normally. He allowed his cheek to brush softly against her head, to feel the sensation of her hair on his face.
And something swelled painfully inside him, brought a sharp prick of emotion to his eyes. He hadn’t held a woman like this in a long time. Not since his wife.
His jaw tensed.
Sure he’d held women in that time—but not like this. Not like it mattered.
He’d fought hard against this very feeling, this aching sense of vulnerability. He’d gotten himself out of civilization. He’d left home, family, friends—anyone who reminded him. He’d blocked it all out by fighting. Fighting against bio crime, terrorists, the world, himself, his guilt…against finding himself in a moment like this.
His heart beat a wildly increasing pace against his ribs.
And now he was here.
He felt afraid—of himself, of feeling. But the instinct was overpowering. He gave in to it furtively. He closed his eyes, allowed the sensation of her body, warm against his, to sink into him, through him. He nestled his nose softly against the top of her head, drank in the silkiness of her thick dark hair, of the little breaths that shuddered intermittently through her body as she fell asleep in his arms. He held her, listening to the pop and crack of flames in the hearth, to the sounds of the night outside.
He didn’t want to think of anything, only of how it felt to hold a woman in his arms. A woman who needed him.
Honey gave a little whimper. Scott’s eyes flickered open. The dog watched him with her liquid brown pools.
God, he’d fallen asleep with her. The flames were faint glowing embers, the cool night air creeping in as their quavering watch against the cold dwindled.
Shocked, Scott edged out from under Skye’s weight, careful not to wake her.
She murmured.
“Shh. Sleep,” he whispered.
She stirred. “The…the bike, Peter Cunningham’s bike—”
“Shh. Not to worry. I’ll call him. Get some rest. I’ll get you a blanket.”
She nodded, snuggled deeper into the sofa.
Scott covered her with a blanket, stoked the fire, flicked the living room lights off, leaving only the shimmying copper flames and dancing shadows on the walls. He stared down at her. She looked like something unreal. So exotic, so striking…yet fragile, vulnerable.
How, wondered Scott, could anyone in their right mind ditch a woman like Skye Van Rijn? How could a man leave a woman like this at the altar?
Then with a rude jolt, he remembered his mission. He dragged his hand hard through his hair, reached for his cane, went to look for the phone book.
He called Peter Cunningham from the kitchen.
“Thank God she’s all right.”
“Yeah. Your bike’s fine, too.” Scott told him where he could pick it up.
“Who did you say you were?”
“Scott McIntyre, her neighbor…a…a friend.”
“You weren’t at the church?”
“I was late. Caught her bolting, so I followed her.”
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. “The cops are out looking for her.”
“She’s okay, Peter. She’s sleeping, but I can wake her if you want…or you’re welcome to come ’round. Send the cops, whatever.”
Peter hesitated. “I’ll get Charly to come ’round. I think she’d prefer that.”
“Fine. Any idea what happened to her fiancé?”
Peter cleared his throat. “After the church, when I got home, I checked my voice mail. There was a message from Jozsef. He’s gone.”
“What do you mean, gone?”
“Skipped town. Vamoose. Decamped—”
“I got it. Why’d he go?”
“Lord if I know. I thought I knew this guy…thought he loved her. I thought—”
“He say where he was going?”
“No. I went to his place to see if I could catch him, but he’d already cleaned out. I mean totally.” He hesitated. “We’re all terribly sorry for Skye. I just can’t believe this. We were worried sick. Thank God she’s all right.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll let the cops know you found her…and thank you.”
“Sure.” Scott hung up, then checked to make sure Skye was still sleeping. He closed the heavy kitchen door, activated the scrambler and called Rex.
The Bellona boss picked up on the first ring. “Hey, I was just about to call you. Bloody good hunch on Danko, old chap.”
“Meaning?” Scott spoke quietly.
“He’s linked with several offshore companies who’ve made a killing from this U.S. beef embargo. And get this, they’re companies Bellona has suspected of having financial ties to the Anubis group.”
Scott’s fingers tightened around his sat phone. “You’re kidding.” Heat pulsed through his veins. Images seared through his mind. The Anubis cell in the Thar that he’d been hunting. His blown-out knee when he’d gotten too close. “These links,” he said. “Anything proven?”
“Not yet. Working on it. But it appears we’re not the only ones interested in Danko. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is nosing around. These particular companies Danko is aligned with also happen to have a vested interest in seeing the North American produce market go down the tubes.”
He whistled softly. “You think Danko and these companies are tied somehow to the Rift Valley Fever and this whitefly thing?”
“Hell knows, but I’m joining the dots and it’s shaping up to be a pretty darned interesting picture, especially when you throw Dr. Van Rijn into the mix. If the whitefly get much further south, Danko and his bunch stand to make another killing from investment into the stock of U.S. competitors.”
“Danko must have gotten wind of the S.E.C. probe.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s split. Left town.”
Silence. “What about the wedding?”
“He left our doctor high and dry at the altar.”
“And where is she?”
Scott glanced at the kitchen door. Behind it the broken bride lay sleeping in front of the fire. He cleared his throat. “She’s still here.”
“You getting close?”
Too close.
“Close enough. She took it pretty bad, the whole wedding thing.”
Scott could hear the hesitation on the other end of the line. It wasn’t like him to get personal. Rex knew that. “Yes. Well, good…and keep me informed.”
“No worries. I’ve got my eye on her.” I’ve just got to keep my hands to myself.
Scott flipped the phone shut, shoved his feelings brusquely into a dark corner of his brain, ran through the cold facts. This possible Danko-Anubis tie threw everything into stark new light.
How was Skye connected?
He shoved open the kitchen door, limped slowly into the living room. Soft amber light glowed from the dying embers in the hearth. But the room was still a cocoon of warmth. Honey was having little doggy dreams at the foot of the sofa, her paws quivering in imaginary chase. Skye was curled like a child on the couch, dark hair soft across