Spy High (30 page)

I blew out a frustrated breath. “That’s
exactly what I’ve been struggling with. So you don’t see anything
I’m missing?”

“Not off-hand. As long as you’re
trackin’ Orion, I think that’s the best ya can do unless somethin’
else changes.”

“Shit.” I stared gloomily at my feet.
“So I’m stuck here, just waiting. Damn.” After a few more strides,
I added, “I wish Nichele wasn’t here. I have a really bad feeling
about this, and I don’t want her in the middle of it.”

“Ya think she’ll leave soon?”

I cocked a jaundiced eye at the blue
sky. “If the weather turns to shit like it’s been for the last four
months, she’ll be gone before you can say ‘five-star hotel’. But as
long as it’s nice like this, who knows? She’s having so damn much
fun with Aurora and she’s so freaked out about Dave’s marriage
proposal, she might just decide to stay a while.”

“But ya said Dave’s back in Victoria
tomorrow. If ya tell him it’s dangerous here, d’ya think he can
convince her to go?”

I kicked at a fir cone on the path.
“He’s afraid to try. If he pushes her…”

I trailed off, and Hellhound nodded
understanding and slipped an arm around my shoulders. “Well, try
not to worry, darlin’. Chances are nothin’ll happen in the next few
days an’ she’ll just get sick of it here an’ take off. An’ I’ll
stay, so there’ll be two of us to watch out for her.”

“Thank you.” I halted to slide my arms
around his neck. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” I reached
up to kiss him. “And other parts of my body are feeling pretty
thankful, too.”

His hands roamed down my back to cup my
ass. “Yep, you’re feelin’ pretty thankful to me, but I better check
everythin’ out just to be sure.”

“Oh, definitely.”

Our next kiss was longer.

At last Hellhound pulled away,
grinning. “This time we’re gonna make it to your tent. Pushin’ in
the bush is all fine an’ good, but I got things I wanna do to ya
that’re gonna take some time.” He gave me a slow up-and-down look.
“An’ I wanna enjoy the view.”

I pressed close for another quick kiss.
“Me, too. All I got to see earlier was a close-up of the
stump.”

He clasped my hand and pulled me down
the path. “Can’t have that. This time I’ll give ya a close-up of my
wood.”

Laughing, we ducked into my tent and I
secured the flap behind us. I stole another quick kiss before
pulling away to check Orion’s tracker one more time.

“Ha! Look at this.” I showed Hellhound
the moving red dot. “It’s working! He’s moving around up by the
garage.”

He frowned. “Ya think we oughta watch
for a while an’ see where he goes?”

The dot halted, and I grinned. “Looks
like he’s not leaving yet. I think we’d better find something to do
to pass the time while we wait for him to move.”

“Good plan.” He shrugged off his pack
and flexed his shoulders with a sigh. “That’s better. Now, where
was I?” He pulled me into a kiss. “Think I was here,” he mumbled
against my lips. “Or maybe…” His whiskers traced a tingling path to
my earlobe. “Here…”

I shivered and pressed closer, pulling
the tail of his T-shirt out of his jeans to slide my hands
underneath.

“Mmm. Or maybe here…” He nibbled a
trail of kisses down my throat, easing the neck of my sweatshirt
aside to find the magic spot near my collarbone.

“Oh, yeah.” My voice came out on a
gasp. “Yeah, there…”

We moved toward the mattress, shedding
clothes.

“Mm, hang on a sec, darlin’.” Shirtless
and barefoot, Hellhound released me long enough to delve into his
backpack.

I grinned at the sight of the jumbo box
of condoms he placed beside the mattress. “I love a man who comes
prepared.”

He returned my grin. “I never come any
other way. No glove, no love.”

I giggled and shucked off my jeans.
“Cover your stump before you hump.”

He snickered, wrapping an arm around my
waist to pull me down to the mattress. “Wrap it before ya tap
it.”

“You can’t go wrong when you cover your
dong.” I grinned and unfastened my ankle holster, reaching over to
tuck it down beside the mattress.

“Mm, love that little red thong.” He
eased me onto my back and traced the edge of the thong with his
lips. “Don’t be a fool, sheathe your tool,” he mumbled against my
belly, his whisker-tickles making me squirm and giggle.

“Dress up your monkey before you get
funky.” I tugged at his jeans and he rose to pull them off while I
skinned out of my underwear.

Reaching into the box of condoms, he
extracted one and held it up with a wink. “Ya won’t get sick if ya
wrap your dick.”

I let my gaze roam appreciatively over
the muscular nakedness towering above me and my mind went blank. “I
can’t think of any more. Come here.”

He grinned. “That’s the line I was
waitin’ for.”

He was just lowering himself to me when
a wild shriek outside the tent made us both jerk with shock.

“What the
fuck?
” Hellhound
barked, lurching up to his hands and knees.

I drew a breath, trying to calm my
pounding heart as another feral shriek ripped the air outside my
tent. “It’s okay.” I reached up to pull him down again. “It’s just
a couple of tomcats squaring off outside. They’ve been battling it
out over the ladies all spring.”

Outside, spine-chilling growls rose and
fell in a declaration of a fight to the death, or at least
ignominious retreat.

Hellhound resisted my pull, his brow
furrowed in concern. “Are ya sure? What if it’s Peaches? What if
somethin’s got her cornered? She wouldn’t be able to fight when
she’s so pregnant…”

“I’m sure. It happens all the
time-”

My words were drowned out by a
cacophony of shrieks and growls, and Hellhound sprang up to drag on
his jeans. “I gotta go check. Just in case.”

As he shoved his feet into his boots
the sounds of warfare faded as though the combatants were carrying
the battle elsewhere, and I tried again. “They’re just about
finished. They’ll be fine. Come back to bed.”

“Hold that thought, darlin’. Be right
back.” He ducked out the tent flap, and his voice and footsteps
faded as he hurried away. “Peaches! Is that you, little lady?
Peaches…”

I blew out a breath of frustration
mixed with fondness. Any other man would have ignored the feline
battle and gone for sex without a second thought, but with
Hellhound’s soft spot for cats and his reverence for motherhood in
any form…

I shook my head, smiling. What a
marshmallow. One of the many reasons I loved him.

Apparently the tomcats had taken the
fight elsewhere. Silence had fallen, but I could still hear
Hellhound’s voice calling faintly in the distance.

I tucked my arms behind my head and
settled in for a wait. He’d probably scour the woods in case one of
the cats had been hurt and was hiding somewhere.

A few minutes later the crunch of
approaching footsteps on gravel indicated he was back already. I
turned toward the open tent flap, surprised he’d given up so
soon.

“Aydan?”

The voice outside made me bolt up in
bed, a shock of recognition jolting through me.

“
John?
” I gasped.

Shit, shit, shit!

I sprang to my feet, dragging the sheet
around me. In the next moment Kane ducked through the open tent
flap, his grey eyes locking onto me like lasers, his muscular arms
already opening to embrace me.

“You’re back!” I yelped. “Thank God
you’re okay… oomph!” The breath squashed out of me as he crushed me
in his arms and kissed me hard.

“Aydan. So… good… to see you…” he
mumbled, devouring my lips between words. He pulled away a
fraction, cupping my face in his hands and apparently noticing for
the first time that I was naked and wrapped in a sheet. Heat
kindled in his eyes and his lips curved up.

“Um, John…” I began, but he smothered
my words with another kiss.

“I came straight here…” he said against
my lips. “I haven’t even…” He began to trace a line of kisses down
my neck, speaking between kisses. “Called in… to Stemp yet…
and…”

“John…” I tried again.

“Mmhmm.” He captured my mouth again
before taking up where he’d left off near my collarbone. “And I’m
staying… until-”

Hellhound ducked through the open tent
flap, kicking off his boots and beginning to shed his jeans. “Hey,
darlin’, I’m back. Everybody’s okay an’ oh shit.” He froze, pants
around his knees, knuckles whitening on the denim.

Kane froze, too, his arms tightening
possessively around me.

“Uh… hey, Cap,” Hellhound said with a
twisted smile. “Glad ya made it back okay, but your timin’ kinda
sucks.”

He hoisted his pants and Kane was just
opening his mouth to reply when the sudden clamour of the Spirit
bells made us all twitch.

“Oh, for shit’s sake,” I muttered and
tried to pull away, but Kane’s arms were still locked around
me.

He opened his mouth again but hadn’t
managed a word before Orion’s voice called from outside the tent.
“Hey, Storm!”

“I’m not coming!” I shouted, wincing at
the unintentional double entendre. “Go without me!”

“Don’t tell me I have to dump ice water
on you again,” he sang out, and ducked in through the goddamn open
tent flap.

Everybody froze all over again, and I
barely resisted the urge to beat my head against the nearest hard
surface, which happened to be Kane’s shoulder.

Orion stood slack-jawed, his shirt open
over a bare and chiseled chest. Fuck, wouldn’t you know he’d pick
this exact time to try to seduce me again…

Hellhound sprang protectively to my
side, still holding his jeans up with one hand. “Who the hell’re
you?” he barked.

“Uh… Orion. Moonjava,” Orion replied
faintly, his gaze darting between Hellhound, Kane, and me. “And you
are…?”

“Hey, Aydan!” Nichele’s breathless
voice sounded outside the tent.

“Don’t come in!” I yelled.

“…hurry up, we’re missing the Calling-”
She burst in through the gaping tent flap.
“Omigod-
omigod!
”

She clapped her hands over her eyes,
then sensibly relocated them to clamp over her mouth instead, the
better to check out the man-candy crowding my tent.

“OUT!” I bellowed, clutching the sheet
to my chest along with the tattered remains of my dignity.
“EVERYBODY GET OUT OF MY T-”

“Storm Cloud Dancer, whatever is the
matter? …oh.” Moonbeam joined the throng, her question fading into
a pregnant silence.

Time slowed to a crawl. My mortified
gaze took in all the sordid details as if to create an extra-vivid
memory to be revisited for future humiliation.

Me, wearing nothing but a sheet and a
fiery blush, sandwiched between Kane’s embrace and Hellhound’s
near-nudity and garnished with a half-dressed Orion. Discarded
clothes littering the floor. My skimpy red underwear draped
shamelessly on the mattress next to the giant box of condoms.
Hellhound still holding up his jeans, the open zipper displaying
his fine attributes to all and sundry. The air practically reeking
of sex and testosterone.

“Somebody shoot me now,” I
muttered.

As if released from a spell everybody
began to babble apologies and explanations while they made for the
tent flap en masse, generating a fresh wave of apologies while they
jockeyed for escape.

Soon only Hellhound and I remained, the
bells of the Calling still jangling like sardonic laughter in the
background.

I turned to him and opened my mouth but
nothing came out.

He gave me a resigned shrug and did up
his jeans. Then he shot a wicked glance at the mattress and bounced
his eyebrows. Hysterical giggles seized me.

He began to laugh, and I lost it
completely. Hooting and gasping, I collapsed to my knees to hug my
aching midsection while tears of pain-wracked hilarity poured down
my cheeks.

At last I sprawled panting on the
floor, still twitching with feeble giggles. Hellhound knelt beside
me and dangled the incriminating red thong between two fingers, and
I would have dissolved into hysterics again if not for Moonbeam’s
reproving voice issuing from outside the tent flap.

“Storm Cloud Dancer and Blessed Soul
Dream, your presence is still required at the Calling. Hurry up,
now. I’ve sent the others on.”

“We’re coming,” I gasped.

“Speak for yourself,” Hellhound groused
sotto voce. “I’m just breathin’ hard.”

An explosive snort of laughter escaped
me, and I clapped a hand over my mouth and jabbed a finger at the
tent flap. He gave me an unrepentant grin and rose to don his
T-shirt, boots, and backpack while I scurried around retrieving
various articles of my clothing and trying not to giggle.

At last I managed to get fully dressed
and strap my gun back onto my ankle. With my lumpy jacket tucked
under my arm, I poked my head cautiously out the tent flap, but
Moonbeam had left and the path was mercifully deserted.

Hellhound and I jogged to the main
building and appropriated the two mats that had been left at the
entrance to the meditation room before creeping guiltily to our
assigned places.

Kane lay on the other side of the room,
and I detected the gleam of watchful eyes under his lashes. Of
course. He’d never lie unaware in a room full of strangers.

Nichele was peeking, too. As I lay down
she mouthed, “O. M. G.” and fanned her cheeks. I flipped up my
middle finger and she let out a giggle that earned a shush and
glare from my tight-assed neighbour.

The peace of the meditation was wasted
on me.

My mind hurtled around my skull in a
roller-derby of anxiety. Oh, God, what if this spoiled the lifelong
friendship between Kane and Hellhound? Hellhound didn’t care who I
slept with, but maybe Kane had been lying four months ago when he’d
said he was okay with not having an exclusive relationship.