Her Desert Treasure (Entangled Ignite) (10 page)

The light caught a silvery sheen just above her left hipbone. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was a scar. The raised skin had jagged edges, and even though it wasn’t new, it was a violent flaw on her perfect skin. He gently ran his finger over the scar, tracing it down until it disappeared into the waistband of her skirt. Rage boiled his blood. He had no idea what had happened, but his gut told him someone had hurt her. Hand shaking, he pulled away and, as carefully as possible, covered her with the sheet, tucking it around her shoulders before pressing a soft kiss to her temple. She snuggled deeper into the bed and murmured something in her sleep. Not wanting to wake her, Jake gently removed the top spread from the bed, grabbed a pillow, and went out to the deck through the French doors.

It took a few minutes and several deep breaths to calm down. His powerful reaction to the thought of her being injured took him by surprise. The need to hunt down whoever had done this to her was fierce. He kicked off his shoes and situated himself in the hammock he had strung there and tried to get comfortable. His brain couldn’t shut out the anger roiling in his gut. He gently swung the hammock and breathed deeply, willing himself to relax and think about anything but the beautiful woman in his bed.

Chapter Ten

Meg woke to soft kisses on her neck, the moist heat of a tongue sliding around the shell of her ear. She smiled and stretched like a spoiled feline as chills traveled up and down her spine. Astonished by how she felt about him after less than four full days, she opened her eyes to find Jake’s dark brown ones staring back at her. He pressed a sweet kiss to her mouth.

“Morning.” He sat on the side of the bed with one hand resting on her pillow.

“Mmmm... Good morning to you. What time is it?” No light shone through the windows.

“It’s a little after five. I wondered if you wanted to ride with me this morning. It might be the only peace I get today.”

“That’s right. You have to entertain your guests.”

“About that. I really want you to come with us. I don’t feel right leaving you alone all day.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want to cause a problem. Besides, maybe it won’t be as bad as you think.”

Jake smiled down into her eyes. “Are you always so optimistic?”

Meg grinned back. “It beats the alternative, doesn’t it?”

“I still don’t like it.” Jake gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “What do you say to the ride?”

Meg realized she was still wearing her clothes from yesterday. She brushed a hand over her rumpled skirt. “As much as I wish I could, I’m hardly dressed for horseback riding.”

He spread his arms wide. “We’re a matched set.”

He had on the same clothes as the day before, as well. “Did you sleep in your clothes? Oh, I took your bed, where did you sleep? What happened to you last night?”

He chuckled at her rapid fire questions. “It took me a while with the horses and then I got sidetracked by my dad wanting to talk. I slept in the hammock out back. You were sleeping so soundly, I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“That was thoughtful. I’m sorry I fell asleep on you.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here to tuck you in properly.”

Jake’s gaze held hers, and she swore the temperature in the room heated up. Or was it just her? Jake lowered his head, lightly skimming her lips with his. Meg reached up and ran her fingers through his hair, at the same time pulling him closer. Their kiss was incendiary, tongues warred, teeth nibbled. Jake gave one last thrust of his tongue and pulled away slowly.

“Sorry, but I tend to get carried away with you.” He stood and moved to the door. “Since I can’t take you riding, I’m going to feed the animals.”

Meg got out of bed and straightened the blankets. “Give me a minute, and I’ll come with you.”

Her offer earned her a dimpled grin. “I’ll be in the kitchen.”

When Meg joined him ten minutes later, he was setting the timer on the coffee maker. The man had a stellar backside. She walked up behind him and gave his cute butt a squeeze. Jake jumped and turned around, grabbing her by the waist. “If you’re feeling playful, I think I can come up with better ways to spend our time this morning.”

Meg plastered on a look of innocence on her face. “What?”

“So, Meg, what are you going to do today while I’m enduring the company of a spoiled child?”

“Poor baby.” Now that she thought about it, she didn’t know what she was going to do. Being Saturday, none of the municipal offices would be open. But since she couldn’t do anything with her property until she heard from Bernie, it didn’t matter. “I have to do a little shopping.” She laughed. “I can’t remember the last time I had a whole day that I didn’t have a list of things to do.”

Jake smiled, pulling her closer. “You sure there isn’t anything I can do to change your mind about coming with us?”

As tempting as the thought of spending the day with Jake was, Meg couldn’t help being excited about having a day to herself. “Sorry, Slick. I’ve got a date with a backpack and a thousand acres of quiet.”

His smile turned to a frown. “I’m not sure I like the idea of you going hiking out there by yourself.”

“Jake, let’s don’t do this again.” Meg tried to pull out of his arms, but he held tight.

“I don’t want to argue, either, but I don’t feel right about sending you out to God-knows-where all alone. You never know what danger is out there, Meg.”

The White Knight gene, as Kristen called it, was making an appearance. She reached up and kissed his cheek. “I’m not climbing Everest or swimming the English Channel. I’ve walked that land all my life.”

Even though he kept his voice light, she felt his muscles tighten. “I’m serious, Meg. I really wish you’d wait until I can go with you.”

Pushing out of his embrace, she searched his face. Warning bells sounded in her head. Troy used to mess with her emotions when he wanted something, pretending to be easygoing when anger simmered under the surface. Had Jake used the same tactics with his old girlfriend? Was that why she’d ended things?

It wouldn’t be fair to assume the worst based on Kristen’s story and Troy’s erratic behavior. But… She hesitated. She had to learn to trust her own intuition, and it was telling her that she could be honest with this man and he wouldn’t hurt her. “I’m serious, Jake. This is my home. I don’t need a chaperone on my own property.”

He pulled her back and blew out a frustrated breath. “Okay. I’m sorry. At least let me give you my cell number in case you need to reach me.”

Relief flooded her. He wasn’t Troy. He was not going to bellow with rage or threaten her or shove her onto shards of broken glass if she disagreed with him. “Okay. Deal. Now can we take care of the animals before everyone else wakes up?”

…

By the time they returned to the house, Jake’s parents had made their way to the kitchen in search of coffee. Bob smiled broadly at the two of them, but Linda was a little more sedate. Jake figured she was suffering a bit from her wine binge the night before and chuckled under his breath.

Meg punched his arm and poured his mom a cup of coffee. She placed the steaming mug in front of Linda. “Here you are. Do you need cream or sugar? Can I get you anything else?”

Linda gently shook her head. “Thank you, dear. Just black coffee this morning.” She patted Meg’s hand.

Meg smiled down at her and went around the table to her chair. As she was about to take her seat, Jake grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down, settling her firmly on his lap. He tightened his grip when she squirmed, and she gave up trying to escape. The four of them enjoyed their coffee and easy conversation until Kristen strolled coolly into the room. She walked to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup. Leaning against the counter, she took a sip as she took in the scene. She scrunched her nose and set the mug aside.

“Jake, darling, please say whatever you have planned for me today involves a Starbucks.”

Meg tried again to leave Jake’s lap, but he squeezed both arms around her tighter and grinned up at her, happy with her predicament. Without taking his eyes off her, he answered, “Mom and Dad like to go to The Pointe. You can probably find a decent cup of espresso there.”

The Pointe was a booming shopping area about forty miles west of Big Rock. There were also limited stakes gambling casinos and some good restaurants. “Mom can gamble and, Kristen, you can shop if you want. After lunch we can come back here so Mom and Dad can relax.”

Linda’s head perked up at Jake’s words. “Oh, I love that place.”

“Just find Mom a place with nickel slots, and she’s good for the day.”

Meg finally pushed herself free of Jake’s arms and stood up. “It sounds like you have a fun day planned. I’ll let you get to it.”

Jake stood with her. “I’ll walk you out.”

Meg grabbed her purse, and they started for the door.

Linda called after them. “I hope you have a nice day, too, Meg. We’ll see you tonight?”

Jake placed his hand on her waist and pulled her close to his side. “Yes, we’ll see her tonight.”

Meg nodded and waved as Jake guided her out. They walked hand in hand to her car where he backed up against the door, lowered his head, and touched his lips to hers.

“Are you sure I can’t talk you into waiting until I get back? I really don’t like you going out there by yourself.” He nuzzled her ear and kissed her neck. What else could he do to dissuade her from hiking the hills alone? His gut clenched with the thought of her finding herself in a dangerous situation. He also wanted to ask about the scar on her hip. Maybe there’d been an accident and he was blowing it out of proportion, but his instincts told him he wasn’t.

“We talked about this. I have a lot to do, plans to make. I promise I’ll be careful.”

Jake bent and touched his forehead to hers. He had to trust her judgment, even as he hated ignoring his gut. “Okay.” He straightened, took his cell phone out of his pocket, and held out his hand. “But give me your cell. I want us to have each other’s numbers.”

Meg reached in her purse for her phone and handed it to him. They traded back and Jake opened her door. He took her hand and pulled her against him.

“This will have to last us ’til tonight.” He’d meant for the kiss to be gentle, teasing, a promise of things to come. But when Meg opened for him, all teasing stopped. His fingers threaded through her hair, pulling her up to get closer. The feel of her against him, the combination of her scent, taste, drove him to the edge. Jake pulled away from her, breaking their kiss. “Today is going to be torture until I get back to you.

He gave her a pat on the behind as she climbed into her car, squeezing her thigh when she was settled. “I’ll call you in a while to check in, okay?”

Eyes still sparkling with heat, she nodded. “Okay.”

“Be careful. I mean it.”

Meg rolled her eyes at him and laughed. “I will be. You be careful, too. Something tells me your day will be more dangerous than mine.”

Jake shook his head as she put the car in gear and pulled out of the drive. He watched her until she reached the road and then muttered as he turned toward the house. “Might as well get this over with. Shit.”

…

More tourists than ever crowded the streets of Big Rock for the start of the Summer Festival.

Wending her way through them, Meg stopped at the small grocery store to pick up the items on her list before driving back to the cabin. After stowing her groceries, she quickly changed her clothes and tucked a power bar and two bottles of water into a daypack. She also took a pair of gloves and her grandfather’s old rock hammer, along with the small magnifying glass he’d always used to inspect his finds. As an afterthought, she grabbed the Maglight from a kitchen drawer as well. Her cargo shorts had plenty of pockets for her minimal gear and her sturdy hiking shoes were perfect for the terrain. She locked up and headed off toward the mountains she and her grandfather had hiked hundreds of times before.

Nostalgia warmed her as she walked the trails they had made when she was a little girl. Various rock formations reminded her of lessons Grandpa had taught her about different geological anomalies that were all over this land. She recognized the faint trail that led up the side of one hill covered by huge boulders and hiked up about twenty yards until she found her favorite spot—the cave she had discovered when she was eight years old. The place she and Skip went to pretend she was a famous explorer, searching for a lost treasure of gold.

Her grandfather had let her do some exploring on her own one day, though he never let her get more than twenty yards away. She’d been so excited when she’d found the cave opening and hadn’t even been scared to crawl inside. She’d gasped in delight when she flicked on her mini-flashlight and inspected the walls of the large cave. The rock glittered back at her in the weak light, and she’d believed she’d found a gold mine. When she called out to her grandfather, he’d crawled inside with her and explained that the minerals in the rock made it sparkle. She hadn’t cared that it wasn’t gold because it was just so beautiful.

Curious now, she turned on the flashlight and peeked inside. It wasn’t as large as she remembered, but then she wasn’t as small as she’d been back then. She had to crouch to get through the opening, but was able to stand when she got inside.

The main chamber was about fifteen by twenty feet with a couple of smaller ‘rooms’ to one side. She shined the light around and smiled. The rock walls still sparkled, and she was still awed by its beauty. Walking further back, she found the large crack in the rock, the one she’d never been brave enough to go into for fear the mountain would swallow her up, so she’d always stayed in the main cave. Maybe she could talk Jake into going in with her one of these days.

She crawled back out and walked down the hill to the main trail. Since she’d already walked to the canyon, she veered off in the opposite direction to another favorite trail.

A few rocks caught her eye along the way and she stopped to pick them up, but mostly she simply enjoyed being out, soaking up the beauty of the place. One of her family’s favorite picnic spots was over the next hill, and her steps quickened. When she cleared the rise, she noticed an area in a low spot about fifty yards away that had been cleared of rock and brush. To her surprise, a white pickup was parked in the clearing, and two men were setting up what appeared to be surveying equipment. She could see that the pickup had come in on one of the old jeep trails her grandfather used to use. Trespassers? Again? The feeling of déjà vu hit her as she hurried toward the men.

“Hey! Hello?”

One of the men stopped what he was doing and walked over to meet her. “Can I help you, miss?”

Meg came to a halt in front of him. Trying to keep her cool, she forced calm into her voice. “I hope so.” She watched both men cautiously. “What’re you doing?”

“You really shouldn’t be out here, miss. This is no place for a girl to be wandering around.”

Patience was slipping fast. If one more person treated her like a helpless flower, she’d scream. But her grandmother always said you catch more flies with sugar… She’d stick with the ditzy girl tack. “Oh, I’m not wandering. I grew up around here. Who are you? What is all this stuff?”

“My name’s Tom.” He threw a thumb over his shoulder toward the other man. We’re surveyors.”

“Hi, Tom. Did you know this is private property?”