Jake avoided going back inside until dark. He fed the stock, put some snow in a pail and melted it for the animals to drink. At noon, he tacked up Brandywine, sheathed his rifle and rode a one-mile perimeter around the cabin, hoping to spot a spent casing or some tracks or some other clue that might tell him who’d been taking shots at them. Later, he spent a couple of hours hauling dry firewood into the cabin. He even built a small bonfire on the off chance the RMSAR chopper was out looking for them. He knew it was futile; for the second day in a row, the winds were kicking in from the north and the Bell 412 was likely grounded.
But even something as futile as building a bonfire was better than going back inside. Spending time with Abby was making him crazy, filling his head with thoughts he had absolutely no right to be thinking.
But Jake knew he was going to have to go inside at some point and face her. He couldn’t avoid it much longer. It was barely above zero outside. His hands and feet were numb. His face tingled from the cold. He had to go inside. He needed to eat. He needed to rest, so he could keep watch tonight.
Hell, he was going to have to spend the night with her.
Jake didn’t want to think about her any more. He didn’t want to want her, didn’t want to know anything more about her. He didn’t want to know what she’d been through or how it had affected her. All he wanted was to get this job over with so he could go back to his life where things were black and white.
But for the first time in his life things weren’t quite so black and white and he was scared to death that doing the right thing included helping an escaped con.
The cabin was dim when he finally pushed open the door and stepped inside. The only light came from the low, burning fire in the hearth. The tang of smoke hung in the air. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust. On the floor a few feet in front of the fire, Abby lay on her side, wrapped in her sleeping bag, asleep. She looked fragile and innocent and incredibly sexy lying there with that mane of hair spread out under her like coils of silk.
The sight of her stopped Jake dead in his tracks.
Stomping the snow from his boots, he tore his eyes from her. He went to the small table in the kitchen, picked up the kettle and filled it with snow. When he took it to the fire, she was sitting up, watching him, her face soft from sleep.
“Thirsty?” he asked.
“Yeah.” She rubbed the back of her neck and looked out the window. “I can’t believe I slept the day away.”
“That’s the hypothermia. The cold will zap you.” He walked over to the window facing the ridge and pulled the frayed curtains closed.
“Do you think he’s still out there?” she asked.
“I don’t know.” He looked at her and felt the now familiar tightening sensation in his gut. “Probably.”
Scowling, Jake walked over to his saddlebag. “I’ve got two more meals. Do you want to eat now, or in the morning?”
“Do you have anything left to snack on tomorrow?”
“Not much. A couple of protein bars.”
“Let’s eat now.” Rising, the sleeping bag wrapped around her, she walked over to the fireplace and lifted her jumpsuit from the back of the chair. “I mean, if you don’t mind. I’m starving.”
“No problem.”
“I need to get dressed.”
Hell. “Ah…okay.”
“Would you mind turning around for a second?”
“Sure.”
Because her back was already to him, Jake hesitated a moment and watched her. The lady definitely had a nice back. And he knew even after this was over, he’d be thinking about that slender back for a long, long time to come.
Turning away, he busied himself with their last two meals while Abby dressed. In short order, they were sitting cross-legged in front of the fire with their meals on their laps. They ate in silence for several minutes. Sipping water from the cup between them and savoring their last two meals. Jake had just begun to relax and believed he was going to get through this when she started in with the questions.
“So, how long have you been in law enforcement?”
“Twelve years.”
“You like it?”
He frowned at her, hoping she’d get the message and cut it out. She gazed back at him, unfazed. “It’s a living,” he said.
She forked a piece of broccoli. “You’re also with a search and rescue team?”
“Rocky Mountain Search and Rescue.” He wondered if she was merely curious or if she was going somewhere with all the questions. “Don’t ask me if I like it.”
“That was my next question.”
“Eat your dinner.”
“Hey, I’m just trying to make conversation.”
Silence fell between them again when she reached over and used a small container of salt. “You ever been married?” she asked.
He shot her another dark look. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I never met anyone I wanted to marry.”
“No need to get testy.”
“Yeah, well, no offense, but I’m not real big on conversation.”
“Now there’s a surprise.” She forked a carrot, then chewed it thoughtfully. “You believe I’m innocent, don’t you, Jake?”
“What makes you think that?”
She shrugged. “I can tell.”
He tried to concentrate on his meal, but the chicken and vegetables had lost their taste. “This is your last meal until we get back, Blondie. I suggest you eat it while it’s hot, try to enjoy it, and stop talking so damn much.”
“You want to let me go, but you can’t because it goes against your grain, doesn’t it?”
He continued eating, avoiding her gaze. “I’m not going to have this conversation with you.”
“Really?” she asked sharply.
“Really.”
“You want to know what I think, Jake?”
“Not particularly.” Sighing, he set down his fork and glared at her. “But I reckon you’re going to tell me anyway, aren’t you?”
“I think you can’t trust me because someone hurt you. My guess is it was a woman. Am I close?”
Jake nearly choked on a piece of carrot. Clearing his throat with a sip of water, he set his plate down and shook his head. “Look, Abby, I really don’t want to talk about this.”
“Am I right?”
“No.”
“Who was she?”
“Nobody.”
“I think she would have had to be someone, Jake. I mean, you’re not the kind of man who would…get involved with just anyone.”
“I’m the kind of man who likes to keep my private life private.”
“Since we’re stuck here together for the next few hours, I thought we could use this time to get to know each other.”
“I know all I want to know about you.”
“That may be so, but I’m curious about you.”
“I’m boring, believe me. You don’t want to know.”
“You’re closed.”
“Closed? Well, hell, maybe you could take a hint.”
“You’re dying to know what I mean by ‘closed’ aren’t you?”
He scowled at her. “Not in the least.”
“It means you don’t invite people into your life. You don’t let them get inside your head, so you don’t have to care about them. It means you’re not comfortable talking about yourself. You don’t like people to know what you’re thinking or feeling—”
“And people with hard heads like you just keep digging, don’t they?”
Undeterred, she continued. “I mean, look at you. I ask you one little question and you go into a panic.”
“Now that’s a hoot.”
“You’re touchy about it, too.”
Determined to ignore her, he forced a laugh and resumed eating. “I suppose you moonlight as a shrink in your spare time.”
“What did she do to you?”
“What did who do to me?”
“The woman who hurt you.”
“Oh, for crying out loud!” Rising abruptly, he took the empty container to the trash bin in the kitchen area. Abby hadn’t finished with hers, so she remained by the fire. But Jake could feel her eyes on him, like sunlight coming through a magnifying glass, burning him. Damn, the woman knew how to drive a man nuts.
He went back to the fire, and sat cross-legged on his sleeping bag. Maybe if he turned the tables, she’d stop with the questions.
He shot her a hard look. “While we’re playing Twenty Questions, why don’t you tell me how you broke out of Buena Vista?”
She looked up from her food and considered him. “Are you asking as a cop, or are you merely curious?”
“I’m asking because I have absolutely no intention of talking to you about my personal life. How’s that?”
She took a sip of water, trying to look casual, but Jake could tell the conversation they were about to have was anything but casual for her. “After that night in the shower room, and I figured out that someone didn’t want me talking to the wrong person, I realized I wasn’t going to survive unless I got out. I knew someone would eventually catch me off guard. That I’d get a knife in my back or have an accident.”
“The D.O.C. guys said you had a gun.”
“It wasn’t a gun…exactly.”
“What exactly does that mean?”
She bit her lip. “Can I tell you this in confidence?”
“I’m a cop, Abby. I can’t—”
“You can, Jake. It’s just you and me here. We’re stuck together. When this is over, you’re going to go back to your cop life. I’m going to go back to prison for a crime I didn’t commit.”
He sighed, not liking the way she’d put that. “Okay. Off the record.”
“I called…a friend. I told her what was happening. I didn’t want to involve her, but I was scared and desperate and we finally…came up with a plan over the phone.”
“What was the plan?”
“She came to visit me.”
“How did you get the gun?”
“She smuggled it into the prison in her—”
“Whoa!” Jake threw up his hands. “Stop right there.”
“—panty hose.”
A relieved breath slid between his lips.
“And it wasn’t a gun.” He must have looked at her blankly, because she explained. “It was a squirt gun.”
“A squirt gun?”
She nodded. “I’ve never used a gun, so I probably couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. And then there’s that nifty metal detector at the prison entrance.”
“You mean to tell me you broke out of Buena Vista Corrections Center for Women with a squirt gun?”
“Turns out I didn’t need it.” She bit her lip. “I know it sounds crazy.”
“That appears to be the theme we’ve been keeping.”
“Evidently.”
“How did you plan to clear your name?” he asked after a moment.
She slanted him a look, her eyes cool. “Are you asking as a cop, Jake?”
He stared back, realized he was—and that he would use it against her if he had to. He hoped it never came to that. Her status as an escaped con aside, he’d grown to like Abby Nichols. Hell, he’d even developed a strange sort of respect for her. “Maybe I am.”
“In that case, I’ll take the fifth.” Turning away from him, she walked over to the duster hanging near the mantel and pulled it down. “Nice and dry,” she said to no one in particularly.
The duster made him think of that morning. She’d been wearing it when she’d left the cabin. When he’d tackled her off that horse and come down on top of her. He stared at her, willing himself not to remember the way she’d felt beneath him. The smell of her hair. The way her body had conformed to his. She’d fought surprisingly well for such a small woman. And when that hadn’t worked, she’d kissed him, and Jake had lost his mind and kissed her back.
Hell.
He looked down at his hands, realizing he couldn’t let what happened between them pass without comment. This situation, his relationship with this woman, was getting more complicated by the minute. If he wasn’t careful, he could find himself in serious trouble—if he wasn’t already. If she got back to the prison and yelled foul—or God forbid, accused him of sexual contact—Jake could very well find his career down the tubes.
“There’s something we need to talk about,” he said gruffly.
She didn’t even bother to look at him as she folded her sleeping bag and spread it on the floor. “Oh, yeah? What’s that?”
“Well, we need to discuss what happened today.”
“A lot of things happened today, Jake.” She sat on the sleeping bag, pulled the duster around her shoulders and shot him a challenging look. “Do you think you could be a little more specific?”
“I guess you’re not going to make this easy on me, are you?”
“I guess not.”
Jake scowled. “The…kiss, damn it.”
“Oh. That.” She busied herself smoothing the duster over her. “It was no big deal.”
The offhand way she’d said the words shouldn’t have ruffled him, but it did. He didn’t want to admit it, but that kiss had definitely been a big deal. Considering he was an officer of the law and she was an escaped convict in his charge, Jake figured the entire fiasco was pretty damn monumental.
“Don’t pull that again, Abby.”
“Me?”
“Yeah, you.”
“If I’m not mistaken, it takes two people to engage in a kiss.”
He would have argued the point if she hadn’t been right. But she was. He’d kissed her back, and he hated himself for it. True, she might have initiated it, but he should have shown a little restraint and stopped it. Why was it so hard to do the right thing when it came to this woman?
“It was…improper. I’m a cop. I shouldn’t have…done that.”
“Worried I might tell someone, Jake? Get you into trouble?”
That was only part of the problem. The simple part. The other part wasn’t so cut-and-dried. “I’m not going to let you jerk my chain,” he growled.
“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”
This was not playing out the way he’d planned. In fact, nothing was working out the way he planned when it came to this woman.
He stared at her for a long while. She stared back, her expression challenging and, perhaps, a little hurt. He wasn’t sure why, but he was having a difficult time reading her. That was unusual for Jake; knowing what people were thinking and feeling was second nature to him. That was what made him such a good cop. Why couldn’t he read Abby? Why the hell was he having such a hard time doing the right thing?
“I know a lawyer,” he said, after a moment. “He’s top notch. Criminal law. I could ask him to look into your case.”
A kaleidoscope of emotions scrolled across her features. Shock. Disbelief. Gratitude. Jake didn’t want to see any of them, didn’t want to know what she was feeling. He knew that kind of insight would take him one step closer to knowing her. He did not want to get any closer to Abby Nichols.
“I’m going outside to keep watch.” Abruptly, he plucked his duster from the floor and started toward the door. He heard her say something to him, but he didn’t stop. She was too close, and he was feeling the proximity like heat from a stove. He’d stay outside until she was asleep. At least then he wouldn’t have to look into the violet depths of her eyes and think about everything she’d been through. At least then he wouldn’t be tempted to make another mistake.
At least, he wouldn’t be tempted to believe her.
* * *
Abby wasn’t sure what woke her. One minute she was sleeping soundly in her sleeping bag a few feet from the fire. The next she was sitting bolt upright, listening…for what?
The embers in the fire hissed quietly. A few feet away Jake was huddled in his sleeping bag, his breathing regular and slow. Around her, the cabin was pitch-black and freezing cold. She shivered, not sure if it was from the cold or the uneasiness slinking through her. Rising, she moved closer to the fire and stuck out her hands to warm them.
If Jake hadn’t caught up with her this morning, she could very well have been in New Mexico right now, sitting in Grams’s kitchen where she would feel safe and warm and loved.
As the rising heat warmed her fingers, she listened to the wind tearing around the cabin outside. She didn’t relish the idea of venturing out in the cold, but wondered if she should just make a run for it—even in her weakened condition. She knew the hypothermia she’d suffered from earlier was the only reason Jake hadn’t handcuffed her to the chair.
Biting her lip, she looked over at him, felt that odd sensation of freefalling she got every time she looked at him. Even in sleep his expression was…uncompromising. She could see his face against the firelight. The lean slant of his jaw. The thick slash of brow. Lips that were far too sensuous for a male.
Images from the kiss they’d shared earlier in the day assailed her. She closed her eyes against the heady rush of pleasure. She knew the kiss had been a mistake, but for a moment, as he’d held her in his arms and made love to her mouth with his, she’d felt cherished. As though she was beautiful and desirable and the threat of spending her life behind bars wasn’t hanging over her head like a dark cloud.
Abruptly she turned away. What was she thinking? Just because she’d liked the way he’d kissed her didn’t mean she was going to go off the deep end, did it? Abby was off men for good, thank you very much. The only reason she’d kissed him anyway was to distract him. To see if she could get to him. Men were the most predictable creatures on God’s earth, and by-the-book Jake Madigan wasn’t any different. If and when the time came, Abby knew she could use that weakness against him.
Even if it meant selling her soul.
She wanted to believe he’d meant what he’d said about helping her with a lawyer once they got back. She wanted to trust him. She wanted to believe him. God, how stupid did that make her? She’d once believed Jonathan Reed, too. She’d believed his promises, trusted him. She’d covered for him and lied to the police in the process—a mistake that had ended up costing her her freedom. When it came time for him to deliver on those promises, Reed’d cut her loose.
Abby knew Jake wasn’t any different. He might make promises now, while he was with her, while he was attracted to her. But after they got back, when the lust cooled and she was sitting alone in her cold cell and Jake Madigan was a hundred miles away, he wasn’t going to be thinking about her. He wasn’t going to go out on a limb.
If she had a lick of sense, she’d muster the strength somehow and take off right now.
She was seriously considering doing just that when a sound at the door drew her attention, freezing her in place. The wind? she wondered. Had Jake left the door open? Not likely with a mad sniper on the loose. The thought made the hairs on her nape stand on end.
The door hinge creaked. Sensing danger, Abby stepped back. Adrenaline stabbed her gut. Someone was out there. Someone was coming in.
“Jake!” she shouted.
An instant later the door burst open and swung wide. A dark shadow loomed toward her.
Abby screamed.
“Shut up, bitch!”
She heard a whoosh! then something hard struck her temple. Pain streaked down the side of her face. Pinpoints of light flashed, long yellow tails flaring like shooting stars. She reeled backward, realizing the son of a bitch had hit her.
“Bastard!” she heard herself say. “Nobody hits me and—”
The blast of a gun cut her words short. My God, she thought dully, he’s going to kill me.
“Get down!” Jake’s voice cut through her shock. Strong arms wrapped around her and flung her to the floor. Abby screamed as she went down, but knew Jake was only protecting her. Risking his own life to keep her safe….
Another blast rocked the air. She couldn’t see in the darkness, couldn’t hear for the thundering of her heart. She felt Jake leave her. Heard the thud of his boots on the plank floor. She saw a shadow against the window. A dark blur moving fast. But she couldn’t tell if it was Jake or the intruder.
She scrambled to her hands and knees, looked around blindly. Where was the rifle? Where had Jake put it? She heard the shuffle of footsteps across the room. Jake’s curse burning through the air. Another gunshot exploded. Her ears rang with the blast. Her heart pounded like a freight train in her ears, pumping fear through every inch of her body.
Abruptly, everything went silent. Abby crouched, deaf and blind, fear slithering like a cold snake inside her.
“Hey.”
Rough hands gripped her. She tried to twist away, but the hands held her firm, lifted her to her feet.
“Abby. Easy, it’s me. Jake.”
“Oh, Jake. He was going to—”
“Are you hurt?
“Where is he? Oh, God, where—”
“Shh. Easy. Just…take it easy.”
“Is he…”
“He’s gone.” His hands swept down her arms, back up to her shoulders. Abby noticed he was shaking and knew she wasn’t the only one who was scared half to death.
“Are you hurt?” he asked.
“I’m okay.”
He hesitated as if he didn’t quite believe her, then squeezed her arms reassuringly. “You sure you’re okay?”
“I’m f-fine. What about you?”
“I’m ticked off.”
“A little too close for comfort, huh?”
“Something like that.” Still gripping her shoulders, he turned his head toward the door. It was standing wide open, snow and cold air swirling into the cabin. “Stay here. I’m going after him.”
Because she couldn’t speak, she nodded.
His gaze bored into hers. “We both know you’re in no condition to run away, don’t we, Abby?”
“Yes,” she whispered, and Jake Madigan disappeared into the night like a phantom.