is a victim. If you think for one second that I’m looking forward to your sulking, pouting demeanor while I’m working with those two little nuns, whom I love like grandmothers, you’re very mistaken. As far as I’m concerned, you can get off this plane at the airport, execute an about face and climb right back on for a return flight to the States.”
Stung, Ann glared at him, her heart beating hard in her breast. She saw the raw hurt in Mike’s eyes, heard it in the rasp of his voice. Oh, why was she doing this? It was as if all the desperation she felt was being fueled by her underlying fear and turning her into this woman she’d never met before. Helpless to stop her response to him, she whispered harshly, “You’re very good at twisting words, Major. But then, that’s your job, isn’t it? Get the dishonest politicians to play ball with you, fund you and your men, your activities. Cross lines in the sand and get both bullies to play the same game together?”
His lips curled away from his teeth. “Dammit, Ann, you’re stepping way out of line now. I don’t mind if you attack me personally or question my ethics, which you seem to think are very badly flawed, but when you go after my men, who put their lives on the line every day, that’s where I draw my line in the sand.” His gaze drilled into her shadowed, frightened eyes. “Those men have wives and kids and extended families, yet they get paid a pittance to leap out of those choppers and face well-armed cocaine soldiers in the highlands. It’s not fair and it’s not right. But I’ll be damned if some Harvard-graduate medical doctor is going to look down at them. My men are some of the bravest soldiers in the world. Their families are in jeopardy because of what they do, so they’re risking more than their lives, they’re risking the lives of their loved ones, too.”
Gasping, Ann straightened. The air was tense and she felt his low growl move through her like a tremor from an earthquake. His demeanor had changed to one of controlled violence—aimed at her. She saw the spark in his eyes, like the gleam of a predator stalking her. Fumbling internally, Ann knew she had started this attack. She deserved his reaction. The wounded and vulnerable part of her would rather deal with a man’s anger than a man’s love. And right now, her heart was hurting so much in her breast she wanted to cry out, throw her arms around Mike and just hold him as she knew he would hold her. If only she wasn’t so frightened. Smoothing her gray, light wool slacks against her thighs, she took several breaths before speaking. The danger emanating from Houston shook her. He’d pulled out all his guns, probably hoping she’d back down.
“Okay,” she whispered, holding his glare, “I’ll apologize for the remarks I just made about your men. They grew out of my anger. I own it and I’ll admit it.”
Houston slowly straightened, his gaze never leaving hers. “You still think I engineered this whole thing to get you down to Lima, don’t you?” He’d give anything to make her realize he was innocent of this. But the look in her eyes told him differently.
“There’s no question in my mind about that,” Ann growled back.
“For what possible purpose?” he asked, his voice cracking.
Surprised, Ann placed her hands on her knees. “Why, the obvious one, Major.”
“What? That I like you? That I admire your brains, your gutsiness? I made no bones about that when we worked together up north.” He’d have said more, but people were looking in their direction. Even now he would protect Ann from prying eyes and ears.
“And I’m sure those aren’t the only things about me you admired,” Ann sputtered, feeling heat move up her neck and into her face. She felt uneasy talking about the attraction between them, but dammit, there was no denying it! Oh, she was blushing! Of all the times to blush!
Houston forced himself to lean back in his seat, a mirthless smile slashing across the hard planes of his face. The pain and raw need he felt for her were mixed with anger and frustration. He’d never expected Ann to assault him like this. “And here I thought you were without imagination, Ann. I was wrong, I guess, wasn’t I?”
The innuendo struck her full force. Ann saw and felt his derisive laughter as he tilted his head back and allowed the low, growling sound to escape from his throat. She had that coming and she knew it.
“You know what, Doctor?”
She met his ruthless gaze. “What?”
“I have a really tough time thinking you’re not a machine. I’ve seen a lot of medicos in my lifetime, but none of them came across as icy and brittle as you. I heard Morgan say you were one of the best. Well, you’re going to have to prove that to me. I won’t allow you to step a foot in that clinic with your kind of by-the-book bedside manner. I’ve seen it for eight weeks now, and I’m certainly not going to subject two nuns who work tirelessly for the poor to your iceberg tactics. As a matter of fact, I don’t think you’ve allowed yourself to be human for a helluva long time. You’re happy in your little ivory tower. That’s fine. Down there at the clinic, we’re all touchers and huggers, and you’ll probably misread that, too. Some of the children coming in are orphans off the street, abandoned because their parents were unable to feed one more mouth. Those kids get a lot of hugs, embraces and love showered on them by the three of us.”
With a shake of his head, Houston rasped, “And if Miss Anglo with her highfalutin Harvard medical degree thinks she’s stepping into our humble abode like the proverbial Ice Queen to order us poor half-breeds and stupid Indians around like we’re brainless, she has another think coming. No, I don’t want you down in Lima with me, if the truth be known, Ann. Not like this. I’m used to working with people who have heart, who have a passion for living life and who aren’t afraid to show their vulnerability. Do me a favor? When you get off this flight, stay at the airport. I’ll make sure you get the very next flight back to the States.”
Chapter 3
By the time their jet touched down at Lima’s international airport, it was 0600. Pink touched the rim of the horizon, and ordinarily, Mike would have enjoyed the spectacle of color set against the darkness of the Andes mountains, where Lima sat loftily overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Disgruntled, unable to sleep and generally grouchy because of his head-on clash with Ann, he strode off the plane. His heart ached with grief over the loss of the trust he’d forged with her on the ranch. How could he have fallen so helplessly and hopelessly in need of her in two short months? Maybe he was more lonely than he realized. But it was more than loneliness, he realized. He knew now that he wasn’t the kind of man who could go through life without a good woman at his side. The tragedy and loss he had endured in his past had told him he had no right to ever try and reach out and love again. Mike never expected to find love again—nor did he want to. He’d always thought of himself as a doomed man. Because of his dangerous lifestyle, he’d always known it was just a matter of time until his body became meat for buzzards. And then Ann Parsons had walked into his life and he’d begun to dream once more of happiness. What a fool he was.
The dark smudges under Ann’s glorious eyes told him she didn’t feel much better than he did. Dammit, he wanted to apologize for some of the things he’d said to her in anger earlier. Somehow, she got to him, and he lost his normal ability to hold on to his temper. Great. Just great. More than anything, Mike didn’t want to leave her with hurtful feelings between them. Ann deserved better than that. He owed it to her to make amends and try to heal the bad blood between them.
Slowing his gait, he waited for her to catch up. One nice thing about first class was that they were off the plane first. He slung the black canvas knapsack he always carried with him over his left shoulder. As Ann approached, he saw that her dark hair was in mild disarray, and he had the maddening urge to reach over and comb his fingers through the thick, gleaming strands, which shimmered with highlights of gold and red. Better not, he warned
