Page 24 of The Hunted Wife

“Thank you. I’d like that.”

“You’re welcome. I want you to be happy.”

“I am happy when I’m with you.” She blushed and looked down. She hadn’t meant to say anything.

He reached over and lifted her chin with the knuckle of his left index finger. “I’m happy when I’m with you, too.” Adam leaned over and took her lips with his. He worshiped her mouth, took the kiss impossibly deeper, sliding his tongue over her lips, begging for entry. He pressed her down to her back and leaned over her, bracing his weight on his forearms.

She granted his entry and kissed him back with all she had. Her heart pounded and she wanted him with all of her, body and soul. This is was love felt like.

When he finally tore his mouth away and leaned his forehead against hers, they were both breathless.

“We should take this home or I’m liable to ravish you right here.”

She chuckled. “Would that be so bad?” Millie had never had sex out in the open before and the thought excited her a little.

He laughed. “Yes, it would. It’ll be dark soon and I don’t relish riding in the dark. But I promise to give you more than you can imagine when we get home.”

“I’ll hold you to it, Mr. Sullivan.”

“I wouldn’t expect any less, Mrs. Sullivan. Let’s mount up.”

By the time they reached the barn, the sun had set and twilight was upon them. They took care of their horses, making sure to rub them down and give them oats and water. Then they walked to the house.

As they entered the kitchen, they saw all the brothers seated at the table.

“You’re finally back,” said Everett. “We’ve been waiting forever.”

Millie laughed and swatted him on the shoulder. “It’s not even fully dark yet. Besides there are all kinds of leftovers from the barbeque. You can eat those for dinner. I’m officially taking a night off.”

She grabbed Adam’s hand and headed upstairs. She didn’t even care what her brothers-in-law might think. All she knew was she wanted to continue with what she and Adam had started out by the river.

The following evening, Adam played cards in the game room with his brothers, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. He was missing something.

While the others played cards and Millie moved around the kitchen, preparing dinner, he stepped out onto the back porch and scanned the property. The night was too dark to see much of anything but the air felt too still. The sounds of the night, the owls hooting, crickets chirping were quiet, like they were waiting for something…anything…to break the silence before they joined in.

Then one of the security men approached at a run. The man had blond hair that shone gold in the waning light. “Mr. Sullivan, we found fresh tracks near the north fence line. It looks like two men have accessed the property in the last few hours, since our last patrol up there. We don’t have eyes on them at this time.”

Adam’s gut tightened instantly. Ricard. His first thought was to make sure Millie was safe. He turned toward the window to the kitchen, where she was cooking dinner just like it was any other night.

Adam placed a hand on the man’s shoulder. “Thank you for coming quickly and telling me. I’ve got to check the feeds. Please return to your post and continue to remain alert.”

“Yes, sir, Mr. Sullivan.” The guard headed back toward the west side of the property.

Adam turned toward the window and saw her laugh at something Gabriel said, completely unaware that danger lurked close tonight. If he had his way she would never know, but that choice wasn’t practical or safe. She needed to be aware of the threat, so she wouldn’t take any chances.

This situation was no longer about protecting a woman he’d married out of convenience. This was about protecting his wife and child. And Adam knew nothing existed he wouldn’t do to keep them safe. Nothing. After all the ranch was big…easy to hide a body.

As he walked to his office, careful not to attract attention to himself he wondered what was the matter with him? Was he really contemplating killing Ricard and then burying him somewhere on the ranch? Yes. To protect Millie and their unborn child, he would do anything.

Hours later Ricard knew the minute the security team found where they had come through the fence because men were running everywhere but he didn’t see Milena. They had left her at the house. But was anyone with her?

Ricard and Viktor approached the house in the dark, both wearing head to toe black so they would be hard to see. They both palmed their Makarov pistols, with silencers, and after looking through the window on the door and seeing that the kitchen was not empty, they had no choice but to break the door down. Viktor was good at such things and only needed to hit it once to open it.

Milena sat at the table laughing with a man. Ricard assumed the man sitting across from her was her bodyguard. Raising his gun Ricard fired at the man—a killing shot. He didn’t ever fire his weapon unless it was to kill.

The guard’s coffee cup shattered against the wood floor as he collapsed backward, dead before he hit the floor.

Milena screamed, then stood and stumbled backward so quickly her chair tipped over behind her, crashing to the floor.