Undeniable (3 page)

Kate kept to the shadows while watching the long column of trucks come into view. “Shep, you see that?”

“Didn't know they were operating this far into the frontier,” he said, coming up behind her to peek out the window. “Better stay inside 'til we know whose side they're on.”

She expected the convoy to continue on past, but one by one they pulled into the church parking lot.

Kate held her breath, her heartbeat racing—the first suffocating wash of true fear pouring down her spine in an icy fall.

From the lead vehicle, a door opened and a man dressed in blue jeans and a black leather jacket jumped from the cab to the hard pavement below.

Her first sight of him told her instinctively here was bigger trouble than she'd already faced. This wasn't the stupid scum she'd squared off with. He was a hundred times more intimidating.

For one, he was a big man. Taller even then Sam, his wide shoulders and muscled thighs bespoke of years of physical training. In close quarters, he'd be impossible to beat. She squeezed the grip of her weapon harder, already thinking about where she'd have to place the first shot to bring him down quick.

The closer he strode, the greater her unease. Not only did he have the size to make her heart leap to the back of her throat, he moved with a rangy grace that said he'd be fast on his feet. His face with its square jaw and sharp cheekbones completed the portrait of an unstoppable man once he'd set his eyes on a target.

Now she just hoped that dark, hard gaze never rested on her.

While she drew deep breaths to calm her racing heart and the tremor of her hands, an uninvited thought crossed her mind. If she weren't battling for her life in the middle of an Apocalypse, this would be the sort of man she'd want. Dangerous, brutal—sexy as hell.

But he was dressed in civilian clothes and riding in a military vehicle. Was he just the leader of a smarter band of criminals?

He stopped about twenty paces from the church doors and put his hands on his hips. “Kate McKinnon, are you in there?”

She jerked at the familiar deep tones of his voice. Her startled glance found Shep's.

His eyes were narrowed in his lined face, and he shook his head. “You know him?” he hissed. “Might be some kind a trick.”

“This is Ty Bennett.”

Kate closed her eyes and sank against the wall, feeling like her whole world was spinning out of control. How could this be?

“Kate, the cavalry's here, sweetheart.”

 

 

Ty held his breath as the slender figure descended the church steps. Although garbed in a long duster and wearing a cowboy hat that cast shadows over her face, he could tell a lot about the woman he'd come half the state away to rescue. Her slender shoulders were square, her chin held high.

The smart-mouthed woman he'd talked to endless nights looked brave—and brittle as glass.

The closer she came, the more his body tightened.

“She's prettier than I expected,” Diego murmured as he stepped behind him.

Ty didn't bother to say he'd noticed too. He'd already been fighting an unexplainable attraction to the sassy voice on the radio, but he thought she'd be older. The woman walking toward him was shaping up to be a delicious surprise.

When Kate stopped several feet away, he noted the edge of her jacket tucked behind her holster and the suspicion glinting in her eyes. A shotgun barrel poked out a window of the church behind her.

A smile curved one corner of his mouth.
Good girl.
Someone was watching her back.

Kate stood motionless, but swept his men with a quick glance as they dismounted their vehicles and waited beside them for direction. When her glance came back to him, her expression was stony. “You might have mentioned you were coming for a visit,” she said, her voice tight.

Her husky inflection tugged at his cock. The game had begun.

Knowing she was easily riled, he decided to bait her. He didn't like her scared—angry, he could handle. He lifted one brow. “And I thought I told you to stay put.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I don't follow orders very well,” she said, her tone dead level.

Diego snorted behind him, and Ty knew his buddy was laughing his ass off.

Kate lifted her chin toward the convoy. “Now a person might wonder how men such as you came into possession of military vehicles.”

“A person? You wondering how, Kate?” he drawled. “Maybe I'm just a resourceful kind of guy.”

Her nostrils flared, and her lips tightened. “And I'm just wondering what else you might be, Ty Bennett.”

That's when he saw the hint of vulnerability in her gaze—and a glint of hope. This woman had lived a nightmare and needed what he offered worse than she knew. “Kate, we're ex-military living at Fort Davis in the Davis Mountains. Before things went to hell, we were part of a border patrol outfit—light infantry.” Some of it was true. What he left out would have to wait until she knew him better.

Kate's lips relaxed a fraction. “Why no uniforms?”

“We were mustered out of the service when the post closed.”

“They left behind functioning equipment?”

“They were in a hurry. Everything was abandoned. We've taken over the post.”

“Is this everyone? All your people?”

“I left men behind to guard the post.”

Her breath gasped softly. “Only men?”

He read her panic and decided to sidestep the issue for now. Concentrate on the pluses. “There's a sturdy fence, a mess hall, food in storage to last a large unit months, an artesian well…everything a community needs to survive. We have room for you and yours if you'll come.”

“There are only half a dozen women at the ranch—three are married,” she said faintly.

“We won't take what's not offered.” The quiet, firm tone of his voice was meant to reassure her, but he knew she'd seen too much to trust blindly.

Her jaw flexed, and she looked away. “So how'd you know it was me in there?”

“I sent out scouts in advance of the convoy. They saw you enter town, hit the grocery store like kamikazes, and then steal gas at the station. I don't believe another female in this area would be so brazen. We got here as quick as we could when those bastards chased you here.”

She shot him a pointed glance. “Your timing was amazing.” Again, suspicion colored her tone.

“Remember, I didn't expect to find you here. You were supposed to sit tight,” he said, baiting her again.

Kate snorted. “Like I said—”

His lips twitched. “Yeah, I know. You don't follow orders well. That's gonna change.”

Her dark eyebrows shot up.

Before she could answer the challenge he'd thrown down, he continued, “Katie, you can't stay in Sanctuary any longer. You know it. Those men inside know it. You're living on borrowed time until the werebeasts take down your fence.”

“It's my ranch, my home,” she said through stiff lips.

“Maybe someday you can come back to it. For now, you need to get yourself and all those people depending on you somewhere safe. I've brought the trucks and the men—we can get you out of here.”

She drew a deep breath, and her hands clenched into fists. “Why, Ty? Why would you do this? You don't even know me.”

He formed his lips into a lop-sided smile. “You won't just let me be the Lone Ranger riding to the rescue?”

“I don't believe in heroes anymore,” she said, her voice thickening. She blinked against the moisture filling her eyes, her sorrow and disillusionment etched in her strained features.

Ty gave her time to get herself under control, but didn't look away to give her any privacy. Every tear, every worry, every delight she held inside would be his. From this moment onward, he'd never let her hide.

“Fair enough,” he said quietly, choosing his next words carefully. Trust would have to be built one stone at a time. “Would you believe me if I said I came for you?”

She stood motionless. “Are you talking a trade? Get my people out safely—for me?”

“If that's what makes you more comfortable with the whole idea.”

“I just wanted it spelled out,” she gritted out.

“So what do you say?”

“I say, I'll kill you if you're lying.”

He suppressed a smile. “About the coming after you part?”

“No, about the part where you'll get my people out.”

“Do we have a deal?” He held out his hand, knowing this was the moment when she'd have to place her trust in him and take her hand away from where it rested alongside her weapon.

Her jaw clenched, and she drew in a deep breath and slowly raised her hand.

He slid his palm along hers and let his index finger glide up to the pulse that throbbed at her wrist. It quickened the longer he held her hand, convincing him the attraction he felt was answered. “So where are we going to bed down for the night?”

 

Chapter Three

Kate felt the earth move beneath her feet—so shocking was the undercurrent of sensual promise in his question. She drew in a shaky breath. “We're not stayin' in town.”

He laid his other hand on top of hers, enveloping her in heat that radiated up her arm and to places she had no business noticing when danger was still afoot. “My men need to top off the vehicles and find that crowd of troublemakers before we head out to your ranch.”

“Fine,” she said, her voice clipped. “We'll see you at the ranch tomorrow. I'll be sure to tell the men at the gates not to shoot you on sight.”

He squeezed her hand. “I don't want you heading out there on your own. The sky will be pitch-black soon.”

“We're ready for any trouble.” The only trouble she saw was standing right in front of her.

His eyes narrowed. “There's no need to take the risk. We're here to help. Let us do our job.”

She slowly pulled away her hand. She couldn't think when he touched her. At least not about anything that made any sense. His broad frame and handsome face turned her brains to mush.

“Katie, you need any help out there?” Shep shouted through the window.

Still not willing to turn her back on Ty and his men, she shouted over her shoulder. “Everything's under control,” she lied.

“We need to talk,” Ty said.

“I agree. There's a gazebo out back on the grass.”

“You really want to be out in the open for it?”

“Who the hell's gonna attack with the Army in the front yard?” The intimacy of four walls around them would be too tempting. She'd fantasized about him too long.

He drew a deep breath and signaled with a wave of his hand for her to precede him into the church.

Accepting his direction meant turning her back on him and his men. But hadn't she already surrendered when she'd left the safety of the church? What chance did she really have if things turned ugly? Deep inside, she wanted to trust him. Wanted so much more.

This man had kept the hope for a better future alive in her heart for months. He'd made no promises and told her damn little about himself—but she'd held tight to the strength in his voice when he'd admonished her for being reckless, praised her for her courage and comforted her all those times she'd felt so overwhelmed.

She'd wanted to turn over the reins to someone stronger and more capable. Well, here he was.

His body appeared relaxed, like he had all the time in the world for her to make up her mind. She wondered what he saw and wished now she'd at least run a comb through her hair before she'd bound it in her usual ponytail.

Her dad had always said she should go with her gut when logic failed. Her instincts told her he was a dangerous man—and she wanted him on her side. Whatever the cost.

If her body was only too happy to surrender, she was entitled to enjoy making payment. She turned and led the way into the church, her heart skipping a beat when his hand settled on the small of her back. The pressure, even through her coat, thrilled her.

Shep awaited them, his rifle barrel pointing toward the ceiling. His eyebrows rose when he saw how close Ty stood.

“I know him, Shep. He's here to help.”

He nodded and lowered his weapon as more men filed inside the chapel, but he didn't look happy.

“I'll have the men get the generator going and set up a perimeter defense,” Ty said.

Another load off her shoulders. She glanced above to the choir loft. “It's okay, Danny. You can come down, now.”

Danny's face, brimming with curiosity peered over the balcony. “You sure?”

“Yeah. I've been…expecting them.”

Ty nudged her back, a reminder he wanted to talk.

“I'll be in the back,” she said to Danny and Shep. “Take a load off. Looks like we'll be spendin' the night here.”

She headed to the back of the church, hanging a left at the altar and striding into the corridor where the church offices stood vacant. The door leading to the lawn in back opened with a whine, and Kate stepped into deepening twilight with Ty right behind her.

Their boots crunched on the dry grass adding to the crackling tension building in her shoulders and back. Ty was here. They were alone. What would happen between them? Would he insist on taking his pleasure now the bargain had been made?

She wasn't sure whether the thought excited or appalled her. Sam had been her only lover, but not once in their years-long arrangement had she felt this sharp-edged excitement.

Mingled with anticipation was the fear she'd disappoint. Ty was so much more man than she was woman.

They climbed the steps of the gazebo, and she turned to face him. Shielded from any prying gaze by the lattice-board sides of the building and the dried vines clinging to the frame, they stared at each other for a long moment.

Now that they were alone, she felt more than a little unnerved by his dark, hooded gaze. She cleared her throat. “You said you wanted to talk.”