Aces High Part 6

"Why don't you sleep in today?" he suggested casually.

Teddy eyed him with loving understanding, her gamlne's smile quirking her lips. "I'm fine, Zach." She reached up a hand to his lean cheek, stroking gently. "I'm not going to lose this one."

Zach had a great deal of faith in his vivacious wife's peculiar psychic certainties, but he had too much experience with the vagaries of fate to share her confidence. He also remembered far too vividly Teddy's miscarriage months before, and the terror he'd gone through at almost losing her. Not all her a.s.surances-or those of the doctor who was still astonished by this second conception-could allay his fears. He caught her hand and held it firmly to his face, his free hand moving to push the sheet aside and cover her very slightly rounded belly. "You should have stayed in New York," he said a bit harshly.

"What, and miss our final hurrah?" she said, deliberately light. "It isn't a jungle this time, remember? There's no danger at all, Zach."

He shook his head slightly. "Honey, there's always danger in a scheme like ours. We've covered all the bases, sure, but it's impossible to plan for the unexpected element. And Hagen's such a wild card. G.o.d only knows what could happen."

"Well, you're with me," she said serenely, her faith in her big warrior absolute.

His lips twisted, but his gray eyes gleamed with sudden wry humor, and she grinned at him. Zach bent his head to kiss her, his hand still moving gently over her stomach. After a few moments he muttered huskily, "We should have waited, given you more time to recover."

Teddy, perfectly aware that his mind was never long distracted from her unexpected pregnancy, slid her arms around his neck and laughed softly. "After you and the other guys came back into the country on that flying visit, I was so happy to see you that birth control never crossed my mind. Or yours, for that matter."

Remembering the very pa.s.sionate reunion with his wife, Zach silently admitted that his lifelong control had never stood against Teddy. Thank heaven. Aloud, he said, "Are we going to tell her she was conceived in a Jeep?"

Solemnly Teddy said, "Well, if I'd known neither of us could wait until we got home, I would have borrowed the limo to pick you up at the airport. Then she could have been conceived in style."

He chuckled softly. "And I probably wouldn't have given a d.a.m.n about the driver either." He caught his breath suddenly as her hand wandered, and added somewhat thickly, "Didn't the doctor say we should be careful?"

"I plan to be extremely careful," Teddy said. "We have a couple of hours before we meet the others in Josh and Raven's suite for breakfast. That's long enough to be careful, don't you think?"

Zach, no longer unnerved by his inability to think at all where his wife was concerned, growled and pulled her pet.i.te body into his arms.

Skye walked briskly along the paved pathway leading to the Old West section of the park. The gates hadn't opened for the day, but he could hear the usual morning noises, and employees in costumes wandered about talking and laughing. From the section Skye was nearing came occasional gunfire as various characters practiced the tricks they'd be called upon to perform later.

Stopping to watch two costumed characters perfecting their sharpshooting, Skye waited for a pause in the gunfire and then said dryly, "Funny how many of you have managed to act out your own personal fantasies."

Lucas Kendrick, in the guise of Wild Bill Hickok, chuckled as he reloaded his rifle. "My ego's suffering," he told the other man, and nodded at the slim brunette at his side who wore the costume of Annie Oakley. "She's so much better than I am."

Kyle's turquoise eyes gleamed briefly at her husband, and then she looked at Skye. "Something up?"

He shook his head. "Not really. But I've settled on the Ferris wheel as the most likely spot."

Lucas turned to look in the direction of the Ferris wheel, his sharp blue eyes narrowing as he picked out the tall structure in the distance. "Good," he murmured thoughtfully. "It's fairly central, so we can all get there quickly."

"Will you tell the others?" Kyle asked Skye.

"Yeah." Skye listened intently as the sounds of gunfire echoed, and added, "If you two see Raven and Josh, tell them, will you? They're the only ones who wander all over the park, and I may not see them anytime soon."

"Sure." Lucas gazed at him steadily. "You sound a bit jumpy."

Skye managed a shrug. "Must be the gunfire. See you later." He strode off.

Lucas looked at his wife with a lifted brow, and she said, "I caught it too. He's definitely on edge."

Grimacing slightly, Lucas said, "I've noticed Dane's keeping a pretty close eye on him, and he wouldn't if he weren't worried about his brother. If Hagen sees those two together, he's going to start to smell a rat."

"They're both pros," she observed.

He nodded, but said, "Still, one thread too tight and this whole thing's going to unravel. Maybe we'd better talk to the others tonight."

Kyle nodded agreeably, then took aim with her rifle and put yet another neat hole through the target some yards away. Lucas gave her a pained look, but laughed warmly.

Meanwhile, Skye found the others he sought gathered around the sheriffs office in the dusty main street of the Old West town. The sheriff, a tall, lean man with copper hair and tawny eyes and a lazy air that was somewhat deceptive, straightened from his lounging pose to offer Skye a cheerful h.e.l.lo.

Skye returned the greeting as he looked at him, then eyed the other three people. Both the ladles were tiny, and both were redheads, but the sheriffs lady had an expression of serenity in her sea-green eyes that perfectly matched both her husband's lazy calm and her own dignified costume of schoolteacher. The other redheaded lady, leaning back against the gunslinger who had both arms around her, had big, waiflike brown eyes that were bright with interest and a vivid face that made her as eye-catching as the scanty saloon girl costume she wore.

Looking finally at the powerful dark man who was playing the role of gunslinger, a menacing figure due to his size, the faint scar on his lean cheek, and the all-black costume, Skye shook his head ruefully. "You people didn't choose this park just because of Adrian's threat," he said definitely. "You wanted the chance to play dress-up."

Teddy Steele giggled engagingly. "No, because the guys would have worn commando outfits. It took me all of an hour to talk Zach into being the villain."

A deep chuckle rumbled from the gunslinger, and his powerful arms tightened gently around his wife. "This isn't so bad," he commented to Skye in an unexpectedly soft voice. "But I feel for Josh."

Rafferty Lewis laughed as well, pus.h.i.+ng his white hat to the back of his head. "Face it, we're all having fun with this. Even Josh. Better than a vacation. What's up, Skye?"

Skye repeated his decision to settle on the Fen-is wheel as the site of the governor's attempted a.s.sa.s.sination, leaning back against a hitching post as he spoke to them. Their reaction was much the same as Lucas's and Kyle's.

"When does the balloon go up?" Teddy asked.

"A week from Sat.u.r.day, if all goes well," Skye answered. "Right on schedule." He felt an unusually steady gaze on him, and looked at the schoolteacher, whose eyes were gentle.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

He managed a smile. "Fine, Sarah." He knew his control was strained to the breaking point, but until he had talked to Lucas and Kyle he'd believed he was hiding it well. Obviously not. Before anybody else could mention it, he said, "I'll try to touch base with the others sometime today. Hagen said something about seeing the Wild West show, but I'll try to keep him busy. Better stay alert, though."

"Thanks for the warning," Zach said.

Skye saluted them casually and left.

There was a moment of silence after he'd gone, and then Teddy said reflectively, "Does anybody know if we're unintentionally matchmaking?"

Sarah looked at her. "It was that kind of tension, wasn't it?"

"I'd say so. And, according to Raven, Skye isn't the type to get nervous professionally. This operation has to be a piece of cake to him. So what other reason could there be?"

Rafferty sighed. "If we've learned anything by now, it has to be that where Hagen is, romance is. Against all odds. It isn't really any of our business, though," he added carefully.

"No." Zach's deep voice was slow and thoughtful. "But if that's the cause of Skye's tension, he isn't handling It well. And he's the linchpin of the entire plan. Dane could step in, I suppose, if it comes to that. Maybe we'd better find out what's going on."

Rafferty eyed his large friend. "Well, you ask Skye, then. You're about the only one of us big enough to take him on if he doesn't like the question."

"Raven," Sarah said in her soft, serene voice. "She knows him better than we do. Leave it to her."

Teddy nodded quick agreement. "We can talk to her about it tonight."

Zach looked at Rafferty and nodded as well. "It might be best. And she may know what's going on already."

They all heard the loud whistle announcing the imminent opening of the park's gates, and Zach added wistfully to the sheriff, "Can't I shoot you today?"

Rafferty pulled his white hat firmly back down and adjusted the gun on his hip. "Don't be ridiculous. I'm the good guy."

"Shyster," Zach said rudely, and took his giggling wife's hand to lead her toward the saloon.

Skye decided to keep Hagen busy for the day by getting Gigi's help, and she listened to his suggestion with lifted brows and a tiny smile.

"And why should I?" she asked.

Grinning suddenly. Skye said, "Because he's wandering around the hotel like a beaten hound, that's why. I never thought I could feel sorry for Hagen, but I do. You're a cruel woman, Gigi."

She chuckled. "He needed a lesson. However, that's quite beside the point. Just what are you going to be doing while I keep Hagen's mind off visiting the park?"

Skye cleared his throat. "Double-checking a few things." And when she continued to gaze at him with perceptive eyes, he forced himself to sit still in her visitor's chair.

Gently she said, "Today is her usual day off. Did she tell you?"

"No," Skye said a bit grimly.

Ignoring the tone, Gigi explained. "She wanted to work since she took the other day off, but I thought not. Not quite her usual calm self, my Trina; I ordered her to rest."

Skye rose from his chair abruptly but then paused, looking across the desk at the older woman. "Tell me something," he said a bit jerkily. "Am I bad for her?"

"What would you do if I said yes?"

"I don't know."

After a moment Gigi said seriously, "I can't answer your question, Skye. Only Trina can."

He didn't intend to ask Katrina about that, but when she opened her door to him ten minutes later, it was the question uppermost in his mind. She had been less wary these last days, but it seemed to him that whenever he tried to step closer she moved elusively away from him. And both his determined patience and his control over his own desires were wearing thin.

He greeted her abruptly. "We have to talk."

Caution crept into her amber eyes, but she stepped back to allow him to come in. She was in her usual off-duty clothing, jeans and a casual s.h.i.+rt, barefooted and with her glorious hair flowing loosely down her back. He was reminded again of the paradox of her, her Innate composure warring with the outward suggestion of wildness.

It has to be there! he thought with more than a hint of the savagery she always inspired in him. It had driven him half mad years before, that conviction of his that locked somewhere inside Katrina was an intensity to match his own, a fiery spirit crying out to be freed. And he had tried to touch that part of her. But although she had responded to him with loving pa.s.sion, he had been unable to find the vital woman he sensed beneath the calm, smiling eyes.

He was no closer now, and it was still driving him mad. The desire between them was sharper than ever before, but he was all too aware that Katrina was holding herself aloof from him. He looked at the wariness in her eyes as they moved into her den, and he wanted to demand. Where do you go when you hide from me? Why can't I find you?

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

He forced a laugh. "Well, since I've had several people who barely know me point out that I'm jittery as h.e.l.l, I suppose I can't deny it."

"I'm sorry," she said uncertainly. Her arms moved in what seemed a conditioned response, folding over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

Skye ignored the body language, refusing to be warned off. He took two quick steps to stand before her, pulling her abruptly into his arms. "I can't take much more of this," he said In a voice that grated. "I've tried, Trina, I swear I have."

Her arms had moved by instinct around his waist, and Katrina gasped when the heat of his body pressed against hers. "You-you said we had to talk," she managed to say unsteadily.

"I lied." His eyes were fixed on hers in a hard, searching stare, and a muscle tightened in his jaw. "We've talked, and it hasn't helped. I've taken cold showers, and it hasn't helped. For the second time I've forgotten I'm a professional, and it's because of you. Again."

"Skye-"

He s.h.i.+fted one hand to her face, holding her as if to keep her still even though she hadn't moved. "Why can't I find it?" he muttered almost to himself.

"What?" She was bewildered.

Without answering, he bent his head and fitted his mouth to hers in a very deliberate movement. His hand slid around to the back of her head, long fingers tangling in her hair as he took her mouth with utter confidence.

Katrina recognized that male certainty in him, but she couldn't deny it because he had every reason to be sure of her response. She was coming apart inside, melting in the stark heat of her need and his, and in the newfound awareness of her own love an overwhelming desire for him jolted through her like pure flame. Her fingers dug into the hard muscles of his back, her body arched into his in a driven need to be closer, and a sound like a primitive wall of desperation knotted in the back of her throat.

It had never been like this before, and she surrendered to it, and him, because there was no choice left to her. With an eagerness she couldn't fight or hide, her mouth came wildly alive beneath his, her arms tightened around him, and the soft contours of her body molded themselves to his hard length.

Skye lifted his head abruptly, his eyes blazing In a way she'd never seen before. "I knew it," he said thickly, satisfaction and an emotion she couldn't name ringing in his voice.

Katriria was too dazed to say anything at all, and she could only gasp when he lifted her easily into his arms and carried her into her bedroom. She was burning, out of control, and at that moment she no longer cared why he wanted her or how long he would want her; he wanted her now, and that was enough.

He lowered her to her feet beside the bed, his hands going instantly to the hem of her s.h.i.+rt and pulling it quickly up and over her head. The s.h.i.+rt was tossed carelessly aside, and Katrina felt her bra fall away before his warm, hard hands surrounded her naked b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Her fingers clutched at his muscled arms, and she swayed toward him, a soft moan breaking from her lips as her body responded violently to his touch.

Skye made a rough sound and kissed her, his mouth hot with demand as his hands slid down to cope feverishly with the snap of her jeans. The heavy denim was pushed down over her hips, followed quickly by her wispy panties, and Katrina automatically stepped free of the material that pooled around her feet.

As driven as he was, she tugged at his T-s.h.i.+rt, helping him to peel it off over his head, and she barely had his jeans unfastened when he shoved them down and kicked them violently aside. It was Katrina who stepped back and fell onto the bed, pulling him with her and unconcerned that his weight could have hurt her. But Skye caught most of his weight on his elbows, still kissing her violently. There was no time for gentleness, and no desire for it in either of them. And there was no need for preliminaries, because Katrina was ready for him, desperate for him, and she couldn't wait. She wanted him now, right now, the imperative craving for his possession overpowering and tormenting. She returned his kisses with the same searing hunger he displayed, and her legs were already apart, wrapping around him, her body writhing beneath him.

She cried out wildly as he entered her with a powerful thrust, the sensation briefly unfamiliar and shocking. It had been a long time for her, and he was a big man in every way, but her body adjusted quickly in its own heated need, and she moaned as she felt him throbbing inside her. Through the mists of her urgency she saw his face, taut and almost savage, and then the fire in her was burning out of control and she was moving with him, matching his raw force, hardly aware of the sounds tearing from her throat.

It was quick and hard and primitive, and when release came it left them shuddering and so utterly drained that neither of them could move for a long time. When he did move, Skye simply rolled so that she lay on top of him, and like that, their bodies cooling and still entangled, they both slept deeply.

Katrina woke slowly but she made no effort to move. She listened to his heart beat steadily, aware of his powerful arms wrapped firmly around her and of the slow rise and fall of his chest beneath her cheek. His big, hard body was a surprisingly comfortable bed, and she never wanted to move.

But her mind refused to float lazily for long, and when she remembered her own pa.s.sion, shock mingled with astonishment. Had that been she? That wild woman so desperate with need she had practically ripped his clothes off? He hadn't even had to demand the total surrender because she'd offered it mindlessly.

And what now? She felt a chill of fear, wondering If he would leave her. Wondering if that fiery, primitive joining had purged him of her once and for all. She bit her lip and unconsciously rubbed her cheek against the soft pelt of black hair beneath it, aching Inside.

But she wouldn't let him see that ache. She was a proud woman, a survivor, and she would deal with the anguish of losing him as she had always dealt with pain and loss. Alone. Already, she was calling on the strength that had seen her through the last six years, holding tightly to every shred of dignity.

Skye moved then, and she found herself on her back gazing up at him as he leaned on an elbow above her. The faint smile curving his lips made her heart catch because it held such utter satisfaction, and her eyes skittered away from his, both shy and guarded. Would he say it now?

"Look at me," he ordered softly.

She did, watching his smile die and that hard, searching glitter return to his eyes. It bewildered her.

"Don't hide from me." His voice was suddenly guttural, and a frown drew his brows together. "I won't let you. Not now."