She looked up at him. “That doesn’t mean we were sleeping together.”
“Do you have any idea where he is?”
Her expression turned guarded. “Not a clue.”
Liam knew she was keeping something from him, and her secret was connected to Wayne Silverman.
She crossed the small clearing and grabbed the strap of her backpack, which she pulled deeper inside her cave, where he couldn’t see. Was she trying to keep the pack away from him?
She emerged carrying a silver solar blanket which she held toward him. “You’re sleeping on the ground tonight. But you can use this to ward off the chill.”
“I’m not tired.”
“Me neither. But after it’s dark, we need to sleep, to keep strong for another day of foraging.”
That was what she thought. But if Liam had his way, tomorrow would be the day when she finally went home.
RAIN AWOKE AT DAWN AND opened her eyes only a slit, just as she had last night when Liam had crept into her cave. She’d seen him sneaking toward her and noticed how his eyes focused on the backpack that rested at her feet. His intentions seemed clear: he’d planned to rifle through the backpack.
Searching for information? Or had he known about the jewels and cash? As she had lain inside the sleeping bag, her muscles had tensed.
Then he’d turned around and left her cave.
She’d spent a couple of sleepless hours trying to figure out why he hadn’t grabbed her backpack. Even if she’d tried to stop him, they’d already established that he was physically superior and capable of taking control. Why had he backed off?
The reason, she’d finally decided, was simple: Liam was a decent person who respected her privacy. Even though he was incredibly curious, even though he wanted her to return to Denver, he wouldn’t force his opinion upon her.
Her eyelids opened wider. The soft, pinkish glow of dawn flowed into her cave, and a hint of dewy moisture hung in the air. Such a fine way to start the day! She would miss these mornings.
Nonetheless, Rain knew it was time to leave her mountain habitat; she couldn’t deny that she was Kate Carradine from an old-money family in Denver. While Liam had talked and shown her the photographs, memories of her former life had taken root in her consciousness. She had to go home, to face whatever awaited her in the city.
After sleeping on it, her decision was made. It was time.
Rolling to her stomach, she gazed across the cleared area to where Liam should have been sleeping under the silver solar blanket. She didn’t see him.
Where was he? Throwing aside the sleeping bag, she emerged from her cave and went to the three boulders that sheltered her campsite. After a quick scan of the meadow, she spotted Liam’s red plaid shirt down by the stream. Even at this distance, she noticed the breadth of his shoulders. A mountain man. He was comfortable here…almost as much as she was.
Rain decided to use this time alone in camp to handle an important task. Returning to her cave, she knelt before the backpack and unzipped the bottom pouch. Stacks of hundred-dollar bills tumbled onto the earthen floor. Though she’d already used some of this paper money for kindling, the cash made a good-sized package when she wrapped it tightly in a T-shirt. At the deepest part of her cave, she crammed the bundle into a crevice, then added the pouch full of diamonds and gold. For extra security, she rolled a heavy rock in front of the hiding place, then smoothed the dirt with her hands.
This stash was her insurance policy. If she’d stolen it herself, the treasure was safely tucked away from the police. If, on the other hand, the hunters wanted to get their hands on the cash and jewelry, she had a bargaining chip. Only she would know where it was hidden.
As she came out of the cave dusting off her hands, Liam returned. He looked at her dirty fingers. “Making mud pies for breakfast?”
“Just tidying up,” she said. “After thinking about everything you told me last night, I’ve made my decision. It’s time for me to pack up and leave.”
He rewarded her with a huge smile, and she thought for a moment that he was going to hug her. “You made the right decision, Rain.”
With a sigh, she said, “I guess you should start calling me Kate.”
“All right, Kate. By coming back, you’re going to make a lot of people happy.”
“Not everybody.” For the hunters, her return would not be cause for celebration. “If you don’t mind, I think I should ease back into civilization gradually.”
“Not a problem,” he said. “We’ll go to my cabin first. It’s fairly remote. You can take a shower, have some solid food and get your bearings.”
“I can’t wait.”
BY THE TIME LIAM BROUGHT his Super Cub around for a landing on an unmanned airstrip in the mountains, Kate was bubbling with excitement, unable to decide which delightful thing to do first.
“I want bacon and eggs for breakfast,” she said. “And a candy bar for dessert.”
“We can do that.”
She beamed. All the food in the world was available to her. The idea of going to a grocery store and picking out whatever she wanted seemed utterly astonishing.
“And a shower,” she said. “And clean clothes.”
“You got it.”
Liam would also make sure her family was notified that she was safe and well. He wondered why she hadn’t immediately thought of them but chalked her indifference up to amnesia.
The Cub touched down lightly and slowed. Liam maneuvered until he had the small plane backed up in front of a rough, wooden shed with a door wide enough for the wingspan. He cut the engines. “I’m not going to put her in the hangar. I’ve got my Land Rover parked in back. I was doing a little work on her.”
She peered through the windshield. “Is this your property?”
“The cabin’s back there in the trees.”
When her feet touched the packed gravel, she felt weightless, as though they were still in the air. Kate hitched up her baggy jeans and followed him toward a neat little two-story log cabin with a sloped shake-shingle roof and a wide porch across the front.
“Very nice,” she said, echoing his comment when he’d seen her cave.
“Like I said, it’s remote.”
The terrain was rugged, little more than a clearing in a dense conifer forest. A craggy cliff side formed a natural boundary at the western edge of the grassy field.
She noticed a battered old Jeep with a snowplow attached to the front. “I thought your car was in the hangar.”
“The Rover is parked indoors. I only use this Jeep to clear the road and the airstrip. I’m on the edge of national forest, and the regular plows don’t come up here.”
