the garage, and loaded it up with more supplies. When she had her bags, Jared’s few items of clothing, his laptop, and her advanced first aid kit loaded she went back and got Jared.
Getting him down the stairs was no picnic, and if anyone was listening to them, they would have gotten an earful of Jared’s swears. Eventually Macayla got him into the back seat of the truck where she covered him up with a blanket so no casual observers would notice him. The windows were tinted, but she didn’t want to take any chances.
Macayla made one last trip through the house to make sure everything was locked and her gun was still safe in her purse. She had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, but she had never before felt the need to use it. She hoped she was just being over cautious this time. Something told her she wasn’t.
When she pulled out of her condo complex she surreptitiously looked for any followers. Traffic was heavy and it was hard to notice any one particular car following her. She made a point to file all the cars she could see in her mind so that if they reappeared she would remember them. She might not be able to notice anyone following her now, but as they went farther north, there would be fewer cars and it would be easier to spot a tail.
“How are you doing back there?” Macayla asked Jared who was bent double in the back seat.
“It’s getting hot under this blanket. How much longer until I can get out?”
“Well, it’s almost two hours to New Hampshire, by the time we get there, it should be safe enough for you to get out.”
“Two hours! How long will it take us to get to the safe house?”
“It’s out in the boonies, it’s going to take us almost ten hours to get there.”
“Great. I’m glad you don’t drive a sports car.” Jared said wryly.
“I’ll need to stop for gas in New Hampshire, you can get out and stretch there. Until then, why don’t you try to sleep, it will help pass the time. We won’t get to the house until late tonight.”
“Wonderful. I hope they have a bed there. A king size bed that I can stretch out on, I’m so sick of being crammed into tiny spaces.”
“Bitch, bitch, bitch. I opened the bed out for you, didn’t I? Macayla said with laughter in her voice.
“Yeah, and my feet hung a good six inches off the end.”
“Some people are never happy.”
“Just wait Red, when I get my hands on you. . .” Jared left the threat hanging in the air.
“Promises, promises.” She really liked tweaking his tail, so to speak.
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“Well, if you weren’t such a coward, I could have fulfilled some of those promises last night,” Jared taunted.
“I wasn’t being cowardly, I was being prudent. I’m not afraid of you.” “Prove it. We’re going to be alone together for the next three weeks. I dare you to stay in the same room as me.”
“I don’t need to prove anything, and I’m not going to let you manipulate me.” Macayla knew what he was trying to do. And damn it, it was working. She could never refuse a dare.
“Coward.”
“I am not going to let you manipulate me like a teenage boy on a dare. I don’t have to prove anything to you, and that’s final.”
“Sure.” “I don’t have anything to worry about. I know my own mind.” “Whatever you say.” Jared was all but laughing out loud. “I am not going to give in to your ridiculous dare.” “Fine.” “Alright! But I get to pick the room.” “It’s a deal.” “Fine.” “Oh Red?” “What now?” Macayla asked in frustration. “Gotcha!” Jared laughed. “We’ll just see about that,” Macayla vowed.
Chapter Eight
By the time Macayla found the safe house, she was ready to drop from sheer exhaustion. Jared had long since fallen into a fitful slumber in the seat next to her. She had let him out of the back seat when they crossed over the line into Maine.
Since there was no one on the road at all, she figured it was safe enough for him to show his face. The area they were in was very isolated. Huge trees just beginning to bud lined the two-lane road she had been driving on for hours. She passed the “road” to the house twice before she finally found it. It was only paved for about a hundred yards, then it was dirt for the next 10 miles.
There were still piles of snow packed against the trees, and Macayla was glad the ground was still frozen. By the ruts in the road she could tell that it washed out on a regular basis. She was glad it wasn’t raining; she had no desire to see how well her four-wheel drive actually worked. She had bought her truck this spring, and didn’t relish baptizing it in mud.
Jared had woken up when they hit the dirt road. It took almost half an hour to get to the house from that point, and she was sure he felt every single bump and rut in the road. When they got to the house, Macayla took the keys out of the envelope Connor had left in the glove box. She left the car running and the lights on so she could open the front door.
“The place is a bit chilly. Why don’t you wait here while I light a fire and get the generator going? I can’t tell much in the dark, but Connor said it was well furnished, so you should be able to lie down soon.”
“I can help, I’ll start unloading the car.”
“No! Please Jared, if you blow your stitches, I have no contacts up here and no way of re-stitching you. Just let me do it. It may take a little while, but I’ll get it done. If it makes you feel better, when we leave I’ll let you load up the car while I lounge on the couch. Okay?”
“I hate this,” Jared grumbled. “Just remember, we’re sharing a room.”
“Fine. It will save fuel anyway.”
Macayla took off with a flashlight around the building to look for the generator. Connor told her it was just like starting a lawnmower. Macayla hated the lawnmower with a passion, that’s why when Kevin graduated from high school she sold the house and bought a condo.
Pull cords were not made for people with short arms. She had to practically wrench her arm out of its socket to get the darn thing working.
Luckily she didn’t need to lug any wood into the house tonight. Whomever Connor had contacted had laid in a supply for her. She and Jared had eaten some fast food on the way up, so all she had to do was get the perishables out of the car and the rest could wait for morning.
Oh, and she had to pick a bedroom for her and Jared to sleep in. She couldn’t believe she fell for the oldest trick in the book. She just couldn’t resist a dare.
She went into the house through a back door, as she approached the door a spot light lit up the yard. There were probably motion sensor lights all around the house. Once in the house she found the thermostat to the living room and turned it on. The house had electric heat so each room could be turned on and off individually.
She would only heat the rooms they would be in so as to conserve energy. She didn’t know how much fuel the generator used, so it made sense to be conservative. The house was one floor with a cellar. Macayla was not going to investigate everything tonight; she just wanted to find a room and go to sleep.
How she was going to do that with Jared around, she had no idea.
The first bedroom had a queen size bed, dresser, and closet, it shared a bathroom with the room next door. There was no way Macayla was going to share a queen size bed with Jared. He would take up the whole thing!
One down, two to go.
She went through the adjoining bathroom to the next room. This was perfect. A dresser separated two twin beds; another tall chest of drawers was against the wall. She’d check the other room to be sure, but she thought this would be a way to beat the dare, and not have to sleep right next to Jared all night.
She snickered as she walked down the hall. The last room was on the opposite side of the hall, it was the master suite, and Macayla was sure Jared would be moving here as soon as he released her from the dare. The final bedroom boasted a huge lake of a bed, and a gorgeous cherry dresser. The master bathroom had a separate shower and tub complete with whirlpool jets.
Macayla gave a sigh over the luxury she was passing up, but a dare was a dare, and she had no intention of losing. She went back across the hall and turned on the heat in the twin bedroom. The living room was warming up, she would probably need to light the wood stove tomorrow, but for now it was okay. She didn’t bother turning on the heat in the kitchen yet, she just made sure the refrigerator was working and went back to the car.
Jared had fallen back asleep, which was for the best. Macayla didn’t want him trying to help, then falling and ripping out his staples or his stitches. It took several trips to get all the necessities inside. She still had most of the truck to unpack, but that could wait until tomorrow.
“Jared. Come on, wake up. I’ll help you into the room and you can go back to sleep, I promise.”
“I’m up, I can not wait to get horizontal. I am so sick of being cramped up,” Jared muttered as Macayla helped him up the steps and into the house. She walked him down the hall listening to him mutter and complain the whole way.
“You didn’t welch on our dare, did you? You are taking this awfully calmly. You’re up to something.”
“Whatever you say. Our room is the second one on the left.” Macayla was struggling to hide her laughter. When Jared stopped dead in the doorway of their room and stared at the twin beds with a look of horror, she broke out into gales of laughter.
“You cheated,” Jared accused.
“You said share the same room, you said nothing about sharing the same bed.”
“You knew what I meant.”
“Maybe I did, and maybe I didn’t. Regardless, this is the only room with the heat on, if you want to find a new room, you’ll have to do it tomorrow. Now here, sit on the bed and I’ll help you get your shoes off and you can go to sleep.”
“All right Red, you won this battle, but the war isn’t over yet.”
“Don’t be a sore loser, now, come on, into bed.”
“I’ll get even, don’t you worry.”
“Whatever you say. I’ll be in the bed right here, as per our dare. Good night.”
Macayla went into the bathroom to brush her teeth, wash her face, and change into the long cotton nightgown she brought with her. One of her elderly patients had given it to her for Christmas one year and she had never worn it before. She generally wore extra-large tee shirts to bed. She was so short they usually came down to her knees. She had packed the nightgown as a precaution, and was glad she had.
It was a long-sleeved, high-necked, white cotton gown that pooled down around her feet. She had to lift up alm
ost a foot of fabric to walk in it without tripping. She smiled smugly as she walked out of the bathroom. She left the light on in case Jared needed to use the bathroom before she got into bed.
“Do you need some help getting to the bathroom?”
Jared looked at her standing in the doorway with the light from the bathroom behind her. The loose gown silhouetted every curve in her body. Her nipples were standing erect from the cold, and the movement of her breasts swaying under the gown mesmerized Jared. His throat was dry, and his mouth watered at the sight of her lush body revealed through the gown.
The whole point of making her share a room with him was to break down her defenses, to make her lose control, not him. He thanked God he was in the shadows so she couldn’t see the direction of his gaze, or the state that gaze put him in. He cleared his throat and answered her as coherently as possible.
She was still standing there, waiting for an answer. What was it she asked again? Oh yeah, did he need help getting to the bathroom. Yeah, like he’d be able to walk across the room with those breasts pressed against his side. Right.
“No, I’m all tucked in for the night.”
“Okay, I’ll turn out the light then.” Macayla turned around to shut off the light in the bathroom and Jared groaned as her derrière was perfectly outlined. “Are you okay? Do you need more pain medicine?” Macayla asked turning around again.
“No, I just moved too quickly that’s all.”
“If you’re sure?”
“Oh, I’m sure I don’t need any pain medicine.”
“Okay. Good-night then.” She shut off the light and ended his torment for the moment. * * *
The next morning dawned bright and cool. Macayla couldn’t believe how cold it was still. She had been wearing shorts at home; it was late June for heaven’s sake. She couldn’t believe there was still snow in the shade of the trees.
The first thing she did was put the coffee on. Tall trees surrounded the house, so it didn’t get any morning sun to warm it up. Macayla only packed one sweater and one sweatshirt. She had a feeling she was going to need more than that if it was this cold much longer.
