But first she ducked into the kitchen to grab that long-awaited cup of coffee.
As she took a sip, she glanced out back through the window above her sink. The sun had risen, promising a final nice day before rain rolled in.
Up on the ridge behind her property ran a narrow track, nothing like a road. It was sometimes used by utility trucks seeking to repair a line or cable or pipe. Most of the time, she wouldn’t have noticed it. But the trees were January-bare. Up there, just opposite her window, a law enforcement cruiser was parked. Beside it stood an officer in uniform using a pair of binoculars. Unless she was mistaken, he was staring straight at her.
“What the hell?”
She put down her cup and went to the back door. By the time she opened it, the officer had climbed back into his vehicle and was moving away.
Even though the leaves were gone, the stockade of sapling tree trunks prevented her from identifying the emblem painted on the cruiser’s passenger door. It didn’t seem to be local.
CHAPTER SIX
Kye jerked awake as the front door closed softly. Three giant steps and he was at the door, face pressed to the single pane of glass in it. Yard was walking away, a leash in hand. Oleg was at the end of it. Even as he watched she veered off to the left toward the training fields.
With one ear straining for the sounds of a car engine coming to life, in case he was wrong about her intentions, he snatched his backpack from the floor. He pulled out a pair of jeans. After extracting his tactical boots and a thick pair of socks, he quickly pulled them on. No engine. She wasn’t driving away. In the distance he heard her calling to the dog and his barks in answer. She must have let him off the leash.
He hadn’t fallen completely asleep. He just hadn’t alerted Yard to that fact when she’d come out of her room the first time. After the tense encounter that ended in the total surprise of that very passionate kiss, he’d thought they needed a break. He certainly did.
Of course, he was curious as hell about what the Battise siblings were saying, but he didn’t want to risk being caught with his ear pressed to her bedroom door if she suddenly opened it. It was informative to hear her shouts wind down into mumbles. Whatever Law had said must have mollified her. He doubted even Law had enough authority with his sister to cower her. More like they’d settled for détente, no winners, no losers. At least she hadn’t come back through the door to try to throw him out, again. A few minutes later, he’d heard the faint rush of the shower.
Kye rubbed a hand over his face. His peace of mind had lasted as long as it took for him to realize that Yard was naked on the other side of her bedroom door. All the pent-up lust that her kiss had ignited came roaring back to life. For ten solid minutes all he could think about was Yard, naked beneath a sluice of warm water. He had a very good imagination. It filled in her once coltish form with the ripeness of maturity. Curves and hollows he’d once explored with eagerness were augmented in his mind. Sweeter, more lush, more enticing. It was one of the longest, sweatiest ten minutes of his life. Pure torture that had Lily adjusting and readjusting herself on his lap. Finally Lily had abandoned his body for the more reliably smooth surface of the floor. All because of a woman he wasn’t certain he even liked anymore. But when a man’s dick was in charge, reason left the building.
Shaking his head at his insanity, he looked down at Lily, who was looking up at him with what seemed a detached, even disapproving expression. “Don’t look at me like that. I stayed on this side of the door. I get points for that.”
Ignoring him, Lily turned and walked over to the far side of the room. All the females in his life were giving him attitude.
After a careful examination of her surroundings, Lily stuck her head in to sniff at something on the floor of Oleg’s empty cage.
“Yeah. You must be hungry.” He dug in his backpack and pulled out a handful of dog food. “Lily. Catch.”
Lily barked high and happy, leaping to catch piece after piece of dog food nuggets. Everything with Lily was a game, even eating.
“More later.” Kye filled a pocket of his cargoes with the rest. He glanced toward the kitchen. Oleg, the reason he hadn’t helped himself to coffee before, was of course out with his handler.
Smiling, he headed for the kitchen. If he hurried he could grab a coffee and a shower, and maybe something for breakfast. His stomach grumbled in agreement. And maybe he’d check in with Law himself.
He reached for his phone but his pocket was empty. Yard had it. He glanced at her bedroom door but decided against checking to see if she’d left his phone lying in the open. He had sisters. One thing a brother learned early was to never cross a woman’s doorway without permission, even to retrieve his own gear.