Shifting Targets (3 page)

Her gaze followed him as he found his bag and
rooted through it for fresh clothes. He peeled the black t-shirt
off then unbuttoned his jeans and removed his boots and socks. She
inwardly gasped at his sex appeal. Wandering around the cabin
half-dressed in bare feet with his fly undone, he sparked her
already mounting desire. The hour ride in the dark cuddled behind
him had stirred the ache in her soul. She always became aroused
when riding with him. Something about the openness and his animal
magnetism just made her burn.

“If you’re trying to tease me, there’s no
need,” she said low and soft. “I was ready before we got here.”

He turned his head sharply, as if shocked by
her bold statement. Their eyes met and locked. She caught the fire
in the smoldering depths of his intense stare and for a moment
thought he’d skip the shower and ravish her. Flutters filled her
stomach as he moved toward her without breaking eye contact. Her
body trembled when his tanned muscled arms scooped her right off
her feet in one smooth move. He stared down at her.

“How hungry are you?” he asked in a throaty
growl.

“Food can wait.” She gasped at his feral
approach. Her hands slid over his hard chest then up into his silky
hair before her arms curled around his neck. “Our swim and dessert
got interrupted back at your cabin.”

“Yeah…” He murmured. “And your sweetness is
what I’ve been craving for dessert.”

Her eyes watered beneath his sensual sway. He
was without a doubt the most naturally seductive man she’d ever
met. With one arm supporting her weight, he used his free hand to
unzip her corset-style top then undid the fly to her low-rise
pants.

“You know what I want, don’t ya, angel?” He
lowered his head and brushed his lips over her bare midriff.

“Mm-hm…” She closed her eyes and let her head
fall back. Just the thought of what he was about to do sent a
delightful tingle through her body. Intense throbbing welled in her
core. She gasped as his lips moved lower. “If you keep teasing
me…”

“No, I’m not going to tease you.” He gently
positioned her backside on the sink while his eyes took her in with
sheer hunger. “You stay perched there looking gorgeous while I peel
these painted-on pants off your long sexy legs…then your agony will
be relieved.”

With both hands braced on the sink ledge, she
leaned back and completely surrendered to this undeniable man.
Whatever he wanted she would eagerly give.

“The second shower was better than the
first,” she said between ragged breaths as they lay on several bath
towels spread on the bathroom floor.

“Hell yeah…you’re awesome.” He buried his
face against her neck, panting for breath. “Dessert is always
better beforehand.”

She let out a light laugh. “You’re right. I’m
usually too full for dessert. I love the way you think.”

“Mm…” He rolled onto his side and gazed down
at her. “But with you, dessert is my appetizer because I can never
get enough of your wild love.”

A pleasurable shiver raced over her.
Everything in her world felt right in his arms. They lay in each
other’s arms exchanging tender kisses and affectionate caresses for
a long time.

“I’ve never seen this on you before.” She
gently lifted the string of beads lying against his chest. “Does
the neckpiece have meaning?”

He laid one hand over hers. “They are prayer
beads…they were Ty’s.”

Her eyes searched his for a few intense
moments. “Then they have great significance. To wear anything
spiritual from a loved one is great medicine in our family. Were
they in the box he left to you?”

Trip shook his head slightly. “His wife
wanted me to have them. She prayed a special blessing over them
before we said goodbye.”

Shye traced the cross-shaped wooden pendant.
“Ty’s spirit rides with you. “

He studied her with open curiosity. “Are you
sure?”

“Yes. He will not rest until his death is
avenged…but then again, neither will you.”

“You continue to amaze me, babe.” He placed a
deeply affectionate kiss on her lips.

They were about to indulge in more hot kisses
when she heard the front door open.

“Sounds like your friend is home.”

“Yeah.” Trip sighed with a hazy expression in
those decadently dark eyes. “I could stay here with you forever
like this.” With open reluctance, he pushed to his feet then pulled
her up.

They took their time dressing. While she
stood in the mirror brushing out her hair and checking her
appearance, he came up behind her. Gently he took the brush from
her hand and began to lovingly brush it. She watched in fascination
as his large hands stroked the long black strands then raked it
with the brush. His eyes met hers in the mirror as he lavished this
new kind of affection over her.

Sweeping her tresses to one side, he lowered
his head and let his lips trail along her neck, leaving a moist
trail of satin kisses from her chin to the nape. She couldn’t
resist reaching back with one hand to slide her fingers into his
hair and lay her head against his shoulder. Bare to the waist, he
looked and felt awesome. She never wanted this moment to end but
knew they had a fight ahead of them.

Until she cleared her name and proved
Carter’s guilt or somehow figured out how to ruin him, she and Trip
would be renegades.

“C’mon, angel, let’s go say hello.” His
softly parted lips feathered her cheek before setting the brush
down and taking her hand.

Walking hand-in-hand, they wandered into the
living area where his friend sat in a recliner chair watching
satellite TV. Tall, thin and considerably older than them with a
long blond ponytail tied behind his head—he looked up with striking
blue eyes.

“Hey, Viper, I thought that was your bike
parked out back. What brings you way up here to my private
palace?”

“Shye, this is Dax,” he said, then reached
out and clasped hands with the man in friendly greeting.

“
Dax
?” She raised a brow at Trip.

“Dax Remle.”

“Nobody calls me
Dax
,” the man said
with a grin. “Not if you want me to answer. My friends call me
Remle
.”

“Nice to meet you.” Shye offered him a
cordial smile.

He took her hand and placed a very light kiss
on the back. “The pleasure is mine, I’m sure.” Then he turned his
attention back to Trip. “So what’s up? You think Draven is up here
somewhere?”

Trip dropped onto the couch, taking her with
him. He wrapped one arm around her bare shoulders. “No, I know
where Draven is. We ran into a bit of trouble in town. Mike Carter
is after Shye.”

Remle furrowed his brow. “Her? A sweet little
thing like her? What does that asshole want with her?”

“He tricked her parents into selling their
farm and she’s trying to take it back. Seems that Carter and Pike
are using the land to expand their operation.”

“You looking for more firepower?”

“Wouldn’t hurt. My woman here is a sharp
shooter and a weapons specialist. She can probably handle anything
you’ve got.”

He stared at her with scrutinizing eyes. “Is
that so?”

Shye nodded, somewhat surprised by the sudden
direction of their conversation. She assumed this man was nothing
more than a hillbilly making moonshine, but it seemed he had more
to offer than a little liquor and he certainly didn’t appear
intoxicated.

“You have a nice place,” she said. “Quite
different inside than it looks on the outside.”

“Keeps people away,” Remle muttered, turning
his focus back toward the TV.

Trip tossed a potato chip at him to get his
attention. “Is it cool if we hang out here?”

“You know the answer, boy. My house is always
open to you.”

“Just checking, man. I never brought company
before.”

Remle gave Shye a hard once over. “No, you
haven’t. She must be special for you to bring her here.”

“Yeah.”

“So how do you plan on getting her land
back?”

“Shye has been draining his resources in hope
of forcing a sale. She was doing a good job until Pike came out of
hiding. We got into a firefight when the prick took her captive.
Not sure what he intended to do with her. He hid her in a barn
instead of turning her over to Carter. I suspect Pike has his own
agenda and plans to get rid of the greasy banker in the end.”

“Then you need to take Draven down before he
no longer needs his banker friend. Otherwise Carter’s assets,
including the farm, will be tied up for years while the family
fights over the will and she’ll never receive justice.”

“Won’t Carter have some kind of backup plan
to keep Pike from turning on him?” Shye asked.

Remle shrugged. “Sure he does but that won’t
stop Draven. The man is stone cold killer. Once Carter is of no
use, he’ll disappear and so will your chance of buying the land
unless his family sells.”

She sat back in contemplation. “I see.”

Trip gave her a light squeeze. “Don’t worry,
babe, we’ll get him.”

“I need to do more than these small daily
robberies.”

“You’re robbing his bank?” Remle’s eyebrows
shot up. “How the hell are you getting away with that?”

“I have talent.”

“The money in his bank is federally insured.
While your attempts are commendable, you’re doing nothing more than
pissing him off. How much money have you taken and where are you
hiding it?”

She looked to Trip for guidance, not sure
what to tell this eccentric older man. He gave her a reassuring
nod.

“I made off with at least half a million
maybe more and the money has been dispersed to various charities
that I’d like to remain anonymous.”

“That’s fine. But if you want to force him
into bankruptcy, which is how you’ll get your land back, you’ll
need to strike his personal accounts…while he’s still alive.”

“Do you have any ideas?” Shye asked.

“Only one,” Remle replied. “If you want to
kill the beast you must take the head first.”

Shye pondered their conversation for a bit,
then said, “So if I keep going after Carter, I’m hindering Trip’s
ability to take down Pike.”

“You’re catching on.”

“You sound like a soldier.” She eyed him
curiously. He talked much smarter than he looked.

“I was.”

“He was my platoon leader in the Marines,”
Trip told her. “We’ve been best friends since.”

“Ah…the connection. I wondered why you
brought me way up here. It wasn’t just to hideout, you wanted
backup.”

Trip and Remle exchanged a glance, then
grinned.

“After what happened back at my cabin, yeah,”
Trip said. “I figured the time had come to call in a little
reinforcement.”

Remle stood up and gave her a smile. “We can
work out a plan in the morning. You two have a good night. Make
yourselves at home.”

“Thank you.” Shye returned his smile, then
turned toward Trip after Remle left the room. “So he’s not a poor
hillbilly living off meager profits of moonshining.”

“He does make his own whiskey.” Trip shrugged
in defense. “But he doesn’t do anything illegal like sell it.”

“Why do you lead me down these paths of
mystery? Do you not trust me?”

“Ah, baby, that’s not it. I had to make sure
Remle was okay with you. After all, we dropped in without notice
and we are on the run.” He brushed her cheek with the back of one
hand. “I didn’t lie…I just didn’t tell you everything. We haven’t
exactly done everything by the book, ya know?”

“True,” she agreed with a relenting smile. “I
didn’t exactly ask before you brought me here. Guess I was just
glad we had somewhere safe to go until a new plan of attack is in
place.”

“Remle’s a cool dude and I won’t have to
worry about him hitting on you.”

She reached up and grabbed his hair then
pulled him down on the couch. “I love a man I can’t figure out.
Dangerous, mysterious and even a little jealous…”

“Mm…I have reason to be jealous. You’re a
rare jewel.” He gave her stomach a playful tickle. “And we have the
rest of this night to enjoy each other.”

Chapter Three

“You might wanna take a look at this.” Remle
dropped a newspaper on the kitchen table in front of Trip. “Did you
sleep well?” he asked Shye.

“Yes, too well. I could get use to living
here. You have a really nice place and it’s so peaceful.”

She smiled while staring into her coffee,
mindlessly toying with the spoon. After a heavenly night of
lovemaking in the guest bedroom, she’d slept in Trip’s arms into
the late morning. She hadn’t slept so sound in a long time. Her
thoughts drifted as she basked in dreamy afterglow until Trip
nudged her back to reality.

“Looks like our situation just got more
complicated.” His dark eyes met hers as he slid the morning news
toward her.

Her mouth dropped open when she glanced at
the front page. “That’s us!” She read the headline.
Wanted!
Renegades for robbing Bluff Ridge Bank.
Her throat felt tight
and her mouth went dry. “I can’t believe that bastard.” Every word
she read after that only increased her rage, bringing on an intense
hot flash that coursed through her body.

Shye Halayi and her accomplice Trip Viper are
sought by law officials in connection with a string of robberies
that occurred over the past week, as reported by Mike Carter. Shye
was seen leaving the bank by an unidentified witness, carrying an
undetermined amount of money. Anyone with information on this pair
is advised to contact Sherriff Roone immediately. They are
considered armed and dangerous.

“Looks like he found his way out of the
woods.” She sighed. “He’s trying to pin us down before we expose
him.” She shook her head in dismay. “I’m not letting him get away
with it. You had nothing to do with this and now you’re a wanted
man. You wouldn’t be in this mess if not for me.”