Like Arrows (Cedar Tree #6) (13 page)

I clear my throat. "Where is Boo?" It's the first distracting thing I can come up with. He doesn't answer right away, his scrutiny making me feel buck-naked. After what seems like an eternity, he finally turns his attention back to the fridge before answering.

"Put him outside. Yard is fenced, so he can't go anywhere."

"Thanks," I say, struggling to push up from the chair as inconspicuously as I can. Sitting for too long only makes me hurt more. Besides, I'm eager to escape the uncomfortable tension that seems to hang thick in this kitchen. Not looking at him again, I walk into the hallway. "I'm just going to unpack." I’d wanted to claim the guest room after noticing the feminine decor in there, but Mal insisted I take the master. Beth's son had obviously taken over that space and it had a decidedly masculine feel to it. I wasn’t going to bother arguing.

"Kim." His voice stops my feet on the stairs. "Why are you limping?"

So not a topic of conversation I want to get into so I try evasion. "Think I have something in my boot. I'll take them off upstairs."

Lame. I know he probably won't buy it, but I'm not giving him a chance to respond. I'm up the stairs like a shot and quickly close the bedroom door behind me. There I lean with my back against the door and try to get my heart rate under control.
He spells heartbreak, Kimeo
, I tell myself. A man who  personifies everything that would not be interested in someone like me. Sure, he's said some nice things after saying a few not so nice things, but my life experience is such that it is safer to go with the negative expectations. Far less of a chance of getting hurt that way. I've managed to steer away from any entanglements and keep myself safe for the last twelve years. Not about to let a pretty face and a drop dead gorgeous body mar my impeccable record.

With that I firmly push away from the door and start putting away my things, suppressing any lingering thoughts of
him
. Once done, I tuck my bag at the bottom of the closet and lay back on the bed. It's only four o'clock in the afternoon and yet it feels like a week's worth of things have happened since this morning.

Just gonna close my eyes for a minute.

-

T
he cold floor of the closet offers no comfort and does little to stop the persistent trembling in my limbs. What was I gonna find outside of this door? The yelling had been unnerving, but then Martin screamed and the bang after that, a gunshot I'm sure, had been so loud the sound of it still rings in my ears.

If I thought the noises had been bad, they were nothing compared to the thick silence that followed. My heart jumps in my throat when I hear soft sounds coming from the hallway. New sounds—different from the earlier mayhem. Part of me wants to see if maybe Martin was just hurt and was trying to get to me. Another part has me curl into a tighter ball.

I can see the light go on and push to my feet, just in time to see the knob turning in the soft light filtering through the crack under the door. The moment I hear the click of the latch, I throw myself against the door, flinging it open wide and make to run. Except, instead of Mal's face, I can just make out two gleaming eyes glaring at me from a mask, before the sharp burn of a knife cuts at my throat and I scream...

M
al

The little wench was checking me out, I'm pretty sure. I know I noticed the way her eyes were fixed on my ass, as was clear to see even in the reflection from the window. The deep red blush on her cheeks only confirmed it when she discovered she was caught. Yup, there is definite interest there as much as I know she doesn’t want there to be. Fuck, that's gonna make things more complicated. Not that I don't want to go there, because hell yes, I want to go there, but I'm also supposed to be keeping her safe. And frankly, until we get a grip on who's behind this, I have to stay sharp. Rolling around on the sheets with what I suspect will be a little fireball of a woman, would seriously dull my edge. Not a good idea. For now.

The moment she gets up from the table I see confirmation of what I had only suspected before, she's hurting. Don't know from what, but I was damn well gonna find out. Except she hides in her bedroom before I have a chance to dig deeper, since she doesn't seem eager to share.

That's where she's been the last hour or so. I ended up pulling out my laptop after getting the dog in and feeding him. Got a few emails sorted and received one from Neil who apparently received the flash drive earlier that afternoon and was starting to pick away at the information on there. So far he is pretty sure it's related to some natural resource, since he found what looked to be a geologist's report referencing prime locations for drilling core samples. Oil or gas would be my guess, since there was known to be plenty of untapped energy under the soil and rock of Colorado. Natural resources were big money and big money often meant dubious or even lack of morals. Wars have been fought over oil, and there are some who wouldn't think twice about taking out anyone who even looks like they might stand in their way.  If this is true, Kim could be in major trouble.

Suddenly Boo gets up from where he's been laying at my feet and clambers up the stairs. Curious to see what he's up to, I follow behind and catch him laying down outside Kim's bedroom with his nose practically stuck under the door, whimpering.

She's in trouble
.

That's the first thought that jumps to mind and before I can stop myself, I have the door open, one hand on my gun at the small of my back. My eyes scan the room darkening with the loss of daylight, but nothing seems off until I hit the form in the bed. She's thrashing about, not making any sound, but her mouth is stretched open in a silent scream.
What the fuck?

"Kim, honey." I approach the bed carefully, keeping Boo back who appears ready to jump on. That would scare the shit out of her since she seems deep in the clutches of a nightmare.

Sitting down carefully on the edge of the bed, I try again. "Hey, Kim? Wake up, babe. You're having a nightmare." Softly I use the back of my fingers to stroke down her cheek, clammy with tears and sweat. Her hair is plastered against her head. A strand of hair seems to be wrapped around her throat and with my index finger I pull it free. Immediately a bloodcurdling scream bursts from her mouth and Boo, unable to hold himself back, jumps on the bed. This seems to be a trigger, because immediately she scissors up, almost knocking my chin in the process, then starts clawing at her throat. "Kim!" Despite the fact that I virtually shout her name, it doesn't seem to penetrate.

Her nails are digging into the skin of her neck so deep she draws blood, spreading it around as her hands work frantically against...something. When I grab her wrists to stop her from doing more damage, she struggles against me. "Kim! Knock it off, you're hurting yourself." She stills for a second, which lulls me into gentling my hold on her. Immediately she wrenches a wrist free of my hand and claws at my face.

As a last resort, I push her down in the mattress and roll my body on hers, trying hard not to notice how softly it cushions mine.

"Kimeo, you've gotta snap out of this."

At the mention of her full name her eyes finally snap open, looking wild and disoriented. It's Boo's soft whimpers from where his head is perched on the pillow next to hers, that seem to pull her back into the here and now.

"What?" Her voice sounds hoarse from the screaming. Turning her face away from Boo, her eyes finally focus on mine and she repeats, "What?"

"You were having a nightmare. Pretty bad from what I could tell. Do you remember?"

The confusion seems to disappear from her eyes only to be replaced with horror as she scans my face.

"Oh my God...did I do that?" Her shocked whisper has me raise a hand to my cheek where I feel a slight burn. It comes away bloody and instantly Kim's eyes fill with tears. "I am
so
sorry..." Her fingers skim over my face, leaving a cool soothing trail in their wake.

"It's fine. Just a scratch, honey. You did worse damage to yourself. Let's get you cleaned up."

Without waiting for an answer, I reluctantly push up from her body and get off the bed, before pulling her off too. My hand firmly on the back of her neck, I guide her into the bathroom where she stares in shock at her reflection.

"I did that?"

"Mmm." I grab a washcloth from the shelf and wet it under the tap before gently wiping her throat while lifting her chin up with my other hand. "It's not that bad, have a look. Just a scratch," I reassure her.

"I was in the supply closet and the door opened, but it wasn't you. Just two eyes behind a mask. He had a knife." Her body does a full on shiver and against my better judgement, I dump the washcloth in the sink and wrap her tight in my arms. "Just a dream," I mumble in her hair.

"Yeah, but you rescued me again," she whispers in my chest before tilting her head back to look at me. "Thank you."

Fuck me. Those big liquid eyes, plump pouty lips, hell even the red blotches on her nose are impossible to resist. Keeping her gaze trapped with mine, I slant my mouth over hers and on her gasp of surprise, sweep my tongue inside for a taste. Sweet, hot, with a hint of spice—
damn
.

Big mistake.

When I feel the vibrations of her moan against my tongue I know I have to pull back or I'll lose all control. That moan travels all the way down to my cock and I know there's no way she missed that pressing in her belly.

Rather abruptly, I push her back by the shoulders. She has a dazed look on her face and I know exactly how she feels. In a last indulgence I run my thumb over her soft bottom lip before completely letting go of her.

"Have a shower. It'll make you feel better. I'm gonna whip us up some dinner."

With that, I leave a not quite coherent Kim in the bathroom.

So much for staying away from her...

K
im

This is crazy. I have to get these dreams under control.

I lean my head back to rinse the conditioner from my hair. With my eyes closed, the memory of Mal's dark ones loom over me as his mouth slid over mine. I can still taste his flavor and my body tingles...
Holy frig!
I force my eyes open, and am immediately assaulted with a flood of hot water and conditioner burning them. Dammit! Furiously rubbing and blinking I try to get the remnants out of my eyes. It's one way to stop thinking about that kiss. Instead, I spend a little more time than necessary on shaving, surprised Mal would've even thought to drop my razor in the bag, but he seemed to have a better grasp on my needs than I'd have given him credit for. He remembered to grab all the necessary supplies as well as a selection of clothes geared more toward comfort than class. Not that I had many classy things. Except for some of my underwear. It seems he managed to find the best pieces in that drawer. The soft pink and white lace set I only wear when I need to feel secretly powerful. The black set with shelf bra and thong that Kerry gave me for my birthday last year and I'd never worn. Well the bra I did, the thong however was still brand new. My underwear drawer is like my little secret. I like lingerie. I just don't like others to know about it. Especially not
him
.

-

B
y the time I've dressed, dried my hair a little and open the door of my bedroom, the enticing food smells coming from the kitchen have my stomach rumbling. Mal looks good behind the stove. I swallow a giggle that pops up at that thought. I must've made some sound, because he turns around and spots me in the doorway.

"Hey. Feeling better?" His observant eyes scan my face before narrowing on my own. "Were you crying?"

"What? No, I got some conditioner in my eyes. Probably rubbed to hard." I curse myself for not putting on some make up, suddenly feeling rather 'exposed.'

"Ah." He turns back to the stove.

I walk up behind him to peek around him. "What are you making?" I ask, seeing two halves of a squash upside down on a baking tray. The pan he's stirring in appears to have bell peppers, corn, onion and chicken.

"Quinoa and chicken stuffed squash. Something my
amá sáni
used to make. Except she did it with rabbit." He chuckles when I wrinkle my nose.

"Bunnies? You eat bunnies?"

"Wild rabbit. My
amá sáni
had several snare loops in the fields behind her trailer. Caleb and I had the job of checking them every morning to see if we'd have rabbit for dinner. Wild rabbit is actually very tasty. Do you like venison? Deer?" he asks, a smile on his face as he scoops the quinoa from the pot on the back of the stove through the chicken mixture with his hand. He sees me watching him use his hands as utensils. "My hands are clean, promise," he says with a wink.

"I've eaten it. Deer I mean, a few times actually. It's very flavorful."

"Exactly. Most game has a more intense flavor than the regular meat or poultry you buy at the store."

I watch his long fingers work the quinoa through the pan and a small shiver runs down my spine. Who'd have thought a man cooking could be so...erotic? His hands are nimble and strong.