Close Contact

Much as he’d always treated her before she’d run away.

Hopefully, once she explained to him, he’d understand. Not that she could recapture what she’d lost...

With his hand still outstretched, Miles said, “It’s not an invitation to get naked, Maxi. It’s just holding hands.”

No, for her and her sensitized nerve endings, it was so much more.

Grumbling to herself for being a fool, she slipped her hand into his, and all those amazing contrasts converged on her. She was of average height for a woman, but Miles was such a big guy, so ripped and solid and capable that she felt petite in comparison.

The way his strong fingers curved so warmly around hers seemed so blasted right. He shortened his long stride to match hers, considerate without having to think about it.

Being here with him, she could almost convince herself that things would be okay. He was that type of guy, always upbeat with a crooked smile that melted a person’s heart.

Until today, she’d never seen him annoyed.

“You’re quiet,” he said, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. “Holding up okay?”

“Yes.” After Dr. Brummel confirmed that she’d been drugged, she’d been badly shaken. She’d known, but still, she’d been hoping for another explanation.

There hadn’t been one—and she still didn’t know why.

“It’s okay if you’re not, you know. The doc said you could be feeling the effects another twenty-four hours.”

“My head’s clearer by the minute.” They’d driven back to her farm with the windows open and the rush of fresh air entering Miles’s SUV had helped to clear out the cobwebs.

Most of her recovery, however, had to do with having Miles at her side. Fear, she’d quickly learned, was debilitating.

“Okay, then,” he said. “Cats first, then the house, and then we talk.”

She dreaded going back inside, but because she knew she’d have to, she only nodded. I’m not alone now.

From the day she’d met Miles, she’d wanted him. It was like a craving. He’d smiled at her across the bar, and she’d been ready to say a resounding “yes!” to a question he hadn’t yet asked. In fact, only a few hours after their first hello, she was the one to ask, “Want to go someplace more private?”

Luckily his apartment hadn’t been far from the bar.

She didn’t blame herself for falling hard at the first sight of him. Late twenties, with dark brown hair, green eyes showcased by thick dark lashes, and that endearing smile... What woman wouldn’t go after him?

Even better than his face was his body. Tall, broad in the chest and shoulders, carved with muscle. It boggled her mind that one man could be so incredibly perfect. He used to be a professional athlete and it showed. In the two months since she’d last seen him, he’d bulked up even more. Now he looked downright imposing.

But it was his personality that had really done her in. She’d wanted, needed, a physical distraction from her troubles.

Miles had turned out to be so much more.

“What are you thinking?”

That I was a fool for walking away. She couldn’t tell him that, though. “Just wondering what you must think, seeing all the cats and dead grass and the repairs that need to be made.”

“I’m thinking you have a lot to tell me. But if you need to nap, I can wait until tonight.”

“No, I don’t want to sleep.” She didn’t know how she’d ever sleep peacefully again.

Someone drugged me.

It kept popping up in her brain, kick-starting the paralyzing panic all over again. As if he understood, Miles tightened his fingers around hers, and that helped her shake it off. She concentrated on looking around the grounds while leading him to the barn.

The building sat a good distance behind the house, opposite of the pond, still sturdy but in need of paint. “Grandma used to keep a horse, cow and two goats in here. The farm animals were gone before I inherited the property, though.”

“And a bunch of cats took their place?”

“Seems like. That’s how I got the house, you know. My grandmother knew no one else would stay and take care of them. She left me a letter with her will, saying she was counting on me to do my duty.”

“Your duty, huh?”

She didn’t want to think about that either. “I’ve been catching them and getting them fixed. See the cats with notched ears? That means they’ve either been spayed or neutered, and they get a general checkup at the same time so they get their shots and checked for ear mites and fleas.”

“Must be expensive.”

“It just takes a lot of time. Dr. Miller, the vet, is giving me a discount, since I have so many cats here. He said my grandma would bring them in every so often, but it was a losing battle. She’d catch three, and at the same time another would have a litter of four.”

Miles turned thoughtful. “You take the cats to him, or he comes here?”

“I take them to him. I told you, no one comes here.”

“How far away is he?”

“It’s a twenty-minute drive. Once you get on the main road, it’s not far at all.” She pointed in the distance. “Opposite direction of how we came, and it’s the nearest civilization.”

“Not sure any of this feels all that civilized.”

She grinned. “Right. There’s a grocery and hardware store, a bank. The vet. Things like that. If you want to go to a movie theater or do any real shopping, it’s forty minutes back the way we came.”

“The cats are everywhere,” Miles noted, but not with disgust, not like he thought she ought to run them all off, or worse, destroy them.

She saw that he, too, was busy looking around for signs of danger. Neither of them saw anything but the beautiful trees and the brown grass in need of rain, the pond and the birds.

It was so beautiful.

And somehow treacherous.

The barn door stood ajar. Before Miles could wonder about it, she explained. “I leave it like that. Some of the cats get in there to sleep.” When she reached for the door, Miles held her back.

“Let me.” He gave it a good pull. As the heavy door swung out, sunlight poured in, slanting across golden straw, sending the shadows to recede. Dust motes floated in the air and earthy scents escaped. He stepped in cautiously, giving his eyes a moment to adjust to the dimmer interior.

They both jumped when a feral cat leaped from the loft and shot out past them.

Hand to her heart, Maxi said, “Blast, they get me every time.”

He laughed but said, “You have reason to be nervous and I’m not used to cats.”