by Linda Turner
“Good.” She laughed. “Now you know what it feels like. You’ve been driving me crazy since the first day I met you.”
“Oh, really?” Wicked mischief glinting in his eyes, he made a place for himself between her thighs and slowly, carefully nudged his hardness against the liquid heat of her. “Lady, you ain’t seen nothing yet. By the time I’m through with you, you won’t remember your name.”
It was a threat, a promise, a sweet, sweet declaration of intent that set her heart racing in her chest. Given half a chance, she would have told him that anytime he was within touching distance, she couldn’t remember where she was, not to mention her name, but he took her mouth in a hot, carnal kiss then, and the words died unspoken on her tongue. His hands roamed over her, caressing, stroking, searching out her secrets, learning what made her shudder, gasp, cry out in need. Then, when she was boneless and lost to everything but his touch, he slowly, deliberately dropped kisses everywhere his hands had been.
Arching under him with a keening cry that seemed to echo on the wind, she clung to him, breathless, aching, burning for release. “Lucas!”
“I’m here, honey,” he murmured, stoking the fires in her with his clever tongue. “I’ll take care of you. Just hold on.”
She tried, wanting to prolong the pleasure, but the second he eased into her, filling her, and began to move, she was lost. She felt herself start to come undone and couldn’t for the life of her remember her name or his. Shattering, she knew only that she’d finally found the man she’d been waiting for all her life. And he still loved his dead wife.
The storm blew itself out some time before dawn, leaving behind a crystal-clear winter wonderland. Waking to the bright glare of sunlight on the snow soon after dawn, the covers tucked under her chin and her body tired but sated, Rocky didn’t have to look around to know that she was alone. She’d developed a sixth sense where Lucas was concerned, an early-warning system that screamed like a banshee anytime he was within touching distance, and at the moment it was as dead as a door-nail, which meant he was checking on Sam again, just as he had several times during the night. And every time he returned to the tent, they’d made love. Dear God, she must have been out of her mind.
How could she have let such a thing happen? she wondered in rising panic. He’d all but warned her not to get any ideas about him, yet the second he touched her, her brain had just evaporated and every self-protective instinct she had had flown right out the window. And that scared her to death. Because she knew that if he crawled through the tent opening right now and reached for her, she would no more be able to resist him than she could stop the rising and setting of the sun.
Pale, she reached for her clothes with fingers that felt as if they would never be steady again. She couldn’t let him touch her. Not again, she promised herself. She was too vulnerable where he was concerned, and she didn’t understand why. The lessons Greg had taught her were still fresh, still galling. She’d been so infatuated with him that she’d let him control virtually every phase of her life—right down to the amount of blush she wore!—and she hadn’t even realized it until it was almost too late. She’d sworn then she’d never get involved with a strong, possessive man again. None of that had mattered, though, last night.
Lucas could hurt her.
She didn’t want to admit it, but if their loving last night had proven anything to her, it was that she had no defenses where he was concerned, no common sense. If she made the mistake of letting herself care for him, he could wrap her around his little finger. And that was something she was determined to avoid.
Her jaw set, she finished dressing and laced up her boots. Not expecting to spend the night, she hadn’t brought any cosmetics along, let alone a comb. She had to look a fright, but she wasn’t trying to impress anyone, least of all Lucas, she reminded herself. In fact, the less he noticed her, the better. Dragging in a bracing breath, she unzipped the tent and crawled out into the morning sunshine.
After the night they’d spent together, she didn’t quite know what to expect from him, but it wasn’t a curt nod and a coolness that was frosty as the morning air. Standing by the fire he’d built, unshaven and rugged-looking in his jeans and flannel shirt, he didn’t even bother with a good-morning. Instead, he tossed her a granola bar and said, “Breakfast is going to have to be eaten on the run. We need to get Sam out of here—”
“Has his conditioned worsened?”
“No, but it hasn’t gotten any better, and it’s a rough hike back to the helicopter. I’ll get him ready while you collect the gear.”
Not giving her time to argue, he turned his back on her and slipped into Sam’s tent, but not before he caught the flash of hurt in her brown eyes. His jaw clenching on an oath, he felt like a bastard. He wouldn’t have blamed her if she scratched his eyes out. After the night they’d spent together, she had every right to expect something more from him than the cold shoulder, but, dammit, what the hell was he supposed to do? She’d tapped into emotions in him that no woman, including Jan, had ever come close to touching, and he didn’t have a problem admitting that he was shaken. The lady packed a powerful punch.
And she was everything that he wasn’t. Rich. White. Privileged. She might shun what her family had for now and play at working, but eventually she’d go back to Minnesota and the easy life she’d left behind. And when she did, she wouldn’t take a piece of his heart with her.
That’s bull, Greywolf, and you know it, his conscience snapped. You wouldn’t give a damn if the lady was purple and paid all her bills with diamonds. Why don’t you be honest with yourself and admit your real problem with her? She’s a risk-taker, and you can’t handle it. You don’t want to worry about another madcap woman who takes chances and doesn’t know the meaning of fear. You’d be pacing the floor every time she was five minutes late. And God help you if anything happened to her…
His mouth pressed into a thin white line, he tried to shy away from images of that fateful day when his wife’s life force had slipped right through his fingers and there hadn’t been a damn thing he could do to save her. But memories were funny things. They had a life of their own, and they defied the strongest will. He felt again the stark despair and infuriating helplessness of that day as he’d frantically worked over her broken body, the pain of loss that had slashed at his very soul and still, to this day, hurt. He’d lost a part of himself with Jan’s death, a part he’d never get back. And that was something he couldn’t—wouldn’t—risk going through again.
The matter settled, he went about the business of making sure Sam was ready for transport, then, with Rocky’s help, carefully eased him and the stretcher that held him, out of the tent. Their packs loaded and strapped onto their backs, they made the long, dangerous hike back to the helicopter without either of them looking the other directly in the eye or speaking a single word that didn’t have to do with the rescue operation.
Once they reached the helicopter and got Sam safely loaded inside, the trip back to town took less than thirty minutes. But it was the longest thirty minutes of Rocky’s life. With Sam in the back, she and Lucas were virtually alone in the cockpit. His expression stony, Lucas ignored the headphones when she put hers on, telling her without words that he had nothing to say to her. She should have been relieved. She wasn’t in the mood for any kind of heart-to-heart, and if he regretted their lovemaking as much as his coolness seemed to indicate, she didn’t have to worry about him wanting anything more for her than what they’d already shared. But still it hurt.
When they reached the landing field, Charlie and two paramedics were waiting for them with the ambulance she’d radioed ahead for. Rushing forward when the rotors had barely slowed, the three of them quickly eased the stretcher holding an exhausted Sam out of the chopper and into the ambulance. Before they could slam the rear doors and whisk him off to the hospital, Lucas was crawling into the back of the ambulance with him.
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s go.”
Seconds la
ter, the ambulance was driving off with sirens blaring and lights flashing, and Lucas hadn’t even said goodbye.
The tears she hadn’t even realized she was fighting stung Rocky’s eyes then, threatening to spill over her lashes. Blinking rapidly, she quickly turned back toward the hangar before Charlie could see, but she might as well have saved herself the trouble. The old man had eyes like a hawk.
“Hold your horses right there, boss lady,” he said sternly. “You look like hell. What the devil happened up there on that mountain?”
“Nothing—”
He snorted, the rude sound more than expressing his opinion of that. “Yeah, right. If this is the way you look after pulling off a successful rescue, I’d hate to see you after a failed one.” Slinging a friendly arm around her shoulders, he said teasingly, “C’mon, kid, tell your Uncle Charlie what’s wrong. Maybe I can fix it.”
His gruffness she could handle, but the concerned-uncle treatment got to her every time. Though she was touched, she knew that while there wasn’t a motor made that he couldn’t fix, hearts were something else. Giving him a watery smile, she said, “I’m just tired. Really. It was a rough trip. In fact, if you don’t mind, I thought I’d let you hold down the fort while I go home and catch a couple of hours of sleep. I’m bushed.”
“That’s a good idea,” he said, patting her fondly. “Take the rest of the day off—if anything comes up, I’ll give you a call. Oh, and before I forget, Allie called about an hour ago and wants you to call her back.”
“Did she say what she wanted?”
He shook his head. “No, she just wanted you to call her as soon as you got in.”
“It sounds important. Maybe I’d better call her from here.” Hurrying into the hangar, she went into her office and quickly punched out her sister’s number, worry furrowing her brow because her gut told her something was wrong. She and Allie shared a closeness that no one but another set of twins would understand. They talked at least two or three times a week, regardless of what parts of the world they were currently in, but those calls were always at night, when they had time to chat…unless there was a problem. The last time Allie called her in the middle of the day, they’d lost Kate.
Counting the rings, she gripped the receiver in a white-knuckled grip until the second her sister came on the phone. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Allie assured her, chuckling soft. “I just thought you would want to know that sometime within the next couple of hours, you and I are going to become aunts again.”
“Caroline’s in labor?” Relief washed through her, weakening her knees. Collapsing into the chair behind her desk, she couldn’t seem to stop grinning at the thought of her older sister becoming a mother. Once, Caroline’s only ambition had been to run the family business as well as their father, Jake, did, but that had all changed with the entrance of Nick in her life. He had brought out the feminine side of her and taught her that there was more to life than just work. Ever since she’d found out she was pregnant, she’d been walking on air.
“I thought she wasn’t due until after Christmas. Is everything okay?”
“Just fine,” Allie said. “I knew you were coming home for Christmas, but with the baby coming and everything, I was hoping I could talk you into coming earlier. Like today.”
“Today?”
“Sure. Why not? You were coming on Friday anyway, weren’t you? And it’s not like you have to make reservations or anything. Just fuel up the Cessna and come on.”
It was a tempting thought, one that Rocky found she couldn’t resist. She needed a bath and some sleep, but she suddenly found that she needed her family more…and she also needed as much distance as possible between her and Lucas. Making a snap decision, she said, “I think I will. What hospital is Caroline at?”
“Hope General.”
“I’ll meet you there as soon as I can.” Hanging up, she left Charlie getting the Cessna ready and rushed home to pack. Within the hour, she was on her way home.
It was nearly dark by the time Lucas left the hospital. Sam Katz was resting comfortably and would, thankfully, suffer no permanent nerve or spinal damage as a result of his adventure. But it had been close, closer than Lucas liked. If the man had made one wrong move after his fall…if he and Rocky hadn’t gotten there when they had…the outcome might have been tragically different.
That—predictably—brought his thoughts back to Rocky, which wasn’t surprising. The hours they’d spent together last night were carved in granite in his brain. And whenever he let his guard down, he didn’t even have to close his eyes to see her in his arms, every sweet, beautiful inch of her naked and hot and his to touch and explore. Just thinking about it made him hard.
The lady had taken him apart and put him back together again, and it was going to take him more than a little while to deal with that. But he shouldn’t have been so short with her, not after what they’d shared. That was inexcusable, and he wouldn’t blame her if she hated his guts for it.
He would have to apologize.
His gut twisted in rebellion at the thought—she hadn’t exactly been chatty with him, either, and she probably just wanted to be left alone—but putting it off would only make the situation more difficult. His jaw set, he flagged down one of the town’s two taxis and hitched a ride back to the airfield.
The place was deserted, however, except for her mechanic, Charlie. “She’s not here,” the old man told him. “She’s gone home to Minneapolis. Flew out of here about two hours ago.”
Stunned, Lucas told himself it was for the best. By the time she came back—if she came back—he’d have his feelings for the lady all worked out and under control. He should be grateful to her for giving him some space. Instead, he was hurt, and he didn’t like it one damn bit.
Five
Stepping off the elevator onto the maternity floor, Rocky stopped short at the sight of the crowd of family milling around the waiting area directly across from the nurses’ station. Her older sister, Natalie, was there, along with Allie and Rafe, and Nick, of course, the proud daddy-to-be. Nervously pacing, his dark hair practically standing on end from running his fingers through it, he was clearly a basket case. Totally oblivious of what was going on around him, he walked right past Rocky without even seeing her.
Grinning, she started to tease him, only to have the words slip right out of her head at the sight of the other couple in the waiting room. Her parents were both there…together…in the same building. Stunned, she stopped in her tracks, unable to do anything but stare, while hope flared in her heart.
Please, dear God, let them be back together, she prayed silently. We could use a miracle or two.
Ever since her grandmother’s sudden death, the family had suffered one blow after another. Kate’s loss and the reorganization of the company had caused Fortune Cosmetics stock to take a dive on the stock market, and then a mysterious break-in at the company lab had led to a setback in the development of the company’s new Secret Youth Formula. Rocky knew her father had tried to hold it all together, and had, for the most part, managed to succeed. But the cost had been high. Nearly a month ago, he and her mother, Erica, had separated after over thirty years of marriage.
Seeing them together, Rocky desperately wanted to believe they had worked things out, but she could see that her mother was avoiding Jake as if he were some kind of toad that had just crawled out of the mud. If it hadn’t been so sad, it would have been comical.
“Rocky!” Allie spotted her then and rushed forward with a huge smile of relief. “Thank God you’re here,” she said in a low whisper as she hugged her.
“Mother hasn’t said two words to Dad since he got here a couple of hours ago,” Natalie confided as she, too, hugged her.
“At least she’s here,” Rocky pointed out quietly. “I would have bet money nothing short of a nuclear disaster could bring those two together in the same room.” Drawing back, she grinned as her parents and two brothers-in-law came forward to welcome he
r home. “So where’s that new niece or nephew of mine? I thought everybody would be celebrating by now.”
“So did we, dear,” her mother said as she embraced her. “The doctor says there’s nothing to worry about—the baby’s just taking its own sweet time. I can see right now it’s going to take after your father, poor thing.”
Rocky bit back a grin as her father shot her mother a murderous glance. “I can think of worse traits it could inherit,” he retorted. “Like—”
“Now, children, don’t fight,” Rocky said quickly, chuckling. “Are you holding up okay, Nick? You look a little the worse for wear.”
Haggard and pale, he shook his head. “Caroline’s in so much pain. And it’s all my fault. I swear I’ll never touch her again.” In a daze, he turned back to the delivery room. “I’ve got to get back in there. She could need me….”
“Poor devil,” Rafe said sympathetically. “If I was in his shoes, I’d be giving the doctor holy hell for not rushing things along.”
“You’d be a wreck, and you know it,” Allie said, smiling lovingly into his fierce eyes. “Caroline’s tough. She’s doing just fine.”
Rocky watched dark, intimate messages pass from her twin sister’s eyes to her husband’s, and suddenly, inexplicably, found her thoughts crowded with images of Lucas leaning over her in the darkness of the tent they’d shared in the mountains, his eyes black with passion, his hands slow, knowing, magical. Heat curled in her belly. What was he doing right this very minute? she wondered as something that felt an awful lot like loneliness squeezed her heart. Did he even know she was gone? Would he care when he did?
“Rachel? Are you okay, honey?”
Lost in her thoughts, she looked up to find her mother—and the rest of the family—frowning at her searchingly. Hot color surged like a tide into her fair cheeks. “Of course. I was just…thinking about something else.” Deliberately changing the subject, she said, “So somebody fill me in on the latest gossip. What’s been going on while I was gone?”
