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Authors: Christy Reece
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dawn.”
“Sounds good.” With a quick nod, she moved forward.
Justin held back a sigh. The furtive looks she’d been throwing him made him want to swear a blue streak. But not at her. He shouldn’t have said what he said last night. Telling her that he was expecting her to spill all her secrets had done more harm than good. Yes, he wanted to know who she was hiding from and why. But he wanted to know because he cared about her. His stupid-assed comment last night— We are going to talk, Ingram —had sounded too much like a demand. Diplomacy had never been his strong suit. Neither was patience. But damned if he would push her into sharing things that might hurt her.
He couldn’t say when he’d started looking at Riley as more than his partner. Their first meeting had been singularly unimpressive. If he’d been asked to describe her, he would have said brown and brown—brown hair, brown eyes. That was before he knew she wore a variety of colored contact lenses. She had delicate features and a small frame. Her facial expressions often alternated between blank and joyless.
She’d had little to contribute to the meeting, but when she did speak, it was in a halting manner, as if she had to force each word from her mouth. But then something had changed. She had shifted her gaze to his, and something had clicked between them. It hadn’t been a physical thing—more mental. Whatever it was, it had stuck. From that day on, they’d developed an odd sort of communication. Words weren’t necessary. He didn’t believe in psychic connections, but hell if he could explain what their bond was. It defied description.
The more he worked with her, the more he admired her. No, she wasn’t a great conversationalist, but she had the soul of a warrior and the heart of a lioness. He had watched her risk her life unflinchingly and with more courage than most people displayed in a lifetime. He thought maybe it was her courage that made him finally look at her. Beyond the solemn expression and dogged determination were a steeliness and firm resolve that came from within.
When had that admiration turned into something more? He wasn’t sure. Maybe the attraction had always been there. She was beautiful, but in a quiet way. There was nothing flamboyant about Riley Ingram. But her dark brown hair was thick, lustrous, falling over her shoulders like expensive silk. She had creamy skin, and when she blushed, her cheeks took on a delicate pink. It always lifted his heart when she did that.
Riley didn’t smile a lot, and he figured her life experiences hadn’t given her much reason. Her eyes might be his favorite feature, because even though her smiles were rare, her eyes would often sparkle with humor. It didn’t happen a lot, but whenever he saw the gleam, something tightened in his chest.
No, he couldn’t say when his feelings had changed to something tender. He knew only that he wanted to chase away her shadows, see her smile with delight or laugh with joy. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kiss that unsmiling mouth, and make her moan for him.
She gave a soft sigh, and Justin glanced over at her. Riley had stopped walking. Raising her arms over her head, she stretched what he knew were aching muscles. The punch of attraction caused an immediate and unstoppable reaction in his body. Grinding his teeth together, Justin kept moving. Yeah, hard as hell, but what choice did he have?
The afternoon sun glinted off an object, and he jerked to a halt. “See that?”
Riley followed the direction of Justin’s gaze. “What? No, I—” She broke off and then said, “Yeah.” Grabbing her field binoculars, she peered at the area of the glint. “It’s a cabin. Kind of small, though.”
He pulled out his map, checked it again. “Yeah.” Using his own binoculars, Justin took in the surrounding area. “Looks deserted.”
“If this is his place and she’s in there, there’d be guards.”
“Probably. But
“Sounds good.” With a quick nod, she moved forward.
Justin held back a sigh. The furtive looks she’d been throwing him made him want to swear a blue streak. But not at her. He shouldn’t have said what he said last night. Telling her that he was expecting her to spill all her secrets had done more harm than good. Yes, he wanted to know who she was hiding from and why. But he wanted to know because he cared about her. His stupid-assed comment last night— We are going to talk, Ingram —had sounded too much like a demand. Diplomacy had never been his strong suit. Neither was patience. But damned if he would push her into sharing things that might hurt her.
He couldn’t say when he’d started looking at Riley as more than his partner. Their first meeting had been singularly unimpressive. If he’d been asked to describe her, he would have said brown and brown—brown hair, brown eyes. That was before he knew she wore a variety of colored contact lenses. She had delicate features and a small frame. Her facial expressions often alternated between blank and joyless.
She’d had little to contribute to the meeting, but when she did speak, it was in a halting manner, as if she had to force each word from her mouth. But then something had changed. She had shifted her gaze to his, and something had clicked between them. It hadn’t been a physical thing—more mental. Whatever it was, it had stuck. From that day on, they’d developed an odd sort of communication. Words weren’t necessary. He didn’t believe in psychic connections, but hell if he could explain what their bond was. It defied description.
The more he worked with her, the more he admired her. No, she wasn’t a great conversationalist, but she had the soul of a warrior and the heart of a lioness. He had watched her risk her life unflinchingly and with more courage than most people displayed in a lifetime. He thought maybe it was her courage that made him finally look at her. Beyond the solemn expression and dogged determination were a steeliness and firm resolve that came from within.
When had that admiration turned into something more? He wasn’t sure. Maybe the attraction had always been there. She was beautiful, but in a quiet way. There was nothing flamboyant about Riley Ingram. But her dark brown hair was thick, lustrous, falling over her shoulders like expensive silk. She had creamy skin, and when she blushed, her cheeks took on a delicate pink. It always lifted his heart when she did that.
Riley didn’t smile a lot, and he figured her life experiences hadn’t given her much reason. Her eyes might be his favorite feature, because even though her smiles were rare, her eyes would often sparkle with humor. It didn’t happen a lot, but whenever he saw the gleam, something tightened in his chest.
No, he couldn’t say when his feelings had changed to something tender. He knew only that he wanted to chase away her shadows, see her smile with delight or laugh with joy. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kiss that unsmiling mouth, and make her moan for him.
She gave a soft sigh, and Justin glanced over at her. Riley had stopped walking. Raising her arms over her head, she stretched what he knew were aching muscles. The punch of attraction caused an immediate and unstoppable reaction in his body. Grinding his teeth together, Justin kept moving. Yeah, hard as hell, but what choice did he have?
The afternoon sun glinted off an object, and he jerked to a halt. “See that?”
Riley followed the direction of Justin’s gaze. “What? No, I—” She broke off and then said, “Yeah.” Grabbing her field binoculars, she peered at the area of the glint. “It’s a cabin. Kind of small, though.”
He pulled out his map, checked it again. “Yeah.” Using his own binoculars, Justin took in the surrounding area. “Looks deserted.”
“If this is his place and she’s in there, there’d be guards.”
“Probably. But
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