Page 71 of Mountain Rescue
Dallas hadn’t promised he wouldn’t let anything happen to her, and she was glad for that. It would have been a promise he might not be able to keep. But she didn’t doubt he would do everything possible to keep her safe. Probably even take a bullet for her if it came to that. Hell, the same probably went for the two men escorting her down the mountain.
Where would they go now that the cabin wasn’t safe? Would Dallas stay with her? Now that Robert had found her, this should be over in a day, a few days at the most. She wanted to spend the time she had left here with Dallas, but that would put him in danger, and she’d never forgive herself if something happened to him.
She should have never come here.
By the time Dallas returned to the cabin with Deke, Rachel had them both packed up and ready to leave. Jack wanted them gone from the cabin immediately. He still hadn’t said where they’d go, and she hadn’t asked. Her nerves were stretched to their limit, and she was afraid that if he said Dallas wouldn’t be staying with her, she’d burst into tears.
Dallas walked in and went straight to her. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. “You okay?”
She nodded against his chest. “Yeah, I’m good.” Now that he was here.
Bella followed him in and went straight to her kitten. She sniffed Blue from one end to the other, making sure he was okay, then she set about giving him a bath.
Jack opened the door. “We need to roll.”
“I packed your stuff for you,” she told Dallas.
“Thanks.” He kept one arm around her as he slid the strap of his duffel bag over his shoulder, then grabbed the handle of her suitcase. “Bella, let’s go for a ride.”
She picked up Blue by his neck and headed for the door.
“That’s the damnedest thing I’ve ever seen,” Noah said. He grasped the handle of Dallas’s suitcase.
Rachel broke away from Dallas and lifted the box with Bella and Blue’s food and toys. As she followed Dallas and Noah out, she glanced back. This cabin had become a refuge, a place where she’d spent time with a cowboy, had made love to him on a bed with a handmade quilt. She wasn’t ready for her time with him to be over.
When she faced forward, Dallas was standing in the doorway, looking at her with soft eyes, as if he knew and understood her sadness at having to leave their sanctuary.
“We still have some time left,” he softly said as she passed him.
She gave him a smile she didn’t really feel. A few days at the most now that Robert’s men, and probably Robert, were here. He’d either be captured soon, or she’d be dead. Those were the only two possible outcomes.
Jack and Deke stood in the yard near the cars, both with their weapons out and their alert gazes scanning around them. She couldn’t wait for this to be over and hopefully still be alive. If she never saw another gun for the rest of her life, she’d be happy.
“We’re headed for our building site,” Jack told Dallas. “Deke’s going in front of you. Noah and I will follow to make sure no one’s tailing you.”
Her stomach took a sickening roll at the reminder of the danger they were in being out in the open. Maybe she could pretend it was just another movie.
This ain’t no movie, Rach. People are trying to kill you. For real.
“Shut up, stupid voice in my head.”
“Pardon?” Dallas opened the back door of the Jeep for Bella—still carrying Blue—to jump in. He tossed her suitcase and his duffel bag in, then took the box from her and slid it next to the suitcase.
“Just talking to myself.”
He took his suitcase from Noah and set it on the floor. After closing the door, he put his hands on her shoulders and stared into her eyes. “I promise I’ll protect you, Rachel. I won’t let him hurt you.”
You can’t promise that.She didn’t say it, though, only nodded and got in the Jeep.
Chapter Twenty
The trip to Jack’s site was uneventful, and Dallas pulled up next to Jack’s car in front of the only completed cabin. Deke had waved and kept going when they reached the entrance. Jack had stopped at the under-construction lodge and let Noah out. Dallas assumed Noah’s car was around somewhere, and he’d head to his downtown loft.
“I guess this is your new home,” he said after turning off the ignition.
“Okay.”
His wildcat had turned into a scaredy cat, and he didn’t like that at all. Not that he blamed her for being frightened when a ruthless man was doing his best to kill her. But he wanted her fighting spirit back. From the time they’d left the other cabin, she’d gone quiet, only giving him one-word answers when he’d tried to get her to talk.
