Lone Rider (32 page)

             
“Any word on Bogen and Snake?”

             
“Had a sighting
north of her
e. They might be heading for the Canadian border
,
but we can’t be certain.”

After Grey hung up, he reached over and squeezed Tess’ shoulder. She still looked pale but he knew that, unless it was an emergency, they couldn’t stop.

“Can you make it a little fa
rther?”

             
She looked wary. “Exactly where are we going? I don’t think I trust your system anymore.”

             
“Neither do I.”  Grey glanced away from the road. He promised to take care of her and look what had happened. “I know this is asking a lot, but can you trust me?”

             
When she didn’t answer, Grey explained his suspicions that someone within the system had purposely
given out
information on her whereabouts
, that possibly there was more than one leak
.

             
“So what does that mean?” she asked. “I’m a walking target, aren’t I? I’ll be hunted the rest of my life. And the baby?”

             
Her voice was husky with distress. Grey wished he could pull over and take her in his arms. But right now he needed to concentrate on getting as far away from
Baltimore
as possible.

“You and I are the only ones who know where we are. No one knows where we’re headed, not even Barry, and I intend to keep it that way until the situation’s under control.”

             
Tess contemplated his words. “What do you have in mind?”

             
“The latest reports indicate Bogen and Snake are heading north. I think we’re wise to head south.”

             
“
Florida
?”

             
“Not that far. I was thinking about
North Carolina
. I went to grad school at UNC-Chapel Hill, so I’m familiar with the area.”

             
The irony struck her. She was having his baby
,
and she didn’t even know his college alma mater.

             
“Where will we stay?”

             
“We’ll find a
quiet motel, somewhere we can lie
low for a few days. We’ll get some rest and talk.”

             
She nodded. Talk. Rest. Hide. Would they ever have a chance to be normal?

             
Whatever normal was.

*  
*     *

             
By the time they reached the outskirts of
Richmond
,
Virginia
, Tess felt a little more at ease. With the convoluted route Grey chose, she felt certain no one could possibly be following them.

And whether she wanted to admit it or not, she did feel safer alone with Grey. When she thought of what could have happened to her and the baby at the safe house... She offered yet another silent prayer of thanks that the explosion had not seriously injured either of the marshals.

She rubbed her forehead. “Will we be stopping soon?”

Her head hurt and her hands and knees stung where she’d picked out glass shards. The small first
-
aid kit Grey carried in his car proved woefully inadequate
,
but she didn’t complain. Her physical discomfort was nothing compared to her fear of being caught by some of Bogen’s friends.

F
rom the way she massaged her temples
,
Grey knew
she had a headache. He had pulled off the road briefly outside of D.C. to satisfy himself again that the cuts she’d received didn’t require a doctor’s care. And to assure her that the laceration on his neck was indeed minor. She promised to let him know if she felt the slightest abdominal twinge.

“We’ll stop at the next exit,
”
he said.

             
Grey found a small drugstore right off
the highway and picked up first-
aid
supplies, including non
aspirin painkillers.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t stop earlier,” he said when he returned to the car. He wrestled with the bottle’s childproof cap, appreciating it through new eyes. “The pharmacist said these are safe for pregnant women.”

Nodding gratefully
,
she swallowed the two tablets he offered. Then Grey parked in a secluded corner of the lot and focused on her injuries.

             
“This might burn,” he warned, washing her abraded knees with peroxide. Next he smoothed on a cream
that
numbed the pain.

After he cleaned and treated all her cuts, he covered them with gauze. “You’re awful quiet. Sure you’re feeling okay? Any cramping or discomfort?”

     She shook her head. “I keep thinking about what would have happened if you hadn’t been there when we arrived. We would have gone straight into the house
,
and--”

             
“The point is, you didn’t.”

             
She looked at him, her eyes wide. “That’s twice you’ve saved me. First from Snake and the others, now this.”

             
He could have drowned in the blue vulnerability in her eyes. Except he didn’t deserve her gratitude. She’d almost been killed. The
Bureau
had failed to protect her.

He’d failed to keep her safe.

Right now they needed to keep moving. That meant eating lunch in the car.

“Still feel like that cheeseburger?”

             
“No.”

             
“You need to eat, Tess. You’ll starve the baby.”  He hated using guilt, but if it got her to eat, he’d do it continually.

             
She shot him a look. “That’s a low blow. But you’re right.”

             
A few minutes later they were headed south once more, eating cheeseburgers from a drive-through. Tess sipped a vanilla milk shake. When she finished she yawned, feeling groggy.

             
“That seat reclines. Why don’t you lie back and try to relax,” Grey urged.

             
“I don’t know why I’m so tired all of a sudden.”

             
“Traumatic let down.”  He frowned. “The last two days have been hell.”

             
The painkiller she’d taken earlier was starting to work. Easing her seat back, she stifled another yawn. “Well, maybe a few minutes wouldn’t hurt.”

             
She didn’t awaken for two hours.

*     *     *

             
“Tess, wake up.”

             
She felt a hand gently squeeze her arm. Twisting, she saw Grey bent over her, concern in his eyes.

             
“How are you feeling?”  His hand moved to cover her abdomen. “Any pain? Nausea?”

             
Tess sat up, shook her head. Nothing hurt. In fact, she felt decent. Rested. And the feel of his hand
there
sent frissons of awareness over her, left her feeling...alive. Grateful.

“How long before it’s safe to return?” she asked.

             
He stretched his arm across the back of her seat, toying with her hair. “That depends on several factors, including how soon they recapture Snake and Bogen.”

             
“What went wrong back there, Grey?”

             
He looked at her troubled face, tempted to kiss the frown wrinkling her forehead. His first instinct was to blow off her question with a trite answer. Except she deserved more than that. She deserved an honest answer. The most honest answer he could give anyway.

             
“I wish I knew. The more I’ve thought about it, the more other possibilities present themselves. Barry thinks we’ve got an internal leak. That could mean several things. Someone in the Bureau could be divulging confidential information. Which by the way, would be the easiest scenar
io to resolve. But since the U.
S. Attorney’s and Marshals’
O
ffices knew where you were staying, it could be someone there.” 

And he couldn’t forget that news of her pregnancy had been leaked as well.
             
He slid his hand under her hair to massage the tight muscles of her neck. “I’m certain we’re not being followed now, Tess. I hope you believe that. I’ll protect you and the baby with my life.”

             
The baby
. She touched her stomach.
His baby
.

Funny. Except for morning sickness, she didn’t feel pregnant. Except when Grey touched her abdomen, something he seemed obsessed with of late.

He watched her hands move across her middle.

“Anything wrong?”

             
“I’m fine,” she answered. “It’s just that, well,  sometimes I feel completely ignorant about pregnancy and motherhood. Should I have felt the baby move yet? Should I be showing by now? God, I don’t even have a due date.”

             
“Early April by my calculations. The first time we made love was July twenty-first. You had to conceive then.”

             
Because it was the only time they didn’t use protection, Tess recalled, blushing at the memory.

             
“Embarrassed?” Grey asked.

             
She looked away momentarily, unsure. To admit shame seemed to reflect wrongly on the baby.

She shook her head. “I’m not embarrassed. Insecure perhaps. I guess I’ll feel better when I’ve seen an obstetrician.”

             
“As soon as we’re settled we’ll get you in to see one,” Grey promised.

             
“Now? While we’re on the road?”

             
“Why not? I don’t see any point in waiting. I realize it’s probably one of those mystical female things to choose the proper obstetrician.”  He shrugged. “I’ve heard my sisters argue over it enough times.”

She looked at him closely, his remark reminding her again of how little she knew of him personally. “Will you tell me about your family someday?”

             
He nodded. “What do you want to know? The basics? My dad’s a retired railroad executive. He lives outside
Harrisburg
,
Pennsylvania
. Mom died seven years ago. I’ve got two younger sisters. Beth Ann and Brittany.”

“How old are they?”

“They’re both twenty-seven.”

“Twins? Don’t tell me they run in your family.”

Grey chuckled. Okay, he wouldn’t tell her. At least not now.

“Have you told them about the baby?” she asked.

             
“I told my dad last night. I didn’t want him to read it in the newspaper. He sends his best.”

             
She blinked. “Your father was happy?” 
Was Grey
?

             
His heart constricted. “Of course. My sist
ers are probably fighting over who will throw the first
baby shower.”

Tess squirmed, thinking about her mother’s reaction. “I’m sorry they had to find out this way.”

“Have you talked with your family?”

“I spoke with my mother this morning. She isn’t...happy.”

             
Grey sensed her distress over her mother’s response, wondered if she had anyone in her family who’d welcome the news. Besides him. And he wasn’t family. “She’ll come around, sweetheart. I’m sure the news was a shock. Your family’s had a lot to deal with lately.”

His understanding almost undid her. So did the endearment.
Sweetheart
. She felt herself succumb to his dark looks. There was no denying it. She was definitely drawn to Grey for reasons that had nothing to do with lust. Or the baby.

             
She looked out the window, noticing for the first t
ime where they were parked. Wal
Mart. Several smaller stores and restaurants flanked the giant department store.

             
“What are we doing here?”

             
“Neither of us has
anything except the clothes on our backs,” Grey pointed out. “I figure we can get everything from toothpaste to suitcases here.”

             
Removing the key from the ignition
,
he reached beneath his seat and withdrew a large tattered envelope. Opening it he pulled out a large stack of bills.