Mitch clasped her hand and brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss before allowing his tongue to tease the center of her palm. It was a simple gesture, but one that had her squirming in her saddle.
Meeting his heated gaze and knowing grin head on, the only response she was capable of making was an acknowledging nod of her head and one simple word. "Touché."
With an almost weary sigh, Mitch took up his reins, "As much as I hate to interrupt where this is headed, we need to pick up the pace, or we won't make it back to town before nightfall," he said reluctantly, then added, "When we get back to Abilene, we need to talk."
"Yes, we do."
Mitch reached over and traced her bottom lip with his index finger. "You are all that matters to me, Kat. Whatever happens, we're in this together."
Together, as in not alone. Mitch had no way of knowing what those words did to her. All her life she'd felt alone. The one on the outside looking in while everyone else had families of their own, someone they belonged with. True, her Uncle Ben and Aunt Karen had been there for her, but they had their own children, their own family. She'd been included out of sympathy and yes, love, but it had never been the same. Katlin had still felt alone.
With Mitch she'd felt the sensation of homecoming, the sense of being with someone she belonged with and belonged to. She'd felt it almost from the beginning, back at the pond where they'd been totally alone. The rest of the world shut out by the invisible barrier around the clearing.
"Oh, how I wish." Katlin wasn't aware she'd spoken the words aloud until Mitch agreed.
"Me too."
"How did you . . . ?"
"I was thinking the same thing," Mitch admitted, proving once again how connected they were. Offering no other explanation, Mitch pressed the heel of his boots into his horse's flanks, spurring him to movement.
Katlin didn't know how much distance they'd covered before a booming rumble exploded behind them, causing her mare to rear up on her hind legs, nearly unseating her.
Mitch pulled his Appaloosa to a screeching halt and turned in the saddle to look behind them. "Christ Almighty!"
Once Katlin managed to regain control of the panicked mare, she too turned to glance over her shoulder. "Oh my God!"
Ahead, toward Abilene, the sky was a clear, pristine blue, unmarred by a single wisp of a cloud. Behind them, ominous, dark, storm clouds were boiling and rolling and rapidly gaining on them.
As if someone had flipped a switch on a gigantic cooling fan, the temperature took a sudden nose dive. The oppressively heavy air became charged. The absolute stillness erupted, and the tall prairie grass began to twitch and twist erratically.
Katlin's silk blouse which had moments ago been plastered to her back with perspiration was now cold and clammy, sending a chill down her spine. A blinding flash of lightning slithered through the clouds before shooting downward, striking the ground less than a mile behind them.
Katlin knew they could make a run for it, but there was no way they could make it to town and to cover before the storm was upon them.
"We’re sitting ducks out here," Mitch shouted over the rapidly rising wind. Spying a small stand of trees ahead, he pointed in that direction. Mitch wasn't stupid. He knew better than to take cover under a tree during a storm because lightning usually hit the tallest point. Nevertheless, being under a tree struck by lightning was preferable to a direct hit on horseback out in the open.
Cursing the weakness of feminine vanity which had induced her to wear her hair down for Mitch's benefit, Katlin was attempting to turn her face into the wind so it would blow the hair out of her face. She couldn't see. She had her hands full trying to control the panic-stricken mare, and she couldn't risk loosening the death grip she had on the reins in order to stabilize the hair that was whipping around her head. Katlin suspected she must look much like Medusa on a bad hair day.
Recognizing her plight, Mitch was powerless to assist her at that moment. As he watched Katlin, he felt as if the breath had been sucked from his body. She was magnificent. He was dumb-struck. Despite the approaching storm, the setting sun still glowed on their side of it, reflecting off her glorious mane of blowing red hair as she struggled to control the mare rearing on its hind legs. Mitch Cameron had never been a man prone toward poetic words, but all he could think of was a vision of an avenging angel on a mission. "t that moment, there was no doubt in his mind that she was capable of doing exactly what she'd been sent here to do or would die trying. Mitch also knew he would gladly lay down his own life to see the latter did not happen.
Merely imagining spending the remainder of his life without Katlin's vibrancy, her fire, and her spirit made his stomach cramp into a painful knot. For the first time in his life, Mitch understood why losing the woman he loved had turned his father into such a hard, bitter man.
At last able to see the stand of trees Mitch had indicated, Katlin caught Mitch's gaze, nodded her understanding, and turned her horse in the appropriate direction. She shortened her hold on the reins, leaned low toward the mare's neck, and kicked her heels into the horse's flanks.
As they raced across the open prairie ground in an attempt to outrun the advancing storm, a memory of the boulders which had magically appeared when she'd needed cover flashed through Katlin's mind. There was a low rumble of thunder which built in intensity until it exploded with a loud crack that vibrated the ground beneath their horse's pounding hooves.
"t that point Katlin, felt she had nothing to lose by asking, "Okay, if you're listening up there, " she prayed silently, "We seem to have a big problem here and could use a little help."
Not wanting to appear overly demanding or picky, Katlin wasn't specific in her request, leaving whatever protection which might be offered to the discretion of Whom Ever. But she couldn't help thinking a posh storm cellar with a soft bed and cozy fire would be nice.
"I always warned you, Little One, be careful what you wish for . . . you might get it," Sing's voice sounded inside her head. Then came the chuckle she was rapidly coming to recognize as a warning of unexpected events to follow.
"You mean there really is a storm cellar?"
"Not a storm cellar. You said, "I wish."
I wish? What did she wish? Then she remembered. The pond, the clearing, and the invisible barrier which had sheltered them from the rest of the world. Mitch said he had been thinking the same thing. That was just before the freak storm developed.
"Sing, you didn't?"
His only response was merry laughter which slowly faded away. He was gone. Katlin could sense his absence. "Death has done something really bizarre to his sense of humor," Katlin muttered under her breath.
Reaching the dubious protection of the trees side by side, they pulled their mounts to a halt. The powerful chests of the horses were heaving from the exertion of their mad dash into the trees. What was surprising, Mitch and Katlin were breathless themselves. You'd almost think they had been running instead of riding.
Katlin was still trying to figure out what to do next when she felt Mitch's hands on her waist. Lifting her right leg up and over the saddle horn, Katlin allowed him to lift her from the saddle, and she slid downward along his hard body and into the shelter of his arms.
Katlin didn't know if she initiated the kiss or if Mitch had. Did it matter? All that mattered was the feel of Mitch's lips, warm and demanding, the knee-weakening responses he aroused in her, and the incredible sensation of homecoming. It had never occurred to her before that home wasn't necessarily represented by a location or even a structure with four walls and a roof but by the people you share that space with.
As much as Mitch regretted the need to do so, he forced himself to break their kiss. He leaned his forehead against hers with a groan, "This is the first time I've felt truly alone with you since we hit Abilene."
"I know the feeling," she agreed.
"Unfortunately, as you so aptly put it earlier, things are about to get ugly."
"Maybe not," Katlin suggested
.
"If you know something I don't, I'm open to suggestions." Holding Katlin at arms length, Mitch proceeded to explain exactly how precarious he considered their situation to be. "I've been in some freak storms in my time, but I've never seen anything like this. We're in for a bad one, and these trees aren't going to give us much protection when it hits."
"No, they won't," she agreed, "but I know something that might. Remember the invisible wall at the pond? What if we had something like that here?"
""re you trying to tell me you did that? That people from your time can create something like that at will?"
"No, of course not. Well, not exactly," Katlin hedged. "I mean, I did it. "t least, I think I did, but I believe I had help from whatever power brought me here."
Sing had told her, if not in so many words, what she needed to do. But what if she went into a meditation, surrounded herself with the light, and woke up back in her own time? No, Katlin wasn't willing to take that risk. She'd face the damn storm with no protection before she'd risk losing Mitch now. But then again, she hadn't gone into a meditation when the boulders appeared.
Visualization! She'd mentally visualize what she wanted, then pray it would be provided.
"If you can do it, I still don't see that it will do us any good," Mitch felt he should point out. "We were able to walk through it before. That being the case, how can it keep out a storm?"
"Damned if I know. I guess I'll just have to make a few modifications on the design."
"We don't have anything to lose by giving it a try," Mitch agreed as another lightning bolt hit less than a quarter of a mile away. "If you're going to do it, you'd better make it quick. We're running out of time."
Katlin looked up and met Mitch's anxious blue gaze. He was such an incredibly gorgeous hunk, and he was all hers. The fates permitting, tomorrow this wonderful man would become her husband. She'd be his wife, and very soon they'd become one.
Unable to resist, her eyes slid downward to where several buttons on his shirt had come undone when she slid from her horse. The tips of her fingers actually tingled with the temptation to feel the texture of the hair across his muscular chest. And still her eyes continued the journey downward to the obvious bulge straining the front of his jeans.
"Kat, we don't have time for this," Mitch warned, then felt himself flex involuntarily against the restricting denim, only to groan when a knowing grin curved her lips.
"Damn it, Kat."
"The problem is, Mitch, we never seem to have time for this," Katlin pointed out needlessly. Thunder boomed. Lightning flashed. "But you're right, we are running out of time," Katlin admitted, swallowing convulsively. "It’s your fault though. I can't think when you're so close to me with that loaded weapon in your jeans."
"And that my dear, is your fault," Mitch quipped back.
"Maybe you should go over there and do something with the horses so I can concentrate," Katlin suggested.
Mitch muttered something under his breath as he turned to move away from her.
"Mitch," Katlin's still husky voice halted him. Holding his gaze, she reached out and slid her hand down his painfully rigid erection. "Hold that thought for a while longer, will you?"
Turning, still muttering under his breath, Mitch stalked toward the horses. ""s if I had any choice in the matter." She had no idea just how close she'd come to totally humiliating him when she unexpectedly put her hand on him. He'd nearly fired his so-called loaded weapon inside his jeans.
Katlin closed her eyes and began taking deep cleansing breaths in an attempt to block everything out so she could concentrate. The image of Mitch's pained expression when he stalked away from her, the rumble of thunder and flashes of lightning, not to mention the ache in her lower regions, and the uncomfortable dampness in her jeans made it damn near impossible.
"Okay, you've accomplished the impossible already just by being here. Come on McKinnen, you can do this. You have to do this."
Once again, forcing herself to concentrate, to focus, Katlin envisioned the huge, glass-like dome she'd once seen in a movie, a dome which covered and protected a futuristic city. That's what they needed, only on a smaller scale.
Mitch paused in his attempt to calm the skittish horses and looked toward Katlin who was standing there, eyes closed, motionless as a statue. Could she actually do what she'd suggested? Maybe. Considering everything that had happened since they'd met, it was a strong possibility.
On some level, Mitch suspected he should be bothered by who Katlin was, where she was from, the knowledge she possessed, and her unique abilities. Or it should at the very least make him feel uncomfortable. It didn't. He loved her, pure and simple, without question or conditions.
It was then that Mitch realized something had changed. He could no longer feel the wind. The horses were no longer frightened or skittish. They were in fact nibbling almost contentedly on the abundant prairie grass.
Mitch went to Katlin, stopped directly in front of her, and reached out only to jerk his hand back before it could connect. He'd once been an honored guest at a Comanche vision quest ceremony where the medicine man had gone into a peyote induced trance. Even though standing, Katlin appeared to be in a similar trance-like condition, and Mitch knew better than to startle her or to break her concentration. The Indians believed by doing so, the connection between the body and the spirit could be broken and the spirit lost. Mitch wasn't sure he believed that to be possible. He wasn't sure exactly what he did believe any more, but he wasn't willing to test the theory at Katlin's expense. Deciding his best course of action was to leave her alone to come out if it naturally, Mitch went to check the storm's progress.
He'd gone maybe twenty feet beyond the stand of trees when he walked head-long into an immovable object. " very large, invisible, immovable object which knocked Mitch flat on his ass.
Katlin stepped one leg across the downed man and stood astride him, feet positioned against his hips. Looking down upon Mitch's prone body, Katlin said in a deliberately provocative tone of voice, "Looks like it worked."
"It would appear so," Mitch agreed, looking up at her, knowing this time there would be no interruptions.
"Looks like we're stuck here till morning," Katlin offered.
"I don't see any other option."
"And what do you suggest we do to keep us occupied till morning?"
Mitch allowed his gaze to slide slowly up her legs, pausing at the juncture between her thighs, pausing again at her breasts before his eyes met hers. "Why don't you come down here and join me, and we'll discuss the possibilities," Mitch suggested then opened his arms in invitation."
The storm exploded! Dark clouds extinguished the lingering traces of daylight. Their only illumination was the light show supplied by the heavens which reminded Katlin of the strobe lights in a popular Abilene night spot in 2002. The air around them was so electrically charged she could feel the hair on her arms standing on end.
Like the storm, Katlin felt untamed, wildly excited, and charged with a wicked sense of abandon.
Leaning down, she slid her hands down her right thigh and tugged loose the leather thong that anchored the holster to her hip. Slowly she allowed her hands to slide back up her leg, over her stomach, and up to the buckle of her gun belt, never once taking her eyes from the expression on Mitch's face. Watching him watching her was an incredible turn on. Who would have believed the Ice Princess would have been wanton enough to stand in the midst of a raging thunder storm doing an enticing strip tease in an attempt to seduce a man into making love to her. If the expression on Mitch's face was an indication, he didn't need much enticing.
Katlin didn't want slow, gentle wooing. She wanted fire and unbridled passion.
How Mitch was able to continue lying there motionless while she removed each article of clothing, he'd never know. Watching her, illuminated by flashes of lightning as she slowly revealed herself to him was the most erotic, intoxicating experience of his life.
"Now?" Mitch whisper
ed hopefully, almost desperately.
"Now," Katlin whispered in a husky tone of voice as she lowered herself to sit astride his hips. Katlin reached out and released the last few buttons holding Mitch's shirt closed and at last indulged herself in the pleasure of running her fingers through the hair covering his chest. Wanting to experience the feel of her naked breasts against Mitch's bare chest, Katlin leaned forward.
" blinding bolt of lightning struck the ground just outside the dome. The sensation of static electricity prickled Katlin's sensitized nipples as they touched the hair on Mitch's chest. She could almost feel sparks shooting from him into her breasts and downward until she instinctively arched herself into his hardness.
"Oh God," they both gasped in unison.
Mitch lost the remaining control he'd been holding onto. Grasping Katlin by the shoulders, he rolled her onto her back, and he ended up the one on his feet astride her, sucking great gulps of air into his constricted lungs.
"Mitch, I need you," Katlin coaxed.
"Not yet," Mitch responded, tossing Katlin's own words back at her. "You had your turn, sweetheart, now it's mine." Mitch removed his gun belt and tossed it aside to join hers. His shirt followed. He took his time unbuckling his belt, then slowly pulled it through the belt loops of his jeans.
Katlin gasped and closed her eyes when holding the belt by the buckle, he allowed the belt to trail downward to circle one breast and gently tease at the nipple. "Do you want to feel my tongue there, Kat?" The tip of the belt slid across her chest to repeat the process on her other breast. "And here?" Mitch trailed the tip of the leather between her heaving breasts and began moving downward. "How about here?" he asked, pausing at the navel.
Katlin nearly came unglued when she felt the leather slide between her legs and move upward until it could go no further. "How about here, Kat? Would you like to feel my tongue here?" Mitch taunted. He gave the belt a slight twitch, and the sensation was so intense Katlin was sure she was about to climax.
"Please Mitch," Katlin gasped, opened her eyes, and looked up at him. She'd been so caught up in sensation, in listening to his words, imagining, she hadn't been aware that he'd removed the rest of his clothing. He stood over her like some pagan warrior, his erection illuminated by flashes of bright light. He looked huge, almost threatening, and for the first time Katlin felt her brazen bravado waver.
The Bond Unbroken Page 22
