Surviving Seduction (23 page)

He was avoiding the noisiness of the leaves that covered the ground.

“It’s okay,” he murmured gently, grasping her tightly to show her that her weight wasn’t difficult.

To her surprise, he held her easily with one arm as he pul ed the saddle horn of one of the horses until the animal stood paral el with the tree. Then, with little effort, he hefted her into the saddle. She tried grabbing at the reins, but although the pins and needles had begun in her hands, she couldn’t tel if they were doing what she wanted them to.

Selena threw an arm around Jack’s neck and yanked him toward her. “My pack,” she whispered.

“Are you joking?” he whispered back.

Selena shook her head, and he took a few steps quickly up the tree to scoop it up, then hurried back and vaulted up behind Selena.

“You get to hold it,” he muttered into her ear, thrusting it onto her lap and snatching up the reins.

He gently urged their mount forward, turning it downhil from the three men and keeping the animal at a walk.

Selena heard the footfal s of the other two horses behind them. They were fol owing. She sat up straighter to cast a glance over Jack’s shoulder. He had tied them al together.

She swayed as she turned back to face forward, and he put an arm around her waist to steady her while he steered with the other.

“You real y know how to watch your back,” he told her sarcastical y as the animals climbed the adjacent hil .

For some reason, the way he said it made her laugh and cry at the same time. She knew she’d been through too much, and leaned back against him in a grateful delirium.

She never thought she’d welcome the feeling of Jack’s body against her and his arm around her waist, but her life was shaping up to be ful of surprises. This was far from the worst of them.

When they crested the hil , he pul ed the animals to a stop.

“Hey, assholes!” he bel owed, his arm the only thing keeping Selena from jumping out of the saddle in surprise.

“Have a good night! Yah!” He kicked the horse’s sides and they plunged down the hil to the delayed sound of shouting and curses behind them.

Jack chuckled with satisfaction as they rode and Selena found herself laughing with him, knowing ful wel she had gone crazy with stress and shock, but comforted by the fact that he wouldn’t judge her for it.

Selena never felt so free as in that moment, and never so exhilarated.

They rode on long into the night, and she was enjoying the hypnotic rhythm of their movement in the saddle, and of the animal beneath them.

Eventual y they slowed and she began to lean heavily into him as the exhaustion of the night caught up with her.

When Jack final y brought the animals to a stop, the numbness of her hands and feet were long gone, but after he dismounted, she dropped her pack and fel into his arms. He carried her to a soft bed of pine needles, laid her down gently and squatted beside her.

“Nothing else to sleep on,” he murmured regretful y.

“I’l live,” she said, and giggled because just hours ago, she had no reason to think it was true.

Jack stood and returned to the horses, fishing around in their saddlebags as they stood there obediently.

Selena’s eyes fel closed, but he placed a hand on her shoulder a moment later. She could vaguely see the water skin he held out to her.

Her eyes flew open wide and she snatched it, drinking greedily. She had been dying of thirst and didn’t even know it. Once she’d drained the whole thing, he set her pack down next to her.

With Jack’s help, she weakly pul ed out her blanket and spread it beneath her. When she lay down again, she was pretty sure he had said something, but she couldn’t remember what, and then she was asleep.

“They’ve got beef jerky in here,” Jack informed Selena just after the break of dawn. He tossed her a couple hefty chunks of the meat and she caught them easily where she sat on the blanket beneath the pine tree.

She tore into her breakfast with enthusiasm, and he sat down to join her.

“Left those poor guys shit outta luck without their food, their water, or their rides.”

“Cry me a river,” Selena growled as she chewed.

Jack favored her with an approving smile. “That’s the spirit.”

They ate in silence for a while.

“Hey, Jack,” Selena said, looking him in the eye.

He met her gaze with customary boldness.

“Thank you.” That was al she said. It was al she needed to say. She felt no compulsion to explain her gratitude, and knew he understood.

“Anytime,” he answered pointedly. “Anytime.”

They regarded each other for a few moments before he turned his gaze off somewhere down the hil . “You know, that was a pretty rough night for me,” he pointed out, the mischief back in his voice. “I feel like I deserve some kind of ... reward. Don’t you?” His eyes turned back to her playful y from under the brim of his hat.

“What do you suggest?” Selena dared to ask.

Jack paused, caught off guard, and then chuckled, wagging his head at the ground. “They real y did a number on you didn’t they?”

“Sure did!” Selena affirmed unemotional y.

“I think just a kiss would do it,” he answered, watching her more soberly.

“Whew!” she sighed. “That’s it? What are you, my guardian angel now?”

Jack laughed. “Are you always like this after a brush Jack laughed. “Are you always like this after a brush with ... whatever they were going to do?”

“No.”

“Wel , I like the new Selena,” he admitted. “Too bad it took you being carried off by a bunch of miscreants.”

“Miscreants?” she echoed. “What does that mean?

And why do you talk like that?”

“Miscreants are people like the guys who kidnapped you. And I read. I read a lot. I thought we’ve been through this.”

“I read too, but I don’t see your flashy stuff anywhere.”

“That’s probably because I have an enormous dictionary in the back of my wagon. And a few select works of excel ence.”

“Like what?” she prodded, just because.

“Wel ... Shakespeare, Dostoevsky ... Dr. Seuss; real y great stuff. They don’t have anything to do with each other,” he informed her quickly.

“Wow. That’s a relief,” she said dramatical y,

“considering that I’ve never heard of any of them.”

“A smartass too now,” he grinned. “I definitely like this new you. Huh. Never knew you could knock a sense of humor into someone.”

“I always had a sense of humor!” she cried, whipping a smal pinecone at the top of his hat. It bounced off.

“Sure, Sweetheart. Sure. I think that grumpy boyfriend of yours just rubs off on you.”

Selena frowned, surprised that Jack would mention Dan.

“You want to talk about him now?” she asked.

Jack stood and stretched. “Not real y, unless you want someone to complain to. Then I’m al ears.”

Selena stared at the ground as reality tried to worm its way back into her awareness. She wasn’t ready to think about anything heavy, so she hopped to her feet and looked around.

“Sooo,” she said, drawing out the word. “Where are we?”

Jack shot her a sheepish look. “I don’t actual y know.”

Selena stared. “You’re serious?”

He looked everywhere but at her. “Yep.”

“Wel ,” she said loudly, packing up her blanket and marching to one of the tied horses, separating it from the others. “We sure could use a
compass
right now!”

She mounted up.

“Hey, don’t start that,” he said, climbing onto the lead horse. “You know that’s not my fault.”

She glared at him.

“Entirely,” he amended. “Anyway, I suppose the question is where do you
want
to go?” He watched her intently, leaning on the saddle horn.

The sunlight filtered through the trees, casting a golden outline around him and lighting his blond hair so it looked like the flame of a candle. She let herself soak in the startling beauty before her. “I don’t know,” she told him final y, holding his gaze. “Al your things are with the Grazers.”

“Wel , let’s get these horses watered, first thing,” he suggested, urging his mount forward at a walk. Selena steered hers alongside.

“So how did you know I was in trouble?” she asked him uncomfortably. She didn’t want to think about the previous night, but her curiosity got the better of her, as always.

“Wel ,” he began careful y. “Funny thing about that is, I didn’t.”

“What do you mean?”

“Okay,” he sighed. “I have a bit of a confession to make.”

“What?” she urged apprehensively.

“What?” she urged apprehensively.

“Wel , you remember that night you came to my cabin?”

“It’s not your cabin,” she corrected him curtly.

“Whatever. Wel , you asked what I thought of Josie’s deal, and I told you Josie wouldn’t go along with it unless there was a payoff for her.”

Selena frowned at him. “You knew what she was going to ask him?”

“I did,” he admitted. “I figured tel ing you ahead of time wasn’t going to help, and I wanted to see how things played out. I know, I’m an asshole.”

“Damn right you are,” she breathed, wanting to be angry only to find that she didn’t have it in her.

“But I didn’t think you should have found out like you did. I just wasn’t going to tel you about my hunch in the middle of the camp. It’s a tense subject. So I tried to talk you into playing poker or just letting me keep you company while you waited.” He sighed, “The selfish part of me didn’t try too hard to stop you, I’l admit. So I kept an eye on you, and fol owed. Damn near lost you though, when they ran after you. Took me hours to pick up the trail. If I didn’t hear you, I wouldn’t have found the spot where they were sleeping.”

Selena nodded, glad he hadn’t been around to see her being attacked. It could have been disastrous if he had tried to stop them. “So how did you know about Josie’s ...

terms?” she went on, needing to think about something else.

“Oh, that. Wel , it was supposed to be a private thing, but Roark is in love with her to the point where it’s done irretrievable damage to his dignity. I made the mistake of trading him a bottle of wine one night when he was looking surlier than al hel and he wouldn’t shut his mouth about how he wasn’t good enough ‘breeding’ for her.

Said she was being selective about her lineage.”

They rode on in silence for a long time, and Selena felt bad for Roark.

“You hear that?” Jack asked. “Sounds like water.”

They found a burbling little stream and the horses hurried towards it without any encouragement.

They dismounted to fil the water skins as the animals drank greedily.

Selena’s mind was churning with thoughts about Josie and Dan as she bent down to the water beside him.

“I got a name, you know. One of them blurted it out,”

she said.

Jack looked at her in surprise. “You’re serious. What was it?”

“Victor.”

His face lit with recognition. “I know who that is. One of Josie’s less savory men. What morons.”

“You think she was behind it?” she asked.

He was quiet for a while. “It’l be easy to find out if we can track him down. As for my guess, no. Do you?”

Selena pondered. “She wants Dan’s ... cooperation.

She wouldn’t gain anything by upsetting him. She doesn’t seem to know I exist anyway. Probably thinks I don’t matter enough to figure into things.”

“What makes you say that?”

Selena shrugged. “I never came up in the conversation. Not that it was much of a conversation. Dan didn’t say a word.”

“
That’s
unusual,” Jack scoffed.

Selena flicked water on him. He smiled back mischievously as it dripped off the brim of his hat.

“Oh God,” Selena gasped.

“What?” he asked, startled.

“You didn’t talk to him.”

“You make it sound like a bad thing.”

“Jack!” she exclaimed, standing up quickly. “Don’t you get it? What’s he going to think? He doesn’t know I overheard anything! Al he’s probably found out is that you and I disappeared without warning last night! He’s going to think you kidnapped me or something! You were the last person anyone saw me with!”

Jack stood and looked down at her without a trace of alarm on his face.

Selena scowled up at him. “We have to stick together until things get sorted out or he’s going to try to kil you! Don’t you get it? He’s ... he’s –”

“Lethal,” Jack suggested placidly.

“Yes!” Selena shouted, grabbing his shoulders and trying to shake him. “What’s wrong with you!”

“Easy, easy!” he placated, grasping her arms firmly, and stifling a laugh at her antics. “Calm down. Dan can be reasoned with and I’m good at reasoning. But it doesn’t matter. I’m sure he knows you were listening.”

“No, they had light in the tent and there was none outside. Plus there was mesh, and I was at a good angle.

And I didn’t make a sound.”

He shook his head, “That’s not what I mean.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You weren’t the only one who knew I was eavesdropping.”

Jack nodded, “That’s right, so I’m sure he had an idea about what happened, aside from those hoodlums.

Probably wants to kil me anyhow, but at least he knows I didn’t kidnap you.”

“Who else knew?”

“I mentioned it to Loraine. Needed her to be ready in case I had to run off. Of course I didn’t think you were going to be attacked or I’d have brought more supplies.”

“Loraine knew,” Selena whispered, then shuddered, imagining how she would have told Dan.

“What is it?” he asked with a guarded look.

“What is it?” he asked with a guarded look.

“Loraine knew,” she repeated without hiding her mistrust.

“So?” he chal enged defensively, his eyes narrowing.

Selena had never seen Jack upset, and could tel this wasn’t going to be an easy conversation, so she hesitated.

“Loraine had nothing to do with it,” he said in a warning voice.

“Do you know everything there is to know about her?”

Selena asked seriously.

“People don’t get her,” he growled. “She wouldn’t do that. She’d never put anyone else in harm’s way.”

“Have you seen the way she is with him?” Selena hissed quietly, although they couldn’t have been more alone. “You’re not thick, Jack.”