RENEGADE GUARDIAN (15 page)

Then the kisses just fueled the fire even more, and they fought to get closer to each other. They succeeded. Her breasts landed against his chest. Her sex against his.

That wasn’t enough, either.

Slade shoved up her top, pulled down her bra and kissed her breasts. Despite the hot haze in his head, he listened for any sound of hesitation, but the only sounds she was making were those little moans of need.

Maya surprised him when she caught onto his shoulders, turned him and reversed their positions. His back landed against the wall, and she yanked up his shirt. Not just up but over his head, and she sent it sailing across the room.

“Yes,” she said, and her warm, damp breath hit against his chest when she kissed him there. Then, lower. She dropped some kisses on his stomach.

Mercy. It was the purest form of torture.

And it wasn’t torture that he’d allow to continue if he wanted this to last long enough to satisfy a few fantasies of his own. Of course, satisfying those with Maya would take more than a time or two.

A truly unsettling thought.

He wasn’t the type for long, messy affairs, and he was certain of two things right now. Maya and he would have sex, and it would make their lives messier than they already were.

That still didn’t stop him.

Nope.

With her wrapped in his arms, Slade scooped her up and went to the bed. He dropped her onto the mattress a little harder than he’d intended, but suddenly speed seemed to matter. Maya went after his clothes as if this had to happen now.

It sure felt as if it did.

Slade went after her clothes, too, and stripped off first her top, then the jeans. Even in the frenzy, their gazes met. And Maya froze.

“My scars,” she said on a rise of breath.

He gave her a few seconds to scramble away and cover herself. Not that it was what he wanted her to do. Nope. He wanted her naked, but he also knew this was the first time she’d been with a man since her attack, and he didn’t want to add to the nightmare she already carried with her.

Her eyes stayed wide.

Her breath frozen.

“They’re just scars,” he reminded her. “And they mean you’re not just alive, you’re a survivor.”

Slade lowered his head and kissed her. Slow and gentle. First her mouth. Then her neck. Her breasts. And the scars.

One by one.

He lingered a bit on the one on her lower stomach, and he kept kissing her there until her breath returned. The soft moans, too, and she slid her fingers into his hair. Not pushing him away.

But urging him closer.

Slade obeyed.

He slid off her panties and moved the kiss even lower to the center of all that heat and need. Within just a few seconds, he could feel her so close to release, and that’s how Slade intended to finish her off.

Maya had other ideas.

With her hand still gripped in his hair, she dragged him back up her body until he was on top of her. Again, she froze for just a split second. Maybe she was having flashbacks. But if so, they quickly disappeared, because she kissed him and maneuvered herself so she could help shove off his boots and jeans.

Before his jeans landed on the floor, Slade fumbled in his pocket so he could locate his wallet. “Condom,” he growled.

Somehow he managed to get the darn thing on. No thanks to Maya.

Again he tried to go with the gentle approach when he entered her. Again he failed. And Slade just gave up and let Maya’s frantic moves set the pace. His own pace soon became frantic, too, and the need for her took over every single thought in his head.

He moved inside her. Faster. Harder. Deeper. Until everything pinpointed to finishing this. The climax hit her, racking her body, but in that moment, with her eyes glazed with passion and her face flush with arousal, her gaze met his.

Slade,
she mouthed.

That was it. All that he needed to send him right over the edge. Slade buried his face against her neck and did something he rarely let himself do.

He surrendered.

Chapter Sixteen

Wow.

Maya had expected for sex with Slade to be amazing, but she hadn’t expected it to be something well beyond that. Nor had she expected for her mind to be so clear. No flashbacks of the attack. Just the dreamy feel of pleasure sliding through her entire body.

“You’re better than years of therapy,” she mumbled.

Slade lifted his head, the corner of his mouth lifting, too, and he eased off her and headed to the bathroom. Instant loss of his body heat and weight. She missed both, and even though the room wasn’t exactly chilly, she definitely felt cold, and climbed under the covers.

The thoughts came.

Of course they did.

She had no experience in handling sex with a man she hardly knew. But she rethought that. Timewise she hardly knew Slade, but it was weird. It was as if she’d known him her entire life. She was too grounded in reality—boy, was she—to believe something this strong could happen this fast, but that didn’t stop the
l
word from going through her mind.

It was probably on Slade’s mind, too.

And not in a good way.

He was no doubt ready to panic right now because he’d be worried that she would see this as some kind of commitment. After all, it’d been years since she’d had sex, and she’d fallen straight into bed with him.

Slade came back into the room, and Maya opened her mouth to tell him that this was a no-commitment kind of sex, but her jaw dropped when she saw him naked. Her mouth went dry. And just like that, she was ready for sex again.

Whatever was better than drop-dead hot, Slade was it.

“This means nothing,” she blurted out. Which wasn’t at all the way she wanted to word that. “The sex, I mean.” His aroused body certainly seemed to mean
something.

He climbed under the covers with her, pulled her close. “I’m guessing that’s your way of giving me an out.”

Slade had a way of cutting right to the bottom line, and Maya nodded.

“You want me to give you an out, too?” he asked.

She blinked. Clearly, it was going to be impossible to hide her feelings and insecurities. “I’m not sure.”

“Then why don’t we let this just be about sex. The next time can be about something else.”

Maya didn’t think. She just opened her mouth and the words sort of flew out. “There’ll be a next time?”

He lifted his head. Gave her a flat look. “What do you think?”

“I think there’ll be a next time.”

Slade made a sound of agreement and kissed the top of her head.

Even though they could both use a nap, Maya couldn’t make her mind rest. The thoughts just kept flying through her head. The worries, too. Slade really didn’t know what he was getting into with her and his promises of “
next time
.”

“The condom wasn’t necessary.” More blurting out. “I can’t get pregnant, and it’s been ages since I’ve had sex. I figure you’re tested for anything we could have passed on to each other.”

“Tested, yeah. But I’ve never had sex without a condom, so there’s nothing to pass on.”

“Never?”

He looked at her again. “Fatherhood scared the hell out of me. I even used a condom with Deidre, but I guess something went wrong.” He pulled her back into his arms. “I’m sorry you can’t get pregnant.”

She almost dismissed it, but it wouldn’t do any good. Slade knew when she was lying. “It still hurts. Having Evan helps a lot, though.” She winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that to sound as if I’m asking you to back off. If he’s your son...”

What?

It was too painful for Maya to think of losing her baby.

“If he’s mine,” Slade said, “we’ll work it out.”

She was about to press, to ask him exactly what he meant by that, but his phone rang. Slade cursed, rolled away from her and without leaving the bed, he located it.

“It’s Clayton,” he said, glancing at the screen.

Maya groaned. She’d yet to get a call with good news from his brothers, so she braced herself for another nightmare to start. She got up and started gathering her clothes.

“Is Lenora okay?” Slade asked.

That stopped Maya in her tracks, and even though she was naked, she turned back around to face him. If it was bad news, it sure didn’t show on Slade’s face.

“Call me when you can.” Slade hung up, and the corner of his mouth lifted. “Lenora’s water broke. Clayton’s taking her to the hospital now.”

It took a moment for it to sink in that this wasn’t just good news, it was wonderful. A baby was about to be born.

“I’ll go downstairs and see if anything needs to be done.” Slade started dressing. “Clayton was working on certain parts of the investigation, and I can finish that up for him.”

“I can help, too.”

Slade shook his head. “Help by getting some rest.”

Rest was no doubt impossible anyway, and she was about to tell him that when his phone rang again. Maya glanced at the clock. It’d been less than a minute since Clayton’s call, and she prayed nothing had gone wrong on the drive to the hospital. She dressed even faster than she’d planned in case Slade had to leave.

“Hell,” Slade said when he glanced at the phone screen. “Blocked number.” He pushed the button to answer and put it on speaker.

“Marshal Becker?” the caller said.

With just those two words, Maya’s heart slammed against her chest. Because it was a voice she recognized. It was the masked kidnapper who’d gotten away.

Slade grabbed a notepad from the nightstand and scribbled something for her to read: “Call Declan.” He tipped his head to the house phone and wrote down Declan’s number.

Maya didn’t waste any time doing that, but as she dialed the number, she hurried to the other side of the room so the kidnapper wouldn’t hear what she was doing.

“The kidnapper’s on the phone with Slade,” she whispered to Declan.

“I’ll be right there,” Declan assured her, and Maya quickly finished getting dressed, then ran to open the door.

“You listening, Marshal?” the kidnapper asked.

“Yeah. What do you want?”

“Well, for one thing I’d like to get rid of this other kid. You up for another ransom payment?”

Oh, God. Not another one.

Slade’s jaw turned to iron. “That didn’t work out so well last time. A woman’s dead.”

“Not by my hand.”

“Then whose?”

“Not really sure, but I’m in this for the money only. Let me make this easy for you. I did some checking, and Maya and you have got some money. Your brothers, too. I’m thinking with just a phone call to the bank, you can have a quarter of a million within the next hour. And that’s exactly how long I’m giving you to get out here with the cash.”

With his gun drawn and his breath gusting, Declan came rushing into the room and no doubt heard that last part. He spared Slade a glance, slapped off the light switch and hurried to the window.

“We got a problem,” Declan mumbled.

Yes, and the problem was on the phone with Slade. But something else had gotten Declan’s attention.

Slade looked at his brother, cursed and returned to his call. “Where the hell are you?” he demanded.

“Oh, didn’t I mention that? I’m at the ranch. Not the abandoned one. Your family’s ranch. I’ll call you with further instructions.” And he hung up.

* * *

“E
VAN
,” M
AYA
SAID
.
She would have raced out of the room if Slade hadn’t caught onto her.

“Wait here, just a minute or two.” Slade shoved his phone into his pocket and grabbed his holster and gun. “Where is this SOB?” He hurried to the window next to Declan and looked out.

“On the way up the stairs, I got a call from Cutter. He said someone broke through the back fence on the west side of the property. It tripped a security sensor, and he’s headed back there now to check it out.”

Hell. He didn’t want Cutter, their head ranch hand, getting shot, and that’s exactly what would happen if he hurried out there. “Call Cutter. Tell him to come back to the house so we can regroup.”

Slade tried to give Maya a reassuring look, but he was certain he failed. She’d heard every word of his conversation with the kidnapper and knew what they were about to face. The trick was to face it while keeping everyone safe.

Slade looked down at the flurry of activity that was going on around the ranch. There was an ambulance and a car he didn’t recognize. The sheriff’s truck was there, too.

And he heard the footsteps on the stairs.

A moment later, Stella appeared in the doorway, and she had Evan in her arms. Maya ran to her and took the baby.

“I didn’t know where I should go,” Stella said. “Cutter called and said for us to all stay away from the windows, that we might have an intruder.”

“We do.” Slade wished he could temper that with a maybe, but the call from the kidnapper had come just at the time of the security alarm. He figured that wasn’t a coincidence.

“So we need to get ready for the worst,” Stella mumbled. “What should I tell the others? Dr. Landry’s here. She came in an ambulance in case they had to take the baby to the hospital in a hurry. And the baby’s adoptive parents just arrived, too.”

Slade didn’t want to have to deal with anyone other than the kidnapper, but it might not be safe for his family or the others to be on the grounds. “Tell everyone to stay put and away from the windows. Turn off all the lights, too.”

Stella gave a shaky nod and headed back out of the room. Maya hugged Evan and climbed on the bed with him. The baby was sleeping, thank goodness, and maybe he’d stay that way. While he was hoping, he added that maybe this would all turn out to be a hoax.

“Cutter’s on the way back,” Declan relayed the moment he finished his call. “Should I call the bank and ask them to bring out money ASAP?”

“Yeah.” Slade didn’t even have to think about that. This guy wanted cash, and Slade wasn’t about to risk a baby’s life for money.

If there was a baby.

Unlike last time, Slade had no photo. When the kidnapper called back, he would demand proof before he met this moron face-to-face.

His phone rang, and Slade expected to see the blocked number, but this time it was a familiar one. Randall.

“I just got a call from the kidnapper,” Randall said the moment Slade answered. “I thought you marshals had arrested him by now.”

“He got away. Why’d he call you?” Though Slade could certainly guess.

“Same as before. He wants money, and he’s giving me an hour to get it. I’m trying to find Gina, and I don’t have time for another game of ransom and rescue.”

Slade hated this weasel’s attitude, but Slade was just as sick of these dangerous antics as Randall. “Did he tell you who this child is?”

“Didn’t tell me anything other than to show up at your place with more money.”

“Do it,” Slade ordered. “Get out here as fast as you can. Not inside the house. Wait in the driveway.” There were already too many people to keep track of, and he didn’t want one of their suspects in the house.

And speaking of suspects, Slade ended the call with Randall and phoned the Colliers.

Chase answered on the first ring. “I can’t talk now, Marshal.”

“Yeah, I know. You got another ransom demand. I got one, too.”

“Well, pay it. This has to be Will. He’s the only other missing baby.”

The only missing baby they knew of. There could be others, but Slade wasn’t about to dash Chase’s hopes. Well, if that was indeed hope. It was still possible that all of this had been a ruse to get Nadine arrested, and if Chase was behind it, he was also racking up a tidy sum of money.

Of course, the same could be said of Nadine.

“Where’s your wife?” Slade asked.

“On the way to the bank to get the money. She was already in town at the hospital getting checked out. Not that was she hurt, but she insisted. So I called the bank manager and authorized her to draw a half million from my account.”

“You trust her to do that?”

“I had no choice.” Chase cursed, and they were pretty strong words. “I needed to arrange some security. After what happened to Andrea, I’m not taking any chances, and I want a bodyguard with me.”

Slade hated to mention the obvious, but... “What if Nadine runs with the money?”

“Then I’ll have the pleasure of having her butt arrested, and then I can negotiate a deal with the kidnapper.”

Maybe not an easy thing to do, but Slade didn’t get a chance to voice that. He got another call, and he saw the blocked number on the screen again.

“Gotta go,” he told Chase, and he switched over to the other call. The first thing he heard was a baby crying. Since he’d put the call on speaker, Maya heard it, too, and she sucked in her breath.

“I want a photo,” Slade insisted. “Because as far as I know, that could be a recording.”

“No recording,” the man snarled. “This is the real deal. He’s crying his head off, is probably hungry and doesn’t like being with me very much.”

Slade wished he could reach through the phone and beat some sense into this man, but he held on to his temper. “A photo,” he repeated.

“Yeah, yeah. Hold on to your shorts a sec.” There were some clicking sounds. “Not his best angle probably, but you can see that it’s a living, breathing kid. For now.”

Slade clenched his phone so hard that he was surprised it didn’t crush in his hand, and he watched the photo load. Definitely a baby in a carrier next to a ski-mask-wearing man. This baby was also wrapped in a thick blanket and had a cap on his head.

“Satisfied?” the man asked over the baby’s cries, but he didn’t wait for Slade to answer. “Here’s how it’ll work this time. Just as soon as the others get there with the money, you and Maya come out to the back west pasture. On horseback. Don’t bring the others, just the money.”

Slade was shaking his head before the guy finished. “No. I don’t want Maya out there. Not after what happened to Andrea.”

“As I said, that wasn’t me. And it’ll be different this time. Less people around. You two will drop off the money, and I’ll hand you the kid. Of course, the rule is you gotta come alone. That means no brothers within sniper distance. Because I got a sniper or two of my own, and you wouldn’t want the brat caught in the cross fire, would you?”