Bonded (41 page)

The sound of
grunting and swearing following. She could see Reno’s head, then
his shoulders. Wincing, she noted the fresh raw scrapes and cuts on
his flesh as he forced his too wide torso through the narrow space.
Biting her lip, she said nothing until at last, he too was
free.

The strength
seemed to leave her legs and she sank to the ground beside him and
he gave her a hug.

“We did it!”

“Yeah, we did.” He
kissed the tip of her nose and then they both just sat there, faces
tilted to the sky.

Chapter
25

Reno knelt on the
ground, taking in deep lung fulls of the fresh mountain air while
looking around at his surroundings. They were on a small plateau
and several yards away the mouth of the coal conveyor could be
seen. The broken remains of the tracks that the coal carts had
moved along still remained, though weeds grew up between the ties.
A lone coal cart was lying on its side, forgotten and rusty, with a
clump of daisies blooming nearby looking rather like a simple
funeral bouquet.

A passing whim
almost had him getting up and plucking them to give to Brandi, but
moving seemed too complicated to even consider at the moment.
Instead, he revelled in the feel of the sunshine on his bare skin.
After the cool dampness of the mines, the warmth of the sun and the
untainted scents of nature were like an elixir pouring life back
into his tired body.

And he
was
tired. While the physical exertion of traversing the tunnels had
been hard, it was the battle he’d waged internally that had drained
him. The feeling of being enclosed underground, and the knowledge
that only the dim glow of a flashlight kept the darkness at bay,
had driven him and his wolf to the edge.

At least he, in
his human reasoning, had been able to understand the need for
measured progress through the maze of tunnels. His wolf, however,
had constantly pushed for control, wanting to transform and deal
with the nebulous enemy in a frenzied rush. Of course, that would
have worsened the situation but the beast hadn’t seen it that way.
Only through a combination of reassurances, stern reprimands, and a
call to duty had he kept the creature in check. It was the
knowledge that Brandi and her wolf depended on them that had held
the most sway.

He turned to look
at the woman beside him, knowing that if he was weary, she must be
exhausted. Enforcers were trained to go days without sleep and
endure extended periods of physical exertion, but that wasn’t the
norm for a DC officer.

Surprisingly
enough, rather than collapsing in a heap on the ground, she was
studying him, a smile on her face.

“What?”

“You’re a mess.”
She reached over and ran her hand across his chest then held it up
for his inspection. A thick layer of dust covered it.

Glancing down, he
noted the filth covering him, slightly cleaner streaks showing
where she’d run her fingers. He felt a crooked smile forming on his
face as he imagined how he must look. It widened even more when he
took in her grubby appearance. “You don’t look much better.” He
brushed his thumb over her cheek and showed her the smudge.

Brandi stared at
it for a moment and then laughed. “We make a fine pair, don’t we?
But you know what? I don’t care. We made it out of that stupid mine
and that’s all that matters.” Unexpectedly, she leaned over and
gave him a hug.

“Yeah, we did.” He
returned her embrace, chuckling at her lack of vanity. Leaning back
against a convenient boulder, his arms still loosely holding her,
he mused over what a trouper she’d been. Never once had she
complained
and
she’d kept up with him. There’d been no
lagging behind or asking for reassurance; she’d just jutted her
chin and continued on. Strength of spirit, brave and sexy... Even
covered in coal dust, her beauty was obvious to him. An ache grew
in the region of his heart and he tightened his grip on her. A
primal need to possess and protect rose up inside him.

This female is
ours. We’ve saved her, taken her from Victor and safely led her
through the darkness. Don’t let her get away this time.

His wolf’s
thinking closely echoed his own and he wondered why he hadn’t
listened to the beast’s thoughts on the matter sooner.

Brandi shifted in
his arms. His concentrated appraisal of her must have been
noticeable for the smile faded from her lips and a blush showed
under the layer of grime. She glanced down at the ground and
cleared her throat.

“I...uh... I
suppose we should try to get cleaned up and then find the others.”
She pulled away and he reluctantly let her go. “If I recall
correctly, this particular mine entrance is fairly close to a
stream.” Pointing to the left, she continued. “If we head that way,
there should be a place we can splash off; it widens out to form a
pond not too far from here.

Reno nodded and
stood up, extending his hand to her. After a moment’s hesitation
she took it and he pulled her to her feet. When she would have
moved away, he held on, a memory having stirred to life. He waited
until she raised her eyes to meet his. “This reminds me of when we
met. I helped you up off the floor that first day.” With his thumb,
he caressed the back of her hand, enjoying the feel of her delicate
bones, then brought her hand up and kissed it. He quirked a smile
at her, thinking she’d enjoy the shared memory.

Instead, her mouth
parted on a small gasp and her eyes widened. For a moment her stare
was so intense, he was sure she was waiting for him to say
something else. He searched his recollection of what had happened
that day, wondering what her expectation of him might be. Nothing
came to mind. “Um... You looked cute.”

He tacked on the
last bit, hoping it would suffice but the general statement
obviously wasn’t what she’d been hoping for.

“Thanks.” She
pulled her hand away, and her shoulders slumped. “Let’s go find
that pond. It’ll be good to be clean again.” Her tone belied her
words and it sounded to him like cleanliness was the last thing on
her mind.

Hell. Somehow,
he’d disappointed her, but how? Why were females so hard to figure
out? He furrowed his brow considering the situation, but she must
have mistaken his look for confusion.

“Don’t worry;
you’ve done enough tracking for the day. I’ll show you where the
pond is.” Brandi took the lead and he let her, despite the fact
that the water’s fresh scent was easy to follow.

They walked in
silence and he shot her speculative glances out of the corner of
his eye. She felt something for him and it was more than just lust,
he was sure of it. But another factor was in the mix too. He
reflected on their past encounters, times when he’d caught her
eyeing him, when she seemed to be on the verge of saying something
only to draw back. The times when he’d make an idle comment and a
look of expectancy intermingled with fear would flash across her
face...

“Here we are.”
Brandi announced their arrival and sure enough, they rounded a
clump of saplings and a small pond stretched out before them. The
walk seemed to have returned her to a happier frame of mind for she
grinned and twirled a finger at him. “Now turn around while I strip
down. I’ll tell you when you can look.”

“I’ve seen you
naked before,” he grumbled while obeying her request.

“That was
different,” she replied primly, though he was sure he heard a hint
of underlying laughter.

The soft sounds of
her shimmying out of her clothes stirred his imagination as well as
other parts of his body. By the time he heard water splashing, the
fit of his pants was decidedly uncomfortable.

“Okay, I’m in. You
can turn around.”

When he looked,
only her shoulders and face were visible and she was staring at him
expectantly, a mischievous glint in her eye. He quirked an eyebrow
her way, his hands resting on the waistband of his pants. “I had to
turn around, so...”

She rolled her
eyes. “As if males care. You all love to strut your stuff.”

Reno shrugged.
“Fine with me.” He shucked his pants and grinned when he heard her
gasp. Apparently, she hadn’t expected him to be aroused.

“You might have
warned me,” she scolded while turning away. Her back now to him,
she sluiced water over her arms trying to remove the grime that
coated them.

“But that wouldn’t
have been as much fun,” he replied, slipping into the water and
wading over to where she was.

Brandi paused in
her ablutions and peeked at him over her shoulder. “True.” She
flashed a playful grin at him before taking a deep breath and
ducking under the water. She grabbed his ankle, gave a yank and he
toppled over with a shout of surprise.

Bobbing to the
surface, she started to laugh, obviously finding the sight of him
flailing about trying to regain his footing amusing. The laughter
quickly died, however, when he steadied himself and planted his
hands on his hips. He glared at her and a look of apprehension
appeared on her face.

She started to
back up.

“That wasn’t very
nice of you, Brandi.” He kept his voice low, a hint of threat
lacing his words. As he advanced on her, she began to retreat with
even greater speed.

Reno’s wolf
stirred, its ears perked with interest.
A chase? Yes!
We
should pursue her. Hunt her down and claim her as our own.

“Reno?” She
tentatively said his name, faint lines of worry appearing on her
brow. He sniffed the air and realized she was excited by the idea
that he was stalking her.

“An unprovoked
attack on an Enforcer deserves punishment, don’t you think?”

“P-p-punishment?”
A shiver ran over her. “What kind?”

He growled and her
eyes widened. Suddenly she twirled around and began to swim
away.

With a shout, Reno
launched himself forward, his long strokes rapidly eliminating the
distance between them. In a matter of moments, he was able to grab
her ankle and tug her back towards him.

Lashing out, she
struggled to be free, but Reno merely wrapped his arms around her,
stilling her actions.

“Caught you, you
minx!”

“No!” She made a
half-hearted attempt to escape but laughter was bubbling beneath
her supposed protests. He shifted one arm lower and brought them
into intimate contact and her struggles stilled completely as a
gasp came from her parted lips. Despite the coolness of the water,
his erection hadn’t completely disappeared and her movements were
making him grow even harder.

As their gazes
met, he could see the desire burning within her eyes and knew his
own was equally hot. Slowly, he allowed her to slide down the
length of his body until her feet touched the ground. Her nipples,
already peaked from the cold, rubbed against his chest in an erotic
caress.

She nudged her
hips against him. “Is this the punishment?” She exhaled the words
softly.

He gave a gentle
thrust, the length of him brushing against her heated flesh, a
stark contrast to the cool water. “Maybe.” He reached up and tucked
her curls behind her ears. A hint of doubt passed over him as he
recalled the words she’d spoken in the town hall. “Is that how you
would see it? As a punishment?”

Brandi shook her
head, her look solemn. “No. Never.” Reaching up, she brushed his
hair from his forehead before trailing her fingers down his cheek
in a gentle caress. “Being with you would be wonderful.”

“I’m glad.” He
closed his eyes for a moment as relief flooded him. While he’d been
sure her cutting comments at the town hall had just been a show, it
was good to hear her refuting them. Opening his eyes, he gave her a
crooked smile and then turned his head to lightly nip her wrist.
She inhaled sharply and he soothed the small hurt with a slow lick
over the tender skin.

“Mmm...You’re all
clean now,” he murmured, dipping his head further and pressing a
kiss to her shoulder.

“Are you sure?”
She breathed out the question, clutching his shoulders.

He licked her
collar bone. “Perhaps I should keep checking?”

“Um...I suppose.
After all, I might have missed a spot.” She dropped her head back
exposing her throat. Her eyes were heavy lidded, her teeth slowly
raking over her lower lip. Reno slid his mouth up the side of her
neck to nuzzle her ear.

Desire pooled in
his belly. Brandi rubbed against him sensuously, caressing his
shoulders, sliding her hands down to the small of his back and then
lower still.

The feel of her
clutching his butt sent shivers up his spine. He pulled her tightly
against his body, nibbling her jaw, before moving to her mouth and
sucking her lower lip.

“Yes...” She
hissed the word and then captured his mouth with hers. Her kiss was
frantic; hot and wet and passionate. She seemed intent on consuming
him as if some inner hunger was driving her onward.

Reno lifted her
and she responded without hesitation, wrapping her legs around his
waist. The tip of his erection brushed her core. He could feel her
heat and slickness. The need to bury himself inside her, to claim
her as his own, grew exponentially and he shuddered trying to hold
back.

Always before,
their coupling had seemed rushed, driven by desire alone, but not
this time. This time he needed to know that there was more between
them than lust. Perhaps it was the sting of her earlier comments
that drove him, for he suddenly had to know they’d see each other
again, that this moment wouldn’t end in yet another fight, another
misunderstanding.

“Brandi, I
want—”

“I want you too.”
She slid her hands through his hair and tried to lower herself onto
his waiting shaft.

He gripped her
hips tightly, holding her in place even as his body screamed his
need to plunge into her waiting warmth. “No, I—”