Page 116 of Cowboys & Navy SEALs

At least he’d caught her attention, but her words were flat and dead. Not even the slightest bit of emotion in them.Sheesh. This woman was tough. “Are you always this friendly?” he asked dryly.

As she turned to face him, his mind cataloged her features. Long lashes, dark mysterious eyes, full lips painted apple red to match her dress. Her brow lifted in faint amusement. “Are you always this desperate?”

Her soft Southern accent was such a contrast to her insult that it rendered him speechless for a second. “I would hardly call trying to make polite conversation desperate.”

“Is that what you call this?”

“Of course,” he blustered. What was it about this woman that was making him so jumpy? He never got tongue-tied around women. Normally, the compliments rolled out of him like ballads with the ladies eating up every word. But not this woman. He forced a laugh. “Well, yeah. What else?”

She shrugged. “A poor attempt at hitting on me.”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” he retorted. Her eyes widened in surprise before her face flushed, making her look even more incredible. He felt kind of bad for cutting her down and tried to think of a way to soften the blow. Then it occurred to him. She looked familiar. He cocked his head, trying to figure out where he’d seen her. “Have we met before? Do you live here, in San Diego?”

Her mouth drew into a tight line. “That’s none of your business.”

“I wasn’t trying to pry … only trying to figure out how I know you. Have you ever been to Birchwood Springs, Colorado?”

She clipped out a single word. “Nope.”

Corbin was unprepared for the sting of disappointment that prickled through him. This woman meant nothing to him. Why was he taking her rejection so personally? She’d clearly dismissed him. The polite thing to do would be to get up and move. But Corbin had never been one to follow the rules of decorum. “What’s your name?”

Her eyes widened in exasperation as she turned to him. “Buddy, can’t you take a hint? I’m not interested.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “I’m only trying to carry on a conversation.”

Her jaw tightened. “I’m going to ask you one final time. Leave me alone.”

“Okay, I will. But first, you have to tell me your name.”Geez. He was coming across as a love-starved jerk. He’d come here to meet with Sutton, not pick up on chicks. But this womanwas messing with his head. Crazy, because he didn’t even know her. And she obviously had zero interest in him, but she’d been checking him out earlier. Talk about mixed signals! This woman was a master at it.

She looked past Corbin, exchanging some sort of information with the person behind him. Corbin turned as a heavyset guy with bulging biceps approached. His thick brows bunched as he sized-up Corbin. “Is this guy giving you problems, Miss Mitchell?” His voice had a warning edge, the kind tough-guys used in the hope it would send all opposition running.Not gonna happen, buddy.

The name clicked, as Corbin experienced an a-ha moment. “You’re Delaney Mitchell, that country music singer.” No wonder she was being standoffish. She was probably used to guys trying to pick up on her. Then he remembered hearing something about her on the news. She’d shot her ex-husband when he broke into her condo. Yep, the woman had some major baggage. He had to laugh at himself. A roomful of people, and he was drawn to the one who was as messed up as he was. Par for his luck.

“I tried to tell him I wasn’t interested, but he won’t take a hint,” Delaney said.

“I was only trying to make conversation,” Corbin mumbled. “You looked lonely … like you needed a friend.” Why was he even bothering to explain himself to this woman? Her gaze connected with his. For a split second, something flickered in Delaney’s eyes and he caught that wounded expression that had drawn him in. Then a curtain went down, her eyes going hard. “I told you to leave me alone,” she said coldly.

Without thinking, he touched her arm. “Hey,” he began.

It was the wrong move. The big man grabbed Corbin’s collar and yanked him to his feet. “Come with me,” he ordered.

Instinct took over as Corbin threw a punch that connected with the man’s jaw. He heard the crack at the same instant the sting of the impact reverberated through his knuckles. The big man stumbled back, disoriented. Corbin side-swept his leg, sending him crashing to the ground. There were several gasps from people nearby as they stepped back. Their shocked faces cut through the heady anger, making Corbin feel ashamed. He’d come here to honor his late friend and to reconnect with Sutton, not get in a bar brawl with some hoity toity musician’s bodyguard.

He gave Delaney a disgusted look. “I was only trying to get to know you. Lady, you have much too high of an opinion of yourself.” He grunted. “Good riddance.” He bent over to offer the guy a hand up. The guy clutched his hand, but instead of using it to get up. He pulled Corbin forward and punched him in the jaw. Pain rippled through Corbin and with that pain came a scorching anger that overshadowed reason. They rolled on the floor, trading blows. Then Corbin sprang to his feet, adrenaline coursing through his veins. He could go like this all night. In some perverse way, it felt good to vent the anger and frustration continually warring inside him. The man also lumbered to his feet. He wiped the thin trail of blood flowing from his lip, breathing heavily. A humorless grin ruffled Corbin’s lips. “Have you had enough? You should’ve left well enough alone, friend. I was trying to help you up.”

The hulk lunged at him, but Corbin easily dodged out of his way. A crowd had circled around them. It just went to show that regardless of whether folks were high or low-class, they loved the thrill of the fight.

The man came at him again. Corbin stepped to the side causing the lug to run headfirst into the bar. Corbin assumed that would be the end of it, but the hulk turned to face him, his eyes dark slashes as he shook off the hit. When he charged again,Corbin twisted behind him and got him in a chokehold. The man’s face turned purple, his arms flailing. Then he slumped to his knees and fell face-first on the floor, passed out cold.

Corbin glanced down at the streaks of blood on his white tux jacket. He looked at Delaney, who was ghostly white. “It didn’t have to be this way.” He rubbed his jaw, still smarting from the hits, then glanced at the spectators. “Show’s over,” he grumbled.

He got a couple of steps away when four security guards in black suits approached. He crouched getting into a fighting position. So this is how they wanted to play it. Fine with him! When the first guy charged, he clocked him in the face, knocking him down. He got the second with a swift sidekick to the gut. As he was fighting the third, the fourth attacked from behind. A sharp pain splintered up the base of his skull as he fell to his knees, the room spinning. His mind screamedfight, but his body refused to cooperate. In another second, the security guards had Corbin pinned on the ground, slapping handcuffs on his wrists. They lifted him to his feet, breathing curses as they hauled him away.

Chapter Four

From what Corbin could tell, he’d been placed in a holding cell in some deep underground section of the mansion. The walls were solid metal with the door being the only opening. Corbin had yelled for several minutes, demanding to be released, but the box was as soundproof as a tomb. Finally, he slumped down in the metal chair beside the table. Two chairs and a table were the only furniture in the room.

It was crazy how fast things had escalated out of control. One minute, he was attempting to talk to Delaney. And the next, he was fighting with the big guy, whom he assumed was Delaney’s bodyguard. The anger had taken over, the way it had been doing for some time now. But Corbin hadn’t started this fight. Trouble seemed to follow him wherever he went. He rumbled out a sarcastic laugh. Was this Sutton Smith’s plan all along? Lure him here so he could keep him prisoner?

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