himself he’d forgotten to give her hell for her escape.
Levering himself off her, he got to his feet. Once he was standing, he reached down, caught her by the wrist and pulled her up.
“You can let me go now.”
His laugh was a husky one. “What? And watch you take off again?”
“Oh, now, you’re not going to hang on to me all the way back to the car.”
“That’s exactly what I’m going to do, sweetheart. Only it’s not going to be by the wrist.”
Before she could object, Chase shifted his grip higher on her arm, whirled her around, bent his knees low enough to collect and balance her weight and slung her up and over his shoulder.
When he came erect again, she was swinging headfirst down his back with her lower half dangling down his chest. It was a maneuver he’d learned in the rangers and used effectively a couple of times to transport wounded soldiers to the nearest dressing station.
Holding the load in place was achieved by splaying the fingers of one hand firmly over the rump. It was just a position when it came to a wounded buddy, but it took on a whole new meaning with this cargo. Haley Adams had one hell of a spectacular bottom for a man to hold on to.
“I’m not going to ride like this! Put me down!”
“Not a chance.”
He struck off across the pasture, knowing she couldn’t be comfortable bouncing along with each of his steps. Too bad. She didn’t deserve comfort.
“How you doing back there, Haley? Comfy enough?”
He missed her muffled reply, but from the sound of it, it couldn’t have been very friendly. Managing to scramble across the fence while still bearing her over his shoulder, he achieved a more or less direct path through the woods. She was just as tightly in his possession when they crossed the second fence and arrived back at the highway where his SUV safely waited for them. Thankfully, the cops hadn’t gotten there yet to tow it away.
Nor did he release her until his free hand produced the keys from his pocket, unlocked the doors, opened the front passenger one and flung her down into the seat with a warning.
“You try any more dumb stunts like that, and I’ll handcuff you.”
* * *
His promise had merit, Haley reluctantly decided when they were rolling up the highway again. It had been stupid of her to make a run for it without money, then hide in a pile of hay like a child.
She would do better the next time. Like, for instance, avoiding his body on top of hers. There had been something much too effectively sensual about both that and his hot hand pressed against her backside afterward. She much preferred him in an unpleasant mood. Safer, right?
But she wasn’t certain of that. There was an element of danger about him.
It was better not to look at him. She turned her head away, staring out the window. Off both sides of the four-lane were high, forested slopes. Even though many of them had been denuded in long, vertical swaths by lumbering, there was a beauty about them enhanced by the majestic Cascade Range behind them.
“You feeling okay?”
He hadn’t spoken a word in miles. His deep voice coming out of nowhere like this startled her. She stole a glance at him. The man had no heart, and yet she swore she could see a guilty expression on that square-jawed face.
She assumed he was referring to the way she’d been treated when he caught up with her at the horse shelter. “How would you feel if you’d been tossed around like a sack of potatoes?”
“You saying the merchandise ended up bruised?”
“Let’s just say it’s a bit tender.”
She hoped she was wearing a wounded look on her face. There was nothing frail about Haley, but he deserved to think he’d been too rough on her.
“I did warn you.”
She kept up her pretense, this time with a martyr’s sniff. Had she gone too far? Was that suspicion she read in his sidelong gaze?
They were silent again. Haley returned her attention to the view. They didn’t go far before Chase spoke up once more.
“I’m pulling off at the next exit.”
“Is there something wrong?”
“Yeah, my stomach. It’s empty. I can’t remember when I’ve last eaten. How about you? You hungry?”
Haley admitted she could do with a meal. Counting the long backup with the construction tie-up and her break for freedom, they had been on the road for hours. They had left Portland this morning, and it was now midafternoon.
She wondered at first if this stop would provide another opportunity for her to escape. Not a chance, she quickly realized, because it was a fast food restaurant he selected. They never left the car. Chase ordered takeout from a drive-up window. They ate their food in the parking lot.
He was working on fries and a hamburger when, looking at her thoughtfully, he asked, “Is it true you’re self-employed?”
“How did you hear that?”
“I have my sources.”
“Uh-huh. So, tell me, is it part of a bounty hunter’s job to know what the FTAs he grabs do for a living?”
He shrugged. “It can be.”
He was being evasive, Haley thought, inserting the straw into her drink and drawing on the soda.
“What is it you do specifically?” he wanted to know.
She had no reason to conceal anything. “I’m an independent contractor.” The expression on his face told her he thought she was messing with him. “No, not that kind of contractor. What I construct I do at home on my computer.”
“Such as?”
“Whatever I’m hired to do. Like, for example, report development for public school systems or creating detailed websites for professional, private outfits looking for my kind of training and certification.”
“How do these people find you?”
“Online, of course. Most frequently on sites where you post things like your training, your credentials and your recommendations.”
He actually looked impressed and that pleased her, although she couldn’t exactly say why. Maybe just because it would make him question whether someone with her record would have needed to post a bond for breaking the law and then failed to appear in court. On the other hand, she supposed anyone could be guilty of something like that.
Letting herself be pleased by this man for any other reason was not a good idea.
“Satisfied?” she asked him.
“Yeah, thanks.”
Haley
