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.He narrowed his eyes and stared at them to see if any of them were even slightly crooked.They weren’t.They were perfect.Fuck.She reached forward and astounded him as she picked up a wine glass, took a sip of the contents, and replaced it on the ground at her side with delicate, feminine precision.Fuck.She was perfect.He was in such fucking trouble, and something about it made him furious.“Is that wine?”“Hmmm,” she hummed, obviously pleased with the flavor.He clucked his tongue in disgust and turned away from her, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.He unfastened the horse’s girth, removed the saddle, and placed it on the ground.He looped the horse’s reins to allow him to wander the few steps to join the other two animals behind where Liberty had set up her perfect little camp.In the perfect spot, beside the small stream meandering past.Perfect.He ground his teeth and breathed deep through his nose.Her wide eyes were still on him when he turned back, her smile a little uncertain.He kept his expression as flat as possible as he scanned her face and wondered how the hell a white hat could make her eyes look even bigger than normal, with the slight shade from the brim darkening them from violet to a deep purple.“Would you like a beer?” She reached into a cooler, scooped out a bottle, and held it up.“Beer? You don’t like beer.” Why the hell would she have beer? An irritated growl rumbled out of him, making her eyes widen even farther, and small uncertain flickers of her long, dark eyelashes had him clenching his jaw.“No, I brought it for you.” Cautious, her voice dipped almost to a whisper.Temper exploded, making his voice much harsher than he intended.“Now what in hell’s name made you think I would come after you?”The remainder of her smile dropped instantly from her face, making him regret his tone.She ducked her head, and the ridiculous bells gave a sharp rattle.She reached out for the wine glass, barely took a sip, and carefully replaced it.The woman could make guilt shudder through him with just a look, but his annoyance was rolling around in his stomach because somehow, she and Carl must have been in cahoots to set him up, and he hated being set up.He had a mind of his own and he did his own thing.He didn’t need help or direction.She cleared her throat, met his eyes, and gave a tight smile.“I didn’t.I packed up a picnic with the intention of inviting you, but I couldn’t find you.I assumed you’d gone again after you told me you like to be alone.There was no point unpacking, so I brought it along.”So, all the time he’d wasted trying to find her, she’d been looking for him.Ironic.He glared down at her for a moment longer, his anger melting away so fast it left him confused.He had no idea how she managed to invoke such wide ranging emotions in him.He’d felt nothing but cold solitude interspersed with mild amusement and occasional peacefulness over the last three years.Since he’d met her, he felt like a hormonal teenager.One minute angry, the next laughing, but always raging with lust.He reached his hand out, wiggled his fingers in a “give it to me” sign, and relief flowed over him as her wide smile shot back in.“Gimme.”She held the bottle close, efficiently flicked off the lid with a bottle opener, and handed the chilled drink to him.Heaven was a cool wash of golden liquid skimming down his parched throat.He never stopped swallowing until the entire contents of the bottle were gone.He handed her back the empty bottle, wiped the trickle of sweat running down his neck with his kerchief, and glanced around.The small inkling of doubt he’d had about Carl grew to full-blown suspicion.He waggled his fingers at Liberty again, and without a word, she handed him another small bottle of beer.This time he sipped while he assessed.“You weren’t lost?”“No.” She waved her hand toward a Rand McNally map and a compass, her eyes wary as he ground his teeth in frustration.“I’m not quite sure what gave you the impression.”She looked innocent enough, but she’d come prepared for a major natural disaster.Every item of equipment he could imagine a survivalist requiring, she seemed to have at her fingertips.All neatly laid out.He’d be surprised if it wasn’t in alphabetical order in the semi-circle around her.He stepped closer as she peered up at him from underneath the rim of her hat.“Carl seemed to think I should track you down.”“Oh?” Her eyes widened with surprise, but women had a habit of looking innocent, and he’d learned very quickly not to trust them.“Yeah.”He eased himself down next to her, leaned back against his saddle, and took another slug of beer.It was hard not to give her a sideways glance, and Christ, she looked so pretty taking another sip of her wine, the tip of her tongue dabbing the moisture from her bottom lip and making him want to crawl on his belly to her.Instead, he gave a small cough and made sure his voice was low and threatening.“He gave the impression you might be lost.”“Really?” Her laughter was light and amused.“I don’t know why.Carl kindly packed the pony for me.He knew I was going for three nights.”He was beginning to wonder if she was completely oblivious to his bad mood or being obtuse.Maybe the woman was as dim as he’d first thought.“Why?”“Why three nights?”“Nope.”He growled even deeper and wondered when the hell she was going to ask him what was wrong.Couldn’t she tell he was seething? Yet she took another little sip of her wine, lifted her perfectly shaped eyebrows, and opened her huge eyes wide in apparent confusion.But he knew avoidance when it laughed in his face.“Why am I here?”“Yup.”“Because it’s my job.”He pulled in a lungful of air, closed his eyes to breathe it out, and then pinned her with his best hard-man glare.“What precisely is your job?”Her rapid eye blink and quick glance down to the left made the ball of suspicion in his stomach explode like a small hydrogen bomb.He leaned in close, took a hold of her chin in his fingers, and glowered into her face.Huge violet eyes gaped back at him and blinked twice before she tried to move back, but he gripped her chin a little tighter and narrowed his eyes.“What exactly do you do, Liberty?”“I’m a scientist.” Wary now, she gave a little gulp, her soft skin warming beneath his fingers as a becoming blush crept through to tinge her cheeks.“A scientist?” Her nod was almost imperceptible against his grip.“What area?”“Molecular bacteriology.”He dropped his fingers from her chin, disgust with himself and his disparaging attitude thickening his throat.Her bright, vivacious act, together with luscious curves and a body made for sin, had fooled him, and he didn’t like to be fooled.He prided himself on his fast and efficient judgment of people—made a living out of it—but he sure as shit had misjudged this one.Or been misled.He was going with deceived.He felt like he’d been deceived, tricked, blindfolded, and led on a wild goose chase.All of those things, and it appeared she’d enlisted the assistance of other people to fool him [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]