by Smith, Bobbi
Adept at hiding her feelings, she met his gaze steadily. “Todd, there’s no need for you to worry. You hardly took advantage of me. I wanted you as much as you wanted me.”
Todd’s heart ached as he returned her regard, and grimly he realized how badly he had hurt her. Carrie sensed that he could read her thoughts and it frightened her. No one else had ever been able to see through her very capable defenses; no one until Todd. Nervously moving away, she grabbed her clothes. She felt at a distinct disadvantage with him, and she hoped that by dressing she might regain some of her shattered composure.
Watching her jerky movements as she pulled on her clothes, Todd understood her upset and, though he wanted to comfort her, he knew it would be better if he stayed some distance from her. The attraction between them was far too potent to risk losing control again.
“How do you feel?” she asked, wanting to break the raw tension between them.
“I’m fine,” he replied, glad that they had turned the conversation. “What happened?”
“You developed a high fever, so we decided it would be best to bring you back here until it passed.”
“How long have we been here?”
“Just since yesterday. I guess your fever must have broken during the night.” Carrie said and then blushed, as she remembered their feverish mating.
“Yes,” Todd replied distantly as he, too, was lost in the haziness of his memory of their passionate lovemaking. “Well,” he continued abruptly, clearing his throat, “I think I’m strong enough to ride now.”
“Let’s have something to eat and then we can try to catch up with them.”
“Fine. What time is it now?”
“Just past sunup,” Carrie told him as she moved to the entrance and looked out across the canyon.
“So your father’s about eight hours ahead of us?”
“About that,” she said as she busily began to prepare some food.
Todd found himself watching Carrie’s every move and admiring the snug fit of her pants on her slim hips. He remembered well the way her legs had felt wrapped so sensuously about him, and he knew no matter how hard he tried, he would never be able to deny the physical attraction he felt for her. Distractedly, Todd wondered how he was going to handle these feelings he had for Carrie once he was married to Jennie. It had felt so right, holding her and kissing her and seeking his ultimate pleasure in her lithe body. Forcing his thoughts back to the present, he thanked her as she handed him his meal, and he ate hungrily, forcing himself to keep his attention solely on the food.
Carrie sat down opposite him, saying, “Before you put your shirt on, I want to check your wound one more time.”
“All right,” he answered, not looking up, concerned that he would have to allow her so close again.
Carrie had hoped to draw him into conversation to ease the awkwardness of their situation, but he seemed determined to ignore her, leaving her feeling rejected and filled with the fear that she had ruined their relationship for all time.
Rick’s eyes narrowed as he stared out across the rough, rock-jumbled landscape. Where the hell was she? There had been no sign, no trace, since he’d lost her tracks on the trail about half a mile back.
“Jennie!” His call split the silence of the early morning like a crash of thunder, and once again he urged his horse forward to continue his search.
Rick had been looking for her for hours now, and he was growing more apprehensive by the minute. The sun, warm on his back as he rode slowly over the rugged path, had only been breaking the horizon when he had roused from his restive sleep to find that Jennie had disappeared. At first he’d thought she’d just left the camp to take care of her personal needs, but when she hadn’t returned right away, he’d become concerned. And, as long minutes had passed with no sign of her, the memory of the night before had begun to haunt him. He’d acknowledged to himself then that she had been justified in so bitterly admonishing him for he had been almost brutal in his taking of her, forcing a reaction from her body even while her mind had rebelled.
In the cold objectivity of that first morning light, Rick had realized how wrong it had been to use her in that way, but by the time he decided to apologize and set things straight between them, it had been too late; he’d discovered, much to his distress, that she’d already fled the camp—and him.
The initial uproar in camp over her disappearance had ended quickly when it was found that she had taken off, on foot, with only a single canteen of water. Malo had been particularly indifferent, not wanting to be distracted from his quest for the gold mine.
“She was pretty, Cazador, but very stupid,” he’d said dispassionately. “She won’t last a day in the mountains, alone, especially without a gun.”
Rick had had a difficult time keeping a tight rein on his fury. “I’m going to look for her. I’ll catch up with you later today.”
Malo had shrugged his unconcern, but his expression had revealed that he thought Rick’s concern about Jennie revealed a weakness in him. “She is only a woman.”
Rick had been hunting for her ever since, alternately angry and anxious. He’d quickly discarded his initial fear that she had wandered off during the night and had been injured—when he’d found that she’d taken a canteen with her. She had planned her escape; there had been no accident.
Enraged that she’d felt the need to flee from him, yet understanding her fear, Rick had continued to search until now. Reining in and letting his gaze roam over the craggy, lifeless peaks, it suddenly occurred to him that Jennie was in hiding. She didn’t want to be found, especially not by him! Swearing aloud, he took one last cursory look around and then wheeled his horse in the direction of the camp
Rick was convinced that she was safe and merely concealing herself from him while she awaited the posse’s arrival. Torn between the need to keep searching for her and his need to rescue Juan, Rick knew he had no real choice. He was Juan’s only hope for survival. Taking one more glance over his shoulder, he spurred his horse to a faster gait, intent on catching up with the outlaws as soon as possible.
Jennie cautiously peeked around the side of the boulder. Cazador was so close she felt almost as if she could reach out and touch him. His expression was so fierce that she caught her breath and slipped back behind the rock’s protective cover, praying that he wouldn’t find her.
She waited. Each minute that passed seemed an eternity as Jennie silently endured the torture of uncertainty and then, finally, she heard him ride away. Moving from her place of safety to see in which direction he’d ridden, she breathed a deep sigh of relief when she discovered that he had headed back toward camp, apparently giving up his search for her.
As Jennie watched Cazador disappear down the narrow canyon, she felt suddenly bereft and alone, and she wondered briefly what she would do if the posse never came.
Chapter Seventeen
Because Steve and Mac had left their trail carefully marked, Todd and Carrie made good time in their attempt to catch up. They had been riding hard since that morning, and they were excited to find that it had paid off.
“Look! Over there!” Todd slowed his mount and turned to Carrie.
“Do you see them?” Carrie asked as she reined in beside him, staring off into the distance.
“It’s the posse!” Putting his knees to his horse, he picked up their pace.
“Should we signal them to wait for us? It’ll be dark soon.” Carrie did not relish the possibility of spending another night on the trail alone with Todd, especially now that she knew exactly where she stood with him. He did not love her and he never would.
“No. If we fire a shot, we might alert more than just the posse to where we are,” he told her ominously. “Come on. We’ll have to hurry, if we want to meet up with them before nightfall.”
“I’m glad Pa marked the trail for us. We certainly managed to make up for a lot of lost time today.”
“That we did, but we’re not there yet,” Todd said, keeping his gaze on the posse riding
far ahead of them, and they rode on steadily, not even considering stopping, as the shadows of dusk began to lengthen.
Falling into a comfortable silence, Carrie shared his conviction to meet up with the men as soon as possible, and she rode at his side, uncomplaining and determined. She was glad that the initial awkwardness she’d felt in Todd’s company that morning had faded as they’d shared the turmoil of the day and that the anxiety she’d felt about ruining their relationship had been completely unfounded. Todd had been the perfect gentleman, treating her with the same good-natured temperament that he’d always shown her, and it was almost as if their fervid lovemaking had never happened.
Todd cast Carrie a sidelong glance as they rode abreast, wondering how much longer he could keep up his charade. He had been trying since morning to convince both Carrie and himself that they could ride together and stay in close contact and not be swept away by their passions as they had been the night before. He was finding, however, that it was not as easy as he’d thought it would be.
Carrie had ignited a fire within him, and though he was fighting to keep it carefully under control, at times he felt he was failing miserably. That was why he felt the need to make the desperate dash to catch up with the men of the M Circle C. There they would have no opportunity to be alone again, and her virtue would be well guarded.
He was still angry with himself for having taken her; although, the love he had shared in Carrie’s arms had been unlike anything he’d ever experienced in his entire life. It had been enthralling, bewitching, and had it not been for his feelings for Jennie, Todd knew that he would be actively pursuing her, even now. His jaw clenched as he felt the familiar tightening in his loins, and he almost wished that his shoulder was still bothering him, just so he would have something to take his mind off his desires.
When Carrie had doctored his wound before they’d started out, it had been pure torture for him. Her closeness, her scent, and the feel of her hands on his body had sorely tested his resolve not to touch her again. It had been all he could do just to lie still beneath her ministering hands. Things had gotten so bad that at one point he’d had to stifle a low groan of desire and, luckily, Carrie only thought she’d wound the bandage too tight.
Todd was certain that she had no idea of the agony of physical need that was wracking him, and he wanted to keep it that way. He did not want her to feel threatened by him. What had happened between them had been a momentary aberration, no doubt brought on by his feverish state, and he would make sure that it never happened again.
Steve was the first one to catch sight of Carrie and Todd, and he halted the posse’s progress up the narrow canyon to give them time to catch up.
“Looks like your plan worked,” he remarked to Mac as he nodded in their direction.
“Good!” Mac was pleased to see Todd back in the saddle and, he thought with surprise, he was glad to see his daughter, too. Riding back to the rear of the group, he waited eagerly for them to traverse the last mile separating them. “Todd! It’s good to see you moving again. I can’t tell you how concerned we were,” he called out in greeting.
“It’s all thanks to Carrie, Mac,” he replied as he drew up beside him. “She took good care of me.”
“Good girl.” He found himself smiling benignly at his youngest daughter.
Carrie was stunned by her father’s approving look. Never before could she ever remember him being pleased with any of her accomplishments. It gave her a warm feeling inside and she smiled back, somewhat tremulously.
“Have you found anything yet?” Todd asked anxiously.
“No, we’re still tracking them. The going was real slow today.” Mac shook his head in frustration over the nearly impassable terrain as he looked up at the craggy peaks that surrounded them.
“Well, they can’t be traveling too much faster. The land is just too rugged,” Todd said, hoping he sounded optimistic.
“That’s true enough,” he began but was interrupted by Jake’s arrival.
“Todd, good to see you. Steve was scouting up ahead, and he’s found a small watering hole with some good water in it. He figures if we camp there for the night, we’ll be in good shape come morning.”
“All right,” Mac said gruffly, hating this time every night when he had to stop searching for Jennie. “Tell him to go ahead and set up camp Maybe tomorrow we’ll find her.”
Mac slumped wearily in the saddle as his vitality drained from him. Another day spent in fruitless search as God knows what was happening to Jennie.
Carrie was startled when Mac suddenly seemed to trasform before her. No longer was he the dreaded invincible godlike being who had ruled her days and nights with an iron will; instead, she realized that he was just an exhausted old man.
With that knowledge came an entire change of perspective for her. Carrie wished, right then, that she could somehow reassure Mac and ease the weight of his worry, but her feelings of warmth toward him were far too new for her to act upon them. She was still not certain that he would be receptive to any conciliatory advance on her part, and she was fearful that, if she did venture any kindness, he might cut her to the quick with a caustic comment as he had done so often in the past. So, Carrie held her tongue and followed along with their lead as they rode on to the campsite that Steve had chosen for the night.
As darkness descended, Jennie sat huddled in her shelter, miserably aware of what a poorly prepared escape she had made. No blankets, no food, no gun. Away from Cazador’s disturbing presence, she wondered how she could have been so desperate to escape that she hadn’t thought to bring along the basic essentials for survival. Swearing at her own stupidity, she wondered at her lack of common sense.
What was there about Cazador that caused her to panic and lose sight of all the things her father had ever taught her about staying alive on the desert? Jennie didn’t know, but she was sure that death on the desert was far preferable to being passed around Malo’s camp from man to man, until they’d had their fill of her. She shuddered at the thought.
As much as she’d thought herself in love with the gunfighter in the beginning, she knew now that she had made the right decision in leaving him. Lucia had made no secret about her desire for Cazador, and it had been painfully obvious to Jennie that Cazador had taken the other woman up on her offer. In her mind, she pictured them in a passionate embrace, his deeply tanned body pressed naked to Lucia’s slim welcoming length, and it seared her to the very depths of her soul. Refusing to admit that she still cared for him, she congratulated herself on getting away from him before she’d been made to suffer more of his advances. She did not want Lucia’s leftovers. Jennie seethed to herself and tried to push the image of their lovemaking from her thoughts.
Shifting uncomfortably on the hard ground, Jennie was pleased that she’d had enough foresight to conserve her water that day. Originally, she had thought that her father was only a few hours behind in his pursuit of them, but as the day had slowly passed, she’d come to realize that she might have made a drastic miscalculation. Jannie refused to allow herself to think about being stranded out here on foot. Intead, she began to plan what she would do to save herself if indeed the posse did not find her the following day.
When she finally managed to fall asleep, her rest was not an easy one. In her defenseless state, visions of the last few days bombarded her: Luis and Ray, the rattlesnake, the flash flood, Malo, Lucia, and finally, at the center of the swirling vortex was Cazador—His dark, powerful form dominating her every fantasy as her body came alive with the memory of his lovemaking. His words rang in her mind even now: I wanted you so I took you. His face swam before her, and she realized in her dream that she had wanted him, too; that she had needed his possession desperately to ease the desire that was burning within her. But in the dream, the passion she felt for him turned to hate as Lucia enticed him away into her lusty embrace. In her dream, Jennie was forced to watch them come together, and she began to toss and turn in protest until she awoke, mentall
y and physically exhausted from the nightmare.
Sitting up, Jennie clasped her knees to her chest and hugged them tighly, trying to make sense out of the madness of her visions. She didn’t want to care what he did with Lucia. She didn’t want to care about him! But, she acknowledged to herself in defeat, she did. Cazador had managed to awaken a sensuality within her. She knew no other man would ever satisfy her the way he had, and she wondered how she would possibly be able to find happiness with Todd after having known the exquisite rapture of Cazador’s conquest.
Cazador had been the master of her senses, forcing her to the heights of breathtaking ecstasy against her will until she had surrendered all to him and then exacting the most cruel of revenges: making her admit that she wanted him. Jennie shivered as she remembered the ultimate thrill of his total possession, and she knew that she had been right to leave him when she had—before her need for him had become so overpowering that she would have been unable to break away.
Her breasts were throbbing in anticipation of a lover’s touch, and Jennie bit her lip to stifle the moan of desire that welled up within her as she imagined his hardness penetrating her softness. Mentally, she shook herself fiercely, driving all memories of Cazador from her conscious thoughts, and then curled up again on the unyielding ground, to await the coming of the new day.
Malo tilted the bottle of tequila to his mouth and drank thirstily, not bothering to wipe away the excess that dribbled down his chin. With shining eyes, he surveyed his camp. Tomorrow it would all be over. Tomorrow, Peralta had assured him, they would reach the mine!
“Cazador!” His raucous call drew Rick’s immediate attention.
Rick tossed his saddlebags down on his bedroll and walked to where Malo was waiting for him. “What?”
“You do not seem as excited as the others at the prospect of being rich.” Malo had found him to be subdued all day and he wondered at it.
