Moving to his feet, Dash laid out clothing and shoes for the mother and child before quickly loading the Hummer. Then he woke them up, waiting patiently as Elizabeth helped Cassie wash up, brush her teeth and comb out the mass of curls falling over her face.
Elizabeth didn’t take nearly as long getting herself ready as she took taking care of her child. She gave the racy black thong and matching bra a long look before picking them up expressionlessly and adding them to the jeans, socks and thick long-sleeved blouse he had laid out for her.
Dash hid his grin. She was getting mad. He could see it in her face, feel it in the air around her. She didn’t confront him with Cassie watching them, though. She was careful to give the child every assurance that she was willing to work with Dash. Willing to do whatever it took to keep her safe.
His respect only grew for her. She was a damned strong woman. Not many people, male or female, could hold their tempers around him for long. He watched her disappear into the bathroom, wondering how long she would wait before she blew up and confronted him over the decisions he was making. Decisions that hadn’t been passed by her first.
Cassie watched her, too. Dash caught the little girl’s expression as her mother went into the other room. It was equal parts deliberation and playful manipulation. Oh, she was going to be a handful for sure.
“Momma’s clothes are pretty.” Cassie bounced up on the bed beside him as he stuffed the small plastic bag Elizabeth had put their dirty clothes in into the bag he used to carry them. “Mine are, too.”
She ran her fingers down the soft gray velour sleeve of her shirt, then looked down at her new boots. It was obvious she was genuinely enjoying the feel of the outfit.
Dash watched her admiring the clothes and couldn’t help but allow a smile to tilt his lips. She didn’t hold much back, and she had something on her mind she was ready to say. Dash just wondered if he wanted to hear it right now. He had a feeling Cassie would keep him off-balance every chance she had.
“Can you keep secrets, Dash?” she finally asked him carefully as she watched him zip the bag up.
Dash looked over at her quietly for long moments. “It depends,” he finally told her gently. “If they’re secrets your momma should know, then I might have to try to convince you to tell her.”
She blinked, long thick lashes covering her eyes for a half a second.
“Would you tell her if I said don’t?” she finally asked.
Dash sighed deeply. “I don’t know, Cassie,” he told her seriously. “Secrets are big things. Little girls should always trust their mommas with their secrets. Even if they think it could get them in trouble.”
Cassie watched him silently. He could see her expression clearing, her eyes brightening a bit more than before.
“It’s a good secret,” she finally said. “A secret ‘bout momma.”
Now how could he resist? He grimaced. “Uhhh, Cassie, don’t tell tales on your momma,” he finally sighed. He was desperate to know anything she would tell.
She giggled lightly, knowingly.
“Momma might be angry with you, Dash,” she finally whispered, staring up at him with big, slate-blue eyes. “Be careful or she might yell at you. Momma doesn’t yell really loud, but boy, she can be scary when she does yell.”
Dash restrained his chuckle as relief poured through him. He wanted to know every soft inch of Elizabeth inside and out, but he didn’t want Cassie telling tales, either. This tale, he figured he could handle.
“What does she sound like when she yells?” he asked her, his voice just as soft as though it were actually secret. Hell, he knew she was pissed and getting madder by the second.
Cassie looked at the bathroom door. “Like she might take away the candy bars for a week.” Cassie nodded solemnly, but Dash could have sworn he saw laughter lurking in the little girl’s eyes. “You better be nice to her or she might not let you have any treats.”
Dash almost winced. Yep, he agreed with Cassie, that might be a bad thing. Unfortunately, he had yet to know what it was like to be really treated by Elizabeth.
“I’ll get my own candy bars,” he confided with a grin. “What would she do then?”
Cassie evidently hadn’t considered that angle.
“Oh.” Cassie pursed her lips, considering. “Would you get me one, too?” Her curls seemed to bounce around her face as she smiled up at him sweetly. Pure innocence. Or so she wanted him to think.
Dash snorted. Oh, she was a charmer all right.
“I don’t know. Messing with your momma over your candy bars might really get me in trouble.” He frowned as though thinking the matter over. “I might not want to chance that, Cassie.” The little girl obviously liked her candy bars. But she was also enjoying the game of learning how great an ally Dash would be.
He watched as she pulled at one of her curls thoughtfully. Her head tilted and he swore he could see her quick little mind working in those wide blue eyes.
“I could tell you how to get her unmad at you,” she finally confided sweetly. “I know the secret. Momma can’t resist.”
Now this might be interesting. Dash glanced over her. “You tell first. Then we’ll talk candy bars.”
Cassie rolled her eyes. “This information is worth a lot of candy bars, Dash.” She shook her head at him as though he disappointed her. She was obviously expecting so much more from him.
Dash wanted to laugh. He was surprised to realize how easily it was building in his chest. She was a tough little thing, for sure. He would have expected her to be huddled in fear, flinching at each sudden sound. Instead, she appeared to have completely forgotten about the day before.
“Hm,” he finally grunted, as though he might be reluctant to bargain. “What amount are we talking here?”
He hadn’t had much experience with kids, but Cassie made it real easy to find common ground with her.
“Well.” She scrunched her face up as she glanced back at the bathroom door before turning back to him with an innocent smile. “At least three chocolate bars. I really like chocolate, you know.”
Dash wiped his hand over his face, fighting his amusement. Damn. She was good. Her momma would kill him over three candy bars.
“Three, huh?” He sighed as though it could be a possibility. “How mad will your momma get over these three chocolate bars?”
She straightened the sleeve of her shirt. Ran her hand over the soft material again and then looked up at him with those angel’s eyes as though she had nothing more on her mind then making his life easier.
“Well, it would be controllable if you knew the secret to make her unmad.” She shrugged her pitifully thin shoulders negligently. “So, do we have a bargain here?”
Oh, she was good.
“I don’t know.” He cocked his head sideways. “I don’t have any chocolate bars right now.”
She pressed her lips together as she placed two small fingers at the bridge of her nose and shook her head as though she had lost all hope for him. Finally, she sighed as though more than put out. Her eyes were twinkling, though, the shadows of fear easing.
“I’ll take you on your word then,” she sighed. “But you really should stock up on chocolate bars. It’s more precious than gold when dealing with kids, ya know.”
He nodded solemnly. “I’ll keep that in mind. So what’s the secret?”
“Kisses.” She leaned back as though she had just pulled off the coup of the century. And to beat all, she was laughing at him.
“Kisses?” he asked her carefully.
She nodded confidently. “Lots of kisses, Dash. And Momma’s already upset. You better pucker up.”
She was giggling. She clapped her hand over her mouth, though, when her momma walked quickly from the bathroom, dragging a wide-toothed comb quickly through her unruly locks.
“You forgot hair bands for me, Mr. Prepared-For-Everything,” she muttered in irritation as she swept the waist length curls behind her shoulder and lifted her head.
Her eyes narrowed instantly. Her hands went to her slender hips, emphasized by the snug fit of denim and the black blouse tucked into the waistband.
“What are you two up to?”
Cassie’s eyes rounded instantly as she jumped from the bed and flew to her momma’s arms.
Elizabeth caught her easily, a smile crossing her lips, even if it was highly suspicious. She accepted the little girl’s exuberant kiss to her cheek, though, and returned it warmly.
“Don’t we have pretty clothes, Momma?” She leaned back to allow her mother to admire the dark gray velour outfit. “Dash has good taste, huh?”
The little girl was almost as tall as her mother. Dash watched them covertly as he rose to his feet, lifting the bag from the bed as he flexed his shoulder muscles, checking the fit of the leather bands that held the knife sheath between his shoulder blades.
“Yes. Dash has good taste.” She allowed her daughter to slide to the floor, laying her arm across her shoulders. “Get your coat on now, Cassie. It looks like Dash is ready to leave.” Her voice cooled measurably. “Maybe you better hurry and use the bathroom first, though. We might have a lengthy drive ahead of us.”
Cassie bounced away while her mother looked after her. When the door closed, Elizabeth turned back to Dash.
“No chocolate bars,” she said as she sat down at the edge of the bed to lace the boots Dash had provided for her. “It makes her too hyper and she won’t eat her meals. Right now, vitamins are more important.”
He knew there was no way she had heard their conversation. She lifted her head after finishing, glancing at his questioning expression.
“She bargains for chocolate, Dash. What did she promise in return?” He watched her lips press together as though she were trying to control her own grin. “Don’t believe that child. She really doesn’t know the secret to the universe, or ancient druid curses. She just thinks she does.”
Hell, she hadn’t offered those to him, he thought with a spurt of amusement. But then again, he knew the little girl was after a hell of a lot more than chocolate. The little conniver was after a bit of matchmaking.
He shook his head as Elizabeth rose to her feet, her eyes narrowing on him.
“Well?” she asked him curiously. “What was it?”
He shrugged. “Can’t tell. Chocolate secrets are sacred, you know.”
She snorted at that. Thankfully, Cassie chose that moment to come bounding out of the bathroom. Elizabeth turned quickly to take care of washing and drying her hands, then a quick pat to thick childish curls and getting her into her coat. The whole time, Cassie talked.
“Are we really going to a ranch, Dash?” She stared up at him in amazement. “I’ve never been to a ranch before.”
“Definitely a ranch, Cassie.” He opened the door.
Two feet of snow greeted him and more was still falling.
“Come on, chatter box.” He swung her up in his arms and began pushing through the snow to the Hummer, making certain to clear a path for Elizabeth as she moved behind him.
“I’m hungry, Dash,” she informed him as he strapped her into the back seat, looking up at him with wide eyes. “Can we get something to eat? I want some pizza.”
He glanced back at Elizabeth, catching the surprise in her expression.
“Let’s get rolling first, squirt,” he chuckled. “Then we’ll see what your momma thinks is best.”
He closed Cassie’s door, then opened the front passenger door, gripping Elizabeth’s waist and lifting her into the high seat. He realized he had left her to make her own way into the vehicle the night before. She tensed in his arms, but allowed him to help her in, casting him a surprised glance as he pulled her seat belt forward.
“I remember my manners sometimes.” He cleared his throat as she snapped the strap in place. He made a mental note to remember them more often, though they were self-taught. He might have to polish them a bit. Maybe Mike would have some ideas. Hell, he was married now, he should know.
The outside lights cast a dim, ethereal glow around her. Her dark hair glistened; her blue eyes appeared darker, more mysterious. Her lips shone with the delicate coating of moisture from the nervous tongue she stroked over them.
She drew in a deep hard breath, lifting her breasts against her shirt. He remembered the bra. Lacy, flimsy. It was a tempting piece of confection that drove him crazy when he thought about it.
He cleared his throat. “Pizza?” he asked her softly. He was starved, but not for food.
She swallowed tightly. “That’s fine.”
They both jumped at Cassie’s squeal of pleasure from the back seat. Dash nodded abruptly before he closed Elizabeth’s door and strode quickly to the driver’s side. The pizza would be easy enough. Loosening up Elizabeth might be a bit harder.
Chapter Seven
“This guy is a friend of yours?”
Elizabeth was nervous about their arrival at the Toler ranch. She had gone from having no one to help her, having no options, to having Dash take over and find options she could have never found for herself.
For two years she had depended on no one but herself. She had kept her and Cassie alive, often only by the skin of her teeth, but they were still alive. She had made her own decisions. Had protected Cassie alone and accepted the responsibility that each move, each decision, was the best she could make at the time.
Now Dash was making the decisions and he was doing it without informing her of the consequences, should any of them fail. She felt like she was in the dark, foundering for solid footing amid a situation she was unfamiliar with. She didn’t know Mike Toler. Didn’t know his family, his strengths or his weaknesses and she didn’t feel safe.
She watched Dash now, noticing his relaxed posture, his air of confidence and control. How she longed to feel so in control of any situation. The lights from the dash reflected off his hard face, the dull gleam of the night vision windshield giving him an almost other worldly appearance. The unfamiliar lights cast his expression in stark relief and made his eyes almost glow as he glanced over at her.
“He’s a fellow soldier,” he said simply as he shrugged those broad shoulders.
Hard, muscular shoulders. She had gripped the smooth, tight flesh earlier that morning, allowed her nails to clench on the supple skin as he ate from her mouth. Her fingertips tingled at the memory. Her mouth watered with sudden hunger to know his taste again.