Page 96 of Deadly Attraction
As Lady went to follow Will, Emma glanced back at her house, the front porch and entryway battered from the attack. “I suppose I better find some plywood to cover the window. What a mess.”
“Will can handle that once we get you moved.” Mitch picked up the rifle. “After we get the gate open for Coop and the gang, I’ll go round up Gordon’s body and confirm his ID.”
He kissed her sweetly and headed after Will, Salt and Pepper loping along beside him.
“Mitch?” she called, seeing the tired slope of his shoulders. It made her feel completely undone. He’d saved her and her ranch. She owed him everything.
He stopped, turning back to give her a weary smile. “Yeah, Doc?”
“I don’t know what I would have done without you,” she said. “I hope when this is all over, you and I can have a fresh start, but if you decide this isn’t for you—this thing between us—I understand.”
If anything, his shoulders drooped even more. He stood there staring at her in the rain, the rifle dangling beside his leg. “This thing between us?” His smile turned wry, almost mischievous. He shook his head. “Jesus, Emma.”
“What?” she said, suddenly self-conscious. Had she misunderstood? Had he slept with her and told her all those intimate things but never planned on sticking around after his assignment was done?
“Sounds odd,” he said, chuckling, “to hear you use such a piss-poor description for what’s going on between us.”
She shifted her weight between her feet and worried her hands. “What exactlyisgoing on between us?”
She felt stupid asking, but personal relationships—herpersonal relationships—were one area she never felt comfortable talking about. Helping others explore their emotions when it came to those they loved was easy—she had no attachment to the people they talked about. Exploring her own emotions, her own feelings, was sort of foreign soil.
Mitch stood motionless for another moment, studying her, then lumbered back to her, lifted her chin with his wet fingers and stared down into her eyes. “In less than three days, you’ve turned my world completely upside down, woman. Thisthingbetween us is the best thing I’ve ever had. I don’t need a fresh start. I need you, with all the chaos, and the dogs, and the horses, and your freaky mind-reading.”
This time his kiss was anything but sweet. He held her chin while he ravaged her lips, gave her some tongue, and made her see stars.
When he finally broke away, they were both breathing hard. He turned her around, smacked her ass, and said, “Now get back inside and get ready to go to the safe house.”
Grinning, she did as she was told, giving him a wink over her shoulder as she walked away. Maybe she didn’t need to analyze her relationship with Mitch. All she had to do was accept it.
When she got to the back door, she looked over her shoulder again. Will was torching the latches on the gate, melting the old, rusty metal. Mitch, feeling her stare, looked back at her, the dogs milling around his legs in the soft rain.
Emma let out a sigh of relief, her heart full from his words.
Her bag was still in the living room, so she tip-toed through the broken glass and grabbed that first. Then she headed upstairs for dry clothes.
Noise outside brought her into her office to glance out the window. Two vehicles pulled up at the gate, several men and women emerging from them as Mitch held up a hand and Will continued to work on the latches. Emma could see greetings going back and forth between Mitch and his teammates, lots of smiles all around. Emma found herself smiling too, watching him exchange manly clasps through the gate with one of the men she guessed might be Cooper Harris.
She planned to tell Mr. Harris all about Mitch’s heroics. Victor too. Did they know what an amazing man he was? Probably, but it wouldn’t hurt to remind them. Mitch had problems, but he knew his job and did it well.
If he stayed with her, how would he work for the taskforce? Would he continue with National Intelligence? The thought sat uncomfortably between her ribs. Mitch was an incredible agent, and she had no doubt she wasn’t the first person he’d saved during his career. Could she really expect him to leave that world for her?
Turning away from the window, she pushed the thought to the back of her mind. Right now, she needed clothes and to get back downstairs ready to leave.
Because Chris Goodsman was still on the loose. She still hated the idea of leaving the ranch, but there was no telling who else he might send after her if she stayed here.
In the bathroom, she stripped off her wet clothes. Leaving them on the tile floor, she went to her closet to grab jeans and a dry shirt. A sexy red silk blouse caught her eye and she rubbed the fabric between her fingers. Should she wear another flannel over a T-shirt and be comfortable or should she chose something a bit more festive for Christmas Day? Did Mitch like red? Did he like silk?
She had the feeling he would answer yes to both questions.
The red silk won out and she slipped it off the hangar. Back in the bathroom, she realized she needed a different bra, her current cotton one was slightly damp and sticking to her skin, putting her nipples on full display under the red silk.
Off went the shirt before it ended up damp as well. Grabbing a towel to dry her hair, she headed back out of the bathroom for a second trip to her closet, when a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.
“Hello, Dr. Collins,” Chris Goodsman said.
Emma stumbled backward, her pulse skyrocketing.
Chris sat on the end of her bed, running his fingers over the pair of panties Mitch had peeled off her the night before.
