Montana Fire (26 page)

F
rom the anxiety in Jamie’s voice, Max had screwed up again. He shouldn’t have waltzed
in here with a weapon in his hand. What had he been thinking?

He placed the gun in the bedside table drawer. “It’s a precaution in the remote chance
someone comes knocking.”

“I don’t like weapons. That’s all.”

“I wish it didn’t have to be this way, hon. I know Benny shot you.” He’d seen the
scar on her arm. It wasn’t large, but it must have hurt like a bitch. “But I’m not
him.”

Her face softened. “I’m not scared of you. God no. I’m afraid of the terrorists. I
know what they’ll do to a person who gets in their way.” She wrapped her arms around
her body, and he’d bet it wasn’t because she was cold.

He sat on the edge of the bed and drew her to his chest. “If it makes you feel any
better, I put sleigh bells on the door handle. If they manage to get through the lock
when they open the door, it will make a lot of noise.” He smoothed the hair from her
face. Jamie was so sweet.

“That was smart of you to think of that.”

He leaned back and lifted her chin. “That’s me. Mr. Smart.”

Max actually got a slight smile out of her. Holding her tight, he crawled in next
to her. How this tiny woman had gotten under his skin so fast, he didn’t know. For
years, he’d pushed every woman away, never letting anyone close to his heart for fear
of losing her, convinced the devastation would kill him the next time. Jamie made
him realize that being alone was no way to live. She was this sensitive spitfire of
a woman that made him love life. He still couldn’t believe she was here—with him.

He reached behind him and turned off the light.

“Can you leave the hallway light on or something?” Her plea was like knives slicing
his body. Damn. Here, he’d prided himself on knowing what would scare her.

“I have a better idea.” He turned the light back on, slipped out of bed, and carried
the table lamp as far as the cord would reach. “How’s that?” Shadows covered most
of the ceiling.

“Perfect.”

One hurdle jumped. Max crawled back into bed again. Already the winds had picked up,
causing the tree branches to slap against the windows. He wouldn’t be surprised to
find a foot of snow when they woke up tomorrow. If the wind subsided, he had a plan
to do something fun—an activity that would also help keep them safe. He bet Jamie
would appreciate the diversion. Hell, so would he.

He kissed her good night as if he’d done it a million times. The best part was that
she kissed him back. While they were in the eye of the storm, he’d enjoy it. “Roll
over and let me hold you.”

“That sounds wonderful.” She smiled, and he lost another piece of his heart.

*     *     *

Jamie woke up with a start and sat up. She grabbed hold of the warm blanket, drew
it up to her neck, and looked around. She spotted the illuminated lamp glowing in
the corner, but the bed was empty. She placed her hand on the spot where Max had slept.
It was still warm.

The rich aroma of coffee entered her nose, and she smiled. He was up. She yawned and
stretched, not wanting to admit what was real and what wasn’t. Yesterday had been
a blur of emotions. What started out as depression, morphed into fear, and then bloomed
into amazing desire. It was surreal. How was it possible to have experienced two tragedies
and an ultimate high in such a short period of time?

She had yet to wrap her mind around the wonders of making love with Max Gruden, but
the tenderness in her body attested to the fact they had made love, completely, totally,
wonderfully.

The blanket slipped down to her waist, and the cool air chilled her. She was naked
and needed to dress. Stepping onto the cold floor, she shivered, and moved over to
her suitcases she’d left open on the far side of the room. She crouched down and pawed
through her possessions for something warm to wear. Max implied they could be forced
to leave at a moment’s notice, so she hadn’t wanted to put her clothes in the dresser
or closet.

She quickly dressed, then pulled back the curtains to look outside. Her breath caught
at the beauty. Pristine snow covered the ground and made the boughs of the branches
hang low. Maybe she could convince him to let her go outside—assuming he believed
it was safe.

Thinking Max might need help with breakfast, she hurried out to the kitchen. He was
at the counter, cracking eggs into a bowl. Two cups of steaming coffee sat on the
counter. The scene was idyllic. This was what life should be like all the time.

When he spotted her, his grin came out wide, teasing her body into wake up mode. While
he was more handsome than a man deserved to be, she didn’t like the puffiness under
his eyes. That implied he hadn’t slept well.

“Good morning,” he said with what seemed like forced cheer. “You sleep good?”

He couldn’t tell? Benny always said once she was asleep, she didn’t move. “Yes. I
didn’t snore, did I?”

He laughed. “No. Come on over and help me.”

She’d spent so much time by herself that she’d forgotten what it was like to do something
with a man. “What would you like me to do?”

He had said she was supposed to do all the cooking. When she stepped close, he pulled
her to his chest, and kissed her. That woke her up.

“Can you handle making bacon?” he asked.

At least he hadn’t suggested she try her hand at a cheese omelet. “Totally.” She nodded
to the hot drinks. “Which one is mine?”

“The red cup.”

The first sip took the chill out of her bones. “Delicious.”

In companionable silence, they worked together. He put bread in the toaster then poured
the scrambled eggs in the frying pan, while she placed the bacon in a second skillet.

“Are you up for a little adventure today?” he asked with a glint in his eye.

Her pulse soared with excitement. “You’re letting me out?”

He laughed. “Only with me.”

“I wouldn’t want to go by myself.” He must know that.

“After breakfast, we need to head back down to the store. I’m afraid I wasn’t thinking
straight yesterday. We’ll need to get burner phones.” His jaw tightened as if he expected
her to complain.

“Do I have to smash the one I have? Or can I turn it off?”

“Turning it off won’t work, nor will smashing the screen like they do in the movies.
We’d have to remove the battery, and that takes a special tool that I don’t have.
I’ve been told wrapping it in aluminum foil will do the trick.”

“Is that the same for my computer? Will it prevent the terrorists from tracing my
location if I wrap it?”

“That I don’t know, but just in case, I’ll ask Hank to hold onto it for a while. He’s
got a metal gun safe that should keep prying eyes away.”

That was good news. “If I have to choose between giving up my laptop and staying alive,
I’ll donate my computer to the greater good.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. My car won’t be as easy to disguise. I’m going
to have to see if I can get Hank to swap vehicles with me. Last time I looked, he
drove a real slow camper.”

Poor Max. “Do you think those men saw you drive me to work?”

“Most likely. I’m guessing they followed us to your house, or asked around, because
they believed you have something that belonged to them.”

Goose bumps pebbled her arms. She understood that Max wasn’t saying that to scare
her, but was trying to make sure she understood what was at stake. “Only I didn’t.”

“They don’t know that, nor do they believe it. They’re determined buggers, I’ll grant
them that.”

“Changing vehicles makes sense if we have to be on the run.”

He smiled. “Way to look on the bright side.”

Max scraped the eggs from the pan and placed them on a dish, while she put the sizzling
bacon on a plate.

“This looks fantastic,” Jamie said as she shuffled over to the small table.

Max held out the seat for her. “I think you’ve now experienced the entire repertoire
of my cooking skills.”

She doubted that. “Guess I better try these eggs, then.” The first bite had her mouth
watering. “Fantastic. And you said you couldn’t cook.”

He grinned, and stuffed in a mouthful of eggs. When they finished eating, Jamie insisted
on cleaning up.

“I’ll gather what we need,” he said.

Just as she finished drying the last dish, Max returned with some gear. “Go put on
your jacket and boots, while I install the chains on the tires.”

Jamie was actually excited to go outside. The sun was shining, and the day appeared
calm. It was perfect weather to be outdoors. She drew on her coat, hat, scarf, and
gloves. As she rushed back to the living room, Max was coming in through the front
door.

“Are we going to the store just to get phones?” She slipped her computer into her
purse. Thankfully, she had online backup so she could recover her files if things
went south. She wondered if he had something else in mind besides visiting Hank’s.

“There might be more.” Max slipped the sleigh bells from the door handle and placed
them on the counter.

She liked their alarm system. The bad guys couldn’t cut power to the house, so they’d
never lose light. Sometimes old-fashioned devices worked best.

The drive to the store was magical. The road and landscape was pristine. Because she
didn’t spot any other tire tracks, it gave her confidence she’d be safe for a while.

“I love how the snow is clean and is piled high on the branches. It’s breathtaking.”

“It is.”

When they arrived at the small store, a car was parked in the lot.

“Shit.” Max drove on by instead of stopping.

Jamie’s nerves nearly burned. “You think that’s one of them?” Damn. Here she’d believed
they hadn’t been discovered.

“I have no idea. Let me call Hank. If he doesn’t know, I’ll have Trent run the plates,
though I’m not sure how a name will help us. It’s not like a person registers a car
under the name, John Doe, terrorist extraordinaire.”

She liked his sense of humor. He dialed Hank. “It’s me. I know you can’t talk, but
I spotted a brown Toyota Camry in the lot. Do you know who it belongs to? We’ll be
right there.” Max’s shoulders lowered. He clicked off the phone, stuffed it in his
pocket, and then executed a three-point turn. “The car belongs to Hilary Stanhogler,
Hank’s sister.”

Jamie’s blood pressure dropped a good twenty points. “Thank goodness.”

As he parked, a woman was leaving the store with an armful of groceries. Max jumped
out, and opened Jamie’s side.

He moved toward the woman. “Hilary!”

The lady stopped. Then recognition dawned and her eyes widened. “Well, I’ll be damned.
If it isn’t our Rock Hard hero. Hank said you were back in town. Let me set these
down and give you a hug.” She placed the items on the hood of her truck, came over,
and gave him a bear hug. They chatted a bit, and once more Max introduced Jamie by
her fake name.

When Jamie shook the woman’s hand, it was clear from her skin’s roughness that Hilary
had no problem with hard work. “Nice to meet you.”

“Stop on by sometime. Both of you.” Hilary faced Max. “You know Carl would love to
see you again.”

“We aren’t staying long, but the next time we’re back in town, we will.”

“I’ll hold you to it.”

Once Hilary’s engine fired up, Max hustled Jamie inside the store.

Hank rushed over. “You had a visitor this morning.”

Max was holding her hand, and the tension through his fingers nearly crushed hers.

“Who?”

“Trent. Left a package for you. Said he couldn’t stay because he had to get back.
Let me find it for you.” Max let go of her hand. Hank went over to the counter and
withdrew an envelope from inside the cash drawer. “He also said you might want to
give me that fine ride of yours for my beat-to-shit camper.”

Max laughed. “Leave it to Trent to pave the way for me.”

“Boy looks out for you.”

“That he does.” Max glanced around. “Need two burner phones and a place to keep a
computer.”

He nodded to Jamie. She extracted her prized possession and placed it on the counter.

“Let me get those phones.” Hank returned a minute later. “These here are ready to
go. As for the computer, got a gun safe in the back. I don’t think any of those fancy
Wi-Fi waves can reach through steel. If you want to leave your phones, I can store
them, too.”

Max smiled. “That would be great.” They placed the aluminum-wrapped items on the counter.

“I see you’re one step ahead of me.” Hank fished a hand in his pocket. “Here are the
keys to Edith. She’s already gassed up. Even set out clean bedding for you all.” He
winked.

Heat rushed up her face as Max exchanged keys. “She parked out back?”

“You bet.”

Max withdrew cash from the envelope and placed several bills on the counter. “This
will help fill up my truck. We’ll be at the cabin until trouble arrives. I’ll give
you a call with my new number.”

Max picked up some packaged food, paid, and escorted her out the back. It took him
a minute fiddling with the key to get the door to the camper open. Once he did, she
checked out their new ride. The VW Vanagon was old, but it looked functional. Just
as they were driving out, Hank was pulling Max’s car around back.

They both honked and waved. So far, so good.

Max glanced over at her with raised brows. “What do you say to a snowmobile ride?”

Excitement was immediately dampened by caution. “Is that wise? I thought you wanted
us to stay around the cabin.”

Max pulled onto the road that led to his place. “Relax. We’ll both go stir crazy sitting
in the house. I figure we can check out the perimeter. With the fresh snow, we’ll
be able to see if there are any tracks.”

She swallowed her concern. “Of the human kind, I’m guessing.”

He winced. “Yes. I’m not expecting any, though. By the way, have you ever shot a rifle?”

She hadn’t seen that question coming. “Me? Never? I told you I didn’t like weapons.”