When Lightning Strikes. Aimee Thurlo

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СКАЧАТЬ stop her efforts to escape. Wrapping his arms around her middle just beneath her breasts, he pulled her close, pinning her arms to her sides.

      “Don’t fight me, not if you want to live,” Daniel commanded, his voice hard.

      She stopped struggling, but he could still feel the tremors that passed through her body.

      “You’re going to be fine as soon as I get you back onto solid ground,” he said more gently now, trying to ease her fears.

      He could feel the delicate curve of her breasts resting on his forearm as he moved them both toward the edge of the pond with powerful kicks. Hannah was as soft as velvet in his arms, and she fit against him as if she’d been made to be his.

      He disciplined his thoughts, remembering where he was, who she was, and what he was doing there. As he reached shallow water, Daniel stood and carried her to dry land.

      Before putting her down, he gave in to temptation, and lowered his mouth over hers, taking a tender kiss from her lips. She didn’t fight. She simply melted into him with a sweetness that made his body grow impossibly hard.

      It became too hot, too quickly. Surprised by it all, he drew back, then set her down gently. The smoky, dazed look in her eyes, told him she’d felt the same fires coursing through her.

      She took a few uncertain steps away from him, then picked up a stout piece of a pine branch, and held it out before her like a sword. “That was your thank-you. And it was nice,” she said, her voice husky. “But now I’d like you to go.”

      Wet, her body glistening in the sun, Hannah Jones was magnificent. The thin cloth of her undergarments did little to shield her from his hungry gaze.

      “You have nothing to fear from me,” Daniel said, trying to reassure her. He could take the branch away from her in one swift move and pin her to the ground before she ever knew what happened. But he didn’t want to hurt or frighten her. As he continued to gaze at her, the thought of her beautiful body beneath his made him tense.

      Moving sideways slowly, he reached for her slacks, which were on the deck nearby. The shirt she’d been rinsing out was draped over a low branch a little farther away, and a quick look at the reddish brown stain still marring it suggested she’d tried to wash out somebody’s blood.

      Wolf crept up silently and took a position behind Hannah, blocking her escape, then barked once. Hearing him, she turned her head and gasped.

      “Don’t let him frighten you again. He’s harmless as long as you behave.” Daniel came toward her slowly, holding at arm’s length the clothes he’d retrieved for her. “Here. Get dressed. I have a feeling you’ll feel better that way.”

      “Who are you?” she said, glancing back at the dog as she dropped the stick, then slipped her slacks and wet shirt on.

      “A friend with a big dog—someone who didn’t want you to drown, obviously.”

      “That’s very chivalrous of you, considering it’s your fault that I fell in.” Watching them both, Hannah walked back onto the deck, picked up her shoes, and slipped them on. Glancing again at Wolf, she added, “Are you sure he’s just a dog? He looks like a German shepherd, but I’ve never seen one that big.”

      “He’s a dog, all right.”

      Wolf turned his head and curled his lips slightly.

      “He’s part wolf, I’m told,” Daniel added quickly.

      Daniel pulled on his boots. The breeze that had come up within the past few minutes made his own wet clothes feel icy.

      “You’re not in uniform, but are you a cop?” she asked, her voice unsteady.

      “I’m one of the good guys,” he said, not answering directly. As he looked over at her, he saw she was shivering.

      “It’s freezing,” she said, teeth chattering.

      “It’s great September weather, but still too cold to be outside, even at noon, when you’re wet. Can we go inside? I suppose this is your cabin,” he said, deliberately playing dumb. He knew she didn’t have a cabin out here, but right now he had other priorities. Bringing her back suffering from hypothermia was not a good idea.

      “I’m using it for now,” she said, not answering him directly. Hannah headed toward a set of flagstone steps leading up from the pond to the cabin.

      He noted Hannah’s reluctance to come right out with a lie. The fact struck him as odd. She’d found it okay to steal, but balked at telling a lie? Well, he’d been warned she wasn’t in her right mind.

      “I hope you have some warm clothes in there,” he said.

      “There’s an old flannel shirt hanging in the closet,” she answered. “I’ll put that on.”

      Daniel followed her through the sturdy wooden door that faced the pond, and Wolf padded in behind them as Daniel held it open.

      Hannah reached for some towels on a shelf and handed him one. As she patted her long hair dry, Daniel studied her appreciatively.

      Hannah Jones was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, crazy or not. And those eyes! They were evocative and sensual, the kind that could steal a man’s soul. Quickly, he reminded himself that they were also, apparently, the eyes of a woman with a damaged mind. There was no way of telling what would happen if he inadvertently pushed the wrong buttons.

      Hannah started to go into the next room to change clothes, but he knew he couldn’t risk letting her out of his sight. He motioned to Wolf to follow and guard.

      Daniel heard her startled cry as Wolf joined her. “Don’t worry. He’s a pussycat. Really.”

      She came back out in seconds wearing an old flannel shirt. It fit snugly around her breasts, reminding him of things he had no business dwelling on.

      “Let’s get going.”

      “Where?” she asked, immediately on her guard.

      “You are Hannah Jones.”

      “How did you know?” Her eyes widened with fear and she stepped back.

      “Wait. You already know I’m not your enemy. Remember, I pulled you from the water? If I’d wanted to harm you, I could have let you drown.”

      She stared at him for a long moment, then finally nodded. “Okay, that makes sense. But how did you find me, and who are you?”

      “I go by the name of Lightning,” he said. “Your uncle sent me to find you and bring you back so you can get some medical help. I’m also supposed to bring back the money you took from the church.”

      “The money I…what?”

      “You took around two thousand dollars from the church, then hit your uncle in the back of the head,” he said quietly. “But he’s okay now, and nobody’s pressing charges. The police aren’t involved in this at all. Your uncle and the people on the church committee just want to help you. They’ve even kept your disappearance a secret.”

      Hannah shook СКАЧАТЬ