“He has an old pickup that he parks in a little clearing on down the road a bit. He rarely drives it. He sees no need to have a driveway to his house.”
So, she was planning to tramp through the woods at four in the morning. Andrew told himself that nothing else could possibly surprise him today. He straightened in his seat and unbuckled his safety belt. “There’s a flashlight in my emergency kit.”
“Are you sure you want to come with me? Your head must still hurt—”
“I’m coming with you,” he said flatly, having no intention of allowing her to walk through those woods alone. “Wear your coat,” he added when he noted that she’d taken it off again.
She nodded and reached over the seat to retrieve the garment. Disturbed by her movements, the dog lifted its head and began to whine. “Don’t worry, sweetie,” Nicole said. “We aren’t leaving you here. This time you’re coming with us. You’re going to love Uncle Timbo. And he’ll love you.”
Andrew hoped she was right. He still found it hard to believe her uncle would welcome them at this hour, especially when he learned that they intended to leave a grubby mutt with him.
Steeling himself against the cold air, he opened his door and slid out of the Range Rover. He winced when a sharp pain shot through his head in protest of the movement—a good night’s sleep was starting to sound damned good to him—but he didn’t give himself time for self-pity. Instead he walked immediately around to the back of the vehicle to retrieve the flashlight he always kept filled with fresh batteries and ready for any contingency.
He’d always taken pride in being prepared for anything, like the dutiful Eagle Scout he’d once been. But he’d never imagined an evening like this one.
Wouldn’t his friends and family be surprised if they could see him now? he thought wryly as the odorous dog bounded out of the Range Rover and sniffed happily around Andrew’s feet.
Andrew snapped on the flashlight and turned to Nicole. “Okay,” he said. “Lead us to Uncle Timbo.”
5
THE DOG STAYED close at their heels as Andrew and Nicole stepped off the dirt road and onto a narrow path that led into the woods. Andrew had to support Nicole, who had some difficulty negotiating the rough ground in her ridiculously spiked heels. Not that he minded having her so close, he thought as she nestled against his side, her unbound curls brushing his cheek.
They could just see their way, thanks to the moonlight and the beam of Andrew’s flashlight. After five minutes or so of walking, he still hadn’t seen a house. “Just how much farther is it?” he asked.
“Not far,” Nicole answered softly. “Stay close, girl,” she said to the dog, who didn’t seem inclined to wander. In fact, the animal was looking around rather nervously.
Andrew could sympathize with the dog’s uneasiness. Walking through the woods at this hour felt strange to him, too.
Though he’d never been considered an especially imaginative man, except when it came to running a business, it wouldn’t have particularly surprised him to encounter a ghost or goblin this evening. Had he been just a bit more fancifully inclined, he might have even suspected Nicole of being a witch. A magic spell would certainly explain his own uncharacteristic behavior this evening!
Nicole stumbled, and he steadied her with an arm around her shoulders. She fit against his side as though she’d been made to be there. She smiled up at him and his heart skipped in reaction. The moonlight did incredible things to her flawless skin and luminous dark eyes. His mouth tingled with the desire to kiss her again.
He shook his head to rouse himself from the near trance he’d almost fallen into. Damn it, she was doing it again. Hell, maybe she really was a witch.
“Poor Andrew,” she murmured, making him wonder if reading minds was one of her tricks. “You look so grimly determined to see this thing through. Couldn’t you just try to relax and enjoy yourself?”
He made an effort to smile back at her. “Hiking through the wilderness in the middle of the night isn’t exactly my idea of fun.”
“We’ll have to discuss your idea of fun later. I’m very interested in learning more about it. But for now, we have a fence to climb.”
He wasn’t sure he’d heard her correctly. “We have to do what?”
She pointed to the three strands of barbed wire crossing the path ahead of them. “There’s no gate. We have to go over, under, or between the strands. I’ve gotten a few scrapes when I misjudged the space between them. I hope you’re current on your tetanus shots.”
She knew very well that he’d been given a tetanus shot at the hospital less than an hour before. He inhaled deeply through his nose. “Okay,” he said rather grimly. “Let’s climb a fence.”
Nicole went first, while Andrew held the strands of wire for her to duck through. Even in her swingy coat and tight skirt and heels, she negotiated the strands of barbed wire with a skill that spoke of long experience.
“I’m very fond of Uncle Timbo,” she explained from the other side of the fence. “I visit him fairly often.”
Andrew only nodded and stretched the top strand high enough to give him space to go under. He’d almost gotten through when a sharp, tearing sound made him groan.
“Andrew?” Nicole asked in quick concern. “Are you all right? Have you cut yourself?”
“No. Just ripped the jacket of my tux.”
His brand new tux, he could have added. Tailored specifically to his measurements. This was the first time he’d worn it. He’d donned it expecting an evening of dancing and social interaction. Had he known he’d be fighting gunmen and cl