“Hold up. Was the money from my bounty supposed to help save Sanctuary?”
She kept her face hidden. “Why would you think that?”
“I saw the price on my forehead on the news for information just leading to my arrest last night, Teddy. I imagine the bounty on me was pretty high, too. Were you going to use that money for Sanctuary?”
“Carmine made up the damn bounty on you. Falsified all sorts of databases. There was never any bounty for you…”
“Teddy. Just be straight with me. If we’re going to do this, let’s do it right. Honesty’s right. So spit it out.”
Her sigh was ragged. “Okay, yes. But it doesn’t really matter anyway. They never wanted me to catch you. Just lead them to you. They would have killed me once they got you and the bounty deposit wouldn’t matter anyway. It was lose-lose to begin with.”
She felt his chest expand beneath her cheek. “Damn these bastards. Damn them. Listen, when this is done, I’ll help you with Sanctuary, okay? We’ll figure something else out.”
“You’re very sweet to offer, but you don’t know thing one about wildlife rehabilitation, and the kind of dedication it takes to save some of these animals is stressful at the best of times. You have to really love animals, carry around a pager and a cell phone, sometimes two. You get involved. You suffer with them. You cry when there’s nothing you can do but watch them die.”
“Then we’ll be stressed together. And it can’t be all stressful. You’ve had success stories. I’m sure of it.”
A tear slipped from her eye and rolled down her cheek. “How can you possibly know something like that?”
His chin dropped to the top of her head, resting there. “Because the Teddy I’m discovering is made of sheer grit and determination. You survived domestic violence and you’re still standing. Taking bounties to help a place you love working for, even though I’m sure going back to bounty hunting was hard. Shit like what Dennis did to you can get in your head and ruin you. But you didn’t let it. That, in and of itself, is a success.”
Now her throat was so tight, she almost couldn’t speak. “You’d come back to Colorado?”
“Once this was over, I never planned on going anywhere else. I love Colorado—despite the fact that it was my prison. There’s nothing left for me here. Toni’s in this other realm and getting ready to marry a prince from another time and place, and my house…well, I imagine it’s long gone by now. The bank only goes so long without a payment.”
“I’m sorry, Cormac. God, they’ve ruined your life.” When she reflected on all he’d lost, she had no right to complain.
“Not all of it. If not for them, I wouldn’t have met you. So let’s make a pact, okay. Right here, right now.”
“Okay. Pact me.”
“When this is over, let’s get on a plane to Colorado and get you back home to the animals you love and your brothers, who are probably gonna want to kick my half-breed ass. Let’s figure out a way to save Sanctuary, and in the process, let’s get to know each other. I can’t deny anymore that I feel something for you. I’m not even going to try. I’m about as attracted to you as anyone’s ever been. I think you’re sexy and smart, funny and kind. But you have faults. So do I. I’m stubborn and sarcastic when cornered. I’m not a morning person. In fact, I’m normally a shithead in my first waking hour. I’ve just been hiding it because I’m a guest in someone else’s house. I’m a lot of things. But we’ve known each other all of three days and under some pretty messed-up circumstances. I want to see all sides of you, and I want you to see all the sides of me. Good, bad, and even ugly.”
Her eyes closed as she listened to the steady rhythm of his heart. “So what are you asking?”
“I want to use these feelings I’m having for you as a building block to a solid foundation for us. I want your trust. I want your honesty. I want to learn all the things that make Teddy who she is. I want the time to do that, and I especially don’t want you to feel rushed.”
“So what you’re saying is we do this the right way? Courtship, dating, texting, flowers—”
“Flowers? Are you a flower kind of girl?”
“What if I am?”
“I thought you were more of a weapons-and-ammo chick.”
Teddy laughed, all her fears set aside for the moment until she remembered what they were about to do. “I’m petrified.”