Dreaming of the Wolf (Heart of the Wolf #8)(6)

He couldn’t believe it. She’d ditched him when she entered the restaurant so she could observe him, and he hadn’t even been privy to the fact? The woman was a marvel. And definitely a wolf at heart.

But then her comment sank in. “I looked fairly harmless?”

“Oh, all right—handsomely, devilishly dangerous but more in an innocuous way. More of a lady-killer type, if anything.”

“Innocuous?” He chuckled at that. He could be quite dangerous, and it didn’t take much of a push to shove him in that direction. But the other part? “Lady-killer?” He really didn’t see himself that way.

“The way the hostess and then the waitress were sizing you up…” She let the thought trail off and shrugged.

He wondered about the waitress. If she knew this woman so well, how well did his bounty hunter know her? He was more amused than anything, though, by her response that he was a lady-killer. He couldn’t believe that, as close as she’d come to real trouble, she could switch gears like this so completely. Nothing about her was timorous, and he liked that about her—to an extent. He still thought she should be a lot less confrontational with the bad guys.

“Do you know the waitress? She seemed to know you,” he asked, hoping to get to the heart of the matter.

The woman gave a little laugh, but her response was slightly bitter in tone. “Oh, yeah, we go way back. Tami Lawson and I went to school together. I’m sure she had only good things to say about me.” With a refilled cup of tea, she said, “I’m Alicia Greiston, by the way. I’d offer my hand, but I’m afraid that would look kind of strange since we’re supposed to know each other already. Rather intimately, even.”

“I’d go for another kiss.” He was only half-joking. Except this time, he wanted to kiss those cinnamon-and-sugar-sweetened lips of hers.

She chuckled. “Yeah, like I said, a real lady-killer.”

Not in the least bit reluctant to feed into her fantasies of the kind of man he was, he reached over, took her hand, and brushed his lips against the back with a soft caress. He swore she melted a little on the seat next to him. “Jake Silver, completely at your disposal.”

She raised her brows, her lips still imparting a small smile, and gently pulled her hand free of his. “Have a gun?”

“Nope.” At least not on him.

She took a deep breath that seemed exaggerated and said, “That means I’ll have to protect us both now.”

Not in this lifetime. Although this matter wasn’t any of his concern, he was ready to make it so, if that kept her from getting herself killed. He couldn’t help that her being a bounty hunter troubled him.

“Have you been a bounty hunter long?”

She shook her head. “I cashiered at a department store before this.”

Hell, he hadn’t expected that. “Sold merchandise?” he asked in disbelief.

“No. Cashed employee payroll checks, took payments on layaways and credit cards, sold fishing and hunting licenses, and gift-wrapped merchandise at Christmastime until we hired a professional wrapper for the season.”

Wrapping up mobsters in Christmas ribbon and bows came to mind. Just what kind of training did she have? Trying to get his disbelief under control, Jake frowned, hoping that he wasn’t jumping to conclusions and that she had been a bounty hunter for a number of years and was well prepared to arrest the most dangerous criminals. Maybe even that she’d served as a cop. Something that would have made her seem better qualified and prepared.

“Exactly how long have you been a bounty hunter?” He kept his voice even, without a thread of emotion that might antagonize her. Or at least he tried to.

She raised her brows just a hint. “Since a few months ago.”

At that revelation, he couldn’t stifle a grunt of disbelief quickly enough and revealed his true feelings. The knowledge that she hadn’t been doing this long filled him with rife incredulity. The woman had to have a death wish.

“Do you know how to use a gun?” He managed to cut off the “at least” part of his statement before he spoke the words, although they had been on the tip of his tongue.

At that point, the tension fairly sparked between them. Alicia’s hackles raised as her whole body stiffened beside him, her gaze riveted to her teacup, her fingers tightening around it. Her family must have mentioned how dangerous and perilous her job could be and warned her not to take part in such foolhardiness. He couldn’t imagine a woman whose appearance and training seemed so at odds with the kind of job she was determined to do actually accomplishing it.

But then she visibly relaxed. Her whole demeanor became coolly detached, rather than reflecting her anger because he was prying into her business and questioning her ability to do her job. In that instant, he sensed a disconcerting vulnerability. With her jaw set and her eyes examining her teacup, she seemed determined to see this through.

He would bet the homestead that she was somehow being forced into this venture. And he intended to find out why and stop it before she got herself killed.

***

Jake Silver was the kind of dangerously exciting man Alicia had learned to avoid when she was growing up—and damn if she wasn’t drawn to him like a spike of winsome, colorful foxglove seeking shade. His masculine touch made her fantasize about all kinds of carnal pleasures.

She loved how he had spied her, become intrigued with her, and had ultimately come to her rescue, knowing if he hadn’t, she might have been forced to call the local police. Which she didn’t want to do. How would it look if she couldn’t face these guys on her own?