Anna knew he didn’t buy her false cheerfulness. Her change of subject—the weather, for heaven’s sake—was more than a little awkward. The man beside her was quiet for a few seconds, and she wondered if he would give an explanation after all. She hoped he wouldn’t. She didn’t want one. Not this way. Having him tell her out of guilt was a form of coercion. That wasn’t the way she wanted to get to know Aidan Thorne.
“Weather will probably be about the same. Hot and humid.” He gave her a teasing, lighthearted glance. “Good thing we’ve got plenty of sunscreen and bug spray.”
Anna drew in a relieved breath. The awkwardness had passed. Even though he hadn’t given her any information, what she had learned was almost as important. There was something in his past, a darkness that loomed over him. It hurt her to know that he was still hurting.
Pushing aside feelings that she could not allow to grow, she said, “How are Justin and Riley doing?”
“Good. Seem content.”
She almost smiled at the bland description. She knew they were more than just “content.” The last time she’d seen them, Riley had a glow of happiness that Anna had never believed was possible for her friend. And Justin had the look of a deeply satisfied man.
“Thank you again for helping me set that up.”
He shrugged as if it had been nothing. It had been a whole lot more than nothing. Without hers and Aidan’s interference, Riley and Justin might still be hurting today. Anna had believed that just getting them together in the same place was all that was needed. It had taken a little convincing, but she had talked Aidan into helping her arrange a meeting. He had offered his family’s place in the Caribbean.
“Riley told me that she and Justin were spending their days off house hunting. I wouldn’t be surprised if he pops the question soon.”
He gave a slight grunt. Anna wasn’t sure if he was agreeing with her or just wasn’t listening.
“You don’t think they’ll get married?”
He glanced over at her, and she saw something flicker in his expression, his eyes. Sadness? An acceptance?
“What’s wrong?”
“You’re a romantic, aren’t you?”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“No. We all have to be who we are.”
“I agree. So who are you?”
“Who am I?” He shifted his gaze forward again. “Guess I’m still trying to figure that out.”
She didn’t believe him for a minute. Aidan Thorne knew exactly who he was. She thought that might be the first time he had ever lied to her and wondered if she should call him on it. No, this wasn’t the time or place. Getting Carrie safely back home was the only thing they needed to be concentrating on. But when this was over and everyone was safe, she was going to confront Aidan Thorne. Their odd animosity had existed for too long. Aidan was gruff, surly, and occasionally downright hateful to her. To most everyone else, he was polite or friendly, and to some, he was incredibly charming. What was it about her that put him on edge?
Anna told herself she needed to remember that learning the truth wasn’t always pleasant. Maybe Aidan just didn’t like her. If that was so, no matter how painful, she would accept it and move on. How self-defeating was it to be attracted to a man who couldn’t stand her?
Attracted?
She determinedly ignored the laughing sarcasm of the little voice inside her.
Chapter Seven
Aidan listened to the shallow, even breaths of his sleeping passenger. Anna had gone under a while ago, and he thought it might’ve been the sweetest thing he’d ever seen. One minute she’d been talking about a documentary about Colombia that she’d watched before her trip, and the next she’d just dropped off. He’d seen her head loll forward and had used his hand to catch her. She hadn’t even noticed when he’d pulled to the side of the road and leaned over her to push her seat back. She’d given the sexiest, sweetest little groan, wiggled a little to get more comfortable, and then burrowed into her seat.
He had been avoiding this woman for almost two years now. Having her show up in a bar halfway across the world was both unexpected and inconvenient. He knew strange coincidences happened every damn day, but this was one he could definitely have done without. Being in the same room with Anna Bradford was something he avoided at all costs. Having her close reminded him of what he couldn’t have. Being on a rescue mission with her was pure, unadulterated hell. Not only would she be in danger—the very thought twisted his gut—she would be within touching distance, kissing distance.
The buzzer on his cellphone jerked him out of his pity party. He glanced at the screen. Bracing himself for a million questions, he answered, “Hello, Ingram.”
Riley Ingram was her usual direct and to-the-point self. “Justin and I are headed to Colombia.”
“Thanks for the assistance, but it’s doubtful you guys can make it in time. We need to act ASAP.”
“Anna isn’t trained for an actual rescue, Thorne.”
“No, but she is trained. McCall believes she can do it.”
“I disagree. She’s not tough enough.”
“You know she’d kick your ass if she heard you say that.”
“No, she wouldn’t,” Riley replied. “She’d just smile and hug me for my concern.”
Aidan’s chest tightened. “Yeah, you’re probably right about that.”
“We can be there by tomorrow, midmorning.”
“We’ll keep in contact. You guys can head up after us.”
“But you’re not going to wait.”
His eyes flickered over to the sleeping woman beside him. He’d give his life to protect her, but it was his job to rescue kidnapped victims. McCall believed Anna would be an asset, not a liability. Ingram was thinking with her heart, not her head. If Anna wasn’t her best friend, Riley would probably have a different opinion.
“No. We can’t take that chance. The situation is too volatile. I’ll send you our location. Come when you can.”
“Can I talk to Anna?”
“She’s sleeping.”
“Okay. I—”
He heard some whispering in the background, then Riley said, “Hold on. Justin wants to talk to you.”
“You okay?”
He almost smiled at the concern in his friend’s voice. Justin Kelly was one of the few who knew what he felt about Anna.
“I’ll make do.”
There was a long pause, and Aidan figured Justin was trying to come up with something that wouldn’t get Riley’s suspicions up. She had no idea that the animosity Aidan often showed Anna was one big lie.
Finally, Kelly released a sigh, saying, “Don’t do anything stupid.”
“That’s the plan. As soon as we arrive, I’ll send you our location.”
“I looked at the map. You’ve got a long haul on foot.”
“Yeah. Will take us a day. Day and a half tops.”
“We’ll be in the air in less than an hour.”
“Then I’ll either see you there or see you on the way down.”
“Call if you need air transport.”
“Will do.”
Aidan ended the call and dropped the phone back on the console. They had about two more hours of drive time. When they arrived, he’d take a few hours to sleep, and then they’d head out at dawn.
If things went as planned, Anna, Carrie, and Aidan would be headed back down the mountain in about thirty-six hours.
Problem was, if was a damn big word for this op.
***
A wild, unearthly sound jerked Anna awake. Darkness surrounded her, and for an instant she had no idea where she was or what had happened.
“Relax,” a sleepy, masculine voice said beside her. “It’s just a screech owl.”
Memory returned in a flash. “How long have we been here?”
“Few hours. Go back to sleep. We still have a while before dawn.”
How embarrassing. Aidan had driven almost the entire trip with her sleeping beside h
im like a slug. He had to be exhausted. The least she could have done was offer to share the drive time. Instead, she’d fallen asleep and forgot all about teamwork.
“What’s that busy mind of yours getting upset about?”
She froze. She had promised herself she would be an asset to him, and now she couldn’t even let him get some rest. How could he tell she was still awake and thinking? And why did his gruff, slightly slurred voice have to sound so sexy? Would she still be as attracted to him if he had a voice like Pee-wee Herman or Elmer Fudd? The answer was yes. His sexy voice wasn’t the reason for her feelings, but it sure did nothing to hinder them.
“Anna?”
“Shh. I’m trying to stay quiet and still so you can go back to sleep.”
“Then how about relaxing? You’re as stiff as a board.”
“Sorry.” She released a long breath and consciously relaxed her entire body. Seconds later, she was wishing she hadn’t relaxed quite so much as an awareness of greater need hit her. She was in dire need of the bathroom. They had stopped at a rest stop about a hundred miles out of Cali, but that had been hours ago. She now regretted that bottle of water she’d consumed before falling asleep.
She could hold it for a while longer. At least until Aidan managed a little more sleep. As a disciplined person with tremendous willpower, she told herself she could control her bodily urges. Controlling her bladder was just going to take some extra concentration.
“What’s wrong?”
Of course Mr. Hyperaware would notice.
“I’m really sorry, but I really need to pee.”
Instead of sounding aggravated, he said, “Let me grab a flashlight.”
The interior light came on, and Anna blinked to adjust her eyes. She glanced over at Aidan. Even though his thick blond hair was mussed and she had obviously woken him, he looked as alert as if he’d had a full night’s sleep and a gallon of coffee. She didn’t even want to consider her own appearance. It was downright aggravating that he could look so good on so little sleep.
Instead of just handing her the flashlight, he got out on his side and came around for her.
She opened the door, glancing up at him. “Um, I think I can do this by myself.”
He gave a short bark of laughter. “Good to know. However, it might be best if you let me find you a snake-free area before you drop your pants.”
That wasn’t something she could argue with. A snakebite on the butt, poisonous or not, would be extremely unpleasant.
She stepped out of the vehicle and immediately understood what he meant. Wilderness surrounded them in every direction. The area around their vehicle was flattened, but only a few feet away, dense, dark jungle lurked in ominous darkness. Nope, she wasn’t going to complain at all about him coming with her to scare away the snakes and whatever else might be slithering in the undergrowth. Embarrassment was the least of her worries.
She followed him. The flashlight was bright, illuminating a small path. He stopped about ten yards from their vehicle and swung the flashlight left and right.
Anna saw no beady eyes gleaming or slithering bodies and sighed her relief.
“This looks safe enough but best hurry.”
She agreed. Wasting no time, she moved to the area he’d motioned toward and was grateful that while he was kind enough to keep the flashlight shining on the area, he politely looked up to the sky as she unzipped her pants. Seconds later, she was standing, zipping up as she ran toward him.
“You’re fast.” He had the flashlight pointed in front of her, helping her make her way back. All she could see of him was the outline of his body, but she heard the smile in his voice.
“Thanks.” She reached him in seconds. “Just one of my many talents.”
When they were standing by the Land Rover again, she asked, “What’s the plan?”
“It’ll be dawn soon. Might as well get ready to go.”
“Where exactly are we going?”
“Come back inside. We’ll eat breakfast, and I’ll show you the map.”
Once inside, he turned on the overhead light, reached into the backseat. He held the sack of leftover empanadas in one hand and a wrapped bar in the other. “We don’t have time for much else. You want cold empanadas or a PowerBar?”
Her stomach, normally cast iron and adventurous, rebelled at the thought of the cold, spicy meat pie. “As good as they were yesterday, I don’t think I can handle cold ones for breakfast.”
She took the bar and the bottle of water he handed her.
Aidan had no such qualms, wolfing down one meat pie in three bites and then starting on another.
While she ate, she took in their surroundings. She had been too focused on her need earlier to pay much attention. “Where are we?”
“About seventeen miles from our destination.”
“And it’ll take over a day to get there?”
“At least. Maybe a little longer. We’ve got some challenging terrain ahead of us.”
Before she could explain that she was in good shape and there was no need for him to take it slow for her sake, he pulled a map from the console and unfolded it.
“Take a look.”
Aidan pointed out their location and their destination. He waited while her eyes followed the map and what they would have to travel.
“I’m assuming you brought a raft to cross the river?”
A wave of gratitude swept over Aidan for the lack of panic in Anna’s voice. Crossing a river that wide without a boat did look daunting. “I got a text from McCall. He’s located a man who helped build Garcia’s house. He says there’s a bridge.” Because he needed her to know all the dangers, he added, “Since it’s not been maintained, I don’t know how stable it’ll be. If we have to, we can hike around it.”
“How much longer would that take?”
“Half a day, maybe more.”
She settled back into her seat and looked out the window. Aidan figured she had something on her mind that she wanted to say. Was she thinking she shouldn’t have come with him? It was too late for that. No way in hell was he going to leave her down here by herself. And they could wait no longer to get started. He didn’t believe Carrie was in any immediate danger, but the younger Garcia wasn’t known for his pleasant personality. Who the hell knew what he might do if things didn’t go his way?
Trust Anna to come out with the unexpected.
“I couldn’t bear it if something happened to you.”
Her voice was low and intense. He had turned off the overhead light after she’d examined the map. Now he flipped it back on.
“Hey, look at me.”
When she turned to him, he said, “We’ll both be fine. And so will Carrie. Got that?”
He saw something in her eyes then. Behind the worry, there was something else. Something he had been avoiding. Something he refused to put a name to and could not allow. No matter how much he wanted it.
As if realizing she was revealing more than she intended, she turned to the window again. “I know you’re right. It’s just—”
Aidan reached for her, just to turn her face back to him. That was all he had planned. The instant his fingers touched her cheek, he knew he was in trouble. Holy hell, had he ever touched anything so soft, so delicate? So damn beautiful?
She was looking at him now, dark brown eyes full of trust, hope, and that something that, heaven help him, he didn’t want to deny.
His hand slid behind her head. He leaned forward and touched his mouth to hers. Just a caress, just a touch, temptation whispered. A gesture of comfort. Of reassurance. Nothing more. The instant his mouth touched hers, he was lost.
He caught her breath of surprise, took it in as his own as his mouth claimed hers in the most sensually provocative kiss Anna had ever received. Aidan kissed like a conqueror. Like he was staking a claim. The hand cupping the back of her head and his mouth on hers were the only places he touched, yet she felt him everywhere. Her body reacted as if this was a prelude to lovemakin
g. Foreplay could not be any more erotic, more earth-shattering. She wanted him in a way she’d never imagined wanting anyone. Her mind went blank as her body controlled every thought, every feeling, softening, readying itself for his complete possession. Nipples peaked and heat settled low in her belly. She wanted him in her, around her, covering her.
Whimpering her need, Anna grabbed his shoulder, her fingers digging into the thick muscle. If he wanted her, right here, right now, she wouldn’t stop him. Heat and need consumed, washed every coherent thought away.
The kiss ended as quickly as it started. One moment she was lost in a haze of sensuality she’d only ever dreamed of, and the next she was leaning back in her seat, breathless and confused.
Aidan was sitting straight up in his seat, staring out the windshield, a clenched jaw and the stiffness of his body the only indications that he’d been affected. Whereas Anna felt as if her entire life had changed in an instant. She was attracted to him, but had forced herself to deny her more tender feelings. Aidan had always treated her as if he didn’t want to be around her, didn’t particularly like her. That kiss had altered everything. Revealed that all the other things between them had been lies.
“Aidan?”
He turned to look at her, and she knew that even though everything had changed for her, nothing had, or would, change for him. He might not be able to deny his attraction for her any longer, but his expression made it more than apparent that he would continue on as if it didn’t exist.
Aidan Thorne wanted her. He just didn’t want to want her.
“Going to be light soon. We’d better get started.” His voice was rough, but the words were said coolly, dispassionately.
Anna got the message. This was not the time to confront him. He had allowed her to come along on this rescue. She was not going to be a liability. Their total focus needed to be on rescuing Carrie and all of them getting out alive. Putting her personal feelings aside was her only choice. But when this was over and everyone was safe? Aidan Thorne better hold on to his hat, because the gloves were coming off!
Chapter Eight
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