In Plain Sight (Stolen Hearts) (22 page)

Chapter Thirteen

A few hours later, Bridget stretched and pushed away from the worktable. She’d gotten a lot accomplished after supper. Another couple of days, and she’d have all the sections of the necklace connected.

And then what? That was the big question, wasn’t it? Armand would take it to another person to set the stones. She walked to the door of the barn. It smelled like rain was moving in. At supper, Cyrus had expressed concern about a storm tomorrow, but she’d been so busy trying to keep her food down, she hadn’t paid attention to what he’d said. Why did people call it morning sickness? Her nausea struck at the most unexpected times. She’d even played with the idea that she wasn’t pregnant, but this evening her breasts felt heavy and full, like she was having her period. Except not.

After supper, when she’d announced she was going back to work, Rafe had elected to play cards with Armand. Cyrus stayed in the kitchen with them, probably no longer certain who needed watching more, and she supposed Louis had disappeared up the ridge to keep vigil for the night. She might as well go to bed. She’d slept better than she’d anticipated last night with Rafe just down the hall. Instead of disturbing her, his presence had been reassuring. But these days she always seemed to need more rest.

She looked over her workspace before leaving. With the necklace almost finished, she didn’t feel comfortable leaving it in the barn, but she didn’t care to go to the house to give it to Armand, either. The testosterone level around the farm was too much for her to handle the last few days, especially with her own hormones in flux.

She slipped the finished part of the necklace and the two sections she still had to work on into one of the side pockets of the cargo pants she wore for work. She’d only had to drop melted silver on her bare leg once to learn her lesson.

She switched off the light and made her way through the dark to the trailer. Halfway across the bare, dusty yard, someone slipped out of the shadows and blocked her way. “It’s not safe to walk by yourself at night.”

Armand! She put her hand on her heart to keep it from beating right out of her chest. “You scared me.”

“Good.” He grabbed her elbow and jerked her toward the trailer. “You don’t have your head in the game. You have to be more aware,
mon amie
.” He kept his voice low.

“The necklace is almost finished. I brought it with me. Do you want it?”

“Not until it’s done. This is for you.”

She felt something heavy slip into the other pocket low on the leg of her pants. Her breath stalled in her throat. He’d given her a gun. “Armand,” she began.

“I know,” he interrupted. “But you know how to use it, and you may have to. It is no longer a matter of principle, but of survival.”

He pulled her close and kissed her forehead. “I love you. Now go to bed and sleep well. Tomorrow you finish the necklace.”

“Good night, Armand.” She kissed his cheek, went into the trailer and let out a long breath after she closed the door. She didn’t like how he’d spoken to her. He’d sounded like someone who didn’t expect to see her again for a long while.

Shit. She gathered her hair up on top of her head, then let if fall back down. He wouldn’t disappear tonight because she had the necklace. And he needed it, right? Or did he? Why couldn’t Cyrus or Louis pass the necklace to whoever was jerking Armand’s chain? Would he do that to her? Leave her and Rafe to fend for themselves? Did he think one little gun would be enough to combat the arsenal those two probably had?

As if coming out of a fog that had enveloped her the last month, everything came into sharp focus. She pulled the gun out of her pocket and checked it. Six bullets. Okay. The revolver fit neatly into her palm. She’d practiced shooting a similar gun years ago when Armand had insisted she learn how to shoot. She hadn’t held a gun since those lessons, but it felt surprisingly familiar in her hand now. She could shoot it if she had to. She shoved the gun back into her side pocket.

Next, she dug a small knapsack out of the cupboard where her clothes had been put. She grabbed two bottles of water from the refrigerator and a handful of energy bars one of the men had left behind when they’d moved to the house.

What else? She looked around the trailer. It would be great to have a raincoat in case the storm hit when they were trying to escape. She halted in the act of pulling three garbage bags from under the sink. Just exactly how did she think they were going to escape? As far as that went, how would Armand leave? Would he drive the SUV, and if he did, could she and Rafe hide in it? Or meet him down the lane? Or— When the door to the trailer opened, she stuffed the knapsack under the sink and closed the cupboard door.

Rafe squinted at her through the dark and flicked on the light. “What are you doing?”

She rubbed her sweaty hands down the sides of her pants. “I’m, uh, getting ready for bed.”

“You use the shower first. I’ll wait.” His eyes lit up as a corner of his mouth quirked up.

She smiled back at him, savoring the same memory of the time they’d showered together. Right before everything had fallen apart. She turned her back and hurried into the bathroom before he could see her tears. She couldn’t imagine a time when they would feel free enough to indulge in mind-blowing sex again.

He was waiting for her when she came out of the bathroom. “I need to talk to you, and the bedroom is the only place that’s safe.”

He moved back and raised his voice. “Sleep well. As soon as I have a shower I’m turning in, too.”

She slipped past his big body, went into the bedroom and perched on the side of the bed while she listened to the water running in the shower. Her stomach felt jittery, but more from nerves than nausea. He wanted to talk to her, that was all. She was being silly.

The water stopped running, and it was quiet in the bathroom for a minute. She turned hot all over at the thought of Rafe drying his beautiful, wet body. Then she heard him brushing his teeth, and sitting on the bed, waiting for him as he performed his nightly ritual, suddenly felt too intimate. She stood to leave at the same time Rafe appeared with a towel wrapped around his waist.

“Sorry. I need something clean to wear. Very thoughtful of Armand to provide me with new underwear.” He dug around in one of the drawers and pulled a pair of briefs out of a plastic bag.

“How about you?”

She stayed by the door. Rafe had a weird edge to him, like he was suddenly angry at her. “What?”

“Did your boyfriend buy new underwear for you as well?”

“He’s not my boyfriend.”

“No? I was watching you from the house earlier. You two looked very…friendly.”

Rafe was jealous? Of Armand? She turned her back when he dropped his towel to pull on black briefs.

“Not getting modest on me all of a sudden, are you?”

She swung back to face him. God, he looked magnificent. “There is nothing between Armand and me.”

That wasn’t completely true, and she could tell by the questioning look in Rafe’s eyes he didn’t know what to believe. She rubbed her hands over her face, fatigue blindsiding her.

“I’m sorry. Please, sit. You look exhausted, and I’m acting like an idiot.”

She sat on the edge of the bed and waited for him to sit beside her, but he didn’t. He crawled on the bed behind her, and she had to scoot sideways to see him. He lay on his side to face her and supported his head with his hand. Her breath caught in her throat. No wonder they were willing to pay him tons of money to pose.

The cotton nightie Armand had provided for her suddenly looked like a cheap scrap of cotton, and she felt like a bag of bones, all angles and no curves.

“Come closer.” He patted the bed between them. “Armand says this room isn’t bugged, but I’m not taking any chances.”

Reluctantly, she stretched out beside him, mirroring his position. He smiled and scooted a few more inches closer until their knees connected. As if they talked in bed all the time, he casually draped a hand on her bony hip.

“Armand says there’s a second set of keys to the SUV in the green toolbox under the pliers set. I haven’t had a chance to look, but I’ll get them tomorrow morning. I needed you to know, just in case,” he whispered.

“Armand gave me a gun.”

Rafe jerked upright. “What?”

“Shhh.” She pulled him back down beside her. “He taught me how to shoot years ago. I’m worried he’s planning on taking off and leaving us behind.”

“Why? What did he say to you?”

That he loved her. Rafe didn’t need to hear Armand’s confession. Her head drooped. She was drowning in secrets. “It wasn’t what he said, but how he said it. Like I may never see him again. I packed a knapsack.”

“Why?”

“Because. I don’t know. We may need water. I thought we should be prepared.”

He smiled at her. “I’m trying to imagine you twelve years old, wearing a Guide uniform.”

She tried to smile back. “I couldn’t afford the stupid uniform when I was twelve.”

“Maybe you should give me the gun.”

She raised her eyebrows. If she were being honest, she’d have to admit she liked having the gun. It gave her a feeling of control. “How much shooting practice have you had?”

“None, but—”

“Well, I have. I’m keeping the gun.”

Without appearing to move a muscle, he felt closer to her. “My cell phone is in the SUV. If I can get to it, I can call out.”

“Do you know where we are?”

“Armand says North Andover in Essex County. And my bicycle is still in the back of the car. If we can get to the SUV, we drive to the locked gate, puncture the car tires and take off on the bike.”

He grabbed her shoulders. “We have a chance to get out of here, Bridget. Tomorrow, during the storm. You set fire to the barn, I race to the SUV and open the doors and grab my phone. You jump in and we take off.”

Her heart hurt it was beating so fast. “On one condition.”

“What?”

“If I take too long to get to the car, you leave.”

He dropped his hands. “No.”

“One of us free is better than both of us imprisoned here. It makes sense, Rafe. They’ll be watching me more closely than they will you. Promise me.”

“No fucking way am I leaving you here. Deal with it.”

She reached toward him and ran her finger over his bottom lip. “It may be the only way. You can come back for me.”

He turned his face into her hand and kissed her palm. “I miss you so much. Make love to me, Bridget.”

“I don’t know.” She glanced toward the door.

He closed the small gap between them and planted kisses along her jaw. When he reached her mouth, his tongue flicked out to trace her bottom lip. “Lock the door if it makes you feel more comfortable.”

The full length of his hard body pressed into hers, his arousal pushing against her belly. She arched up to meet his involuntary thrust and wrapped her arms around his neck. “In a minute. Kiss me first.” She needed to feel him against her, inside her.

He put a hand on either side of her head and brushed his lips against hers. “You taste—” He teased her mouth open and swept his tongue inside. “—like strawberries.”

He deserted her mouth to kiss the soft spot behind her ear, her own, private erogenous zone. Her breath caught, and she dug her fingers into his hard shoulder muscles.

“This is my favorite spot.” He nuzzled her behind her ear. “And your beautiful neck.” He slowly worked his way down the length of her neck and licked the hollow at the base of her throat. “This spot is so delicate. So vulnerable.”

He raised his head. “I think we better lock that door now.”

“Door,” she repeated, ripples of pleasure weighing down her limbs.

He grinned. “I’ll get it.” He rolled off the bed and locked the door, then turned to face her as he slipped off his briefs. His arousal jutted up against his stomach.

Bridget tried to catch a breath but couldn’t seem to get enough oxygen into her lungs. He was so beautiful. More beautiful now than when she’d first met him. His hair had grown longer and part of it fell over his forehead. It seemed to go with the beard that shadowed his face. His nose had a definite bend to it that strangely made him look more approachable. And his eyes were blue flames, dark with desire. And then his amazing, hard, muscled body. An Adonis.
Her
Adonis.