The shock of hearing what the bomb might mean had been enough to get Piper into his truck without any more questions. But as they drove toward his ranch, the nervous, uncertain edge that had settled over her filled the cab with a heavy, ominous silence.
Alex wondered if all the discrepancies from the lies he'd had to tell were piling up. Piper could be foolishly impulsive, but she wasn't stupid. If she were catching on, then he was only a few lies short of the illusion concealing the investigation collapsing into a useless pile. When it did, the marginal trust she had for him would disappear with it.
That wasn't a problem, he told himself firmly, but having her trust kept things running more smoothly. Definitely an advantage.
As he turned off the road onto his driveway, Alex debated what his next move should be. Should he let things ride or tell her a few half truths to buy some time?
With Piper, he could never predict what was coming next. He was more inclined to leave things alone and deal with problems only if they came up.
As the house came into view, she drew in a sharp breath and her body tensed. "Oh, no. I completely forgot. You have to turn around."
"Sorry. Disappearing involves leaving quickly and without a trace."
"I, um, put some plans into motion the other day. I'm not sure you're going to like them."
"We're not going back." He peered at his house still several yards away. Something about it looked different. It looked....
"Piper, what have you done?" he growled, clenching his teeth.
"I was only trying to help," she answered quickly.
Anger rolled through him like a thunder storm as he pulled around the drive and stopped. The house...his house...had been vandalized! "Someone's painted, fixed the porch, and planted flowers. Are those lace curtains at the windows?"
She winced. "Sometimes Pat gets carried away. She likes lace."
Alex gripped the steering wheel instead of her neck and glared at the house. "What. Have. You. Done!"
"I did it for you," she said, hastily getting her door open. "And your daughter. With the place livable, they have to let you see her."
He looked at Piper, fury grabbing his astonishment and beating it to a pulp. "My... Fu.... God...d...argh!" he sputtered, his rage nearly choking him.
She jumped out of the car and darted behind the open door. "Now calm down, Alex, before flames shoot out of your eyes."
He struggled to find his center and get himself under control. He'd been trained to survive in the wilderness with nothing but a pocket knife; to withstand torture, drugging...but this? This woman exasperated him to a level no man could withstand and keep his sanity.
"Do you ever know what you're talking about?" he finally blurted out, barely containing his raging emotions. "What the hell else did you change?"
"Pat had orders not to touch her room, okay?"
"This is not your business."
"Just give it a chance," she insisted. "You might like it."
"Forget it." He stormed out of the car and up onto the porch.
The polished brass of the new doorknob taunted him as he reached for it. He'd planned to get to that in a week or so, damn it. He had the new hardware in the barn.
Alex slammed open the door and a shiny, brand new room sparkled back at him. His widescreen was still mounted in the same place at least, but three of his walls had been re-plastered and painted gray.
The fourth was now covered with a light wood paneling. A dark gray leather sofa with recliners at both ends sat against that wall, framed by new end tables. The windows behind it displayed the obnoxious, white lace curtains.
A large black coffee mug sat on a coaster on the end table nearest the kitchen. The keys to the new locks sat on the other.
What he could see of the kitchen included new counters and cabinets, a genuine white tile back splash, a brushed metal stove and the ice-cream parlor table and chairs from Piper's house.
A string of profanity burst out of him in a frustrated growl as he stomped past the built-in bookshelves and down the hall to his bedroom.
New furniture, paint and more damn curtains taunted him. His jeans hung neatly in the freshly organized closet, and his T-shirts were folded and stacked in the bottom drawer of the new dresser.
All that he could've probably ignored if his collection of original movie posters weren't framed and displayed along the wall above the bed. Even with Alien and StarWars taking center stage in the arrangement, his temper kicked back into high gear.
Someone had touched his stuff. He hated for people to touch his stuff.
Alex grabbed the clothes he needed and stormed out of the house. Didn't that blasted woman realize that not everyone wanted their personal lives messed with?
"This is not over," he snarled at Piper as he passed the truck. "Get the smaller pack and get into the house. I want you dressed in the jeans and boots I told you to pack. Be ready to go in ten minutes."
His anger eased off marginally when she snapped to it without giving him lip, but he still wanted to break something. Instead, he took his gun out from under the driver's seat and stormed off to the barn.
Closing the door behind him, he pulled in the honest, earthy scent of old wood, hay and animals and tried to get himself under control. He was going to get the house fixed up, right after he finished with the roof of the barn.
He didn't need anyone to step in and fix things for him. He was damn freaking capable of managing his own life.
His raging thoughts stuttered to a stop as he realized what he was acting like—a two-year old who'd been told he couldn't pick out his own clothes or make his own dinner.
Alex wiped a hand over his face as if to erase the primal emotions that had surged through him. Since when had Piper gotten so thoroughly under his skin? Was Trish right? Was he starting to really care about her?
Images flashed through his mind; the way her cute laugh made him smile, the sultry green of her eyes when pleasure overwhelmed her, how she'd ordered Nipper around like a drill sergeant, even her ridiculous obsession with shoes all plowed into him like a freight train. Alex pressed his hand to his stomach and stumbled against the gate of the stall behind him.
He could not be falling for this girl. They were completely wrong for each other. She'd grown up going to private schools and vacationing in luxury resorts around the world. He knew a dozen ways to break into a building and twice as many methods for killing someone.
She was full of hope and life; innocently convinced that people were basically good and the world was a big adventure waiting for her to find it. He was weary of trying to stop the tidal wave of evil that kept coming, yet driven by the need for justice to keep at it...maybe until it killed him.
His career and its necessary secrets would taint anyone it touched. Worse, it would put them in danger.
A sharp stab of alarm sliced into his gut at the thought, surprising him. God, it was true.
Pushing away from the gate, Alex trudged down the center aisle of the barn and into the last stall. He stared at the straw-covered floor, an unsettling regret tightening across his shoulders.
Piper was right, the house was perfect. Now his sister-in-law would let his niece come for the summer. He could get to know her, maybe fill some of the empty grief left inside both of them when his brother died.
The last barrier to reaching out to the only family he had was gone. Piper had seen to that. Inadvertently, while she was at it, she'd taken a notch out of the wall around his heart.
And it didn't make any difference.
He'd dicked around over fixing up the house, for the same reason he'd let his guard down with Piper. He hadn't wanted to face that truth. He didn't want to admit that he could never let himself be that close to anyone. Even though he ached to be.
His path was set, decided years ago before he understood anything about life or the sacrifices you made for it.
A cold knot settled in the center of his chest. Caring for someone, whether family or lover was impossible. He had a job to do. A country to protect.
Once this case was settled, he'd let his sister-in-law know that the visit he'd pushed for couldn't happen. He'd make up some excuse about business overseas, sell the ranch and horses and be done with his idiotic fantasy of putting down roots. He'd hate to give the dogs up, but if he knew they were in a good home, he'd deal. Maybe Tanesa would take them permanently.
Alex swept aside the layer of straw on the floor, revealing the thick metal trap door with its high-tech lock. He pressed his thumb to the scanner, then punched in the code to disengage the elaborate security measures of the safe box.
While the top of the alloy steel vault rose with slow deliberation, he stripped out of his sweats. When the hydraulic system locked in place, he tossed the clothes to the bottom of the small vault and then squatted down to lift his Sig and holster from one of the hooks at the front.
From the left shelf, he took the ammunition he'd need plus a few more clips for the Glock. He hoped he wouldn't need either of them, but it was best to be prepared.
Placing the guns and ammo beside him, he touched a recessed button and a drawer slid out at the back. He tossed his wallet into it and selected another. Leaving his microchipped driver's license behind made a retrieval team's job harder, but standard procedure demanded it. Department 23 wasn't the only group that had the technology to trace the chip.
When Alex was satisfied he had everything he needed, he pressed his thumb against the inside scanner. The passport drawer closed and locked and a smooth, false wall slid down over the shelves and guns as the top slowly closed.
While the security system re-engaged, he gathered up the weapons and scattered the straw back into place. Dressing quickly, he headed out.
He was going to have to watch himself more carefully with Piper. Softening up meant secrets could slip. Some of his secrets would only turn her world upside down. Others could lead to something much worse.
At the same time, he couldn't let her know that anything had changed between them. They'd slept together and enjoyed it. She'd have every reason to expect he'd want more. Why not? A run-of-the-mill bodyguard and semi-amateur PI would.
Only Alex didn't think he could safely navigate those waters, anymore. Emotions did that. They compromised you.
It was just a matter of staying focused and centered, he told himself, and not letting her get to him. Once the assignment was over, he never had to see her again.
When he walked back outside, Piper had planted herself on the top step of the porch, hands clasped between her knees. She had on jeans and brown boots, and the smaller backpack Neil had provided for her sat on the step below her.
She watched him approach, the belligerence etched in her features deepening the closer he got. "The house is beautiful. You didn't even give it a chance before you blasted off and had your hissy fit," she accused.
"You're right. I'm sorry."
"People went to a lot of trouble to...what?"
Alex strode past her to the truck and eased the hiker's backpack to the ground. She stared at him as he clipped the Sig's holster around his hips, then slipped the Glock and extra ammo into one of the waterproof outside pockets of the pack.
He heard her clomping down the steps, so wasn't surprised when her pack landed in the dirt next to him. "You apologized."
"Because I was wrong. Now get into your gear."
"Why all the guns?"
"Are those rhinestones?" He sized up the heels of the knee-high riding boots she wore.
"It's the best I could do. Answer the question."
He stabilized the backpack and squatted down to strap himself into it. "I'm armed because I might need to shoot something."
She narrowed her green eyes at him suspiciously as she shrugged into her pack. "Where exactly are we going that requires shooting?"
Taking a deep breath, Alex pushed himself up while he exhaled. He shifted the weight of the gear around until he felt satisfied with the distribution and then finished securing the backpack to his waist.
"Camping," he said.
* * *
"Does insanity run in your family?" she asked in a firm, steady tone. "I do not camp."
"We don't have a choice." Alex started around the side of the house.
Was he kidding? She scrambled to catch up to him. "Sure we do. I pick the San Luis Resort on Galveston."
"Too easy to access."
She eyed the dense line of trees at the back of his property. "I'm willing to fly us overseas," she offered. "London. Paris. Austria. Austria is gorgeous this time of year."
Alex gestured toward the trees with a thrust of his chin. "The Houston National Forest. You'll love it."
"I'm pretty sure there's no room service in there."
"No way to track us and lots of space. It's the perfect place to disappear."
"I've never camped, don't like bugs, and I'm positive I won't enjoy sleeping on the ground."
He shrugged against his bulging backpack, then tightened some of the straps up. "Where's your sense of adventure?"
"Full up from losing my car. Thanks, anyway."
Alex stopped and turned around. His amber-brown eyes looked at her steadily as his handsome face became serious. "You were lucky you only lost a car, Piper."
The fear she'd shoved diligently away started rising into her chest, pushing the sting of tears ahead of it. The idea that someone had deliberately tried to hurt her.... She didn't want to face that possibility.
"The bomb was timed for when you normally leave the house, do you realize that?"
"You think someone wanted to kill me?" She hated how small her voice sounded; how vulnerable she felt saying those words.
"It's possible."
Piper swallowed against her dry throat. For the first time in her life, she understood a little of what the women at her spa went through—the terror, the helplessness, and the painful self-doubt as you wondered if somehow you'd caused what was happening to you. Worst of all, was the certainty that there was nowhere to go where she'd be truly safe.
She hadn't wanted to think about it. Still didn't. But she had to. She had to face it.
The words of the speech she'd prepared for the spa graduation echoed through her mind. She could not allow some jerk wad bully to intimidate her like this. Didn't she preach that to her Ladies every day? Wasn't their courage and determination exactly what she'd planned to congratulate them on at the graduation?
Time to live by her own advice.
Straightening her back, she gave Alex a level look. "Living afraid, isn't living."
"Sometimes it's smart to hide."
"What if the authorities can't find who did it? I can't hide forever. I won't waste my life like that."
"I'm not asking you to. We just need to give them a couple days to investigate."
"Twenty-four hours," Piper said, her tone firm. She marched past him, aiming for what looked like a narrow gap in the trees.
Alex's hand clasped her upper arm. With a gentle pull, he gathered her against his chest and held her. The fresh air and male scent of him wrapped around her like a blanket that she couldn't resist.
"It's going to be okay. I'll keep you safe," he said, his voice rough.
Piper blinked back the tears pooling in her eyes. She wanted to cling to him and let him take care of everything. She wanted to release responsibility for herself and pretend she could never be harmed.
But she'd only be lying to herself if she did that. Maybe whoever was doing these awful things wouldn't get to her, but there were other ways she could get hurt.
Like falling for Alex.
She would not do that, she told herself firmly. Men this perfect never turned out to be real. There was always a flaw, some terrible, hidden truth like another girlfriend or a wife.
"I know you'll do your best," she said, pulling back, wanting to keep her distance emotionally.
He kissed her, fierce and quick, before she could protest. "No, Piper. I will keep you safe. I promise."
He started for the trees and after a moment, she followed him. The feel of his lips lingered on hers like a soft electric current.
Alex stopped just short of the forest and waited for her to catch up to him. She eyed the trees. Her previous bravado took a nose dive and nervous tension mangled her stomach into a knot.
Maybe she should be thinking more about what lay ahead and less about her scattered emotions. Like what were they going to do about bathrooms? And showers? Would they even have food and water?
She glanced at the gun strapped around Alex's hips and a horrible thought struck her. A cold chill ran across her neck.
What if there were wolves?
* * *
A drop of sweat slid down the middle of her back. By her estimation, they'd walked at least six miles, maybe ten. Alex seemed completely at home running from possible assassins into the wilderness.
She'd never been so miserable in her life.
Piper glared at the pines reaching up toward the late afternoon sky. They stood like pillars, stretching as far as she could see with only a few live oaks cluttering here and there for variety.
Grassy underbrush, vines and occasionally small white or yellow flowers fluffed out across the forest floor like a wild, unkempt carpet. Under different circumstances, she might have thought the natural beauty around her pleasant. Conditions for enjoyment would have included knowing a good meal and a bed lay ahead of her. Sadly, that was not the case.
Slogging several yards behind Alex down a path that only he seemed to be able to see, Piper managed a smidgen of gratitude that she'd grabbed her low-heel boots out of her closet. Unfortunately, they were barely broken in and a blister had formed on her right pinky toe, stinging with unrelenting persistence.
An insignificant discomfort compared to the other horrors of the day. Like the lesson Alex had given her on how to go to the bathroom in the wilderness.
When she'd requested a stop, he'd dug out a packet of biodegradable wipey-things from her pack and pointed to a tree. She'd had no clue what he wanted and when she said so, he'd explained to her in detail how things were done in the forest. He'd seemed annoyingly amused by her reaction.
Even with the assurance that leaves were not necessary, she found the process disconcerting and extremely uncivilized. She wasn't sure she'd ever get over the trauma. She'd thought getting nearly concussed by an explosion was the worst thing that had ever happened to her. She'd been wrong.
But since Alex kept making her drink water, by the fourth go-round she'd grudgingly reconciled herself to the horror. She'd also come to two important conclusions:
Backpacking was not for wimps.
She was a wimp.
"Are we there, yet?" she asked politely. Okay, she whined it. Her dignity was in tatters anyway, so why not?
Alex glanced up at the sky and then back to the path. "Just up ahead." He sounded resigned, like he wasn't looking forward to the night either.
Turning right, he trudged through a patch of thick underbrush, heading toward what looked like a cleared area. At the thought of shedding her backpack and sitting down for a long rest, Piper picked up her pace and started toward him.
With a jolt of irritation, she remembered Alex's warning to only step where he stepped and never veer from the path. He'd been downright irate about that particular rule.
With a sigh, she moved back to the path she thought he'd blazed, even though he wasn't that far off and it would be much more efficient to go straight toward him.
She studied the ground for the telltale flattening of plants where Alex's battered old cowboy boots had stepped. The way wasn't as clear as when she followed right behind him and she wasn't sure what to do.
This was stupid, she thought with disgust. She was exhausted. The man was in sight. The junk on the ground wasn't all that dense. What was the big deal?
She plowed through the low-lying, scrubby plants, heading in a direct line for him. Something struck the back of her boot.
"Gah!" she jumped to the side and scowled at the thick, grassy leaves around her. She thought she saw a flash of red and yellow through the gaps in the undergrowth, but she wasn't sure.
"Piper?"
"Something hit me," she called. "I think I stepped on a stick." She stared at the place where she'd seen something.
"Don't move!"
Alex drew his sleek, black gun from its holster and thumbed off the safety. He started toward her, his long stride eating up the distance. When he was within a few feet, he stopped. His face settled into strained lines as his gaze swept over the ground.
"Where?" he asked.
She pointed across from her. "But I don't see anything, now."
He crept closer. "What do you mean, now?"
"Ahh! There it is." She jabbed her finger at the rippling colors as they slithered through the ground cover.
"Oh, my God, it's a snake!" she screeched. "Worse than wolves! Worse than wolves!" She danced from foot to foot as terror swept over her.
"Don't move, damn it!"
Her heart pounded in her ears and every nerve in her body screamed to run, but she planted her feet on the ground and tried not to hyperventilate. Biting her bottom lip, she quivered with the effort to stay still.
Alex seemed to move in slow motion toward her, carefully placing one foot in front of the other as he crept closer. "I told you to walk where I walked and not get off the path."
"Your path was gone," she squeaked. "You left me."
He jumped in front of her, his gun aimed at the underbrush. "How do you feel?"
"Not so good." Piper inched back a step. She couldn't help herself. Snakes were definitely not her thing. She didn't even like to go in the reptile house at the zoo.
Alex snapped off the branch of one of the scrub trees next to him. Reaching out with it, he slowly nudged the plants aside.
A red, black, and yellow striped snake struck with a quick jab of its head at the branch and then did its best to make a fast getaway.
The tension drained out of Alex and he gave a low chuckle. "A King snake. You must have disturbed his sleep. They aren't usually out this early."
"You mean they come out at night? Like when we're sleeping?" Piper's legs started shaking. "Oh, dear Lord."
She braced a hand on the pine tree next to her. She very much needed to sit down. Which was never going to happen in a place where snakes popped out of nowhere day or night.
She looked at the gun in Alex's hand. "What did you think it was?"
He flicked the safety on and offered his hand to her. "Coral snake. Deadly poisonous."
Piper started to sag against the tree, caught herself and jumped back in alarm. "This is a nightmare."
"Come on," he said, sliding his hand around her waist. "King snakes are harmless. He was more scared of you than you were of him."
"I hate it when people say that," she groused. At least feeling irritated with him was easing back her fear.
Pulling her away from the tree, Alex guided her toward the sound of a creek. "I'm glad you weren't bitten. Would have made our adventure a lot messier. Where'd he hit you?"
"The back of my heel."
"Where the sparkly stuff is?"
"I guess so."
"Explains the dazed look on his face."
Her fear receded completely and she scowled at him. Why did he always make jokes when she was close to losing it? All it did was make her angry at him.
Shrugging away from the comfort of his solid body, she marched the last few yards on her own. Easy for him to be so causal about snakes and long hikes and facing a cold, dark night in the middle of the wilderness. He probably did this every day.
She dropped her pack next to his and crossed her arms under her chest. "What's next on your list of fun and delight? Foraging for berries? Catching fish with our bare hands?"
He holstered his gun, then unzipped the top of his backpack. "If you have your heart set on it, I won't stop you. I'd rather get the tent up and then have hot beef stew with raspberry crumble for dessert."
Saliva flooded her mouth and her stomach gave a loud growl. Piper ignored her traitorous body and narrowed her eyes at him. She admitted that his backpack was big, but there was no way all the stuff he'd need for beef stew and crumble was in it.
"How are you going to do that?" she asked, not bothering to hide her skepticism.
He looked over his shoulder at her and winked. "Magic."
* * *
One way or the other, Alex was determined to avoid temptation. Neil had thrown in an extra sack lunch plus enough food and water bottles for two, but other than that, the Department's grab-and-go survival kit was designed for one agent and one agent only.
He knew he wouldn't be able to resist a conscious Piper if he had to sleep practically on top of her. His only hope was to make sure she was sound asleep by the time he came to bed.
With that in mind, he'd come up with a simple plan. Wear her out so that she collapsed as soon as the tent was up and eliminate any need for interaction; physical or otherwise.
They'd stopped briefly for lunch and the occasional break, but other than that he'd kept her moving, passing her a water bottle or energy bar when necessary. He'd pushed her as hard as he dared, and even put off making camp until the last minute.
But she'd surprised him.
Instead of constantly bitching and moaning about the hike, she'd doggedly kept up, followed orders without complaint and in general showed a level of determination most beginners didn't have.
Eventually, the setting sun caught up with him, and he had no choice but to find a place to camp. With any luck, once he fed her, she'd crawl into the sleeping bag they had to share and not move until morning.
As the night closed in around them like a soft, intimate blanket, he'd started creek water filtering, primed the small boiler with twigs, and shortly after that, made them dinner. The only thing left was bedtime.
A peaceful night's sleep was definitely not shaping up for him.
In the white light of the small fluorescent camping lantern, Alex watched Piper poke her finger down into the raspberry crumble pouch, pull it out, then slide it into her mouth. Her eyes closed, she sighed in ecstasy and he went hard as a rock.
Adjusting himself as subtly as he could, he glanced with despair at the two-person tent sitting innocently in the shadows just a few feet from them.
"This is fantastic," she said, her eyes shining with happiness. "I had no idea stuff like this existed."
She pointed to the water filter bag hanging from the bungie cord he'd rigged around a tree trunk. "Nasty brown creek water turned into fresh water." She jabbed a thumb toward the small boiler where he'd set it up on a large, flat rock. "An amazing little hot water maker that eats sticks. But best of all, wilderness dessert."
Her eyes glowed as she stuck her finger back into the pouch, somehow managing to get one more drop of raspberry filling out. She lapped it off the tip of her finger with gusto.
Alex bit back a groan. She was killing him.
"Your pack is like Mary Poppins' carpet bag or something. How do you get all this stuff in there?"
He cleared his throat and pretended the stars were more interesting than her. "Good planning."
She gave a contented sigh. At least one of them was happy. "Where do I sleep?"
He nodded toward the tent. "Toothbrush is in your pack and you know where the trees are."
She pinched up her mouth and gave him a disapproving look. "Keep you back turned. Just like before."
"Don't go far. Stay on the path I stomped down."
He watched her walk off with her backpack, the light of the lantern flirting with the shadows darting over her small waist and firm ass. Her usually straight hair was a soft cloud of curls around her head that he itched to touch.
He pushed the urge away. He didn't have the right to think like that. Especially not this far into the park, miles from any road or ranger station. They were as alone here as they could be anywhere on the planet. Which was the whole point of hiking into the park. But not conducive to a man trying to resist temptation.
He'd just gotten himself under control when Piper reappeared from behind the knot of trees. As she headed toward him, her eyes on the ground, he noticed that the smudges of dirt on her face were gone and that she'd combed her hair, turning it into soft, golden waves around her face.
When she reached him, he stood up to take his turn. She looked clean and fresh despite what he'd put her through, and his heart gave a muffled lurch in his chest. "What took you so long?" he asked, his temper sparking.
"I washed up with the some of my water and a wipe. Pardon me for not wanting to live like a cavewoman."
"Take your boots off and leave them just inside," he ordered, irritated with himself for noticing how good she looked.
She dropped her pack and got down on her hands and knees to peer into the tent. "There doesn't look like enough room in here for us, let alone our shoes."
Lust slammed through him at the sight of her sweet backside lifted up in the air. Telling himself he was a professional and not an animal didn't mean anything to the heavy ache in his cock, but at least it gave him something safer to think about.
"Are you sure we'll be able to sleep side-by-side? You aren't going to roll on top of me and crush me in the middle of the night, are you?"
Muttering a curse, he grabbed the lantern from beside her and headed for a group of trees near the creek. She rocked back on her heels. "Did you say something?" she called after him.
"I said I might sleep outside," he lied.
"Sleeping with me would be more comfortable."
He stopped and spun back toward her. The light of the lantern splashed across her face, highlighting the sparkle of wicked humor in her eyes as she kneeled in front of the tent.
Alex stared at her in astonishment. "You did all that wiggle action in front of the tent on purpose, didn't you?"
"I'm proving to you that I'm not opposed to having fun." She grabbed the edge of her T-shirt and pulled it over her head. Her bare breasts bobbed lightly and Alex nearly dropped the lantern.
His gut tightened and his heart beat wildly against his chest. He struggled to maintain focus. "You've just hiked fifteen miles. You should be flat on your face exhausted."
"I could get flat on my face," she offered, the glint in her eyes darkening.
The image that garnered made his body come to instant attention. Alex raked his hand through his hair. "You need to rest, otherwise you'll be too sore to walk tomorrow."
"That sounds like a promise," she drawled. Standing up, she unzipped her jeans.
Alex was in front of her in two strides, his hand clamping down on hers. "Stop right there. We need to get some sleep."
She tugged one hand loose and palmed something from her pocket while she stroked her bare breasts across his chest. "We will. Later."
She leaned toward him, her mouth parted, her eyes half closed. He ducked away, the feel of her nipples burning across his skin even through his T-shirt.
"I have to go," he said, stepping back.
"If you say so." She slid her jeans down over her hips. She wasn't wearing underwear.
The moon broke loose above the pines and tossed a soft splash of light across the floor of the woods. Piper stood like a nymph, naked and perfect. The globes of her breasts, the sweeping line of her waist and hips, the soft swell of her stomach above the delicate triangle of dark hair all called to him with an irresistible music as old as time.
His hands flexed hungrily and he took a step toward her. He ached to kiss her, touch her, plunge into her until she cried out his name. He stopped, curling his fingers against his palms. "Get dressed and get into the tent," he ground out.
She gave him an arch look, not at all what he was expecting. Planting her fists on her hips, she thrust back her shoulders defiantly. Her breasts bounced with the movement, their dark peaks making his mouth water.
"And if I won't?" she challenged, her playfulness taking on an angry edge.
He turned his back and started toward the trees. He'd already taken care of everything that needed taking care of, but his self-restraint was beyond the breaking point. If he didn't get away from her--
Something hit him on the back of the head. "What the hell?" He turned around. The nymph was gone. A wrathful, naked goddess stood in her place.
"You will not dismiss me Alex Jensen, like some...club pickup!" She shot another pinecone at him. He dodged and another sailed past his ear, barely missing him.
"Shhh!" He was certain they hadn't been followed, but he sure as hell didn't want to risk being wrong. "Keep it down."
"You're a jackass!" she shouted even louder as she launched another missile.
Dropping the lantern, Alex sprinted toward her.
"The worse lover I've—"
He caught her around the waist as she bent down to pick up another pinecone and covered her mouth with his hand. The cushion of her bottom pressed into his groin sending a bolt of sharp hunger up through his body like a rocket.
She squirmed against him, trying to break his hold and another wave of lust ripped through his nervous system.
His control shattered.
* * *
Piper struggled to reach the branch just in front of her. Alex wanted to play hard to get? She could darn well give as good she got. Like landing a slap upside his stubborn head with a big stick. She couldn't believe she'd actually been stupid enough to pack condoms!
She strained toward the branch and he ground the thick ridge of his erection against her bottom. She bit his palm, though not as hard as he probably deserved.
He took his hand off her mouth and unexpectedly ran it over her bare breast. A quiver of excitement curled through her, making her even angrier.
"Let me go," she snarled. "I don't want you now."
His fingers circled her nipple, then pinched gently sending a burst of desire up into her belly.
Pulling her upright, he dragged her back against his chest and lightly bit the side of her neck, mimicking her attack on his palm. "Let's see if you're telling the truth," he purred, and his sweet, smoky voice sent a wash of yearning through her blood.
He swept his hand over her stomach and cupped her between the legs, pressing her more snugly against him. His heat burned into her back and bottom with a hungry urgency that stoked the fire building low inside her.
She told herself she was still mad at him, maybe even hated him. But she knew it was a lie. She hungered for Alex's touch in a way she'd never experienced before.
He slid two fingers along her slit, then circled the swollen bud nestled there before slipping them into her. She quivered in his arms, languid, delicious sensations curling up into her belly as he moved slowly in and out of her.
"Hot," he whispered against her ear. "Wet." He pulled out of her and languidly circled her clitoris with the tips of his fingers.
"I want you," he said in a ragged voice.
She moaned and rotated her hips against him. Turning in his arms, she clung to him, pressing her mouth to his with an urgency she didn't understand.
His tongue dueled with hers in a stormy, hungry dance as he carried her to the ground with him. Bracing her body against his, he reached out and unzipped the opening of the tent.
They tumbled in as he moved his attention to her neck, tangling together, his mouth like a brand on her skin. Dropping the condom she'd palmed, she clutched at his T-shirt and tugged it over his head.
A powerful feeling of possessiveness swept over her as she ran her hands across his broad, muscular back. He was everything she ever needed or wanted, and she reveled in the solid reality that was Alex—in his strength and bold hunger for her.
His mouth closed over a swollen nipple and she cried out, arching against him. Sucking the sensitive peak into his mouth he flicked his tongue across the tip sending a feverish thrill streaming through her. The tension coiling low in her belly tightened and warm moisture slicked the inside of her thighs.
Rolling slightly off of her, he impatiently pushed his jeans down as he licked and bit a path across her stomach. Panting heavily, her heart thundering in her ears, Piper clung to the last spark of reasoning as it fled before the onslaught of madness that Alex inspired.
"Condom," she said in a breathy rush as she patted the sleeping bag next to her, hoping to get a hold of it.
Alex's head came up and his gaze zeroed in on the foil packet next to her hip. Rocking back on his heels, he tore open the corner with his teeth and quickly applied the protection.
He stared down at her, his eyes dark, fathomless. As the moment lengthened, worry nibbled at the corner of her mind, dimming the lust roaring through her blood. Was he having second thoughts?
She wanted him desperately. More than any man she'd ever known. She didn't want either of them to think. Only to be.
Piper braced herself on her elbows and grasped the thick length of him. Skimming down, she lightly cupped him, her thumb tracing sensuous patterns across the base of his erection. "Alex?"
His focus slid from her hand to her face, and for a moment the passion in his eyes deepened into something she understood even less than his hesitation.
"I'm here." Leaning down, he kissed her on the mouth; a soft, tender kiss that made her heart flutter. He deepened it, kicking up her desire even as her instincts screamed that something was different.
She didn't want him to change. She didn't want expectations or demands. She only wanted Alex. And to feel alive.
He leaned back, sliding his hands down her body and over her thighs as he did. His strong fingers clasped her knees and pulled them up. With his gaze locked on hers, he put his mouth against the inside of her knee and traced a line down her thigh with the tip of his tongue.
The aching need quivered back to life deep in her belly, dissolving her world down to the feel of his hot, questing mouth. Piper closed her eyes and let her head fall back as he pressed her knees down, spreading her open to him.
She gasped as his tongue dipped into her, stroking the sensitive point just inside her core. As he licked upward, she fell back onto the sleeping bag with a soft moan. Desire spread over her like a soft flame as he flicked his tongue across the swollen kernel nestled there, then drew it into his mouth to suckle gently.
Her breath quickened as the fire built. She restlessly bucked against him, hungry for release, aching for more.
The delicious torment of his mouth stopped and she moaned in protest, but then his strong body was braced above her, the salty, male scent of him filling her senses and firing her need.
He slid into her and begin a slow, languorous rhythm, stoking the hunger pooling low in her body. A demanding need to be a part of him blossomed to life deep in her being, spiraling into the center of her chest, into her heart; blending with it and sifting into something new.
His pace quickened, pushing her pleasure higher, tighter. The delicious euphoria built with a painful intensity until, with a sudden thrust of his hips, the inferno burst free, scorching through her with wave after wave of rapture and emotion.
And her world shifted.
* * *
Piper swelled and heated around him, tightening against the intrusion of his body until he thought he'd go mad with the joy of it.
Love and yearning clutched at his heart, pressing against the walls he'd built, weakening them.
She cried out his name as her body pulsed against his and an agonizing bliss shot into him, shattering the last of his defenses. With a final thrust, Alex surrendered.
Waves of ecstasy pumped through him, staggering his senses with their power; destroying his soul and birthing it again. He fell against Piper, his heart pounding with hers.
With a groan, he accepted the truth he'd fought against for so long. Somewhere, somehow the worst had happened.
He'd fallen in love with Piper.