Cowboy Country (93 page)

His arms circled and tightened around her waist. “You good?”

At her nod, he reached between them and stroked her pleasure point until she gasped. Her hips began to rock and the friction increased. Dear God. This is what her friends had talked about when they said the earth moved with the right man.

He removed his hand from between them and splayed both palms across her belly. The sight of them there made something deep inside break loose. Tiny tingles raced every which way. Up. Down. Sideways.

He thrust up, filling her fully. He rocked his pelvis.

Tingles turned into waves. Crashing, howling winds of a desert sandstorm. Each one followed by another stronger than the last.

“Levi! God!” Her head fell forward, her long hair shrouding her face. She raked her nails across his chest, again and again.

His response was a final thrust upward, so deep she thought she might splinter into a million pieces. His breathing came in harsh pants that matched hers. A guttural, primal cry wrenched out of him as he found his own release.

They lay together, breathing hard.

He reached up and brushed her hair away from her face. “You okay?”

“Yes. Fine. Better than fine.”

“You’re amazing.” He wound his fingers through her hair and tugged her forward until their eyes met.

“I should get up.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Stay here. Forever.”

“If I don’t move I’m going to freeze, and then we will be here eternally. They’ll find us like this in the spring.” Aftershocks tightened her belly and she shivered.

“You’re cold.” His expression turned solicitous. “Let me up to bank the fire.”

She slid off his still semi-erect penis and stood near the dying flames. Slipping on her t-shirt and thong, she lay back on the sofa while he disappeared into what she assumed was a bathroom.

He returned and tossed more wood onto the fire and stepped into his boxers before joining her. The blankets had fallen unnoticed onto the floor and they each grabbed hold of the covers and pulled them up. He gathered her close and brushed a kiss across her forehead. The fire crackled in the silence, but she shivered again.

“You’re still shaking,” he said. “Did I hurt you?”

“You could never hurt me.” She placed her hand over his racing heart. It pounded under her palm. “You’re the kindest man I ever met.”

“If I’m so great, why didn’t you tell me you’d never been with a man before?” He sounded mad.

“Would you have believed me?” she asked quietly. “A virgin showgirl? We’re supposed to be every man’s fantasy come to life. Who would ever buy that I hadn’t been intimate with anyone before?”

“It’s different,” he finally admitted. “But I would have listened.”

“I didn’t want to talk about it beforehand.” She twisted the ends of her hair. “That would have ruined the magic.”

“Magic?” His chest rumbled with laughter. “Girl, I think you’re the one who put a spell on me.”

“I wish we could stay here like this forever.”

“Me too.” He sighed. “But dawn will be breaking soon and we need to get to the ranch before they send out a search party.”

Reality crashed over her like a wet heap of snow. She’d just made love to a man who wasn’t hers to keep.

In the cold morning light, would this be nothing but a memory?

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Pre-dawn woke Levi. He’d always been an early riser, but worrying about Ava had made sleep especially elusive last night. His stomach grumbled, reminding him he hadn’t eaten dinner, and their late-night activities had left him extra ravenous.

Thinking about making love to Ava made his cock twitch.

Right now, he wanted her more than food. He’d love to roll Ava under him and love her senseless, but it was more important to get her to the ranch and safety. Slipping over her, he tucked the blankets around her shoulders. Goosebumps rose on his skin and he shivered. The stash of wood was almost gone. He’d have to come back and replenish it. Maybe Ava would come with him and they could make love all day long.

Why hadn’t she told him she was innocent?

He would have been careful with her, gentler. Made it memorable.

A heavy sigh wrenched out of him. What was done was done. All he could do was move on. When they made love again, he’d do things differently.

When?

This was likely the only time they’d be together. She had a life back in Vegas, and in spite of what she feared it was likely she could pick up her career again. He had a whole slew of rodeos to get to in the New Year.

Settling down and raising kids wasn’t what either of them wanted right now.

Why did the thought of separating make his ribs ache?

He dressed and grabbed his still-damp boots. The leather had half dried, making them hard to pull on and uncomfortable to wear. Damn. One of his best pairs. Oh, well. He had more back home. Or he’d buy another pair down the road.

Thinking of home made his stomach grumble. As much as he didn’t want to disturb Ava’s rest, he touched her shoulder. “Wake up, sleepyhead. Daylight’s wasting.”

She moaned and opened her beautiful, honey-colored eyes. “Hi.”

“Hi, yourself.” He resisted leaning over and kissing her. If he did, they might be here all day, making love. “We better get moving before Mom panics and sends out a search party. I’m thinking a shower and a big breakfast sounds pretty good.”

Her face colored prettily, and when she didn’t jump up, and it occurred to him she was shy to get up in front of him after last night. “I’m going to check outside. See how things look.”

“Okay.”

He went to the back door, glancing over his shoulder.

Ava rose and dressed hurriedly.

Hiding a grin, he pulled back the curtain. The snow had stopped falling, but the clouds were low, dark and gray. More snow would be coming before the day was up. Probably in the next hour or so.

If there was food and if his family had a clue where he was, being snowed in here wouldn’t be all bad. But there wasn’t even a cracker in the cupboards and no one had any idea where he’d disappeared to.

He rejoined Ava, who was tying her shoes. “Ready to go?”

“I guess.”

Taking one of the parkas from the chair near the fire, he handed it to her. “Wear this. Leave my jacket. I’ll pick it up some other time.”

She pulled it on, the hood nearly hiding her face. “I feel like an Eskimo.”

He handed her gloves and a scarf. “These, too.”

After making sure the fire was out and she was bundled up, he took her hand. “Let’s go.”

When they stepped into the bitter pre-dawn air, Ava’s indrawn breath told him she was cold. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Which way do we go?” Her breath was a frosty plume.

He pointed toward the ridgeline barely visible in the snow. “That way is shortest, but I think back the way we came is better. We’ll see if my truck will start. If not, someone is likely to come along and pick us up. Follow me. Try and step in my footsteps. That way you won’t fill your shoes with snow as much.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

With an encouraging smile, he set out.

They reached the edge of the meadow when the snow let loose. Big, heavy flakes surrounded them in a silent shroud.

~*~

Ava’s tennis shoes had dried in front of the fireplace, but it took only moments for them to be soaked through once again. Her toes felt like a bunch of frozen little soldiers: marching, but unfeeling. The rest of her stayed toasty thanks to the knee-length parka Levi insisted she wear.

Keeping up with Levi’s long stride took its toll on her aching body. She hadn’t danced in days, or even stretched properly. Her muscles were out of practice. That wasn’t the reason, she admitted to herself. It had been making love. What she and Levi did last night that made her sore and achy. She longed for a hot bath and a massage.

And to do it again.

Did Levi regret their intimacy? He hadn’t said so, but he hadn’t said he didn’t either. He’d been kind and solicitous, but he always was. His actions hadn’t been any different today. But she sensed him withdrawing from her. He probably thought gifting him with her virginity meant she expected a big diamond ring.

Her emotions felt as raw as her body.

Just what she’d always feared had happened—getting close would only get her hurt.

But she’d do it again. Making love to Levi had been something she’d keep forever—a memory to cherish when they went their separate ways.

“You doing okay back there?” he called over his shoulder.

“Uh-huh.” No sense telling him it felt like her feet might fall off.

The wind howled around them, creating a creepy atmosphere. Were there wolves out there watching them? Hoping for a meal? She longed for the city. Vegas got snow sometimes, but nothing like this.

Overnight, mounds of the white stuff piled up over a foot, and more continued to fall. How did Levi know where to go? To her untrained eye, the world looked like the inside of an upside-down snow globe.

She stumbled over a buried log. She grabbed hold of Levi’s coat and he stopped and turned around. “It’s not much farther. The road’s on the other side of this hill. Can you make it?”

“I have to, don’t I?”

He smiled and she forgot her cold feet. “That’s my girl.”

His girl?

Was he implying something more than a fling, then?

Levi’s girl. Her heart picked up speed. She liked the sound of that. Even if he didn’t mean it.

They topped the ridge and Levi stopped, taking her gloved hand and squeezing it. “Down this hill and my pickup’s just down the road.”

She nodded. “Let’s go.”

He released her hand and angled his way down the steep slope. Ava followed right behind, using trees to keep her upright. Unlike the previous evening, she didn’t slide on her bottom.

He hit the road first and turned to her. “This is Haunted Mesa Road. My pickup is on the main line, just a few hundred yards ahead.”

“Lead off.” This time, she walked beside him, her hand in his.

Ava’s feet felt like two enormous ice cubes and she dragged them along, unable to lift them out of the snow. She didn’t notice the hidden lump until she tripped over it. Even Levi’s tight grip on her hand couldn’t hold her upright and she fell face first.

“Ouch.”

Levi helped her stand. “What happened? You okay?”

She swiped the snow off her coat. “I’m fine. I tripped over something there.”

Together, they turned to look.

Levi tried to block her, but Ava spotted the arm sticking out of the snow the same time he did. She reeled away. “Dear God. Is that what I think it is?”

“Don’t look.”

“Who is it?” Fear gripped her heart.

“I don’t know.” He bent to study the outline. “All I see is part of a sleeve.”

In spite of her alarm, Ava stared at the still form. A pinkish stain showed through the snow. The wind screeched and snow flurries swirled around them. If the biting cold didn’t remind her, she would have believed she were in a nightmare. “What do we do?”

“My cell doesn’t work out here. See if my truck will start and go to town to tell the sheriff.”

“We’re going to just leave him here?”

“I don’t see how we have much choice. The cops’ll want to look for evidence. I don’t want to disturb anything.” He stood and backed away. “And considering how the law in this town feels about the Callahans, I don’t want to implicate me or you in any way.”

Her eyes widened and a snowflake blinded her. Blinking back tears, she said, “Do you really think that’s going to happen?”

“At this point, I don’t know what to believe.”

She hugged her middle. “This just keeps getting worse.”

He moved to her. “Let’s get help.”

~*~

Levi told their story and sat back, waiting for the disbelief he knew was coming.

Sheriff Faraday stared at them. “You’re telling me this Las Vegas mobster chased you? You separated from my deputy and hid in a cabin all night?” She took a deep breath. “And now, this morning, there’s a body lying in the road? Who is it?”

“We didn’t uncover it,” Levi said. “You understand…”

She had the grace to flinch. She spoke into the radio on her shoulder. “Deputy Harlan? You there?”

Nothing but static came over the radio.

“Deputy? Answer me, please.”

A pudgy woman of indeterminate age appeared in her doorway. “Ray says Harlan hasn’t checked in since last night. His last communication was right after he left here.”

The sheriff’s pale skin went whiter. Her freckles stood at attention. “What time?”

The secretary vanished and reappeared in a minute with a clipboard. “At seven-thirty last night.”

“That’s right after we were shot at,” Levi told her.

The sheriff grabbed her coat. “Peggy, get the coroner on the phone. Tell him to meet me at Haunted Mesa Road immediately. Get Ray. I want him to come with me.” She pinned a cold stare on them. “You two stay put.”

Levi met her glare head on. “We need to eat, shower and rest.”

She nodded sharply. “Do not leave this valley.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Levi stood and took Ava’s hand. “We’ll be at the Callahan ranch.”

“As soon as I find out what’s going on, I’m going to want to interview you,” she said. “It will be later today.”

“We’ll be there.” Levi led Ava from the office.

“Do you think the dead man is the deputy?” She shuddered. “And do you think Dario killed him?”

“I’m guessing here, but yeah, I do.”

“He’s got to be stopped.” Ava frowned. “Have you called home yet?”

“No. I’d better do that now.” He took his phone from his pocked and dialed. After a couple of rings, his mother picked up.

“Levi? We’ve been worried sick. Are you okay? Is Ava with you?”

It was good to hear her familiar voice. “We’re fine, Mom. Is Liberty there?”

“She got home late last night. When you didn’t come home, too, we thought the worst.”

“We got shot at—”