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«I’m — all right,» Sha
«Easy, honey girl. Just lie still until I see how bad you’re hurt.»
«Just — breath. Shotgun — knocked me —»
Whip’s hands hesitated. He looked down into the beautiful sapphire depths of Sha
«Recoil?» he asked.
She nodded and concentrated on breathing.
Saying nothing, Whip probed Sha
Abruptly Whip came to his feet. He looked down at the breathless but otherwise uninjured Sha
Then he held out his hand to her.
«Can you stand?» Whip asked quietly.
Too quietly.
Warily Sha
She had seen Whip look like that only once before, when the Culpeppers were baiting her. Whip had been furious then.
He was furious now.
Sha
«I’m fine,» she said. «See?»
«I see that you’re a fool, Sha
She winced. «Why are you yell —»
«You could have been killed!»
«But you were —»
«I told you to get back,» Whip continued, talking over Sha
«It was his arm, not his —»
«If the recoil hadn’t knocked you down, you would be dead right now! Do you hear me, you little idiot?You would have died and I couldn’t have done a damn thing about it!»
Adrenaline and anger combined to overcome Sha
«So what was I supposed to do?» she demanded. «Stand by and darn socks while that grizzly clawed you into pieces too small to use in a rag rug?»
«Yes!»
«Ha! Andyouhave the gall to callmea fool! Well, let me tell you something, yondering man. When it comes to being a fool, you not only win the race, you also take second, third, and fo —»
Sha
Prettyface snarled and circled the grizzly again, then darted in and set his teeth into the furry hide. He shook his head hard, harrying the prey.
Neither Whip nor Sha
It was a long time before Whip let Sha
Whip wanted her. All of her.
And all of him was doing the wanting.
«Oh, my,» Sha
Whip let out a long, long breath. Then he tilted back Sha
«Why didn’t you say something?» he asked. «I thought you didn’t want me to touch you anymore.»
«What was I supposed to do? Walk up to you and say I wanted you to — to —»
«Yes,» Whip said simply.
Sha
«Cat got your tongue?» he teased.
She made a fist and hit him lightly on his muscular shoulder.
Laughing softly, Whip gathered Sha
«How anyone can be so fierce and so shy at the same time is a pure wonder,» he said after a few moments.
«I’m not fierce. And I’m not shy.»
«Of course not,» he said gravely. «You’re a tender little mouse who cowers at the first hint of danger. And you’re a brazen little hussy who throws herself at a man.»
«You’re teasing me.»
«Not just yet. I’m thinking about it, though.» Whip smiled like a cat licking cream. «I’m giving it a lot of thought, in fact.»
Sha
Hair tickled her nose.
She made a startled sound as she realized anew that Whip wasn’t wearing a shirt.
«What is it?» he asked, holding Sha
She shook her head.
«Then what?» Whip asked.
«You.»
«What about me?»
«You’re not wearing a shirt.»
«I was just getting dressed when the bear showed up. But if it will make you feel better, you can take off your shirt, too.»
Sha
«Now youareteasing me,» she said.
She smiled, but didn’t rest her head on Whip’s bare chest again.
«Does it really bother you to see me like this?» he asked.
«No,» Sha
«Head to heels and back again?» Whip suggested in a deep voice.
For a shimmering instant Sha
«The look on your face…» Whip said, laughing. «Come on, honey girl. We’ll leave Prettyface to worry over the bear in peace.»
Whip swung Sha
«I’ve been meaning to ask you why,» Sha
Whip made a questioning sound.
«Why did you camp over here instead of by the fire with me?» she asked.
«This is close enough to hear you if you need me, and far enough that I don’t lie awake listening to you breathe, listening to you move, listening to the blankets slide over you the way I want to.»
Sha
«You couldn’t sleep either?» she managed to whisper.
«Passion is a two-way street. Didn’t you know?»
She shook her head.
Whip opened his mouth to say something about Silent John’s limitations as a lover, but thought better of it. Right now Whip didn’t want to think about Silent John.
And he sure as hell didn’t want Sha
«Tell me again,» Whip said almost roughly. «Tell me that you want me.»
«Yes,» Sha
Her words aroused Whip fiercely, yet gave him more self-control than he had had since he first saw Sha
The waiting was finally over. She was going to be his lover. Nothing could stop it now.
«It’s going to be good, honey girl,» Whip said, lowering Sha
«As good as before?»
«Better.»
«I think I’ll die of it, then.»
Whip’s smile was as sensuous as his lips brushing over Sha
«Lie still for me,» he whispered against her mouth. «I’ve been dreaming about how it would be to undress you, look at you, touch you. Now I won’t have to live on dreams anymore.»
A shiver that was part nervousness and part delicious anticipation went through Sha