Maverick

by Joan Hohl

  Boyo jumped up, barking at the sound of the tin cup hitting a rock. Taking up the charge, the horses whinnied and restlessly moved.

  “Now look what you’ve done,” Tanner said, standing. “You’ve gone and spooked the animals.”

  “S-sorry, I don’t know what happened. I’m not usually clumsy.” Nor did she usually get affected like that by a man.

  Tanner handed Bri his own coffee and, after calming down Boyo, went to settle the horses.

  Bri watched his easy gait, his tight rear, and once again felt unsteady. She had to force her eyes away from his body and onto the horses. From a sack he’d pulled out of the pack, he sprinkled some feed on the ground for the two horses. His diversion worked. The horses went immediately to their feed.

  He was impressive with the animals. Gentle, firm when needed but always attentive, just as he’d been last night with Boyo in the tent.

  And with her, said an inner voice.

  She managed to ignore the images that thought conjured.

  “We’ve got to eat and get going,” Tanner told her when he returned to the fire. “I’m sure Minnich isn’t out there lingering over breakfast.” Before she could agree, he handed her an oatmeal bar.

  She was so hungry she downed it before Tanner had the fire out.

  When he got up and noticed her empty wrapper, he seemed surprised. “Would you like another one?”

  Embarrassed, she looked up at him from underneath her lashes. “If we have enough.”

  Chewing his own bar, he retrieved another and gave it to her. “We’ve got to get packed now.”

  She followed his lead, picking up her coffee cup and loading her saddlebag on Chocolate.

  “Here, I’ll take that.” Tanner came up beside her to heft the other pack she held. “It’s heavy.”

  “I can handle it,” she said, but the words got stuck in her throat when she turned and found his face mere inches from hers. He lingered there, and, too awestruck to move, Bri drew in the scent of him. He looked even better in the light of day than he had last night.

  When she found her voice, she asked, “What are you doing?”

  “Me?” Tanner replied. “You’re the one who was batting those long eyelashes at me before. Are they fake?”

  “Fake?” Bri nearly screeched but held back to not startle the animals again. “I’ll have you know, Mr. Wolfe, I have never in my life worn fake eyelashes…or anything else.”

  Tanner’s face split in a grin. “I know. You’re the real thing,” he drawled as he ran a slow, heated look over her body from head to toe, allowing his eyes to travel where his hands had gone last night.

  The slow burn in Tanner’s eyes gave Bri a hot flash. Steadying the uneven rhythm of her breathing, she croaked out, “Is there any water?”

  Without stepping far from her, he pulled a bottle out of his saddlebag. She took it and gulped a mouthful. The cold water did nothing to calm her heated thoughts. Last night had been…everything. It was as if they’d suddenly become one…one body, one soul, one completed entity. Making love with Tanner had been the best experience of her life, and she couldn’t wait to do it again and again….

  She couldn’t stifle the gasp that rose out of her throat. Oh, Lord, she was in big-time trouble.

  “Are you okay?” concern shaded Tanner’s voice.

  “Yes…I’m sorry,” she managed to say. “The breakfast bar must have gotten stuck in my throat.” At his skeptical look, she turned away, going to retrieve another pack.

  Within twenty minutes they had their mounts ready, the packhorses loaded and were on the move.

  They rode single file along the narrow track. When the path widened enough for two, Bri rode up alongside him.

  “I’ve been thinking,” she said. “Suppose Minnich doesn’t follow the stream but moves high into the mountains?” She’d forced herself to ignore Tanner and focus on the reason they were here.

  “Unless he knows exactly where there is more water, he can’t afford to do that. He has food, but eventually he’ll run out of that. Now he can last a good while without food, foraging for edible early-spring plants and berries. But water?” He shook his head. “The way I see it, he’ll likely stay with the stream.” He sent a sidelong look at her. “Naturally I could be wrong. The melting snow is filling many small streams and creeks. If he knows his way around these mountains, he’ll veer off. But I’m banking he doesn’t know them that well.”

  Bri nodded her understanding. “But I know you enough by now to be fairly sure you thought he would stay on this course. You didn’t hesitate, you deliberately chose this way. Why?”

  “Because this way leads into the thickest section of the wilderness, the least traveled by tourists, hikers and backpackers. And because this stream is well marked on maps of the area.”

  “Makes sense. I should have known better than to even ask such a stupid question.”

  “No.” Tanner shook his head, swinging the ponytail hanging out from under the wide brim of his hat. “You can ask anything you want, Brianna. There are no stupid questions, just sometimes stupid answers.”

  “Somehow I don’t think you give many of them.”

  He smiled at her compliment. Already soft, Bri’s insides went all squishy. She gathered the loose reins to drop back again, but his hand snaked out, covering hers.

  “Stay and ride with me, Brianna,” he said, keeping a light, disturbing hold on her hand. “We’ll be stopping for a rest and a quick lunch soon.”

  Ridiculous as it seemed, with his hand lightly resting on hers, Bri had never before enjoyed riding so much, even with the ache in her rear end settling in once again.

  From her position next to him Bri could now clearly see Boyo, moving in a wide area back and forth ahead of them, his head moving from side to side, searching.

  “Boyo is a worker, isn’t he?”

  “Boyo comes from a line of grand champion wolfhounds.” He turned to grin at her. “But he loves to hunt.”

  “Hawk doesn’t show him?” She tried really hard to ignore the effects of his grin. It didn’t work.

  “Hell, no.” Tanner laughed. “Can you see Hawk traipsing around a show ring, leading Boyo?”

  Bri frowned. “There’s nothing wrong with showing dogs. They’re beautiful.”

  “I know,” he agreed, to her surprise. “I watch the competitions on Animal Planet. But think, Brianna—can you really picture Hawk all duded up at a dog show?”

  Bri tried to imagine it and soon gave up the effort. She smiled. “Not really.”

  “Thought so.”

  “Where did Hawk get Boyo?”

  “He was a gift from Hawk’s father.”

  “Is his father still alive?”

  “Alive and well and raising champion wolfhounds in Scotland where he lives.” He chuckled. “He gave Hawk his pick of a litter and Hawk chose Boyo. His father was delighted because Boyo was the runt and he was certain he wouldn’t show well, anyway. Turns out, Boyo was the pick of the litter, the largest and the best, and would have made a great champion.”

  “Way to go, Boyo,” Bri called, stretching her back and neck to catch a glimpse of the constantly moving dog. She winced at the pain that attacked her shoulders.

  As usual, Tanner didn’t miss a thing. “Need a break?” he asked, moving his hand from hers to massage her tight shoulder.

  Bri sighed for betraying herself to him. She felt like a greenhorn, a feeling she didn’t appreciate. “Yes,” she admitted, immediately adding, “I’m sorry if I’m holding you up.”

  He slanted a scowl at her. “You’re not holding me up, Brianna. I could use a short break, too. And I’m hungry. That wasn’t exactly a filling breakfast this morning.” His scowl gave way to a teasing smile. “Also, I need a cup of coffee as much as you do.”

  She laughed at the same time she saw her vision blur. What was she getting all misty-eyed over? She derided herself. A rush of tears just because he was being so caring and thoughtful of her? She heaved a silent si
gh.

  And she had asked herself if she could handle him? Dumb question, she chided herself. But then, she hadn’t expected to fall in love with him, either.

  Foolish woman, Bri thought, bringing the horse to a halt in the small clearing he had chosen. Only a fool would blindly go along, falling in love with a maverick.

  While Tanner unpacked the things for their lunch, Bri tried to walk out the stiffness in her legs from being in the saddle for hours. When he returned, she left him to go to the stream to wash her hands, splash water on her face.

  Once again she followed the scent of coffee back to camp. But how could she smell it when he hadn’t built a fire? The answer was waiting for her at the edge of the small clearing where they had stopped. Tanner was holding a steaming cup, creamer added, for her. And there was no sign of a small fire.

  “How did you make that?” she asked, glancing around the clearing.

  “I made extra this morning and filled one of the thermoses,” he said, taking a careful sip from the cup in his other hand.

  Duh. “I should have figured that out for myself,” she said, blowing gently on the liquid before taking a sip. He grinned. Bri felt the beginnings of that now-familiar melting sensation inside. Giving herself a mental shake, she grinned back at him. “What’s for lunch?”

  “Come see. It’s all ready.” He led the way to the clearing, where they feasted on premade peanut butter sandwiches, apples and, of course, some chocolate.

  They were back on the trail in less than an hour.

  Bri hadn’t been back in the saddle very long before, out of the blue, she said, “I’m sorry.”

  At Tanner’s invitation, she was still riding alongside him. Turning slightly in his saddle, he tilted his head to give her a puzzled look.

  “About what?”

  She hesitated, licked her lips, then blurted out, “I realize now I shouldn’t have forced you to take me with you, nor followed you when you left me at Hawk’s. I’m slowing you down and I know it.”

  “Brianna…” he began.

  She rushed on. “I haven’t been on a horseback hunt in ages. Hell, other than a jog in my father’s fields every so often, I haven’t been on horseback at all, at least not long enough to ache.” She barely paused to draw breath, not giving him time to speak, before babbling on. “Now I’m beginning to ache all over, and, and…”

  “And, as I said,” he quickly inserted, “you’re really nuts.”

  He smiled, so softly, so gently, she felt a twist in her chest. “First off,” he continued, “you didn’t force me into anything. Trust me, sweetheart, I don’t force easily. Secondly, we couldn’t go any faster without wearing out the horses, especially the one packing.” He smiled again, only this time his smile was sheer temptation. “And third, but most importantly, after a bit of consideration, I knew I wanted you along.”

  For an instant Bri’s heart appeared to stop. No, everything inside her seemed to stop. “But you said—”

  Once again he cut her off. “I know what I said. I changed my mind.” One dark brow lifted. “Did you think only women were allowed to do that?”

  “No, of course not, but—”

  “Wait.” Tanner brought his mount to a halt and reached out to halt her horse. “Look at Boyo.”

  Bri swept her gaze around, almost missing the dog standing perfectly still in the underbrush. Even from the distance separating them she could see him quivering. Boyo spotted something and was ready to spring into action.

  Ten

  “Stay, boy.” Tanner’s low command told her he knew the dog was ready to bolt for whatever it was he saw.

  “It couldn’t be Minnich already, could it?” Bri asked quietly. “He took off yesterday, but you had to wait for me. Could we have caught up already?”

  “Yeah, but he didn’t know he was being followed until yesterday, and even then he might have thought we were just packers,” he answered just as quietly. “Why would we have spooked him?”

  “Because you fired at him?”

  “Maybe. But on the other hand, he saw you, apparently alone….”

  “I was,” she cut in. “At least I thought I was.”

  “Right, and so did he. So, yeah, it could be him. He’s deep in the wilds now, likely giving himself and the horses a rest. I’m gonna have to get closer.”

  “We’re going to get closer?”

  “We are.” Moving to the packhorses, he removed his gun belt from one of the packs and strapped it around his waist. Digging back into the pack, he retrieved his pistol, checked it and settled it in the holster. She couldn’t miss the pair of binoculars in a pouch on the left side of the belt. Walking back to his horse, he slid his rifle from the scabbard.

  Bri turned to her horse to get her own rifle.

  He frowned. “Do you really think you’ll need that weapon?”

  “I’m taking it.” She allowed him a sweet smile. “But I’ll leave the pistol here.”

  “Wonderful.” Sighing, he moved slowly, silently forward.

  Boyo paced beside him on the left, while Bri matched his steps on his right. They hadn’t gone very far when Tanner and Boyo came to a halt. Bri stopped next to him.

  Across the stream, some distance away, she could just make out a man standing on the other side. There was a small clearing near the bank, but the horses were tethered and a makeshift camp had been set up to the back, under cover of the tall pines, surrounded by brush.

  Tanner took out the field glasses. He gazed through them a few moments, then slid them back in the pouch. “It’s Minnich,” he murmured, sounding positive.

  Then all hell broke out, everything seemingly happening at once.

  A shot rang out and Tanner’s hat went flying. In unison, they dropped to the ground. Tanner scooped up his hat and poked his finger through the hole in front. Bri vaguely heard him mutter, “Son of a bitch, I thought that only happened in the movies.”

  With a bone-chilling yowl, Boyo took off running, as Tanner and Bri raised their rifles to their shoulders.

  Another shot rang out. Boyo let out a horrible-sounding yelp and flew into the air, then crashed to the ground. At the same time, two more shots rang out. With an outcry of pain, Minnich went down.

  “I got the bastard.” Tanner took off at a run toward the downed man, splashing through the stream.

  “I got him,” Bri yelled, also running, but she was not running through the water but to Boyo.

  She went cold at her first sight of the dog. He was lying still, not whining. Breath eased from Bri as she saw his chest move. He was alive.

  She dropped to her knees next to him, gently running her hands over his wiry-haired body. Her hand came away wet with blood when she touched his shoulder. “Bastard’s too mild a word for the lowlife,” she mumbled, parting Boyo’s fur to examine the wound.

  She sighed with relief when she saw the bleeding was not profuse, indicating a major artery hadn’t been hit. But had the shell gone through his body?

  Even as the thought went through her mind, Bri was carefully sliding her hand beneath Boyo, feeling for a wet spot. There was none. The bullet was still inside somewhere.

  She had to stop the bleeding. Not wanting to leave him even long enough to run back to the horses for the first-aid kit, Bri yanked her shirt from her waistband, popping buttons as she pulled it off.

  Without a thought that she was sitting there with only her silk long undershirt on or the chill in the air, she began tearing the shirt into strips. Folding them into pads, she lay them on the wound, applying gentle pressure. She had just changed pads when Tanner loped up to her with the first-aid kit in hand.

  Sliding around to give him access to the wound, Bri gently lifted the dog’s head to her lap. “You’re such a brave boy,” she murmured, stroking Boyo’s head as Tanner poured water over the pad before carefully removing it from the wound. The dog didn’t so much as whimper as Tanner dried and cleaned the ugly gash. Bri continued to soothe the animal with soft praise. “You riske
d your life for us, Boyo. You’re a genuine hero.” She stroked his head and muzzle, and every time she got close to his mouth, his long tongue flicked out to lick her hand.

  “Why, thank you for the kisses,” she said, watching Tanner as he applied an antibiotic cream to the wound before pressing a sterile pad against it. Taking out a roll of gauze, he wound it around Boyo’s body, anchoring the pad. Then he took out a syringe, rubbed a spot on the animal’s leg with a sterilized pad and carefully slid the needle into the leg.

  Bri glanced up at Tanner in question.

  “For pain,” he said. “I didn’t want to waste time before we stopped the bleeding,” he explained. “He should rest easy now.” He raised his brows. “You must be uncomfortable. Do you want me to move him?”

  “No, no, I’m fine.” It was a bald-faced lie. Bri was aching all over now, partly from tension, but there was no way she was letting him move the injured dog away from her.

  Tanner smiled as if he’d known her answer before asking the question. “Okay. I’ve notified Hawk. He and a rescue helicopter will be here in a couple of hours.”

  Bri frowned. “How did you reach Hawk?”

  He smiled again, teasingly. “It’s called a cell/walkie-talkie phone.”

  She gave him a narrow-eyed look. Then suddenly she remembered. “Minnich. Did you get him?”

  Tanner nodded. “Took a couple of bullets, but he’s still alive. I carried him back to our horses. He’s in a lot of pain, so I tied him up real tight. Make him suffer for what he’s done.”

  Seemingly picking up on her inner turmoil, Boyo licked her hand as if comforting her. “Do you think he might be thirsty?” she asked, nodding down at the dog.

  “Probably.” Tanner nodded, handing her the thermos he had used to clean the wound. “There’s still some water in here. He can’t get up, but you can lift his head enough so he can lap up some of it.”

  Bri was already pouring the cool liquid into the small cup and slowly lifting his head. “Come on, Boyo, help me here. You’ve got to be thirsty after all you’ve been through.” She barely noticed Tanner turning away.