To Love & Protect Her. Margaret Watson

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      “I know her well enough to know that she can.” She was too tired to rise to his bait. “Can you tell me about Australia?”

      He hesitated, then he began speaking in a low, soothing voice, describing the beauty of his country. As she drifted off to sleep, she realized that he was deliberately lulling her, but she didn’t care. Her head still hurt, and she was exhausted. And although she was driving through the night to an unknown destination with a man she didn’t know all that well, she felt amazingly content.

      She was with Griff, and that was all that mattered.

      Two

      “Wake up, Willa.”

      The voice intruded on her dreams, and she closed her eyes more firmly and tried to hang on as the dream faded into the mist. She was dreaming about Griff, and his hand was drawing a long, lazy line down her back. She didn’t want to wake up, didn’t want the dream to end.

      “Come on, Willa, it’s time to wake up.”

      It was Griff’s voice, and his hand was touching her shoulder. Slowly she opened her eyes. She was lying on his lap, and his brown eyes were looking down at her, concern in their warm depths.

      She scrambled to sit up. “Griff?” She pushed her hair out of her eyes and stared at him. “What are you doing here? And where are we?”

      “We’re in El Paso—” he began.

      “El Paso!” she gasped. “What are we doing in El Paso?”

      He hesitated. “Don’t you remember what happened last night?”

      Last night. Suddenly all the events of the night before came flooding back. “I had forgotten,” she whispered.

      “How’s your head?”

      She touched the lump on her left temple. “It hurts,” she said. “But I’m sure I’ll survive.”

      He worked his jaw. “I’ll take care of it when we get to the cabin. I thought we’d stop in here first and get some groceries and other things we’ll need.”

      She looked out the window of the truck and saw that they were in the parking lot of a store that advertised one-stop shopping. “All right.”

      Before she could get out of the car, Griff laid his hand on her arm. Her skin heated and her heart raced, but Griff didn’t seem to notice a thing.

      “I’m not going to say anything in the store,” he said. “We don’t want anyone remembering the bloke with the funny accent.”

      Willa felt herself pale as she looked at him. “Do you think the kidnappers could have followed us from College Station?”

      “No one followed us. I’m sure of that. But we don’t want to take any chances, so I’m keeping my mouth shut.”

      He drew his hand away, and Willa felt bereft. She wanted to reach for him, but instead curled her fingers into her palm. She’d better get hold of herself. She was going to be spending a lot of time with Griff.

      They went through the store quickly, loading their shopping cart with food and a couple of changes of clothes for each of them. Willa grabbed toiletries, as well as a handful of books to read.

      In a half hour they were back in the truck. Griff’s hands tightened on the steering wheel, and he didn’t look at Willa. “I have to call Ryan and get directions to the cabin,” he said. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

      “Are you having second thoughts?” she asked. “I didn’t even think to ask if you could spare the time to stay with me.”

      “My time isn’t a problem,” he said, his voice short. “I want to be sure you understand that we’re going to be alone together, possibly for a while. Are you sure you don’t want to go somewhere else?”

      She was too aware of Griff, sitting so close to her in the car. Surrounded by his male scent, his leather jacket still wrapped around her shoulders, her senses were overwhelmed with him. The air around them pulsated with tension. Spending time alone with Griff would be dangerous.

      “I’m sure,” she said.

      Griff studied Willa for a moment. Her eyes were heavy with fatigue and the bruise on her temple stood out sharply on her pale face. But he saw the resolution in her eyes and nodded with approval. “Good. I’ll call Ryan, then.”

      Willa was a lot tougher than he’d suspected, he reflected as he listened to the phone connecting. She was a lady, and he hadn’t spent much time around ladies in his life. He had been prepared for tears and a quivering fearfulness. But Willa had just lifted her chin and given him a steady look. He was almost ready to believe her when she said she could take care of herself.

      Almost, but not quite.

      She was too trusting, too good-hearted to be as wary as she needed to be. She probably trusted anyone who didn’t actually wave a gun in her face, he thought cynically. If anyone needed a keeper, it was Willa Simms.

      He wanted nothing more than to volunteer for the job.

      And wouldn’t that be a sight. Wild Griffin Fortune, with his dubious personal background and his present unsavory job, involved with genteel Willa Simms, university professor.

      If it weren’t so ludicrous, his fantasy would be good for a laugh. As it was, it was merely pathetic.

      He had absolutely nothing in common with Willa. As if to remind him of that fact, his Uncle Ryan’s voice came on the phone.

      “Ryan, it’s Griff. We’ve run into a bit of trouble.”

      “What is it?” Griff could imagine Ryan sitting up straight in his chair, his eyebrows drawn together.

      Griff quickly explained what had happened at Willa’s the night before. “We’re in another part of the state now,” he said, aware that it was all too easy to eavesdrop on a cellular phone call. “I remember you mentioned a cabin that Mary Ellen owns. The one that Jace used recently. Could you give me directions?”

      “Of course.” Ryan told him how to get to the isolated cabin, being careful not to mention any names that could give away their location. And he told him obliquely where the key was hidden. Ryan was quick, Griff thought with appreciation.

      “We’re going to stay there for a while. You might want to get some investigators into College Station, see what they can find out. I’d rather not expose Willa to another kidnapping attempt.”

      “Thank God you got to her apartment when you did.”

      Griff could hear the emotion in Ryan’s voice.

      “Are you sure she’s all right?”

      “She will be. Your goddaughter is tough,” he said.

      There must have been surprise in his voice, because Ryan laughed. “Damn right, she’s tough. She gets that from her old man. He was one hard guy. Let me talk to her.”

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