Read Online Desperate Hearts by Alexis Harrington - Free Book Online Page A

worthless saddle
bum would not have shot her if Tom hadn’t sent him to find her.
    During the dragging hours her arm throbbed,
and she woke often with her jaws clenched. Whenever she opened her
eyes she saw Jace Rankin across the fire from her. He lay in the
red light of the embers, his head propped on his saddle, looking
the same as the night before, with the Henry next to him. He
appeared to sleep with the maddening ease of a man who had no
worries and no regrets. The stubble of his beard grew heavier each
day, making him seem all the more threatening.
    Her masquerade had given her strength,
courage, and freedom—it was easier to move around in this wild,
unforgiving country as a male. But now Jace knew the truth, at
least most of it, and he could easily take whatever he wanted from
her. If he decided to do that, could she fight him off? No, not
even on her best day. He far outmatched her strength with his lean,
quick body, and danger radiated from him. He could claim
disinterest in unwilling women, but she had no particular reason to
believe him.
    She pulled her blankets more tightly around
herself, and with some effort rolled over. In the process she
snapped a stick under her boot.
    Jace flew out of his bedroll and crouching
on one knee, pointed the Henry at her. His expression was as fixed
and flat as a snake’s. She froze, her breath caught on the
thundering heartbeat in her chest and her eyes on the barrel of the
rifle. Her mouth formed a silent scream as she waited for the sound
of a shot.
    He stared at her in the dim firelight as if
getting his bearings, then lowered the rifle. “Damn,” he muttered.
“Sorry. I thought I heard a gun being cocked. Are you all
right?”
    Her breath returned and the stricture of her
throat relaxed. “All right? You almost shot me again!”
    He shrugged. “I wouldn’t have. I saw you
didn’t have your gun.” He lay down again and settled into his
blanket. “Go back to sleep.” In a moment, she heard his breathing
smooth out to a regular rhythm.
    Oh God, she wished she were far away from
here, and away from this terrible, dangerous man. Tears slid down
her temples, though she told herself they would do no good.
    Theirs wasn’t much of a partnership, she
reflected. He didn’t trust her . . . she didn’t trust him. Despite
his halfhearted agreement to help her, he could give away her true
identity anytime he got tired of having her around.
    Yet at the same time she felt a conflicting
sense of security just knowing he was there. He intimidated her,
but he scared almost everyone else as well. Reconciled to that, she
dozed the last couple of hours before daybreak.
    When she woke again, the sun was on its way
up the eastern sky and Jace was gone from his place near the fire.
It had stopped raining but the air was damp and chill, and moisture
clung to everything beyond the shelter of the overhang. As
uncomfortable as her hard bed was, Kyla was loath to leave her
blankets. Next to her, she found her gun in its holster.
Apparently, Jace had decided to trust her enough to return her
weapon.
    Over by the flat, narrow creek she saw him
already saddling their horses. He stood with his back to her, a
silhouette against the slate-colored sky, and she watched him, the
way he smoothed the silky equine manes, his strong hands
surprisingly gentle on their bridles, the way his own dark hair
brushed his shoulders. He bent to tighten Juniper’s cinch strap,
and his shirt stretched over his shoulders and lean waist. There
was nothing hesitant or awkward in his movements. He had a
powerful, easy grace. It was easy to forget that there were taller
men; he had a very imposing presence, an intangible something that
made him seem far bigger than he actually was. She supposed some
women found him attractive. Luckily, experience had made her
immune.
    He turned suddenly, as if feeling her eyes
on him. “There’s coffee if you want it, and a couple of biscuits.
But get out of your bedroll and eat