Playing For Keeps (Montana Men) (16 page)

She
raked her nails down one side of his face. At the same moment, she sank her
teeth in the edge of the palm pressed against her mouth. Flayme chomped down
like a rabid dog with a soup bone, locking onto his tough flesh. The callused
skin broke between her teeth, reminding her of a ripe plum splitting wide open.
Ugh!

The
metallic taste of blood coated her tongue, but she didn’t let go. Flayme had a
shark’s bite on his hand and she intended to hang on just like one, too.

“Ouch!
Fuck! Let go! I said, let go! Hell’s
bells! Let go, woman
…
”

Not in your dreams, buster.

She
wasn’t about to see reason and free his h
and. No way. No how. Not unless he
knocked her out cold. He wouldn’t dare
—
Flayme
jerked as a solid blow crashed against her jaw. Stars again—
the lousy cheat—oow!
Her nose burned.
Eyes watered. Ears rang. Yep. That did it. She was done for. Her jaw slipped in
to slack mode. With a soft moan, she let go of his hand. Jesus, what had he hit
her with, a nine-pound hammer? Her jawbone felt like it had been clipped by a
steam ship. Hell, she couldn’t focus her eyes.

Flayme
blinked, tried to rise, fell back, and
with a faint sigh, gave into the utter
blackness descending upon her. Her last thoughts spiraled through her head like
a burning star, twirling—whirling—spinning faster and faster until it sucked
her inside the black void. She was a dead woman, and she ha
d no idea
why, or who this beast was who planned to shoot her dead.

* * * *

Duel
slowly exhaled. “Sonofabitch!” He shook his throbbing hand, mouthing threats
beneath his breath. His hand ached almost as bad as his shoulder and chest. In
reality, his body was just one big crawling ulcer of pain. “Damn woman.” At
this rate, the little cannibal was going to be the death of him. He studied the
unconscious woman, but couldn’t see her face in the dark shadows. “Sorry, doll
baby, it was you or me, and I’ve sustained enough collateral damage from you
tonight. Better luck next time.”

He
rose to his feet, staggered a couple of steps, then slowly, reluctantly,
dragged the unconscious woman up by her arms. Grunting, he tossed her over his
uninjured shoulder, fireman style. “Oughta just leave you lying in the snow,
see if that cools off your happy ass a bit,” he grumbled. “Sam, you might be
the boss lady, but you really owe me a bonus for this one, and I’m collecting,
bet your ass I am.”

The
cannibal’s arms slapped his butt every step he took. “Damn it, woman, you have
to make everything hard.” Duel paused a moment and in spite of his misery,
grinned. Come to think of it,
everything
was hard.

Now
why the hell would he have such a physical reaction to a woman who’d just more
or less tried to stab him through the heart? He had to be a tad insane. It
wasn’t like she’d been trying to turn him on at any given time. On the
contrary, she was as feral as any untamed she-cat he’d ever crossed. So why the
hell was he hard as a branding iron?

Maybe
it was all that wallowing around in the snow, two healthy bodies rubbing
against each other creating a little heat and friction. For sure, he knew her
breasts were full and firm, her body sexy and slender, and for heaven’s sake,
she’d f
it
against his cock like she’d been built for it. She’d bucked like a wild filly
against him and although he knew it hadn’t been her intent, she’d been damned
wanton under him. The heat scalding his dick at the feel of her soft body
beneath his
—
huh,
he’d h
ad to knock her out or go for the prize.

Wasn’t
happening.

He
never mixed business with pleasure. Besides, the woman was nothing but trouble.
TNT in a skinny package made up of long legs, nice breasts, and a waist so
small he just knew she looked incredibl
e naked. Plain and simple, the woman
was a bounty of sexy hills and valleys just waiting to be explored, tasted, and
—
mumbling about his rotten luck, he
wound his way around the corner of her house and through the front gate to
where he’d parked his car. Frustrated, and swearing with every breath, he
dumped her in the passenger seat.

He popped open the glove compartment and dragged out a
spare pair of handcuffs from inside. His lips curled with satisfaction as he
drew her pale arms behind her and snapped the metal links around her fine-boned
wrists. Crap! Did he
have
to think
kinky
?
The cuffs were real, not sex toys, but
oh, the games they could play with—
Breathing hard, he leaned back and
studied his captive. “Don’t think about it,” he advised himself. The last thing
he needed was more trouble in his life. But hell, he felt manly, superior and
all conquering. He’d beat the little tigress at her own game.

He
slid his gaze over her features. Her face looked vaguely familiar. Duel
frowned. “What the hell?” He eyed her vivid red hair. “Shit,” he huffed, “of
all the lousy, rotten luck!”

In
the dark, he hadn’t noticed her hair color, but under the dome light in the
car, it was noteworthy, if a bit damp in places from the snow. Dismayed, he
tilted her chin and noted a purple bruise darkening the delicate skin along her
jaw line and some other unexplained scrapes he knew darn well he wasn’t
responsible for causing. “Son of a screw-bob-bitch.
Nicole.
My Nicole.”

His
Nicole? Yeah.
His
Nicole, who’d just
gone winging off into the sunset fucking up any chance he ever had of fucking
her. No way
in hell would this fierce woman, who wielded a mean butcher knife, ever let him
near her with his dick
—
unless
she planned to lay it on the chop block.

He
felt like howling his frustration. He was pretty sure he whimpered. And the
cuffs he’d been fantasiz
ing about became the tools of his trade—nothing kinky about
them now.

Duel
clutched his bleeding arm and panted. He swore. He cussed Samantha. The CIA. And
the entire District of Columbia.

Oh yeah. He was pretty sure he cussed the world.

Nothing helped.

Nothing changed the facts.

This woman had still stabbed him. And he’d still punched
her with his fist. On top of that, his shoulder ached like a mother. He wasn’t
in a forgiving mood.

But for cripe’s sake, why did it have to be
this
woman? The first female he’d felt a
spark of attraction to in months, and she had to go and be a major problem.

Lucky him. He’d captured the hot redhead he’d seen at the
CIA building earlier tonight. He glanced at his watch, after midnight, so
technically, yesterday now. Damn, he’d planned to find out who she was and ask
her out to dinner. He’d wanted to spend a few days wining and dining her, a few
more bedding her.

He was pretty sure he could put the kibosh to all those
plans. His gaze traced over the ugly bruise where he’d clipped her jaw. “Damn.”
How could I have foreseen such a
disaster?

Well. He held her captive, tigress that she was. She was
handcuffed, his prisoner
—
now
what the hell was he going to do with her?

Chapter
Thirteen

No matter how bad things get, you got to go
on living, even if it kills you.

~Sholom Aleichem

Castle Rock, Colorado

February 17, Tuesday

Three hours and fifteen minutes after the
assassination…

Rafe
McCord turned the Ford truck into the slot designated for room one-twenty-one
of the
Rocky Mountain Motel
in Castle
Rock, Colorado and killed the engine. Twelve hours of driving was enough!

For
some time now, Lacey had used his right thigh for a pillow. She’d curled up on
the seat hours ago and fell into an exhausted sleep mid-sentence. He hadn’t
cared. He enjoyed guarding her, and her body and mind still needed rest and
healing.

Most
of the long miles, he’d rested his right hand in the wild tangle of her long
thick hair, comforted by the warm intimacy of the cab, their solitude, and
knowing this precious woman belonged to him. His wife. He had the legal right
to hold her, kiss her, and make love to her without the consuming guilt he’d
felt before.

Casually,
he lifted her left hand and gazed at the simple gold band on her ring finger.
His seal. Proof she belonged to him. Their wedding had taken place in Lacey’s
hospital room. A simple ceremony, no outsiders, except for the two nurses who’d
witnessed it. Neither he nor Lacey had any relatives to speak of, so they’d
married quietly. It was the way they’d both wanted it.

The license lay neatly folded and tucked inside a plain
white envelope in the glove compartment. Their wedding might have been quick
and without fuss, but the little piece of paper with their names on it meant
the world to him. Their future was tied together by a few words, words that had
made him the luckiest man in the world.

Rafe
rubbed the ring on her finger. Bright. Shiny. New. Like their love. God, he loved
her. Weeks had passed since he’d last touched her intimately. Just like all the
times before they were married, and Rafe had ached for her, his body hurt now.
He needed her as much as ever, if not more than he’d needed her at Christmas
when she’d melted in his arms.

Their
marriage hadn’t been consummated yet. Rafe swallowed hard. He knew in his
heart, it was going to be a while before Lacey was ready for him to touch her.
She needed time. He’d give her all the time in the world, as long as she healed
mentally and spiritually. He didn’t care how long it took. He’d wait for her
forever if he had to.

God
. He felt like he’d been blessed.
Even there at the last, with all his plans and schemes to seduce Lacey away
from Danger Blackstone, he’d never once counted on or believed he’d win her
love or ever make her his wife.

His
seduction schemes worked, but only because Lacey had been vulnerable and Danger
had been fool enough to break her heart and spirit, then throw her away. Rafe
didn’t know how he’d been so lucky. If it had been Danger’s reckless behavior
or not, he didn’t care, he wasn’t about to question the gods that saw fit to
let this woman fall in love with
him.

Somewhere
in the back of his mind he had a horrible fear that it’d all end, all crash
down around his head and Lacey would fall out of love with him, leave him, and
go back to Danger. If that’s what she wanted, of course he’d step aside and
give her the freedom of choice. But he thought his heart would simply cease to
beat if she ever decided she’d made a mistake loving him.

Parked in front of their motel room, Rafe smiled pleased
at the distance he’d driven. He realized he’d savored every mile he took her
away from Montana and Danger’s reach. Every mountain and hill he crossed, every
mile marker he passed had been cause to secretly celebrate in his mind.

“Hey,
wake up, sleepy head.” Rafe gently shook Lacey awake.

She stirred beneath his light touch, opened her eyes and
sat up. She’d been asleep for the better part of the last four hours, not even
stirring when he’d stopped to fill the tank or just now, when he’d checked them
into a room. “Where are we?” she asked sleepily, yawning.

“Somewhere
in Colorado. A few more hours and we’ll be in New Mexico.” Rafe pulled her
close, tilted her face and took her mouth in a long, slow kiss. Reluctantly, he
released her and rubbed his forehead against hers. “Hi there, Mrs. McCord.”

She
smiled the first smile he’d seen on her mouth in a long time. “Hi, yourself.”
Lacey wiggled closer, a sigh of contentment on her lips. “Let’s just stay right
here. You’re so warm.”

“Uh-uh.
It’s cold, sweetheart. It’s snowing like a sonofabitch. That’s why I stopped.
It’s getting too hard to see and without chains, I was afraid we’d end up going
through a fence. There’s about two foot of snow already. The wind is blowing
incredible drifts. Another thirty minutes, and it’ll be impossible on the
highways. We may be here a few days. Besides, I want to snuggle with you under
the covers.” He kissed her again, savoring the softness of her mouth before
slowly releasing it. “Stay here while I turn the heat on in the room and get
our luggage. Are you hungry?”

“Mmm.
Starving.”

“I
saw an all-night diner across the street. Hamburgers and fries okay with you?”

She
nodded. Rafe carried the luggage inside, flipped on the heating unit and
returned to Lacey. Opening the truck door, he leaned inside. “If you want, wait
right here until I get back with the food, by then, the room will be warm. Lock
the door. And baby, don’t forget there’s a gun inside the glove compartment.
Use it, if you have to.”

Her
eyes widened. “You think Smitt
—
”

“No,”
he was quick to assure her. “I don’t think he followed us, but I’m not willing
to risk your life for a single second trying to out-think him.”

“Okay.”

He turned to leave, hating the thought of leaving her
alone for even twenty minutes.

“Rafe?”

“Yeah?” He turned back at the serious note in her voice.

“I love you. I haven’t said that lately or nearly enough.”
She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t even remember if I ever said it to you.” Her
eyes glistened with unshed tears
. “That’s so unfair to you. I wanted
you to know I haven’t changed my mind and I won’t. Danger and I
—
” she hesitated, then continued, “we
lost something special, and I don
’t mean only Joseph.” She searched his
eyes, hers filled with utter despair. “We didn’t take care of what we had
together, and it slipped away. I don’t want to make the same mistakes again.”
Tears welled in her lovely eyes. “The failure of our marriage wasn’t his entire
fault. I took him for granted. I thought he’d always be there for me. I don’t
want that to happen to you and me. I plan to tell you every single day for the
rest of my life I love you.” She paused and drew a deep breath, as if unsure
how to continue. “I don’t want you to ever have doubts, think, or believe I’d
cheat on you. In spite of his beliefs or what others might have told him, I
didn’t cheat on Danger. Ever. Until you.”

“Lacey.” An ache settled deep in his heart. It rang in his
voice. “Honey, don’t. You don’t have anything to feel guilty about.” Rafe shook
his head when she opened her mouth to deny her feelings. “Don’t. I know you
feel like you wronged him with me. Hell,
I
feel like I wronged him, but I know the kind of woman you are, baby. I know and
knew you hadn’t been unfaithful to him.
He
just didn’t know or believe it. I know you’d never have let me touch you if you
believed Danger loved you, or if you two stood a chance of saving what you had
together. You aren’t the one who turned your back on your marriage.”

“I did. I gave up on him, and he was ill.”

“Yes. But he knew what he was doing. He walked away and
left you with me because he had somewhere else to be and someone else waiting
for him. He left you first, Lace. Danger gave up first. He never gave you a
chance to face your accusers, let you deny or explain anything. He wanted you
to sleep with me so he wouldn’t feel guilty for what he was doing to you.”

Lacey nodded. “I know. Maybe someday I’ll figure out what
was going on inside his head. Maybe then I’ll accept that he stopped loving me
and threw me away.”

“And I thank God he did, otherwise I couldn’t do this.”
Rafe tugged her close and took her mouth with all the hunger pent-up inside his
body. He swiped her lower lip with his tongue, nudging her lips apart in order
to steal a deeper taste of her. Releasing her, he grinned. “I’ll never get my
fill of tasting you.”

Lacey brushed a strand of his hair from his face, her
touch gentle. “I’ve been given a second chance at life, Rafe…at love, at
starting a family. I don’t want anything or anyone to steal it from us.”

“Baby.” He leaned inside and pulled her close, circled his
arms around her and held her tight. “Nothing could ever make me stop loving
you. I love you so much I ache with the need for you. You have no idea how badly
I want to start a family with you, but only when you’re ready. Never will I
ever do a single thing to hurt you or make you doubt my love for you, or give
you reason to regret marrying me. I swear to you, I’ll never touch another
woman. Hell, I won’t even
look
at
another woman.”

She leaned back, grinned, and ran her gaze over his face.
“I’m willing to bet there’s a woman working over there at that diner. I don’t
expect you to walk in there with your eyes shut or go through life wearing
blinders.” She palmed the side of his face. “What kind of miserable life would
that be for you? I don’t doubt you, Rafe, but what took place between us
happened so sudden.”

“Yes, for you maybe, but honey, I’d been in love with you
for three years. They were long, miserable years where I kept turning and
walking away from the one woman I wanted so much I thought my skin was going to
burst. It didn’t happen fast for me. For us. I simply had to wait for you to
catch up.”

Her tiger-colored eyes appeared too big for her gaunt face
since she’d lost so much weight. She looked small and fragile. Lacey might have
survived the vicious attack, but his wife still had a long way to go before she
was completely healed, physically and mentally.

“I don’t want you to question how I feel about you,” she
said quietly, stubbornly. “You were there for me when I needed you most.”

He smiled. “I was always there for you, honey, you just
didn’t see me.”

“No, Rafe. I mean you were there for me that day when you
found me in the well. I was dying. I
wanted
to die. I thought I deserved to die. You saved me. I’ll always love you for
that, and I love you for being the man who was there for me when Danger walked
away.”

For the first time, Rafe saw a glint of the old Lacey. Her
inner strength. Her determination. He knew then she’d be okay, that one day,
she’d be the woman she’d been before Smitt’s attack.

“Danger’s a part of my past. I need to leave him there and
move forward with my life. With you. I can’t look back at what was. I can’t
think about what was lost. My son. Our baby. I need to box it all up and put it
away until I’m ready to open it again, and accept the loss, accept my part of
the blame and responsibility for what happened to Joseph.” A sob caught in her
throat. “I let him die, Rafe. Do you have any idea how weak or cowardly that
makes me feel to know I laid there on the floor, and let that monster kill my
baby? I didn’t lift a finger to save him.”

Rafe swallowed hard at the shame and despair in her voice,
at the sheen of tears he saw in her eyes, at her self-blame and guilt. “Oh,
God, Lace. Sweetheart, don’t do this. Don’t. Don’t blame yourself. In no way
was it your fault. You fought to live under the worst of circumstances. You
survived. You did it. That’s not weak, baby. You had two bullets in you,
sweetheart, besides the other injuries he inflicted. I suspect by the time
Smitt attacked Joseph, you were already wounded badly in so many other ways you
couldn’t even help yourself.”

“I tried to move. I couldn’t do anything.”

“You’d lost a lot of blood. You were lucky you were still
breathing at that point. You couldn’t have stopped him from what he did to
Joseph, no more than you could stop him from what he did to you, our baby and
Anna. It wasn’t your fault. It was a tragedy for all of us, but no one is at
fault, least of all you.”

“I want another baby, Rafe.” Lacey clutched his upper
arms, her voice filled with desperation. “I know what I said before about
waiting, but to wait…I think it’s a bad idea. My arms feel empty. My soul is
cold and barren. I need to smell the sweet warm scent of my newborn against my
breasts. I need to hear the cries of my baby, our baby. Our child. I can’t bear
this otherwise—bear the silence, the loss.” She sniffed. “I want to start a
family with you right away.”

Rafe brushed the tears from her face and pressed a tender
kiss to her brow. His heart clenched, but he forced a smile to his mouth and
leaned back. “I think that’s my line.”

“It is, but I decided to borrow the words from you.” She
gave him a watery smile. “Why don’t I walk with you to the diner? We can eat
there.”

“You sure? I don’t mind bringing the food back here.”

“I want to go with you. There’s been too much distance
between us since we married. We’ve had so little time together.”

He couldn’t argue that. The woman must have read his mind.
He grinned. “On second thought, stay here where it’s nice and warm. I’ll grab
us a couple of club sandwiches and a bag of chips. I’ll be right back. We’ll
eat in bed and wallow in potato chip and bread crumbs.”

A tiny laugh escaped her. “Crumbs?”

He smiled. “Sound tempting?”

“You’re tempting.” Lacey stroked the side of his face. “So
you better hurry.”