Dream Shadow (6 page)

His question was simple yet confusing. There were always questions asked about her, but it had been a really long time since someone actually looked her in the eye and asked her.

“It’s… People are distracting. Emotions disturb my focus.”

Brice crossed his arms over his chest as his eyes tried to sink into hers. Grace shifted as the attention made her warm. Her skin actually began to grow hot as he watched her. Her clothing felt too tight.

“Why are you so worried about being distracted? Dinner isn’t a life or death situation. My cooking’s not that bad.”

A tiny smile lifted her lips. Brice’s mouth answered the expression with a grin.

“You should do that a little more often.”

“I don’t issue invitations I’m not interested in honoring.” Grace let her smile sit on her lips as she stepped toward the doorway. His gaze watched her intently before he took one long step that blocked the exit.

“Not every man thinks a smile means a woman wants to jump into bed with him.”

“You’re hoping it does.” The words came out of her mouth on impulse. Grace slammed her teeth together but too late. Tossing a challenge out was really stupid. His lips curled back into a wide grin that showed his teeth. He stepped closer, making his body seem far larger than it was. She felt small next to him and his strength seemed to grow as her body shifted away from him again. It wasn’t something she could control. Her breath came in small pants as she caught his scent.

“Maybe I am hoping that was an invitation. Come over here so we can find out.”

She shook her head, but her nipples were stabbing through her shirt, telling a much different story.

“You’re wasting your time.”

Something flashed across his eyes before he shot his hand out to capture her wrist. His body moved with solid purpose, binding her into his hard embrace. Grace gasped for air as her flesh responded with searing emotion to the touch.

“I don’t think so, you’re blushing.”

Grace thrust her hands forward to brace against his chest.

“Which is an invitation all by itself.”

He lowered his firm mouth to hers. He traced the corners of her lips with his, pushing against the firm lips of her closed mouth. He wrapped one hand around her face and used his thumb to pull her chin down to allow him access. Warm and determined, his lips moved over hers, pushing aside her resistance as they sought out her taste. His tongue was a bold invader that demanded the deepest secrets of her mouth. Heat exploded in her belly as his chest rubbed against her sensitive nipples.

“You taste as good as you feel.”

He slid his hand down the length of her arm, captured her wrist and pulled it up in front of her eyes. His fingers deftly moved the top of her gloves aside as they settled over the sensitive skin of her inner wrist. Grace pushed against the embrace. His arms tightened as her body exploded with heat.

“Your pulse is racing.” He traveled one large hand over the smooth column of her throat to press against the pulsing artery in her neck.

Releasing the pulse point, Brice slid his hand down the side of her face before settling his mouth on top of hers once more. He demanded a response that she didn’t seem to have the discipline to deny.

Emotion crested over her like a wave. Grace found temptation sweeping her along in its grip as she balanced on the sharp edge of sensation. Her fingers curled into talons as she struggled for release from the overwhelming stimulus of his touch. Every inch of contact between their bodies burned.

Desire became a driving force inside her, and Grace spread her fingers out on his chest, seeking the ridges of muscle he was using to hold her against him. Pressed to his huge frame, she could feel his erection as it pulsed against her ribs, making her belly tighten with need. A soft moan escaped her mouth when he lifted his lips from hers.

Cradling her head in his hand, he tipped it back until his mouth could find the exposed length of her neck. She nestled her hips against his body as she surrendered to his touch.

Another moan escaped her throat when Brice closed his lips over the ivory skin of her neck. That feeling of being dominated swept her, making her moans deep expressions of yearning. Her hips twitched forward in blatant invitation.

Brice raised his head and locked gazes with her. Moving a hand, he gently palmed a breast. Tracing the beaded nipple with the pad of his thumb, he watched her eyes spring open in response.

“Are you sure you don’t want to chase me down to my bedroom?”

The harsh rasp of his breath hit her ears as his hand gently squeezed her breast again. A jolt of fire spread down to her center, making her body scream with need. The pure intensity of it was too much to understand. Grace aimed a brutal shove at his chest.

“I guess that is a yes. Maybe it’s a good thing Jacobs is waiting.” Brice reached his hand down to snag a rifle from its rack. His eyes were hard as they moved over her face, but he pulled a powder horn from the end of the rack and abruptly left the room.

The wall behind her transformed from prison to support as Brice went out the doorway. Grace let her body slump against it as she struggled for the emotional stability that seemed to have crumbled away so very quickly. Her lips were alive with tiny pulses of feeling as she fought for the detachment so very necessary for her focus to become complete.

Heat was radiating along every square inch of her skin in some unspoken need for her clothing to simply be discarded. Her breasts were straining against the sports bra she had on and she couldn’t ever remember the garment being so uncomfortable. Pulling a deep breath into her lungs, she felt the heat move into her core to set off a pulse that she felt directly in her sex.

Grace ground her teeth together in anger. The pulse of arousal was unmistakable and she hated it. Being at the mercy of her body was annoying as
hell
. She pressed her thighs together as she tried to clear her mind.

Control returned by slow measures. The explosive discharge of a weapon reached her ears. Any topic was welcome if it meant the end of her awareness of Brice’s kiss.

The rifle discharged again. Grace stepped out on to the back patio and watched as Brice lowered it to begin the process of reloading. He lifted a powder horn to the muzzle and poured a measure of the black powder into the barrel of the gun. Next went a ball and then he used a long rod to pack it all firmly into the barrel of the gun.

Brice handed the weapon off to Jacobs, issuing careful instructions to him. Grace watched as Jacobs pulled the trigger mechanism. The rifle discharged with a cloud of smoke.

“Where do you fire this thing off at?”

“We have an historical group that gets together once a month. Mock battle and a dance. You should come by this weekend. It’s one of the local ways of unwinding in Benton.”

The invitation might sound innocent to Jacobs, but Grace found Brice’s steady gaze settled on her as he issued it. Alarm raced along her nerve endings as she considered the idea of finding herself in his company yet again.

“If you like the rifle, you should try the cannon.”

Jacobs’s face split into a grin. “You’ve got a cannon?”

“Not me.” Brice held his hands up in innocence. “But my group has eight of them, and they could use a man big enough to handle those ladies.”

Brice disappeared into the kitchen. Jacobs turned his attention on her and Grace struggled to keep her emotions buried. Instead, Grace noticed the plush porch furniture, a sofa and chairs all with thick padding. There were candle lanterns burning on the small coffee table along with napkins and a salt-and-pepper shaker.

A small smile of relief crossed her face. Dinner wasn’t going to require her to sit in the house. Dropping into one of the chairs, Grace stretched her neck as she tried to loosen the tight muscles. The air was cool and crisp but wonderfully fresh with the scent of the forest.

Brice returned and handed a plate of food to her. Grace gaped at the amount of food that was on it. How much did the man think she ate anyway?

“Let me know when you’re ready for seconds, darling.”

She glared in response to his endearment but he seemed to enjoy her temper. Setting her eyes onto her meal, she lifted her fork with rapid movements. If cleaning her plate would bring an end to their evening, she was willing to cooperate. It was time to see just what Brice Campbell wanted from her. The poor wording of that thought brought a blush to her checks.
Jesus! What the hell is wrong with me tonight?

Men, emotions, kissing… It was enough to drive her insane. Letting her eyes roam over Brice, she watched the simple way he was conducting a conversation with Jacobs. His brown eyes locked with hers. Heat immediately surfaced in her face again.

That was it.

Dropping her fork, Grace jumped from her chair and used the porch’s railing to climb into the branches of a pine tree. Turning her eyes at both of them, she propped her body against the trunk of the tree.

Lifting her chin, Grace let the scent of the forest drive away the distracting emotions of society. The two men were welcome to each other; she wanted the companionship of the night.

Jacobs was just trying to rattle her chain by dragging her along to dinner. The problem was, it was working. Her head was throbbing with the tangle of feelings. Thrusting aside emotions was the only way she’d ever found any peace. Thinking of Paige as a child instead of the target had been a major mistake.

Snapping her eyes around, she sent a glare at Jacobs. She wasn’t going to turn into some social queen. Jason Jacobs was the only C.O. the unit had ever had that didn’t snap a whip over her. Grace kept her efficiency rate as high as she could in response. But if the giant wanted to start playing mind games with her, he was in for the fight of his life.

She jerked her head toward the dark forest and didn’t care for the fact that she had to wait for him to give her a tracking unit. But taking off would only make him tighten the net around her.

Brice watched the drama unfold. There was a clear line being drawn, even if he didn’t understand the facts of the matter. Jacobs reached into his pocket and sent a small black box sailing through the air. His operative snatched it from the air and jumped to the ground in the same instant. The darkness swallowed her in just a few strides.

“God damn it.”

Jacobs let his curse slip out in the same whisper-soft tone he’d used with his men. “Sorry, Brice, but I can give you the location of the cabin she found Paige in.”

Brice considered the night for a moment. If he were smart, he’d let the woman go. That idea lasted exactly two seconds before he pushed to his feet. She’d just felt so damn good against his body. Brice wasn’t in the mood to let her run away.

“Hold it right there, Brice.”

Brice didn’t turn around. His eyes cut into the darkness as his night vision began to kick in. “Why?”

“I told you that I wasn’t going to make it an order. Grace likes to be alone. You’ve already pressed on her last nerve by cornering her in the back room.”

Turning around, Brice crossed his arms across his chest. He’d enjoyed kissing her and wasn’t in the mood to let her reject him. But it looked like the first obstacle he had to clear was her C.O..

“I don’t expect to find anyone in that cabin tomorrow. Is it possible she could trace one of the suspects from whatever is left in that cabin?”

“Our job ends when the target is recovered.”

“Can she do it?”

“That’s not the point, Brice,” Jacobs insisted.

“Maybe. Maybe not.”

Brice aimed a hard look at Jacobs. “I suggest you take a closer look at your operative. Some people need more than just orders to fill their life. If you keep applying her like a piece of hardware, don’t be so pissed off when she acts like it.”

Jacobs climbed to his feet.

“Fine. You’ve got a point. I’m pulling my bird off the ground at dawn.” Pulling another slim black box from his pocket, Jacobs efficiently punched in a line of code before raising his eyes back to Brice. A lopsided grin split his face. “I’ll get Grace back out to that cabin, but I’m not going any further than that.”

“She’ll do the job.”

Jacobs considered Brice’s confident expression. “Just why are you so certain of that?”

“Your operative made the fatal mistake on this one, Jacobs. She cared about the target.”

The major dipped his head with understanding before he jumped the porch railing and disappeared.

Brice considered the night and the boundary that stood between him and Jacobs’s operative. There was a woman locked up somewhere inside her. He was itching to get another chance to find her.

Fighting to spend another hour with her went beyond the needs of his case.

It was now personal.

Chapter Four

Dawn was beautiful. Grace stood facing the east a full hour before the horizon began turning pink. Why stay in bed when sleep was miles away? Maybe fatigue would soon exact its toll, but for now she would take the chance to be free of the motel room.

“A man could get used to seeing you in the morning.”

She jumped back into a fighting stance once again. A frown touched his face as Brice considered her.