Hawk and the Cougar by Tarah Scott Read Free Book Online

beside him. “My God.” She touched the hole, her long, slim fingers pale against the dark rubber.
    “Yeah.” Hawk rose and went back to his truck.
    He opened the hood and scanned the engine. Nothing obvious was out of place. He knelt on one knee, braced a palm on the ground and looked under the car. A dark circle stained the desert floor beside the passenger-side tyre. He lowered himself onto his back and scooted under the truck near the stain. As suspected, fluid dripped from a cut brake line. Hawk grasped the fender, pulled himself out and stood.
    “What do you think happened?” she asked.
    He considered lying, but she wouldn’t be fooled by a sugar-coated answer. Only he didn’t have to tell her that her slashed tyres were a message concerning her. His only living family was his grandfather who lived on the reservation. Vance Reid didn’t have a big enough army to get to him, and Hawk’s friends could take care of themselves as well as he could. Hawk’s jaw tensed. He’d finally given Reid what he’d been after for the last three months; a way to get at him.
    “They cut my brakes and slashed your tyres,” Hawk said.
    “Your brakes?” she burst out.
    “Did you bring a cell phone?” he asked.
    “Sure. But there’s no service out here.”
    “Let’s take a look.”
    He followed her to the Land Cruiser. She opened the driver’s side back door, then swung to face him. “My purse is gone.”
    Hawk nodded. “I would have been surprised if they’d left it.”
    “You don’t have a cell phone?”
    “I hate the things.”
    She looked nonplussed. “You’re kidding.”
    “I used to have one and couldn’t get a damn bit of work done on a dig.”
    She glanced around. “Why do all this then leave? That doesn’t make sense.”
    But it did. It made more sense than anything else they’d done so far.

    * * * *

    Panic rose like a tsunami. Get a grip, Liz mentally ordered. But the command didn’t stop the tremble that rocketed through her body. Hawk pulled her close and she allowed herself to relax against his solid body. The steady beat of his heart lulled her rampant pulse into a manageable rhythm as he stroked her hair. Tears threatened, but she bit down on her lip. The last thing he needed was a hysterical female. And she had no intention of giving Vance Reid the satisfaction of reducing her to a blubbering mass.
    Liz wrapped her arms around Hawk and released a slow breath. A stirring against her abdomen confused her for a second before she realised the growing bulge would be a full-blown erection in seconds.
    She straightened and looked up at him. “How can you…?”
    He gave a half laugh. “It’s not difficult with you, sweetheart, but we’ll save it for later.” One hand slid around her neck, while the other held her tight. He pressed a chaste kiss against her forehead, then pulled back. “I’ll make this up to you when we get home.”
    Her stomach flipped and she could only nod.
    Hawk released her. “It’s fifteen miles back to 87, too far to walk on this old road at night.” He glanced east. “Even with a full moon on the way.” His gaze came back around and locked with hers. “You game for a night under the stars?”
    Her heart did a double take, but to her surprise she read only concern in his eyes. That made her legs gel even more. A night under the stars with a Native American warrior who intended to protect her? Who was going to save her from him?
    “What time will your students return tomorrow?” she asked.
    “Katie will be here by nine a.m.”
    “That’s not too bad,” Liz said. “Emma will be worried sick, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m sure Katie will have a phone.” She gave him a recriminating look.
    He shrugged. “This’ll teach me.”
    “What time is it?”
    He glanced at his digital watch. “Seven-thirty.”
    “Maybe we’ll get lucky and Katie will be early.”
    He nodded, but she couldn’t help feeling she’d be a lot luckier if Katie