Shaking her head, she said, “Positive. Henri wants me to be with him this afternoon.” She shrugged and grinned. “You’ll be back by dusk. I’ll be okay.”
Reid lost his smile as he put the vehicle into gear. “Dinner waiting for me? Right?”
Chuckling, Casey ran her fingers through her úntame-able mop of hair. “Right. Champagne, candlelight, the whole nine yards, Hunter. You bet.”
Enjoying the ease that came naturally between them now, Reid grinned. He reached out and touched her blazing red hair, which was shot through with gold and burgundy. He watched the pleasure cross Casey’s face as he caressed her curls. In the past month, he’d had the joy of seeing Casey blossom into an incredibly alluring woman, though she was still more child than adult at times. Oh, she was an adult when needed, but at night, in the hut, when he’d tell her a funny story from his growing up years, they’d lie there giggling like two teenagers at a pa-jama party. Easing his hand from her locks, he said, “I think, the day I come home and see a candlelight dinner on the table is the day you stop being yourself.”
“What you see is it, Hunter. You know that better than most by now.”
Sobering slightly, he said, “Listen, be careful while I’m gone, okay? Just stay alert.”
The intimacy in his voice shook her, as it always did. He rarely used that deep, vibrating tone with her, but when he did, Casey felt her heart squeeze with an intense longing to simply fall into his arms and kiss him until she was senseless with the taste, smell and feel of him. Leaning forward, she pressed a swift kiss to the hard line of his mouth. It was one of the few times she’d done it in broad daylight in front of the villagers. Breaking the molten kiss, she saw his eyes grow thundercloud dark with desire—for her. Reid did not hide how he felt about her, and it made her feel strong as a woman in one way, and yet frightened in another. “Yeah… sure I will.” She stepped away from the truck and lifted her hand. “You be careful.”
“Black Dawn isn’t interested in me,” he drawled as he saw real fear banked in Casey’s green eyes. “I’m a nobody compared to you, good doctor.” He smiled, his mouth still tingling with sensation from having her sweet lips against it. He even tasted the papaya she’d eaten just minutes before as he gave her one last look before shifting the vehicle into gear.
Sticking her hands in her pockets, Casey watched Reid slowly drive off down the deeply rutted dirt road. Eight other villagers were hitching a ride with him into Yambuku. The truck looked like a bus and she smiled a little. Turning, Casey couldn’t shake the sudden fear she felt. This was the first time she and Reid were parting from one another. Usually she drove to Yambuku with him. It gave them time together, and they usually did their limited shopping at the nun’s mission, which was always filled with fun and laughter. Ruefully, she rubbed the back of her neck and turned around to walk to Grandpa Henri’s hut.
It was crazy that she should feel this way. Why did she? The hot sunlight poured down on her head and shoulders as she walked slowly through the busy village. Children ran up to her and grabbed her hands, begging her to come and play tag with them once again. She laughed and resisted—but barely. Casey had often come out of the jungle campsite to go for a swim in the pool at dusk, and the children loved to go with her and get into water fights with her. All the while, Reid was there, perched on his rock, ever alert, his back turned so he wouldn’t see her nakedness as she bathed after the children left.
She tried to shrug off her worry for Reid’s safety, but it was difficult nowadays. Shortly after the scalpel incident, an Italian professor and a troop of men had driven into the village. They’d asked for Casey by name. Grandpa Henri had refused to verify one way or another if she was at their village. Reid had warned Henri about Black Dawn and the old man knew two OID people were already dead. Henri wanted to protect her at all costs. He’d given them no information and they’d disappeared. But who knew where? Reid had been concerned, too. Casey had reassured both of them that many foreign countries were sending their best scientists over to Africa to help discover the Ebola virus’s reservoir. It was probably just a science group wanting to formally connect with her, trade information and then go their way.
She saw Grandpa Henri waiting for her so she hurried her step. Smiling, she reached out and touched the old man’s extended hand. “Hi, sorry I’m late,” she said breathlessly. “I had trouble wrapping up that OID package for Reid.”
Henri gestured for her to follow him into his airy, sunlit hut, and Casey ducked in through the doorway behind him. The odor of roasted antelope tantalized her. She saw it on a platter being held by one of the younger wives, who smiled at her in welcome. Waiting until Henri sat down on his throne, Casey sat crosslegged next to him. As the succulent, freshly killed antelope was served on wooden plates, Henri turned his attention to her.
“Of late, we have not had much time together. That young lion of yours keeps you well entertained, eh?”
Coloring fiercely, Casey took the plate of meat handed to her. She thanked the young wife in Bantu. “Well… he makes me laugh a lot, Grandpa. Does it keep you or others awake at night?” she asked, genuinely concerned.
Chuckling indulgently, Henri whispered, “Child, your laughter is music to us! I have never heard you so happy before. No, we like your shared laughter. It is healing. It is good for one’s soul and heart, you know.”
Casey couldn’t disagree as she chewed on the antelope. “Some nights, Grandpa, my stomach hurts and I’m in tears from laughing so hard. Reid’s a funny man. He’s a great storyteller, believe me. The best I’ve ever heard, anyway.”
“We have a saying that the one who gives you the gift of laughter will steal your heart away.” Henri looked at her sagely, expecting an answer as he slowly chewed on a small piece of antelope. He didn’t have many teeth left and it was always a challenge to chew meat.
Feeling heat steal into her face once more, Casey avoided his glittering gaze. She took a drink of warm goat’s milk. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she said, “Sometimes he’s like a dream come true, Grandpa… but don’t tell him that.”
“What we say is always kept between us, my daughter.”
Casey felt her heart swell in her chest as she thought of Reid. “He’s so good to me… . He tells me a story every night to help me go to sleep. And I do. My mind quits spinning. I just listen to his deep, low voice, and he uses words so well that I can close my eyes and picture exactly what he’s painting with those words. And then… I just fall asleep.”
“And do you tell him stories in return?”
”Er, no… “
“Why not?”
She frowned. “I don’t know… . I guess it’s a one-way street, isn’t it?”
“He has opened his heart to you, no?”
“Yes. I know a lot about him now.”
“And what does he know of you?”
“Not much, I’m afraid.”
“That is right,” Henri chided gently. He waved his finger at her. “The young lion has honor. He is a true warrior. He works hard. He cares for our old ones. He loves the children, for they flock to him upon his return from your jungle camp. If he were of my village, I would betroth you to him, daughter.”
Casey choked on the meat. She coughed violently. Tears came to her eyes as she forced herself to swallow. “What?”
“You heard me,” Henri said archly. “This man’s heart is yours to hold. Surely you know that. I see how he feels about you every time you are not aware of him gazing upon you. There is nothing he has not done for you. And yet you do not honor the gift he has offered you. I wonder why not?”
Setting the meat aside, Casey frowned and rubbed her hands on her thighs. “Reid hasn’t said anything like that to me.”
Guffawing loudly, Henri shook his head. “This man must be made of stuff stronger than I have ever known, then. He feels much for you, and yet he does not speak of what he carries in his heart?”
Uncomfortable, Casey nervously rubbed her ha
nds once more on the thighs of the coveralls she wore. “I’m afraid, Grandpa. I lost one man I loved… . I can’t afford to love another and lose him, too. I—I just couldn’t live through it again.”
“So because you fear loss, you spurn his love for you, eh?”
Casey met his gentle look. “I’m a coward.”
“No, just fearful. It takes courage to live, no? Courage to reach out to him? To tell him of what lies in your heart toward him? Yes?”
In a broken whisper, her head hanging, Casey said, “Yes… .”
“Ah, my child, you are a lioness. Be one. Lost love can be replaced in time… with the right man. My heart aches for both of you.” He patted her slumped shoulder. “I know he worries for you, for these Black Dawn terrorists. Each day is precious to us. Do not waste them. Do not throw happiness away… .”
It was past midnight when Reid finally drove back into the village and parked at their hut. Casey, still fully clothed, rushed out at once. By the light of the full moon climbing into the sky, she could see the fatigue in his face as he unbuckled the seat belt and opened the door.
“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” Casey said, greeting him huskily as she caught and held the door open. “Is everything all right? You’re really coming back late. I was worried sick.”
Reid sat there simply absorbing Casey’s presence. “Everything’s fine,” he reassured her tiredly. “The colonel was late getting into Yambuku. They had another firefight near the Kinshasa airport and they shut it down for half a day. Don’t worry, he got there and I gave him the OID package and journal.” He jabbed his thumb behind him. “More supplies from OID in the back. Slides and such. A more powerful microscope, too—the one you were asking for. I also got some dry goods for us from the Belgian nuns at the mission.”
Maybe it was Grandpa Henri’s gentle chiding that prompted her, or maybe it was her worry over him, but Casey stepped forward and lightly rested her hand on his strong shoulder. Reid instantly snapped his head to the left, his eyes narrowing upon hers. Her breath caught. She felt his hunger for her. She felt her own need for him. Every muscle beneath his taut skin trembled with awareness under her fingertips. Before she grew cowardly once again, Casey’s breath rushed out and she blurted, “I’m glad you’re back. I was so worried… .”
Reid’s heart soared with joy as their gazes met and locked. Her green eyes were shadowed and he saw the genuine fear for him in their depths. The soft parting of her lips made him groan internally and her hand felt like a burning brand on his damp cotton shirt. Reid violently checked his impulse to reach out to her. Recalling hotly how her mouth tasted beneath his, the texture of her, the taste of her, was nearly his undoing.
Busying himself, he muttered, “Well, I think I’ve solved the problem of keeping communications open between us so you won’t worry over me if it happens again.” He reached down and brought out an extra comsat phone.
“Compliments of Perseus. Next time I get stuck somewhere, I can call you and vice versa.” He forced a smile he didn’t feel as she jerked her hand away from him as if she were burned. What had possessed her to reach out and touch him? Reid wasn’t sure. He hoped the gesture was out of care. Maybe a growing love for him? And then he shook his head. Dreams. Stupid, unrealistic dreams, he warned himself harshly as he climbed out of the truck.
Just the way Casey looked at him as she stood back, gripping the new comsat phone in her hands made him wonder sharply about the meaning of her new intimacy with him over the last two weeks. Up until then, there had been little touching shared between them. Only laughter. Good times. Wonderful times. The best times he could ever recall. Casey was fun to be with. Her glib wit, her dry sense of humor, her appreciation of his country life made him eagerly look forward to their nights together. But why had she touched him so much since the scalpel incident? What signal was she sending? What did she want him to know? The questions begged to be spoken, but Reid was too afraid of the possible answers.
Moving to the rear of the truck, he opened the back and gathered up several sacks of canned food. Casey moved in right behind him and brought in her share of sacks. They set them on the table in the dim light of the kerosene lamp.
“You’ve got to be dead on your feet,” Casey whispered as she moved the sacks to one side of the table. “Why don’t you go to bed? I’ll unpack this stuff.”
He studied her in the growing silence, his shadow covering her where she stood. Her hands trembled slightly. She was afraid. Of him? Resting his hands on his hips, he murmured, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah… sure I am… .” Biting down on her lower lip, Casey busied herself taking the canned goods out of the sacks.
“You seem a little unsettled.”
“I was worried… .”
He ached to move forward and draw her into his arms. She seemed so tenuous and unsure right now. Reid hadn’t seen her react like this before, so he wasn’t sure what it meant. “Everything go okay here today while I was gone?” he demanded.
“Fine… everything was fine.” Drawing in a ragged breath, Casey lifted her chin and met his burning gaze. “It’s just that, well, I was worried for you, was all.”
“Worried—how?”
Casey recalled Grandpa Henri’s words about not throwing life away. If she was completely honest with herself, she’d admit that every moment spent with Reid was a delicious and happy experience, and she didn’t want to lose him. “Well,” she muttered, running her hand nervously through her hair, “about you, I guess.”
“Me? Your Neanderthal guard dog?” he teased, a grin lapping at the corners of his mouth. Reid knew if he teased her, she’d relax. She always had before. Casey rallied instantly beneath his gentle nudging.
“Yes, Neanderthal Man. You. I was worried about you, okay?” Casey saw the warmth in his eyes and felt it encircle her as surely as if he’d embraced her physically with those very strong, caring arms of his.
“This is a red-letter day,” he gibed. “Not only do you worry about me, but you touch me. I should go away more often.”
She managed a nervous laugh. “Don’t let it go to your head, jock.”
Reid picked up the towel hanging on a nail near the door. He shared a gentle smile with her as he hesitated before going to the pool to bathe. “It didn’t, good doctor. It went straight to my heart.”
Chapter Eleven
Play with us, Casey! Play with us!”
Children of all ages danced around Casey as she stepped away from the truck. They had just returned from their work site for the day. The children touched her hands, her arms, and jumped up and down in anticipation that she’d say yes. She tossed a merry look toward Reid. He returned her smile.
“Work’s over for the day, Doc. Go play with your kids.”
She warmed powerfully to the heated look in his eyes. “Okay, I’m gonna go play tag with them out there.” She pointed to the savanna just outside the village. “Want to come with us?”
Chuckling, Reid turned off the key. “Nope, you go right ahead. I’ve got a few calls to make to Perseus.” He raised his hand. “Have fun.” Suddenly the fleeting, molten thought of Casey carrying his baby made him hesitate. Yes, he’d thought a lot about Casey from a lot of different angles and perspectives during the third month of their stay here at the village. And all of his thoughts were good. All of them fulfilled some empty, needy level of himself. But did she feel the same about him? He searched her radiant face and those emerald eyes that shone with obvious joy. Again he wondered if she’d have that look in her eyes as she held their newly born baby in her arms.
“Sure?” she baited him. “You’ve played tag with us before. It’s always more fun with two adults being kids out there.” She laughed delightedly. The look in Reid’s eyes stirred her on some deep level. It was one he gave her often and it made her stomach curl deliciously with flutters of anticipation, man-to-woman. He made her feel special, needed and hotly desired. An ache began in her lower body, and as she stood there watching,
that slow, heated smile tugged at his mouth. Casey found herself wanting to make hot, unbridled love with Reid. Lately her dreams had been torrid, and Casey was so afraid of waking up some night and finding herself climbing all over him. How embarrassing!
“Very sure, good doctor. Duty calls whether I like it or not.” He met her smoky green gaze and studied her lips as they parted and beckoned him. “And stop teasing me with that come-hither look. It won’t work.”
Heat flowed into Casey’s cheeks and she avoided his sharp, hungry gaze. “I can’t even try feminine wiles on you, Hunter. I swear, you’re immune to everything. Even Ebola.”
Chuckling, Reid rested against the seat and simply absorbed Casey’s presence. She was so good for him. She made him happy as no one ever had or possibly ever would in the future. He felt like a starving beggar, humbled to be in her sunny presence. “Believe me when I tell you this,” he warned her in a growl. “You have more power over me than you’ll ever realize.”
Shaken by the low, intimate tone of his voice and that smoldering gaze aimed directly at her, Casey swallowed hard. She felt the impatient tug of the children’s hands. “Er, I gotta go… .” And she was glad to escape, because for once, Reid had caught her tongue-tied. She didn’t have a single blithe retort to parry his highly charged comment. As she turned, she waved to him.
Casey looked down into the velvet brown eyes of Gabriella, Henri’s little four-year-old granddaughter, who looked beseechingly up in silent pleading as she grasped her hand. Where had three months flown to? she wondered as she scooped the child up into her arms.
Gabriella squealed in delight and threw her arms around Casey’s neck. The other children hooted, laughed and shouted as she walked quickly down the slight incline to the now-withering grass. The heat had intensified, the rainy season was over and the once hip-deep grass had either been eaten by thousands of animals or was withering from lack of moisture. As she strode across the savanna, the grass crackled with dryness about her boots and pant legs. The children shrieked in joy and raced around her, their arms flying, their smiles wide and their eyes dancing with mischief.
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