Deliberately she began to pull his jeans slowly up her bare legs, wiggling to bring them over her hips and bare bottom. She left them open, exposing the triangle of tiny black curls. She stood there with her bare breasts thrusting toward him invitingly. “I can’t find my shut.”
His mouth was dry. “You shameless hussy. You’re deliberately provoking me.” His fingers crushed the material of the shirt, his gaze drinking her in.
“Is it working?”
“Damn right it is. Put the shirt on before we shock poor Kim.”
WILD RAIN
255
Rachael looked alarmed. “Kim? The guide?” She held out her hand for the shirt.
He held the shirt to his chest. “Gome and get it.”
Rachael went without hesitation, one arm sliding around his neck, pressing her breasts against his chest while her other hand slipped between his legs and began to caress and dance and cup him right through the material of his jeans. Her lips were at his throat, tongue swirling in a small, deliberate caress. Rio rocked against her hand, wanting her all over again with such an urgency it was as if he’d never once made love to her. Or as if his body remembered every magical moment and was obsessed.
Franz coughed a warning. Rio groaned and dragged the shirt around her, buttoning it quickly. It was the only safe thing to do. Barefoot, he pulled her with him onto the verandah to wait for their guest.
Rachael looked down to see Kim climbing the tree. He wasn’t as fast or as efficient as Rio, but he was sure and steady. He gained the lower branches and made his way up to them.
“What brings you so far from home?” Rio greeted.
“My father sent me with news and I wanted to tell you about the man from the church group who was missing.” Kim smiled at Rachael. “You look so much better, Miss Rachael. How is your leg?”
“It’s far better, Kim. I see you’re looking good. I hate to admit this, and let’s not tell your brother, but his green gunk works.”
Kim nodded seriously, willing to be a conspirator. “Tama is renowned for his healing skills. It was foul-looking though, wasn’t it?” He exchanged a smile of understanding with her.
“Which man got away from the bandits?” Rachael asked.
“The one called Duncan Powell.”
She remembered Duncan well. He stayed to himself a lot, but was always extremely polite. “I hope he managed to get away safely.”
256
Christine Feehan
“That is what you both need to know. The man who escaped on his own from Tomas was one of your kind, Rio. He shifted into the form of a cat and mauled a guard, escaping into the forest. None of Tomas’s people spoke of it, but two of the church group saw the shadow of the leopard on the rocks. They said they saw the guard ripped up and it had to have been a large cat.”
“The men are very superstitious,” Rio explained to Rachael. “They believe that the bigger cats are deities. Leopards are rare in these forests, so seeing one, especially attacking a guard at night, means many things to them. Unfortunately, it will also bring poachers here. The attack will most likely be talked about and the incident will grow into multiple incidents and the gossip will be we have a man killer on our hands.” Rio sighed and pushed his hand through his hair. “Damn that idiot anyway. He could have gotten out of the camp without being seen and no one would have been the wiser.”
“The guard had beaten him,” Kim said.
A humorless smile curved Rio’s mouth. “We never forget, that’s one thing about our people.”
“He will most likely come here,” Rim pointed out.
“He’s dead,” Rio said abruptly. “He tried to kill us a couple of nights ago and I took Rachael to a safe place and tracked him. He’s dead. Drake destroyed the body. Have you heard anything about the raid last night? I understand Drake took a hit. I’ve heard nothing on the radio. How bad was it?”
“He lost a lot of blood and his leg was shattered. They’ve flown him to a hospital for surgery. One of your own doctors is attempting to repair the damage. He’ll live, but I don’t know if they can save his leg.”