Books by Linda Conrad

by Conrad, Linda

  “Up and over?” She raised her chin and looked toward the tall, rocky peak behind her. “I don’t know….”

  He took her shoulder with a tender grip and studied her face. “I can help you. But you have to be sure you truly want to make it. Otherwise, you must stay here and I’ll come back for you. But it might be late tomorrow before I can return with the baby.”

  She shook her head. “Don’t leave me. I can make it.”

  “Eat, then. We’ll go in a few minutes.”

  Hunter felt they were making good time as they climbed among the familiar red sandstone escarpments. He’d traveled both routes as a boy and knew the sheep path was more level, but it took twice as long to go that way.

  He had tied Bailey’s thigh-high nylons together and then to a length of rope he always carried. One end was around his waist and the other around hers in case she slipped. But she seemed steady enough so far.

  She was keeping up quite well. He didn’t want to think too long on how he felt about that, though. In fact, he’d rather not dwell on Bailey Howard at all right now.

  They’d already passed the great outcropping of black shale. He knew the sight of the vast desert floor and the distant blue of Ute Mountain, over the Colorado state line to the east, would greet them around the next overhang.

  Trying to concentrate on the possibilities of where the two kidnappers were headed was better than giving his emotions free rein. Worry and desire were the sworn enemies of a Navajo’s innate sense of order.

  He was fighting both at the moment. Silently, he reminded himself of a few of the ancient, sacred legends. He hoped the complicated and intense stories would free him of distractions. A Navajo made adjustments, found ways of remaining in harmony with the universe.

  Hunter refused to let anger over the baby’s treatment and the potentially fatal side effects of the sedation they were forcing on her work its furious panic into his mind. The familiar feel of Bailey’s legs as he had rubbed salve into her skin was yet one more thought he sought to avoid.

  Those distractions could get him killed.

  In the distance, he heard the shrill call of a raptor flying high overhead. A stunted juniper jutted out of the rock just above him. They had arrived at the peak.

  Holding up his hand to silently announce that they were stopping, he began to undo the rope from around his waist. Bailey took a few more steps upward and reached the ledge where he was standing.

  “Why are we stopping?” she whispered.

  He handed her the canteen. “We’re at a point where we’ll be able to see them below us. I’m going on up there—” he pointed straight up the side of the granite “—to do a little recon. You rest. I’ll only be a few minutes.”

  She nodded. But as he removed the end of the rope from her waist, she grabbed his wrist with a deathly grip.

  “Don’t leave me here.”

  The slight tremor in her voice and the haunted look in her eyes did something to him. Something he couldn’t name and refused to think about.

  Pulling off his backpack, he handed it to her. “This is our lifeline. Everything we need to stay alive out here. Hold on to it for me. I’ll be back down as soon as I catch sight of the kidnappers.”

  Bailey hugged the twenty-five pound pack to her chest and stepped back into the shade of the overhang. “Hurry.”

  Scrambling up to the flat-topped pinnacle, Hunter eased down on his haunches and looked through the binoculars. It had been so long that he had almost forgotten the stark beauty of the landscape.

  Spread out below him was every imaginable color of pink and red, where sandstone met limestone. In the distance, past the hard-packed sand, broken shale and gaudy marble veins in the limestone, stood a cinder block cabin he had nearly forgotten. Christian missionaries had built it forty years ago in the midst of the salt pines and sagebrush that sprang up around an artesian well.

  Only a long-unused but still visible wagon track led up to it. He didn’t see any vehicles parked nearby, not even the horse-drawn variety. The place had stood vacant for twenty years, but right then a curl of smoke lifted from the pipe in the roof.

  The smell of the burning sheep dung reached his nostrils and he tested the wind. Hunter did not want his scent to carry on the downdrafts. He had not forgotten about the dog. But the wind was blowing in his favor.

  Using the glasses, he checked the grasses and shallow arroyos surrounding the cabin. About fifty feet away was a newly dug trench and a large, circular flat spot maybe two hundred feet across the desert floor.

  There was no movement. Hunter knew any noise would announce his presence throughout the landscape. So he slowed his breathing as he sat back and waited.

  Bailey had listed the Narcotics Anonymous Twelve Steps in her head at least a hundred times before she finally heard a noise from above her. Funny, she really hadn’t tried to memorize those steps while at rehab. It was interesting what kinds of things stuck in one’s mind and came to the front at the weirdest times.

  She tilted her head out from under the ledge and watched Hunter climb down beside her. “Did you see them?”

  He nodded. “They met an old woman, Navajo grandmother type, who was waiting for them at a cabin near the well. She took the baby and gave them a piece of her mind.”

  Hunter chuckled as Bailey handed him the canteen. “The old lady didn’t waste a moment outside by the well before she had the child cleaned up, redressed and fed. The kid was awake and playing with the woman by the time I saw them all go into the cabin.”

  “What are we going to do now?”

  “The old grandmother said something about three days before the map would change hands. I’m guessing they intend to stay there, waiting for the ransom.”

  “A map? That seems odd. What do you suppose it means?”

  Hunter shrugged. “Maybe it’s a map meant for the baby’s grandfather, so he’ll be able to find her? But I have no intention of leaving that baby girl with those goons for another twenty-four hours, let alone three more days.”

  “What can we do?”

  “We’re going to wait until dusk, when the shadows will provide better cover. Then I’m going to sneak up to the cabin and take the child.”

  “It sounds dangerous.”

  He studied her for a moment. “Maybe you can provide the distraction we need to get Tara away safely.”

  “Me? Uh…” Bailey fought between her desire to get to Tara and her desire to save herself.

  But she had come this far. She simply couldn’t turn away now. The guilt trip would send her right back into the clutches of addiction.

  “Okay. I guess I could do something like that. What’ll we do in the meantime?”

  “It’s going to be over a hundred degrees on the floor of the desert near that cabin once the sun is high in the sky. Anyone with any sense stays in the shade and naps. I figure you have at least that much of a brain,” he added with a wry grin.

  Bailey fisted her hands on her hips. “Cute. Thanks. But where will we wait?” She threw a glance up the sheer rock wall he’d climbed down. “Not up there.”

  “No. But I do want to keep an eye on that cabin. I spotted a shallow cave in a cliff overlooking the valley. I’d almost forgotten about it. Coyotes use it as a den in winter, but…”

  “Wild animals?” She shivered and shook her head. “Think of somewhere else.”

  He bent to shrug into the pack, then took her elbow. “Come on, Miss Howard. It’s late summer, not winter. And besides, you’re with me. I’m not about to let anything happen to me.”

  5

  “N ow we have to go back up?” Bailey was winded from climbing along a path that had seemed easy and flat before. But it’d become so much hotter now that the sun was high.

  Hunter turned, checked her out from head to toe with one quick glance and grunted. “You can’t stay here. It’s too exposed.”

  Damn frustrating man. “I can try climbing, I guess.”

  “No.” He narrowed those beau
tiful gunmetal eyes at her. “Can you relax your muscles?”

  “Relaxing sounds easy enough. Why?”

  He didn’t bother to answer, just grasped her around the waist and scooped her up bodily. Bailey found herself sharing his broad shoulder with half the backpack and staring down at his backside. A nice firm backside it was, too.

  “Keep those muscles loose,” he advised as he took the first step up a shale path. “And regulate your breathing.”

  The man was climbing almost vertically up the side of a cliff, with her weight added to the heavy pack. Bailey swallowed and closed her eyes. No way in the world could she manage to relax and watch the bottom drop out from under them at the same time.

  She was beginning to understand now why her father had wanted Hunter to come for her. She’d had no idea how powerful and primitive he could be. At times he seemed more bloodhound than human. And now the guy she thought she’d known had suddenly become a superhuman comic book hero who could scale sheer walls.

  It felt like hours since they’d started the climb. But just as nausea began clogging her throat, Hunter bent through a narrow opening and moved into a dark, much cooler place. Then he relaxed his shoulder and let her body slide down his.

  Clinging to him for support, Bailey tried to steady herself, but her knees were wobbly.

  Holding on to her with one strong arm, Hunter lowered the pack to the ground with the other. He was something else, this charming summer fling from her past.

  Right then, the smell of the place hit her smack in the nostrils. Gamey. Musky. Wild.

  She and Hunter weren’t smelling all that wonderful themselves, what with the sweat and dirt and two days without brushing their teeth. But this new scent was a wild animal smell, and it reminded her of the coyotes.

  Something rustled in the dark, and she jumped. The light was low in the cave and she shifted around, squinting into every dark corner.

  “It’s only insects and maybe a rabbit, beauty,” Hunter crooned to soothe her. “Nothing will harm you. I’m right here.”

  His voice was so smooth and warm. His embrace so tight and safe. When he looked down into her face, smokey fire danced in his eyes.

  Gratitude, appreciation, fear and exhaustion rushed over her in equal parts. Something…something perilous but hugely important was about to happen. She could feel it in every vein.

  Bailey drew a breath and waited.

  “You need to sit down a second,” Hunter mumbled, and helped her to the ground. He tried to back away from the temptation. She was wounded and afraid, in no condition to do anything about the sizzle of heat between them.

  He was a better man.

  A memory of her as a college girl came out to devil him. The day on a cliff, when the breeze had tousled her thick, dark hair and her devastating, exotic eyes had glittered with potent feminine heat. He’d been blindsided by his emotions. Their tender friendship had suddenly changed into intoxicating but forbidden desire.

  But even then he’d wanted more from her. Something he couldn’t name and never got the chance to figure out. She was loving, gentle, rich and spoiled. A true paradox.

  If he had let it, the hurt when she’d walked away without giving them a chance could’ve thrown him out of balance for good. He was too much Navajo for that, though.

  “I’m going to find out how well we can see the cabin from here,” he rasped past a suddenly dry throat. “We need to know how much they can see of us, too. I think we’re pretty well hidden behind that shelf of rocks between us and the ledge, but I need to check it out.

  “Have a drink of water while I’m gone.” He handed her the canteen and turned. “I’ll be right—”

  “Don’t leave me.” She grabbed his leg and clutched at his knee. “Take me with you, or stay. But don’t walk away.”

  The fear and anguish in her voice drove him to change direction and kneel beside her. “Easy, beauty. Everything’s cool.”

  “Why do you keep calling me that? Beauty. What the heck does that mean?”

  He heard the shrill tone, saw that her shoulders were beginning to shake. Reality was sinking in and she looked as if she was on the verge of shock.

  Putting his arm around her shoulders to steady her, he lowered his voice. “I thought the nickname would be clear enough. You’re the most beautiful woman I know.

  “Besides,” he continued rationally, “Traditional Navajos do not use proper names, remember? We’re taught it’s rude to use names. Doing so takes away the other person’s power. As children we find nicknames for each other and use those instead. I chose ‘beauty’ because that’s the way I’ve always thought of you.”

  Instead of smiling or at least saying thank-you, Bailey reared back and grimaced. “Damn you. There you go again. You’re always so freaking charming and nice. Stop doing that. It’s only a big lie, anyway. I look…I look…”

  By now tears were streaming down her face and her chin trembled. Hunter knew it meant her body was finally reacting to the ordeal.

  Tightening his grip on her shoulders, he slowly stroked her cheek, pushing back the tears. “You look more alive and sexy now than you ever have before,” he whispered.

  When she only groaned and squeezed her eyes closed, he briskly rubbed her arms to get the circulation going. “Listen to your heart beating.” He could hear hers loud and clear from five inches away. “You’re alive, and you’re going to stay that way.”

  Bailey wasn’t so sure. She couldn’t hear anything, could barely feel anything. As warm as it had been a minute ago, she was freezing now. Her whole body began to shake.

  “Why am I so cold?”

  “Shock.” He reached into his pack, took out a small folded package and opened it up to reveal a full-size jacket made from some fantastic new material. “Here, put this around you and stay close. Let my body heat warm you.”

  She gladly snuggled into his side while he wrapped the jacket tightly around her and held it closed. “I can’t be in shock,” she cried. “It’s too late…or too soon. We haven’t gotten Tara out yet.”

  “Shush. Rest. Give your body a chance to catch up. We’ll get the baby tonight. Those goons do not stand a chance when you and I start working together.”

  Bailey shut her eyes and hung on to him. She still couldn’t hear her own heart, but she heard his, beating strong and sure and secure.

  She found herself nuzzling Hunter’s neck. No huge surprise, but it suddenly wasn’t safety she wanted from her former lover.

  His hand stroked her back, but each slow movement stirred rather than soothed. Wanting to feel his palm on her bare skin, she tried to sneak out from under the jacket. Casually, she shrugged it off one shoulder and then flattened her breasts to his chest as if the sudden cool air on her naked arm had been a big shock.

  The movement made a difference in Hunter’s attitude right away. He tightened his grip and dragged her into his lap. In this position, his warm breath blew against her neck. His nearness electrified her and sent shock waves of sensation to hidden regions.

  Her every sense went on high alert. He smelled musky, manly, sexy as hell. His breathing became ragged, ripping into her core with each muffled pant. The hair on her skin crackled, and she was dying to feel his hands on all her sensitive places.

  Raging memories of what they’d done in the past pushed her over the edge of reason. She twisted her body and threw her arms around his neck, pulling his head down for a kiss.

  Their lips met as she dragged him closer with desperate need. Her heart jumped and stuttered as she put her whole being into the kiss, clinging to him as if this was her last chance to touch and be touched by a man.

  Maybe it was.

  Frustrated, Hunter broke off the kiss too soon, leaned his head back and stared at her. “Don’t do this, Bailey. The heat is only aftershocks of adrenaline running through your system. It isn’t real. You’d hate yourself later for giving in to it. Worse yet, you’d hate me.”

  “Never. You said you could never hat
e me. Well, I could never hate you, either.”

  Caught between paradise and hell, he hesitated. How could he have forgotten the pull of her kiss? Or the delicious sensation of having her breasts pressed against his chest?

  The answer was simple. He hadn’t forgotten at all, but had simply pushed the memory into a distant recess of his mind in order to save his sanity and maintain harmony in his life.

  He wasn’t about to go through that again. Not even for the promise of what he held in his hands.

  “Easy does it,” he said, more to himself than to her. “You need to rest and heal. Let me go outside for a minute and scout around. Here…”

  He backed away and put the pack down in his place. “Use this for a pillow and sleep. Just for a little while. Okay?”

  Tears welled in those golden-colored eyes, but she said nothing. It was hard not to take her in his arms and soothe her. Harder yet to turn away from the heat and the memories.

  But he managed. He walked out into the sunshine, chanting silently a traditional prayer for balance and harmony.

  The universe is walking with me

  In beauty it walks before me

  In beauty it walks behind me

  In beauty it walks below me

  In beauty it walks above me

  Beauty is on every side

  As I walk, I walk with beauty

  Bailey raised her head. She could’ve sworn she smelled smoke. How long had she been out? It might’ve been only a minute. She could still feel the buzz of tension running through her veins from needing Hunter.

  She blinked, and he was there, bending over her.

  “Ah, you’re awake. Good. Are you hungry?”

  “Hungry?” It took a second for the word to make sense. “Starved.” She sat up and looked around. “You built a fire?” Stupid question. The truth was easy to see from a shallow pit glowing with red-orange light.

  “It’s dusk,” he answered patiently. “The smoke won’t be seen and that shelf of granite in front of the cave entrance will hide the light from the fire. I checked.”