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“Wh—”
“Shh.” His fingers clasped hers and he pulled her in his wake. The touch sent her blood racing. Bramble brush and taller hardwoods grew close together and cast dark shadows. Their trek was uphill and the rocky ground treacherous at times. Doreena held on to his hand more firmly and depended on his skills more and more as they climbed.
Open land and bright sunshine appeared between the trees when he knelt down, tugging her with him. He touched his lips with a finger again before pointing through the trees. The covertness of their actions heightened her senses and dulled them at the same time. Her gaze didn’t follow to where he pointed. It stayed on his lips. They were full, and she wondered what they’d feel like upon hers. What they’d taste like.
A tap on her cheek forced her to turn her head. His arm went around her shoulders, pulling her close to see between the thick branches. Their shoulders pressed together, and her temple touched his cheek.
She sucked in air at the humming inside her.
“Shh,” he whispered again. “Look.”
Far off, in the direction he’d pointed, two men sat beside a small fire. In all the years she’d traversed the land, she’d never seen the little hidden spot. A small overhang created a cave of sorts near the top of the hill. The men were reclined against the rocks, and two barely distinguishable horses were staked in the large grassy area between the hill and the creek.
She turned to Clint. This time he put his finger against her lips and then tapped her ear.
His touch had her heart pounding so hard, it was impossible to hear. The two men conversed casually, but she couldn’t decipher words. She held her breath, but not even that helped her hearing. After several minutes, Clint gestured it was time to leave.
He picked their return path as silently and cautiously as he had earlier. “Be very quiet,” he urged almost soundlessly when they returned to their horses.
They rode back along the creek without speaking, and by the time he led her into an open field, questions about the men screamed to get out.
“Did you recognize them?” he finally asked.
Practically bursting, she blurted. “No, did you?”
He grinned. “I’m not from around here. How would I recognize them?”
His teasing made her smile. “You’re right,” she admitted. “I can’t believe we found them. I mean you found them. I’m sure I checked that hill.”
Clint reined in, and gazed at the rolling hills behind them. “You wouldn’t have seen them from the top of the hill. They’d have noticed you and hidden the horses in the cave.”
“What do we do now?” she asked.
“We wait. They’re there for a reason. Let’s see what it is.”
Chapter Four
Upon his return to the homestead, Clint took a moment to check Tristan’s and Jeb’s progress, and then used the excuse of examining other areas of the pen to gather his bouncing nerves. Leading Doreena through the woods had been more pleasurable than it should have been. She smelled like a field of flowers, and at one point all he could think about was kissing her.
He paused near the back of the pen, and knelt to run a hand along the bottom board. The delight of holding her hand still had his tingling. He shook his head. The men camped in the hills were what he should be thinking about. They’d seemed relaxed and settled, like they’d been there for some time and planned to stay a while longer. His gut told him Martin and Henderson had something to do with those men, but for the first time in a very long time, he wasn’t listening and reacting to his gut. Instead, in a sneaky but warm and pleasant way, his heart had taken over. It talked louder than his gut and was focused on Doreena.
“Clint!”
He spun around.
Tristan waved an arm. “Lunch is ready.”
Clint pushed off the rail and walked over to where Jeb, leaning on his cane, waited. “Doreena said you found them,” Jeb said.
Clint set his gait to accommodate Jeb’s. “Yeah, two men camped in an overhang in the hills.”
“Got a plan?”
Clint shook his head. “Not yet.”
Jeb grinned. “When you do, let me know what I can do to help.”
“I will,” Clint agreed, half wondering how he’d gotten himself proclaimed the person in charge. He’d never been the leader, just a follower. Did what the Harmon brothers had told him to do, which usually had been holding the horses, or keeping watch. Though, when he’d returned from Texas, and the group took him back in, they’d all listened to him then, which is why he’d been able to foil the robbery and had eventually got the law on his side.
