Zack (Armed and Dangerous Book 1) (4 page)

Damn.
Skylar’s eyes suddenly ached and a tear threatened to roll down her cheek. She was not going to let him do this to her again.

She slid down the door until she was sitting on the hard tile, wrapped her arms around her knees, and pressed her face against her legs. Images of the past came to her, and her heart felt like Zack had taken it away from her all over again.

A handsome deputy sheriff and a wide-eyed first-year Cochise College student...

That hot, sweaty September rodeo...

Even after all these months and years, Skylar could still taste the sawdust and salt on her tongue.

I took the trophy in women’s barrel racing.

And Zack took my heart. I was standing with my friends as they congratulated me, and I had that feeling. Somebody there. Somebody watching... me.

Skylar clenched her hands to keep herself grounded as she wrapped her arms around her knees tighter. She couldn’t help but remember how she’d turned slightly and had seen him. She had caught her breath at the sight of his gray eyes looking at her so intensely, like he’d already claimed her.

A whirling sensation had stirred in her belly, as if she were still on her mare and barrel racing. Heat had flushed Skylar’s cheeks as his gaze slowly traveled over her. Her body had responded, her nipples tightening beneath her western shirt, and that place between her thighs had tingled. Her lips parted as if she could already feel the pressure of his mouth on hers, his hands caressing her body.

The corner of his mouth had curved slightly, an arrogant expression on his face that told her he knew exactly how he was affecting her.

A flash of anger had had her straightening her spine and turning away from the cocky jerk.

Trying to bring herself to the present, Skylar sighed and raised her head and looked around her living room. In one corner were hers and her sister Trinity’s trophies from numerous rodeos they’d competed in from the time they were very young until they each went on to pursue their college degrees.

Still Skylar couldn’t get the memories out of her mind. It was as if the trophies called forth more images. Especially the trophy she’d won that night. As her gaze rested on it, she swallowed.

“Congratulations, Sky MacKenna.”

That was the first thing Zack ever said to her—in a voice so deep it had caused shivers to roll down her spine. Sky couldn’t forget those words, how he’d sounded, or the way his warm breath tickled her ear as he leaned close.

Of course, she’d turned around so fast she’d almost smacked right into him.

Then he touched her.

Just to steady her shoulders, but she held on to that stupid trophy like she was warding him off. As if she ever could. So tall, so virile. Her senses and hormones melted at the exact same moment.

What chance did I have against that tall drink of perfect man?

None.

Not then, and not now.

Skylar gave up and let herself slip completely back in time, to that perfect, steaming moment when her life changed forever.

“How do you know my name?” she’d asked in a shaky voice. “And it’s Skylar, not Sky.”

“They announced it over the loudspeakers.” The look in his eyes had a hint of amusement in them. “And you’re too pretty to be a Skylar. You’re definitely like the sky on a clear day. Beautiful.”

She hadn’t been able to think of anything to say. All she could do was stand there, her face burning, clinging to her only lifeline, the gold-plated trophy.

“Save a dance for me tonight, Sky,” he’d murmured, his gray eyes clearly confident that she wouldn’t deny him.

And God help her, she couldn’t say no.

She’d given a nod. “I-I’ve got to go.”

The smile he’d given her was devastatingly sensual. “I’ll see you tonight.”

She’d nodded again before she turned from him and pushed her way through her group of friends and the rodeo crowd.

Her thoughts had whirled. She hadn’t known what had just happened. If she had known what the future would hold, she would have run hard and she would have run fast.

Right?

Skylar raised her face from bent knees and banged the back of her head hard against the door. She looked up at the off-white- painted ceiling. A spider had decided to make itself at home in one corner. She’d have to get the broom and take care of it—

Why was she thinking about spiders?

Anything to stop thinking of him.

Zack Hunter.

But as Skylar stared up at the ceiling she couldn’t bring herself to regret the time she’d had with Zack. It had only been six months, but it had been the most precious six months of her life.

No, she couldn’t regret a moment with him.

She banged the back of her head against the door again. Trying to think about something else couldn’t get Zack’s face out of her mind.

“Goddamnit, Zack,” she said in a hoarse whisper. “Why did you have to come here? Why did you have to kiss me?”

The room remained eerily quiet in response.

A hard knock on the door startled the silence as the vibrations traveled through her.

Zack?

Another hard knock. She pushed herself away from the door, got to her feet, and faced it. Her hands shook. The brass was cool against her palm as she opened the door, then let out a breath of relief when she saw it was Luke.

Or was it disappointment because it wasn’t Zack?

Not going there.

Luke pushed up the brim of his Stetson as he stood on her porch and appraised her. “Everything okay, Skylar?”

She did her best to smile and not look rattled. “Sure. Fine.”

He frowned and the look in his eyes told her he didn’t believe her one darn bit. “Mind if I come in?” He took off his hat as she backed away so that he could step through.

“This Zack Hunter,” he said after she shut the door. “I got the feeling you weren’t too happy to see him.”

The way she’d all but run Zack off her ranch, no wonder Luke was concerned. “He’s an old boyfriend.” She shrugged as if Zack appearing out of the blue was nothing. “It’s been ten years since I saw him last and he was stopping by to say hi.”

As Luke studied her like he was deciding whether to let it lie or press her, Skylar couldn’t help but compare him to Zack. Yeah, Luke was hot, but in her mind no man had ever measured up to Zack. She had often wondered if perhaps her memories had become distorted, and that he wasn’t half the man she remembered him to be. But after today, she knew the truth.

He was twice the man she remembered.

Crap.

God, seeing Zack was sending her imagination into overdrive. “Let me know if you need anything.” Luke interrupted her thoughts as he hit his Stetson against his leg. “I mean it.”

“I think one of the best decisions I’ve made was hiring you.” Skylar had no problem smiling at his genuine concern. Luke never made her feel like she couldn’t take care of herself because she was a woman. He simply watched her back as he would for any man. She patted the cell phone in its holster at the waistband of her jeans. “I’ll call you first thing if something comes up.”

“I expect you to.” He had two phones holstered on his belt. One was a phone she’d provided—she gave each one of her men a cell phone to make sure she could reach them at any time when they were on duty or in case there was an emergency. The other phone on Luke’s belt was no doubt for personal use.

“Promise.” She laid her hand on his forearm as he grasped the door handle, and he paused. “Thanks for caring.”

Luke opened the door and she let her hand drop away. “Just watch your ass, Skylar.”

She nodded and he walked through the door and shut it behind him.

Almost mechanically, Skylar drew the Smith & Wesson from the holster at her side. She slid it into a hidden drawer beneath an end table next to the couch. Her thoughts immediately turned from Luke’s concern to Zack and she rubbed her temples.

She’d had almost a decade to ready herself for the possibility she’d see Zack again. But nothing had prepared her for today. He’d filled out in a hard, masculine way that made him sexier than ever. Even that scar he’d gotten from the fight with his stepfather made Zack’s features more rugged and heartbreaking.

“Get a grip, Sky,” she muttered, and then stomped her boot on the tile, the sound echoing through her empty living room.
Damnit!
She hadn’t thought of herself as anything but Skylar since Zack had left her all those years ago. Only Zack had ever called her Sky. “Not Sky. Skylar, Skylar, Skylar, Skylar.”

A combination of anger, frustration, and sadness raged through her like a dust storm. How dare he? How dare he come back and do this to her again?

She stopped by an end table beside the rich leather couch and traced her fingers over one of her dad’s bronze Remington sculptures. She looked down at the extremely valuable sculpture named Outlaw.

Outlaw. The way Zack had stolen her heart, he was just as much of an outlaw.

Skylar snatched her hand away from the sculpture, feeling as if it had burned her. The heat of her anger increased and she curled her fingers into her palm. Did everything have to remind her of him?

She pinched the bridge of her nose. The memory of his goodbye was as vivid as the images from the day they’d met.

Her heart had ached for him as she’d gone to him at the sheriff’s department. This time he wasn’t leaving the jailhouse as a sheriff’s deputy.

This time he’d been arrested for almost killing a man.

His stepfather.

The bastard who’d married and physically abused Zack’s mother hadn’t pressed charges. Instead he’d fled the state taking all of Zack’s mother’s cash with him.

When Skylar had met Zack outside the county jail just outside of Bisbee, Zack had looked so angry that she’d taken an involuntary step away from him. Hurt, then more anger had flashed in his eyes.

“Don’t shut me out!”

Skylar squeezed her eyes closed at the memory of her own plea. How hard it had been to talk. How her breath left her like someone had punched her right in the gut.

She had asked him to stay.

Begged him to talk to her.

And he’d walked right past her and ignored her as she called to him. One tear after another had rolled down her cheeks as she watched him climb into his truck and drive away.

Maybe it was then she knew she had lost him. She just would never have admitted it to herself.

Everything had changed.

Everything.

Bastard. Skylar brought her fingers from her face and opened her eyes as she clenched her fists, willing the memories to leave her alone. “Go away!” she shouted out loud to the huge living room.

But the memories wouldn’t stop.

He hadn’t returned her calls for two days. Two days that she’d cried her heart out.

When he finally stopped by the ranch she had run out into the driveway, flung her arms around his neck, and pressed herself against his hard body. She still remembered how wonderful he had smelled. Masculine. Spicy.

“I love you,” she’d whispered. “I love you so much.”

Zack pulled her arms from around his neck, took her by the shoulders, and set her apart from him.

Instantly she’d felt the loss, a chill overcoming her body so violently her skin prickled.

Every word he uttered in the next moment had hit Skylar like a hammer blow.

“I’m not ready for a commitment,” Zack had said in a hard voice. “We’re both too young.” Ice had flooded her veins as he continued, “It’s best to break it off before things get serious.”

“Best?” she’d whispered, but he kept talking.

“I’m leaving for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia. At FLETC I’ll train to be a federal agent.” His eyes had softened for the briefest of moments before he added, “I’m not good enough for you, Sky.”

And like that, it was over. Zack had turned and walked away from her and her love.

Skylar had stood in the driveway like a frozen statue, unable to move, unable to speak.

He hadn’t looked back. He had climbed into his truck and driven off, leaving only a dust cloud in his wake.

And she’d never seen him again.

Until today.

“Goddamn you, Zack Hunter.” Skylar wanted to scream it at the top of her lungs, but it came out hoarse and filled with pain. “I should hate you,” she added. Her voice lowered to a whisper as she repeated, “I should
hate
you.”

Zack’s SUV’s tires rattled over the cattle guard again as he left the Flying M, his thoughts wholly on Sky. How Sky had tasted, how her nipples had hardened against his chest, the feel of her silky hair between his fingers, and her soft lips beneath his.

With a hell of a lot of effort, Zack fought down the lust that had filled him since seeing her. He forced his thoughts from the beauty and fire of Sky to the irritation of having to meet an old rival. Not an enemy, but almost as bad.

Zack, his mother, and his brother, Cabe, had moved from Flagstaff to Douglas when Cabe got out of juvie. Zack had been a freshman in high school and almost immediately he and Larson had clashed.

Their rivalry had started when Casey Gonzales chose to go to the Freshman Winter Dance with Zack instead of Wade, and continued through their senior year when Zack had been selected captain of the Douglas Bulldogs football team. He and Wade had damn near come to blows a few times, and it was a wonder they never had.

After high school, Wade Larson had traveled the state and national rodeo circuits. After a broken pelvic bone, several broken ribs, and a crushed knee, Larson had been forced to quit bull riding.

Even though Larson’s ranch bordered the MacKennas’, like Zack, Larson hadn’t been around the younger Sky MacKenna because Sky had been four years behind them in school. Larson probably had seen Sky on the junior rodeo circuit when he was competing, but she had been a hell of a lot younger than him—still a teenager.

Through her gossipy friends’ grapevine, Zack’s mother had let on that Larson had shown interest in Sky a month before Zack had met her. Apparently she hadn’t been interested in Larson.

Zack shook his head. After their run-ins during high school, Zack getting the girl again had been one more blow to Larson in their none-too-friendly history.