by T. J. Kline
His gaze was dark with a lazy amusement. There was nothing to indicate he shared the same urgent hunger she felt.
Ben’s gaze slid over her face, lingering for a moment on her mouth before he inhaled deeply, cocking his head to one side, as if she was a puzzle he was trying to solve. “You’re almost as wild as those animals of yours.”
Emma’s stomach did a flip before it sank to her toes. In fact, the way he said it sounded more like an insult than an innocent observation.
Wild, impulsive, brash, daring . . . she’d had them all linked to her in one way or another during her lifetime. She didn’t usually mind since, in her line of work, she needed to be all of them at times. But she wasn’t stupid, and she usually didn’t rush headlong into a situation without considering the consequences, not like this. Not anymore. It was that balance that kept her and her staff safe.
But somehow, Ben made her undeniably aware, and for the first time she understood the meaning of “animal attraction.” Even now, with her pride stinging, she still had the urge to rip his shirt off and lick the well-defined abs still pressed against her. But, obviously, the feeling wasn’t mutual and she wasn’t about to make a complete idiot out of herself. Once a day was the limit for her own stupidity.
Emma had two choices: either continue to blush furiously and let him know the depths of her embarrassment, or brush it off as no big deal, pretending he didn’t affect her in the slightest. It was a no-brainer, although she could still feel her cheeks burning.
Sliding off the counter, letting her body brush slowly against the front of him, Emma deliberately tried to get some reaction from him while ignoring the electric shock waves the contact set off in her own body, turning too many parts liquid.
She lifted his arm from the counter and reached for the glasses, brushing past him and giving him a quick shrug. “Eh, it’s out of my system.”
Chapter Seven
The air between them practically crackled with electricity as Emma walked away from him to fix their lunch. Ben kept his back to her, gripping his fingers around the bull-nosed edge of the counter and sucking in a slow breath as silently as possible, trying to regain some semblance of control over his inflamed body. His heart rate wasn’t yet slowing and everything south of his waist was throbbing. He’d fought with every bit of self-control to hide his reactions from her, not wanting to look like a randy teenager on prom night, but it was going to take more than a little will power to keep from wanting to ravish that mouth of hers again.
Out of her system? Damn, if she could do this with just a kiss . . .
He couldn’t even allow himself a moment to think about what else Emma might be capable of because regardless of how much he might want her—and damn, did he want her right now—Ben couldn’t allow himself to get swept up in a moment. He’d done that before and learned the hard way not to let it ever happen again.
Especially if he was “out of her system.”
Her comment actually smarted a bit. He was tempted to kiss her again, to prove her wrong. Just the thought was enough to make his knees feel weak, like he’d just finished carrying his turnout gear up thirty flights of stairs. Emma already had a way of making him ache and yearn for more than he could have. She was a temptation that was just too dangerous to give in to.
“You want mayo?” she asked, casually, making him wonder if the sexual current he felt sparking between them wasn’t completely one-sided.
Ben inhaled deeply through his nose again, pushing himself away from the counter and tugging his cell phone from the pocket of his jeans, pretending to get a text. “You know, I should probably take that to-go. Looks like they need me at the station.” He wiggled his phone, grateful she couldn’t see the screen well enough to figure out he was lying.
Emma arched a brow and leaned a hip against the side of the counter. “I thought you told me this morning you had the day off.”
“I do, but I’m always on call, so . . .”
“Hmm.” She nodded slightly but he could tell she didn’t believe him.
It was better for them both if he left now, before he did something stupid. Like pinning her against the counter again and lifting her legs back around his waist. Out of her system, really?
Emma slapped the rest of the sandwich together and held it out to him. “There you go. Drive careful.” Ben took it with a mumble of thanks and headed for the door. “You think they’re going to need you tomorrow too?”
He paused with his hand on the doorknob and looked back over his shoulder at her. The sunlight streaming through the window caught her deep auburn hair, turning it flame red. Ben knew this was one fire he couldn’t let himself get caught up in, couldn’t run into fearlessly, even if he wanted to—and he really wanted to—but he had the distinct impression getting too involved with Emma would only end up with him getting burned. Even so, he couldn’t quite bring himself to turn down her request.
“I’ll . . . uh . . . let you know.”
She rolled her eyes at him, with a bitter laugh, and went back to her own sandwich. “Never mind, hero. I’ve managed to keep this place standing without you so far. I can do it on my own for as long as I need to.”
Emma wasn’t sure which was more humiliating—the fact that Ben hadn’t been nearly as affected by their steamy kiss as she had or that he’d bailed on volunteering just to get away from her afterward. She sighed as she quickly made herself a sandwich and took her lunch outside, onto the front porch, just catching a glimpse of his truck driving through the electric gates at the end of the driveway.
“Good riddance,” she muttered before taking a bite.
She had enough trouble on her plate with judgmental locals. She didn’t need to be worrying about a sexy fireman wandering around her place with his rock-hard abs and a butt she could bounce quarters off, getting himself in trouble.
Her body instantly responded to the memory of her legs hooked around that butt, heat flaring from within at the mere thought. She twisted the cap off a bottle of water before swallowing some, letting it quench the heat building inside her, praying it would douse the attraction she felt.
“Hey, Emma, we’re out of jam for Wally,” Jake announced as he came out of the barn and made his way toward her. “You want to head into town for some or you want me to do it?”
“I just bought some. It should be in the cupboard.”
Jake wiped the sweat from his forehead with his forearm. “Yeah, it would be, if your new boy toy hadn’t dropped the jar and broken it when I was showing him how to get their breakfast ready.”
She sighed at the disapproval in his voice. He didn’t need to say the words for her to hear his judgment loud and clear: you’re not your dad. You can’t do this.
“Then use honey. Wally will appreciate the change.”
“Ran out three days ago, remember? And I’d say not to worry about it but Wally’s so accustomed to it now that he’ll tear that cage apart if he doesn’t have his snack.” His gaze was accusatory, pointedly reminding her that she’d been the one to insist on giving the treat, against Jake’s warning otherwise.
Emma tossed the sandwich back onto the plate and stood up. “Of course,” she complained. “Okay, I’m going, I’m going. In the meantime, let’s keep everyone housed and we’ll get them exercised when I get back, when there are more eyes on them.”
“Not a rookie, boss.” Jake rolled his eyes as he turned back to the barn. Sarcasm dripped from his tone but Emma chose not to respond.
She had every right to say something, after all, technically, he was her employee, but it was easier to keep quiet. It wouldn’t be prudent to piss off either of her last two employees. He and his brother, along with Sadie and Monique, her two part-time volunteers, were the only ones who hadn’t up and left when her father died, leaving her in charge of the sanctuary filled with too many animals and not enough hands to do the never-ending chores. But, so far, Jake wasn’t coming around the way the others had.
What in the world had her da
d been thinking, assuming she could take charge of this place without him and no source of income for it? She couldn’t even manage to keep honey or jam on hand for a bear, how was she going to run this entire facility single-handed?
He watched Emma as she headed out of the facility. Now was his opportunity, while she was gone and everyone else was busy. Sadie and Monique were working in the nursery and his brother was too busy to even notice that he wasn’t where he’d said he’d be.
It didn’t take long to drive his sedan to the entry. Retrieving the cans of spray paint from his trunk, he tagged the front of the entrance, watching the heavy red paint drip down the wall. It wasn’t fancy. It barely even made sense, but it was nothing more than a diversion. Emma would be so busy cleaning up the mess that she wouldn’t even realize what was happening inside the compound. By the time she did, it would be too late.
Emma was too incompetent to be running Sierra Tracks the way it should be run. He was going to make sure that everyone else finally realized it too.
Ben headed into the station, but he hadn’t bothered to stay long. It was quiet and they didn’t need him. Why would they? It was technically his day off and, while this was their peak fire season, the past few weeks had been unusually quiet. Under normal circumstances, he would have welcomed the peace but the way his body was still thrumming with adrenaline after that kiss with a particular redhead who knew exactly how to light him up, he needed a release. Instead, he’d had to make due with taking his frustrations out on the weight machines, leaving the crew on duty carefully skirting his ire after one of the new probies had made the mistake of asking who shit in his cornflakes.
It wasn’t likely to be repeated anytime soon. Not after his ridiculous overreaction, shoving the poor kid against the wall hard enough to rattle the hanging plaques. Thank goodness Angie had been there to convince him that the rookie was nothing more than a dumb kid. So far, thankfully, they’d all been willing to let the matter drop but the probie eyed him warily now and he was going to have to do something to make it up to him.
It wasn’t like he could confess the real reason he’d lost his shit. There was no way he was telling anyone else in the station that he’d been shaken up by his reaction to a woman who kissed like sweet sin personified. As much as he liked the crew, Ben wasn’t about to take that razzing. They’d never let him live it down. Especially Angie. They might be friends now, but she was nothing less than brutal when it came to giving him dating advice. Quick sound bites like Love ’em and leave ’em, Ben. Or his personal favorite, sometimes you just need to get your rocks off.
It was easier to sneak out and head home than wait to hear her lesson for today.
Ben slowed as he turned down the long stretch of road in front of the sanctuary. He’d never admit it out loud, but there was no doubt he was trying to catch a glimpse of Emma, even if it was pretty unlikely that he’d actually be able to see her from this distance. It didn’t stop him from leaning forward as he neared the edge of the property line, watching for the flash of red from her hair in the sunlight. Just as he came to the driveway, Ben slammed on the brakes.
Emma stood on her toes at the front gate with her back to the road, trying to scrub what looked like blood from the top of the enclosure wall.
Pulling the truck onto the shoulder, he parked behind her golf cart, and jumped out. “What the hell happened?”
She looked back over her shoulder at him. “What does it look like, genius? Someone thought they’d come by and spray paint my wall.”
“But who? Why? When?” It hadn’t been there when he drove out earlier. Ben could see what was left of the paint spelling out “Free the slaves” with the last “s” smeared thanks to her clean-up efforts.
Emma dipped the plastic scrub brush into the bucket of soapy water. “Some nut? Protester? Activist? I don’t know. I headed into town to get a few things and came back to this. Again.”
“You mean this has happened before?”
She sighed heavily, her head dropping forward, as if it pained her to admit the truth. “I told you people around here don’t like me being in charge. Did you think I was joking?” She dropped the brush into the water and rolled her shoulders back, trying to loosen the kinks, before shaking her head at the writing on the wall. “When are people going to get it through their heads that I’m not running a circus or a zoo? I don’t keep these animals for entertainment. I only keep the ones that can’t go back into the wild.”
“But your dad used to have visiting hours, like a zoo,” Ben pointed out, earning himself a dirty look.
“Yeah, well, vet care is expensive when all that comes through your doors are injured and needy animals. Vaccines and surgeries still cost money and there needs to be some sort of steady income to make up for the constant unpredictability of donations.”
Ben threw his hands up in supplication with his palms facing her. “No judgment, just playing devil’s advocate.” He stepped closer, sliding a finger through the paint that was still tacky to the touch.
“Yeah? Well, go advocate somewhere else.”
“Brake fluid.”
“What?” She didn’t bother to hide her annoyance.
“Try using brake fluid instead of soap and water. Do you have some? It should break up the paint and make it easier to clean.”
“Yeah, in the shop at the house. I have enough equipment that seems to constantly need repair, so we keep plenty on hand.”
Ben didn’t miss the exasperation in her voice. She was beat—both physically and mentally. Overworked and stretched far too thin. Yet, in spite of it, her conviction propelled her on. He wasn’t sure she would succeed but he made the decision that he wasn’t going to let her go down fighting alone.
He wandered around the entry to the sanctuary, looking for some sort of clue as to who might be causing her trouble. Several tire marks marred the ground at the exit. She eyed him suspiciously as he stared down at the dirt. Ben squatted on the balls of his feet and ran his fingers over what appeared to be a narrow tire track. Emma drove a truck.
“Did anyone else come out while you were gone?”
“Not that I know of. The gates stay shut and Jake didn’t mention it. Everyone is still here.”
Ben made his way back to the painted wall, turning her to give him her full attention. “You’re sure?”
“I guess.”
Ben pulled his phone from his back pocket and began dialing Andrew. “Radio Jake to have him bring you the brake fluid. But stop cleaning for now.”
“Why? What are you doing? I don’t have time for this, Ben.”
“I’m calling my brother. He needs to come out and see this.”
“The police? I don’t think we need to involve them.” She pulled the two-way radio from her pocket and asked Jake to bring the brake fluid to the front gate. She tucked the device into the back pocket of her jeans and reached for the brush, nudging past him, dripping water along the way. “I mean, it sucks but—”
“Emma, this is vandalism. You need to report it, especially if this isn’t the first time.” When the call went to voicemail, he sent his brother a quick text.
“Wow! Thank you, Captain Obvious.” She sighed heavily, making him wonder if she got this annoyed with everyone or if he just brought out the best in her. “I know that, but there’s no sense in involving the police in something that is so low on their list of concerns that it won’t do any good.”
“My brother’s a good cop. He’ll follow up on it and make sure he gets to the bottom of this.”
“Not if he’s too busy dealing with other shit.”
Why was she being so difficult? He stood and made his way back to her, opening his mouth to argue. She didn’t even give him the opportunity.
“It’s just paint, McQuaid. It’ll wash off. No sense giving someone the satisfaction of all the drama calling the police would cause.”
“This could get a lot more troublesome than just spray paint on a wall.”
Emma glanced p
ast him to where he could see a car pulling up to the gate. Jake jumped out and ran toward them, looking panic-stricken.
“Emma, Buster’s missing,” he yelled.
“What?” She threw the brush back into the water and jerked the bucket onto the back of the golf cart. “How long?”
“I don’t know,” he said, heaving for a breath. “Monique and Sadie have been in the nursery all morning, Brandon was with the raccoons and I was cleaning the deer pens. No one else has been near the cats since you fed them this morning. I was bringing this to you like you asked and when I went by his cage, it’s wide open and he’s not in it.”
Ben could see the panic rising in her at the thought of even a declawed mountain lion loose on the premises. He could also read between the lines. Emma had been the last one at the cage.
“Shit,” she whispered under her breath. “Get in, Jake. We’ve got to get to the barn and get tranquilizers before he gets into any trouble.”
Or kills someone.
She didn’t need to say the words for Ben to hear them in his head.
“Get in the truck,” Ben ordered. “That way you two won’t be in the open. Radio everyone else to stay inside.”
Chapter Eight
This cannot be happening.
Emma’s gaze slid over the tree line, searching for any area Buster might be hiding as they drove back to the barn with Ben, praying to catch a glimpse of him, even as she prayed she’d find him back in his cage. She’d radioed Sadie and Monique, warning them to stay together inside but to keep watch for Buster. So far, there had been silence from everyone. She wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. While it meant everyone was safe, it also meant no one had seen Buster. He could have been loose when she left for the store, somehow gotten outside of the sanctuary enclosure without her noticing. He could be anywhere at this point.
