The Minister's Maid (4 page)

* * *

Ian chuckled and turned away, glad the room was relatively dim even with the lights. The thing is, Betsy was right. They'd been working their way towards this since they were sixteen, and even when he'd taken that online course to become a minister to perform weddings at the ranch, he'd still known it was only a matter of time.

Small hands caressed his back, moving up to lightly massage his shoulders. He closed his eyes, trying to remember all the reasons he had to say no. Harley, Derek, the missing so-called treasure, the fact that his heart would be torn in two by morning...

Those long fingers slid down his back, then snuck around his waist as Betsy embraced him from behind. Her breasts pressed close against his back, and his hands moved over her arms of their own accord. Something else moved too, below his belt, making his jeans more than a little uncomfortable. Then she moved one hand lower, her fingers deftly flicking his fly open, and it was too late. Her nails just barely skimmed his cock over his standard-issue briefs, and the traitor twitched neatly against her hand, clearly begging for more. The only thing standing between him and embarrassment at how much he wanted her was remembering all the times she'd begged him, and he'd turned her down.

Not tonight. Not anymore.

He grasped her wrist and pulled her around to face him. Her eyes shone up at him in the amber glow, a jumble of mixed emotions laid out bare for him to see. Fear. Longing. Worry. Excitement.

She opened her mouth, and he dipped his head to capture her lips before she could speak.

Her low moan vibrated through his body as he crushed her tight to his chest. Teasing her with his tongue, he lapped and suckled and tasted, giving her everything she asked for, matching her thrust for thrust. When he finally pulled back just a scant couple of inches, she blinked, her gaze unfocused as she swayed in his arms.

"Wow," she breathed, leaning into him for support. "We should have done that a long time ago."

Ian shook his head. "Nah. Wouldn't have been as good." He eased her into standing on her own, zipped up his pants and then tugged at her hand. "Come on. I want to show you something."

"I sure hope it's what I think it is," Betsy teased as they walked across the cavern. Ian grinned, pulling her through a narrow passage hidden behind a grandfather clock. Just before the cavern ended, he turned around, blocking her view.

"Cover your eyes," he said, waiting until she complied. "Now don't look until I tell you, okay?"

She nodded, and he took her arm, leading her the last few steps to paradise. "Now you can look."

At first, she just blinked, trying to get her bearings. Ian watched her face as comprehension grew. Her lips rounded in awe, her eyes darting every which way. She looked up, examining the ceiling as she moved farther into the room and he could guess what she was thinking.

"The cavern was open to the sky for a long time - an earthquake, we think. That gave the vegetation time to take over, and then the previous owner designed a new retractable cover for the place. From the outside, it looks like just another rise in the earth.

She turned to him and grinned. "This is great, Ian. But there's something else that rises I'd rather see just now..."

* * *

Sliding her arms around his neck, Betsy stood on her tip-toes to offer Ian a kiss. Her heart nearly burst with joy as he leaned down to indulge her, his hands slipping around her rib cage. This is what she'd wanted for so long, what she'd pined for even when she was with other men. Ian was the man she'd wanted all her life, and now, finally his mouth was on hers, nibbling at her lips as if she were a piece of gourmet chocolate.

He traced her jaw line, sucked her earlobe and placed tiny kisses down her neck, one after another sending ripples of pleasure through her body. Then his arms tightened around her like a vise, clamping her hard against his chest and she frowned as a loud rattling sound echoed off the chamber walls. The hair stood up on the back of her neck and she struggled, desperate to see what was behind her and fearing the truth at the same time.

"Don't move," Ian whispered, his hot breath tickling her ear. "There's a rattlesnake about three feet behind you. If we move wrong, we're dead."

Betsy closed her eyes, freezing in place. Not that she had much choice, the way Ian was holding her. "You mean I'm dead," she whispered, clinging to his neck yet balancing on her toes, not wanting to pull him over with her weight.

"I won't let that happen."

There was no hesitation in his voice, no question that he would keep her safe at all costs, and despite the venomous reptile behind her, Betsy relaxed just a little.

"So what's the plan?" she asked, fighting the curiosity that made her want to turn around and face her attacker. Her fingers curled into his shirt, digging into the skin on his shoulders until she realized what she was doing, and forced herself to ease her grip. "Sorry," she said, looking sheepishly up at him from beneath her lashes. His focus was on a point somewhere beyond her though, and she wondered if he'd even felt her nails.

"We need to back away very slowly. The entrance to the passage out is right behind me. On three, I want you to relax your toes - I'll carry you over there."

Betsy gave her head a shake, freezing when she saw Ian's stern look. "I'm too heavy. We'll fall, and the snake will strike, and..."

"Trust me."

He didn't give her a count. One second she was standing there staring at him, the next her feet were off the ground, swinging around as he switched places with her and then ran for the opening in the rock. Betsy hung on for dear life until he finally put her down just inside the passage entrance. She looked past him to the clearing they'd just left.

"Looks like it left," she said, squinting in the dim light as she tried to find the errant reptile. "Now how do we avoid running into him again?"

Chapter 4

Still shaken, Betsy tried to stay focused as Ian stepped into the narrow space beside her and took the lantern. His distinctly male scent and the heat coming off his body made her want to grab him and pick up where they left off, but the idea that the snake might come back made her hesitate.

"I doubt it will venture far from this cavern," Ian said, his voice soothing. "There's a stream that runs through the vegetation in the back, and animals are pretty smart about staying near water. Still, it's probably not a good idea to stay in the clubhouse after all. Might be a little too close for comfort."

"I agree," Betsy said, stepping back into the furnished underground room. "Just let me get the map, and..." She stopped, nearly stumbling forward as Ian ran into her from behind.

"Nice of you to join me," Derek said, one hand brandishing a gun, the other holding up their half of the map that Betsy had left on the table. "Now that we're all together, and have a complete map again, why don't we sit down and talk about this whole mess." He pointed in the direction of the couch with his gun, and Betsy walked over and took a seat, not knowing what else to do. Ian sat beside her, close enough that their thighs were touching. Appreciative of the support, she tried to ignore his proximity as Derek's glance flicked between the two of them. Tired, cranky and wound tight with sexual tension, she threw caution to the wind and looked her ex straight in the eye.

"Why don't you just kill us?"

Derek propped one hip on the table and shrugged. "I don't know the ranch as well as you two, for one thing. This little treasure hunt will go faster with inside help. And then there's the little matter of those papers - if I recall correctly, I need your signature before I'll be able to do anything with them."

She shook her head. "You'll never get it. You might as well just kill me now. I'll be damned--"

"Now, now. Settle down." He calmly moved the gun to train it on Ian. "That's where he comes in. I know all about your little crush - I did my research. And I'm betting you'll do anything to protect this guy, right?" He paused, raising an eyebrow when she didn't immediately answer. "Or maybe not. Tell me now, darlin' - if you don't want him around, I'll take care of him right here. Then it will be you and me alone together, just like old times."

"You're right," she said, aware of Ian tensing beside her, but unwilling to see how far Derek was willing to take this. He wasn't a rational man, no matter how it appeared, and she was positive he wouldn't hesitate to kill Ian to make a point. "I do have a crush on him, I have since I was fifteen. Please don't kill him." She hated the pleading note in her voice, but at least this time she'd put it there for a reason. She wasn't the naive girl he'd married. And if she had to play his game to get them both out safely, that's what she'd do, despite the disapproval she could feel from Ian.

Derek looked at her, his gaze boring into her soul. For a long moment she was sure he'd kill Ian anyway, just to hurt her. But finally he released her with a nod.

"Now that we all understand our roles, let's start with the first clue." He glanced down at the paper in his hand, his eyes skimming over the page. "Treasures of the flesh will lead you to the first coin."

* * *

Derek looked up from the map. "The first coin? What the hell does that mean - they're all hidden separately?" He banged a hand down on the table, the loud noise making Betsy jump. Angry and frustrated, she pushed off the couch and marched over to stand in front of him. Deliberately ignoring the gun he pressed against her belly, she pointed to the very top of the page.

"Seriously. Do men ever read the instructions? It says right here that she left a coin at each place to mark the spot, and the chest is at the last place. Since I know you're going to ask why we can't just jump straight to the last clue, I'll just point out that most of the directions after this one are actual travel directions, with a clue to help find the coin. So I'd suggest you actually read the map before we go anywhere." Struggling not to visibly shake from the adrenaline and anger flowing through her system, she stepped back, flinching when he thrust the papers at her.

"Take 'em," he commanded when she didn't immediately reach for the two halves of the map. "You've got this whole thing figured out, so you should be able to lead the way without any trouble."

She took the map, wondering for a second if she could run fast enough...

"Don't even think about it," Derek warned, waving the gun to get her attention. Betsy tried to look defeated, aware of Ian approaching her from behind. His warm hands curled over her shoulders, the touch calming though she watched Derek's lips turn down in disgust.

"How did you find us?" Ian asked, squeezing gently, rhythmically a few times in a motion that made Betsy want to lie down on the floor and take a nap.

Derek stood up, one hand shoved into the pocket of his jeans, the other moving the gun to point at Ian. "When I got out of the joint, I heard about Betsy's betrayal first thing. A friend of mine had a dad who was in the group who used to live here - he told me about all sorts of fun places to hide around these parts. I've been sleeping down here since. It wasn't that hard to figure out where you went when you disappeared into thin air back at the mansion."

Ian's hands slipped away as he eased in front of Betsy. "That doesn't explain how you tracked us here. There are a lot of rooms and tunnels - what made you look here?"

Betsy felt something flutter against her stomach, and glanced down to see Ian pointing towards the passage they'd just left behind his back. He didn't really want her to run back there, where the snake was? Or maybe that's exactly what he wanted. She had no idea what they'd do when they got to the other cavern, but if that's what Ian wanted, she'd trust him.

"It's the only tunnel with a padlock," Derek was saying. "I stole the key from Harley's suite last week."

Betsy rattled the papers, making a show of examining the first page. "I think we need to go to the Harem first. There's a shortcut back this way..." She turned and pointed to the small passage, taking a few steps toward the opening.

Derek's laugh stopped her. "You really think I'm that stupid?" he said, shaking his head. "Or were you just not listening? I've been all through this place - there's no way out of that cavern, unless you plan to climb up the walls and go through that fancy roof."

"I know a way out," Ian said, turning to stalk off toward the rock tunnel.

"Hold it right there. We're doing this my way, and that's that."

Ian stopped, and Betsy knew by the look on Derek's face that whatever Ian had planned wasn't going to work. She watched them, waiting as they both stood motionless for what seemed like hours. Praying Ian wouldn't do anything stupid, she finally let out the breath she was holding when he lifted his hands part way and slowly turned around.

"Fine," he said, shrugging before letting his hands fall back to his side. "Whatever you want - you've got the gun."

Derek nodded. "And don't you forget it. Now let's go." He waved the gun toward the door that opened back into the tunnels. "Betsy says we've got a harem to visit."

* * *

Ian went out into the hall, holding the door open for Betsy and considering slamming it in Derek's face. The other man was right behind her though, and with the gun pointed straight at her back, Ian had no choice but to close the door and follow behind. The third time Betsy asked for directions, he offered to lead, but Derek moved ahead instead, leaving Betsy to fall back.

Ian grabbed her hand as they walked in silence, wanting to reassure her. But she pulled away, and he couldn't help but think that maybe she was disappointed in him. He should have been able to get Derek away from her, somehow. Or help her escape.

Watching her back just barely visible in the darkness, it hit him again how wrong he was for her. The right man would have taken Derek out without a second thought. Or better, he would have forced her to get on a plane and leave before it was too late. But here they were, and it was a little late for heroics.