Page 10 of Smoky Lake

She was cautiously testing the first step with one foot, and he realized—God, what an idiot—that this might be hard for her, given that limp. But he didn’t have time to ask about it, and his voice would carry if he did, so he simply reached up, lifted her into the air and swung her down as if she was a child.

She landed in his arms, and the blood sang in his ears. He could stand here forever and just breathe in the fragrance of her hair.

The sound of wheels on gravel brought him back to reality. They hurried down the embankment and along an overhang. There, surrounded by towering pushki, they hunkered down and waited.

5

Ani was sure her heartbeat would give them away. Her heart felt like it wanted to gallop right out of her chest—which, of course, she knew would be a medical first. Could Gil McGowan hear it too?

He crouched next to her, keeping an arm securely around her, as if afraid she might jump up and yell to the military personnel pulling up to his house. He smelled surprisingly good, considering he’d been jogging shortly before this. The fresh scent of the spruce forest hung in his black hair. It was even darker than hers; maybe he was what they called “Black Irish,” which would also explain the green of his eyes.

Even in sweatpants and a black t-shirt, he was pure male magnetism, even more so because he didn’t seem to bother with that kind of thing. His hair could use a trim, and he hadn’t shaved yet this morning. His t-shirt had a hole in the sleeve. Her mother would disapprove, and assume he was some kind of ruffian. What had Victor said—“doesn’t hurt him with women”?

John had always been a magnet for female attention, too. A flirt, a player, whatever you wanted to call it. In high school, the first time he’d looked directly at her, she’d nearly fainted. The hottest guy at school had noticed her, then talked to her, then asked her out.

Maybe she should have looked a little deeper before throwing all of her heart and soul into loving him.

The sound of voices carried from the direction of Gil’s house. She met Gil’s gaze, widening her eyes as a kind of question—what now? He gave a gesture she took to mean they should stay where they were, then put a finger to his lips.

She frowned at him to convey that she was offended. Why would she rush out there now? She’d made her choice, and she wasn’t going to back out now.

Which was her thinking for the last six years of her marriage, and look where that had gotten her.

Her gaze drifted to Gil’s left hand. Was he married? No sign of a ring. He came across as more of a lone ranger than a settling-down type. But maybe she was reading too much into that hole in his t-shirt.

The voices coming from the house grew clearer. “Got two vehicles here, but no one’s answering.”

Ani remembered the coffee mugs they’d left behind. Not too suspicious. She caught Gil’s eye and mimed sipping from a cup. He shrugged—not much to do about it now.

He bent and whispered in her ear. “They’re on the back deck now.” His lips tickled her hair and made her skin tingle.

They heard the sound of someone knocking on the door. “Anyone home?” a voice yelled. “We just want to talk.”

More footfalls as the soldier left the deck and joined the others.

“I’m guessing they aren’t authorized to go in the house,” Gil whispered.

“You’re guessing?” she whispered back. “That’s not very scientific.”

“My brother’s the scientist, not me.” He paused to listen to the sounds coming from the driveway. The voices were receding. “Anyway, it is scientific. They come up with theories, hypotheses, and then test them. But it’s all an educated guess at first.”

“How educated is this guess?”

He cocked his head, considering the question. “Not especially, since I don’t know what they want. Maybe it’s an uneducated guess.”

“What could they want? Why would there be anyone from the military here?”

“Excellent questions.”

She frowned at him. “Don’t you have any answers to go with all the questions?”

He barely glanced at her. She was getting the impression he didn’t like her very much. He kept trying to get rid of her, after all. “Just one. No, I don’t have answers.”

She pulled a face at him, then they both shushed at the sound of an engine starting up. Wheels on gravel, the honk of a horn, and the Jeep was—theoretically—gone.

“Well, I guess you were right,” Ani told him, still keeping her voice low.

He gave a matter-of-fact nod. He was probably used to being right about such things. He had that confident air about him. That could be a potentially irritating quality, so it was a good thing they were simply two strangers hiding from a military Jeep, no more.

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