by Arianna Hart
“Here’s the plan. After we eat, I’m going to hide you and the stuff somewhere then ditch the car.”
“What about my car?”
“We’ll get that back later. Don’t worry about it.”
“That’s easy for you to say. It’s not your car.”
“I’ll take care of it. Jeez, you need to relax, take some of that starch out of your spine.”
Her back immediately stiffened and her chin shot up, as she prepared for battle. “Just because I’m looking out for myself doesn’t mean I need to relax. Maybe I’d be more relaxed if you weren’t constantly pushing me around without even telling me what’s going on.”
Lex shot her a scorching glare but didn’t say anything as the waitress came over with coffee and poured two steaming mugs of the liquid heaven.
“What can I getcha?” She tugged a pencil and an order pad out of her apron.
“I’ll have the hungry man special, eggs over easy, bacon, a bagel with butter, and a glass of orange juice. Oh, and could you make sure the hash browns are well done?”
Jane couldn’t believe he could possibly finish all of that and still walk afterward. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on him. There was no way he ate like that regularly.
She opened her mouth to order a grapefruit and a side of dry rye toast, but that’s not what came out. “I’ll have a tall stack of pancakes with bacon and an orange juice.”
“Sure thing, sugar.”
Where had that come from? She hadn’t had pancakes since her grandmother died—her mother sure as heck hadn’t made them. Jane took a sip of coffee to cover her shock over her mouth betraying her, again.
Good God, this was the best coffee she’d ever tasted.
“Damn, if you ever looked at a guy like you’re looking at that coffee, he’d be in heaven.”
“A man has never given me as much pleasure as this coffee.”
Where had that come from? Heat crawled up her neck.
“Then you’ve obviously been with the wrong men.” Lex’s eyes danced with amusement as he picked up his mug.
The laughter stopped when got a taste of the brew. “Holy crap, you’re right. This is incredible. I guess the old urban myth is right. Truckers always know the best places to eat.”
Jane tried not to notice the way his throat moved when he swallowed the coffee. For some mysterious reason she wanted to press her lips against that strong column and lick her way up to his mouth.
Another flush of heat washed over her. She’d had next to no sleep, been on the run from gun-toting lunatics, been an accessory to a crime and now she was fantasizing about kissing her playboy neighbor. She needed to get her head examined.
Physician, heal thyself.
Right.
Chapter Six
Who knew the great outdoors could be so unnerving? Jane sat with her back against an enormous oak tree, surrounded by blue bags that looked as completely out of place on the leaf-strewn ground as she did. Lex had left her here over an hour ago and she’d barely moved from the spot.
Her bladder was ready to burst, causing her to regret that last cup of coffee. She had no idea where they were other than somewhere in the Poconos. If Lex had to “stash” her somewhere while he did his thing—whatever that was—why couldn’t it have been somewhere with a comfortable couch and a bathroom?
How much longer was he going to be gone anyway? She glanced at her watch yet again. Oh goodie, one more minute had passed. She really had to pee.
Jane had no choice. She was going to have to relieve herself behind a convenient bush. Her mother would be horrified, but it was better than wetting her pants.
Of course, if her mother knew she’d gone shopping braless and in flip-flops, she’d probably have a stroke anyway so what was one more transgression?
Good lord, what was wrong with her? Her house had been broken into. She was on the run from God only knew who, and she was worried about her mother’s reaction if she found out Jane peed in the woods? Talk about having her priorities skewed.
Jane straightened her shoulders and pushed herself to her feet. She was made of sterner stuff, no matter how she’d acted so far. Whining never solved anything. There was no excuse for sniveling about the calamity her life had become.
It was time to take control of the situation. And the first step was to relieve her over-full bladder.
Brushing leaf mold and whatever else from her bottom, Jane went in search of an appropriate tree. It wasn’t like there was anyone around to see her bare behind, but she didn’t want to pee up hill either.
The air felt chilly on her naked backside as she dropped her jeans. She couldn’t keep the blush from heating her face even though she was all alone.
Ridiculous. Lex would laugh his fool head off if he realized how embarrassed she was. He didn’t have any problem walking around half-naked, that was for sure. There had been more than one occasion where she’d met him in the foyer they shared getting his mail in nothing more than a tiny pair of cut-off shorts or cotton boxers. She’d had to avert her gaze from the acres of bronzed skin he shamelessly flaunted without an iota of embarrassment.
What a pair they made. She was mortified to pee in the woods when no one was within five miles of her, and Lex could walk around practically naked in the middle of a city. Were there ever two more mismatched people to get stuck together?
Jane drip-dried to the best of her ability and carefully stepped around the puddle she’d made. There, she was a real nature girl now. She’d urinated in the woods. Let’s hear it for girl power.
Oh boy, she needed to get a life if relieving a bodily function made her feel like Wonder Woman.
A rustle in the trees off to her left made her jump out of her skin. She froze in the act of buttoning her jeans and listened for another sound.
Something was out there. Something bigger than the chipmunks and squirrels that had been racing overhead. Whatever it was, it was strong enough to push aside the saplings dotting the forest floor.
Her heart beat so hard she thought it was going to pop out of her chest. Every breath she took sounded abnormally loud and harsh in her ears. Sweat dripped into her eyes and she blinked rapidly to ease the sting as the creature moved closer and closer. Branches crashed as whatever it was made its way through the underbrush.
Blood rushed through her veins. A sneeze tickled her nose, but she held it back.
The dappled sunlight played peek-a-boo around the heavy foliage overhead, distorting her view. There was definitely something big moving but she couldn’t see what. Snuffling snorts echoed against the tree trunks.
Oh God, could it be a boar? Were there even wild pigs in Pennsylvania? What would a branch do against fierce tusks? With her luck, she’d be gored and bleed to death before Lex got back.
A whimper squeaked out of her throat.
With a flurry of movement, the animal broke cover and leapt through the brush. A doe and her fawn stared back at her, before running off with a flick of their white bob- tails.
Jane remained frozen for another second before the relief washed over her, making her muscles weak. Laughter burbled as her knees collapsed and she landed in a heap on the ground.
Oh yeah, she was the brave white hunter, ready to take on a terrified deer and her baby. Tears leaked from Jane’s eyes while she gasped for air. Every time she tried to get herself under control, she’d remember the look on the doe’s gentle face and started laughing again.
Maybe all the cataclysmic events finally broke down her psyche or perhaps it was just her body’s way of dealing with extreme stress. For whatever reason, it took her forever to calm down.
“What’s so damn funny? I could hear you laughing a mile away. Why don’t you just rent a billboard to announce where you are?” Lex stepped into her clearing making her jump again, which brought on a new spate of hysteria.
“It’s just a reaction. You missed me bravely fighting off two dangerous foes. Or should I say does?” She actually snorted at her own joke
.
“Uh, Jane? Are you okay?”
“No. I’m far from okay, but I’m managing. What took you so long?” She did her best to pull herself together. Strangely, she felt more relaxed than she had since yesterday, before she got the call telling her not to go into work.
“I had to get a car through legitimate channels which took a while, and I needed to do some recon and get some supplies.”
“More supplies? We’re going to need a Sherpa to carry all the stuff you’ve bought.”
“I like to be prepared.”
“Prepared for what? The Armageddon? How long are we going to be gone anyway?”
“I don’t know. That’s why I want to be prepared. So tell me, Janey, have you ever been camping?”
“You can’t be serious. My idea of roughing it is a bad Holiday Inn.”
His face was dead serious. He wasn’t joking.
“Then it’s time to expand your horizons. We can’t risk staying in one place for any length of time so camping it is. Grab those bags and let’s get back to the car. I want to organize our supplies to make them easier to carry.”
***
Lex bit back a grin as he glanced at Jane strapped into the backpack he’d filled with their clothes and food. She’d almost tipped over when he’d put it on her. His backpack was heavier by far, but she obviously didn’t think so. If looks could kill, he’d be split in two.
Her faded jeans clung to her hips and for some reason he couldn’t stop looking at her. She’d changed out of her flip-flops and put on her new sneakers, and presumably her new bra and underwear too. He remembered how she looked without them though, and it was killing him.
He’d lived next to her for a year and they’d barely exchanged a pleasant word, and now he was sweating thinking about her going commando. Damn, he needed to get laid badly if he was becoming obsessed with her.
How long had it been anyway? Contrary to her belief, he didn’t sleep around like some rutting dog. When he was on an assignment he never made time for female companionship. Sex was a distraction he couldn’t afford on the job.
He’d gone from one job immediately to the next, now that he thought about it. Christ, no wonder he was so hot for his uptight neighbor, it had been close to six months since he’d scratched his itch.
And it didn’t look like he was going to end that drought any time soon. His body might respond to Jane’s, but that didn’t mean he had to act on it. He liked his relationships to be nice and simple. And it didn’t take his superior detecting skills to recognize that nothing about Dr. Jane Farmer would ever be simple.
His groin tightened uncomfortably in his jeans, mocking him.
“Keep moving. We don’t have a lot of daylight and I want to set up camp before the sun goes down.” He’d set a pace that would be sure to exhaust the good doctor. Maybe if she was bone tired she wouldn’t realize there was only one tent and a small one at that.
More blood rushed south as he pictured Jane’s delicate face being caressed by firelight. His body tensed as his imagination spread her naked body out on the sleeping bag he’d purchased. He could almost smell her subtle feminine fragrance as he kissed his way over her stomach.
Stop it right there, buddy. He had to focus on the mission, not trying to get his neighbor naked. Wouldn’t that just prove to her that he was the playboy she’d accused him of being?
Not that he cared what she thought. Just because she lived like a nun didn’t mean he had to. There was nothing wrong with the way he lived his life.
“How much farther?”
It was the first thing she’d said to him since they started their trek hours ago. He hadn’t bothered to stop for lunch because they’d had such a big breakfast and he really wanted to get to the spot he’d marked on the map before nightfall.
“Not too much. We’ll set up camp on top of that rise over there. You can make it that far, can’t you?”
“Of course.” Her cheeks were red and her blonde hair stuck to her sweaty head in springy curls.
She was going to be sore tomorrow, but at least she wasn’t screaming complaints at him. If he’d forced his sisters to make the hike, carrying a good thirty pounds of supplies, they’d have nagged him every step of the way. His sisters weren’t known to suffer in silence.
Jane wasn’t the only one who’d be sore tomorrow. His calves burned as they pushed through the underbrush up the hill. Granted, his pack was significantly heavier than Jane’s, but he was used to physical labor, she wasn’t.
By the end of this mess she would be.
Chapter Seven
She should have known better than to wear new Keds without socks. The blisters on her feet had burst hours ago and now the skin around her ankle looked like raw meat. So far, she’d managed to keep Lex from noticing her damaged feet but she had no idea how she was going to walk another step tomorrow.
This great outdoors business left a lot to be desired. What she wouldn’t give for a hot shower and a massage right now.
The clatter of poles falling, followed by Lex swearing a blue streak distracted Jane from her misery. Lex had taken his shirt off while they set up camp and the firelight painted his olive skin a deep bronze.
His muscles bunched and rolled as he tried to erect the tent and Jane’s mouth watered. A drop of sweat rolled down his back and she wanted to follow its path with her tongue.
A tight coil of need spiraled low in her belly, making her body tingle in places long neglected. Her breasts felt heavy and swollen as she thought about pressing against Lex’s lightly furred chest. Was there any give in that steely frame? Would he crush her?
“Hey, Doc, think you could lend me a hand here?”
“S—sure.” She had to clear her throat to get rid of the huskiness.
Shake if off, Jane. This is no time to forget he’s a playboy.
Just because he looked like a bronzed god didn’t mean she could forget her common sense.
Watching Lex’s arms bunch and roll as he fought to bend the tent pole, she thought she might have another clue about the bad boy syndrome and what made them so irresistible.
Stop that!
Hello? She was a psychologist for heaven’s sake. There was a rational explanation for why she felt this increased level of attraction to a man totally unsuited for her. In extremely dangerous situations such as these, it was normal for her to want to bond with the man in charge. Add in the fact that he was attractive and dangerous in his own right, well, that just upped the ante.
When all of this was over, the insane desire she felt for him would be over too. And although he might not mind having a fling, she wasn’t emotionally equipped to have casual sex.
Therefore, she would ignore the tingles and focus on getting her life back without compromising her integrity.
“Could you help some time this century?”
“I’m coming, keep your pants on.” She hobbled over to the patch of dirt he’d swept clean of rocks.
The internal pep talk did nothing to quell the lust churning through her body as she got closer to him and saw those muscles glistening with sweat. There was something so elementally male about him that called to her female side.
“Hold this loop while I bend the pole to fit in it.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do you want to sleep in a tent tonight or out in the open?” His annoyed glare singed her skin.
“I’m holding the loop already.”
With a few more swears and a lot of straining, Lex managed to get the tent set up. The nearness of all that naked skin did nothing to help her remember why she had to keep her distance and not allow herself to make idiotic choices.
“What the hell happened to your feet?” Lex shouted, snapping her out of her internal struggle for common sense.
“I just have some blisters from walking so far in new shoes.”
“Some blisters? Your feet look like steak tartar. And you’re walking around barefoot? I thought you were smart.”
Befor
e she could protest—because of course she would have protested—he scooped her up and carried her toward the fire.
“This isn’t necessary. I’m fine.”
“Right, I can tell. If those get infected you could be in serious trouble. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Would you have stopped?” It was almost impossible to have an intelligent conversation with him when her heart beat like a trapped rabbit’s. She stared at the stubble along his chin and wondered if it would feel rough against her thighs.
Good heavens. Get those thoughts out of your head.
“Probably not, but we could have put some bandages on before they got this bad. Stay here while I heat up some water to wash them.”
He set her gently on an ancient tree stump while he put a pan of water on the fire. “I bought a first aid kit. It should have something for your feet. Good thing we’re staying here tomorrow.”
“I thought you said we couldn’t stay in any one place for too long?”
“We can’t, but chances are no one is going to be searching the forest for us. We’ll be able to spend a few days here before we move on. Hopefully by then your feet will have healed some. Let me see them.”
Jane winced with embarrassment as he took her mangled foot in his large hands and began cleaning it. Burning pain shot up her aching legs as he rubbed ointment over her tender skin.
“Hang on, almost done.” He finished wrapping her foot and laid it on his thigh before running his hand up her lower leg.
Her head fell back as he massaged some of the tightness out of her calves.
“I’ll give you one, maybe two hours to stop that,” she sighed.
“I figured your legs would hurt after the hike. You held up a lot better than I gave you credit for.”
“I do kickboxing twice a week.”
“I remember you saying that. It shows. I think you did great.”
“Really?” It was humiliating how much his words meant to her.
“Really. Now just sit here while I make dinner.”
