Susan floated down the stairs, as giddy as a teenager. It was a beautiful morning, the sun was shining, and somehow, someway, she and Mac had managed to find their way back to each other after all these years. It was a miracle. For the first time since the shooting, she’d woken up feeling pretty. And lovable. She was still whole beneath her scars. The revelation was liberating. And she owed it to Mac.

Dutch, Doc and Howdy sat dourly at the kitchen table. “You guys look like you’ve been sucking on lemons,” she joked as she breezed into the kitchen.

They all made a momentary effort to look more congenial. And they all failed. She shrugged. She was too happy to be dragged down by a bunch of grouchy commandos. “Where’s Mac?” she asked, her head inside the refrigerator as she rummaged for breakfast.

“He went out for a walk,” Dutch answered.

Susan popped her head up over the refrigerator door. “Great. Thanks.”

“I wouldn’t follow him, if I were you,” Doc commented.

She turned around to look at him quizzically. “Why not?”

Dutch answered quickly, “He’s setting up trip wires and traps around the perimeter. It could be dangerous.”

Her enthusiasm waned a bit. “Oh. Well, that makes sense.”

She began peeling an orange. It sprayed a fine, citrus mist into the air that smelled marvelous. “So. Are you guys excited about becoming ranch hands?”

Dutch looked up. “I beg your pardon?”

“Well, Mac sent all my help away, and it’s been three days since any stalls got cleaned around here. Plus, there’s a shipment of hay due today. It has to be unloaded and stacked in the barn.”

She grinned at the dismay that flickered across the three men’s faces. “Cheer up. You’re gonna love it. It’s lots of good, hard exercise in the fresh country air. Think how well you’ll all sleep tonight.”

Dutch rolled his eyes. “Just what we need. Fresh country air.”

The other men snorted and pushed away their cups of coffee.

“Let’s get to it, then, gentlemen,” she said briskly.

She had to admit it. She enjoyed ordering around a big, tough squad of macho, Special Forces soldiers. And good grief, were they ever fit! They got the chores done in half the time her regular workers would have taken and barely seemed to notice the exertion.

There was no sign of Mac all morning. A tendril of doubt wove its way into her joy. Was he regretting last night? Surely not. He’d been completely relaxed afterward. Practically oozing contentment. He said he’d come home.

She was just being paranoid. And goodness knew, after the week she’d just had, that was no big surprise.

At lunchtime, Dutch, Doc and Howdy headed for the house and showers. While they recovered from fun with stacking two thousand bales of prickly alfalfa hay, she made them lunch. The guys came downstairs, smelling suspiciously of calamine lotion, and ate a leisurely meal. But there was still no sign of Mac. Her exuberance dimmed. Surely he wasn’t avoiding her. He’d seemed so at peace, so certain they were doing the right thing.

She asked Dutch, “If I stay on the gravel footpaths between the barns, will I be clear of Mac’s traps and trip wires?”

The blond man nodded. “He won’t arm them until after everyone’s inside for the night.”

She told the men, “When you’re ready to get back to work, go find Frank. I’m sure he’s got plenty for you to do.”

The men groaned but dutifully got to their feet.

Susan grinned. “Thank Mac for this. He’s the guy who sent all my workers away.”

The glint in the three men’s eyes boded ill for Mac the next time they saw him. She chortled to herself and went upstairs to change into clean clothes. She stood in her bathroom a few minutes later, brushing her hair, putting on a touch of makeup and actually dabbing on perfume. She stopped and stared at her reflection in the mirror.

She was only going outside to find Mac. It was ridiculous to do all this primping just for that. But it was Mac. She was willing to pull out every stop to make it work for them this time around. And then what? If—big if—Mac did fall for her again, what did she want from him? A long-term commitment? Fantasy sex for as long as he was here? A casual, ongoing fling? It was nearly impossible to think past the residual glow left over from last night.

One step at a time. It was how she’d learned to walk again against all odds. How she’d made peace with her broken heart and gone on with life.

She found Mac sitting next to the pond. Big, old cottonwood trees hung over the water’s edge, casting flickering shade over the glassy water. He looked up briefly when she approached him but then went back to staring at the pond.

“Hi, stranger,” she said softly.

“Hi,” was his short response.

He didn’t sound mad, just distant. “Mind if I sit down?”

He didn’t even glance up. “Nope.”

She sat beside him for several minutes, enjoying the quiet of the place. Finally she commented, “We missed you at lunch. I brought you a snack.” She held out the club sandwich she’d made for him.

“Thanks.” He took it, unwrapped it and bit into it.

“You know, the guys are plenty mad at you. They got stuck mucking stalls and stacking hay while you skipped out on them.”

Mac shrugged. “I was busy.”

“Are the traps and trip wires set?” she asked.

“Yeah. They’re laid. I won’t arm them until later, when Ruala makes his move. You can move around your ranch for now without blowing up.”

She smiled. “Good to know.”

He nodded and looked back out over the crystalline surface of the pond. Man, he was really making her work hard to keep dead silence from falling between them. “Help me out here, Mac. I’m trying to have a conversation with you.”

He shot her an unfathomable look. After a moment he leaned back against a tree. “Okay, I’ll play ball. Tell me why you wanted to act as bait for Ruala in this op.”

She blinked. That wasn’t what she’d expected. “You need the help if you’re going to catch him. I volunteered to give it. What more is there to say?”

“Why did you volunteer to help?” he asked.

She stared at him. “You have to ask?”

He stared back. “I’m asking.”

Her gaze narrowed. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of admitting she might have done it partially to be with him again. Instead she asked tartly, “It didn’t occur to you that the same patriotic zeal to nail Ruala that burns in your chest might burn in mine?”

“What occurred to me was that working with the Blackjacks nearly got you killed the last time. Why in the hell would you come back for more?”

“Why are you still chasing Ruala? He’s already burned you once. Why come back for more?” she retorted.

His eyes flared in anger and he gestured at her leg. “Because I want to nail the bastard who did that to you.”

She stared back at him significantly.

His brows came together in a dark frown. He growled, “It’s not your job to go after Ruala, Susan.”

“Why the heck not?” she demanded.

He opened his mouth, but apparently thought better of what was about to come out of it.

“Exactly,” she snapped. “I have the right to avenge my own wrongs. I was thrilled to death when you offered me another shot at Ruala.”

Mac opened his mouth a second time, but she cut him off.

“Don’t you dare tell me that women aren’t supposed to take matters like this into their own hands, Mac Conlon.”

He subsided, but the mutinous glint in his eyes said he disagreed with her.

“How in the world did you get to be such an overprotective chauvinist, anyway?” she asked, frustrated.

To her surprise he actually considered the question seriously. Her surprise transformed to shock when he answered slowly, “My father left my mother for his secretary when I was twelve. It destroyed my mom. Somebody had to step up to the plate and take care of her, and the job fell to me. It’s what I do. I look out for the women I care about.”

Whoa. Not what she’d expected when she flung out the accusation. If they were laying out their cards like this, she might as well go for broke. She cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind my asking, why is it you care about me again?”

Mac looked at her sharply. “You have to ask?”

She threw his own words back at him. “I’m asking.”

He shrugged. “We fit. You hold my interest. You make me laugh—hell, I don’t know. You turn me on.”

Not going to admit he had feelings for her today, was he? She pressed, “But why? Why would a guy like you, who can have any woman he wants, choose someone like me?”

His head snapped up. “Can it with the crippled, ugly-me act. I’m getting real damned tired of it.”

His words slapped at her, and she gasped at the sting.

He glared at her. “You’re even better looking now than you were ten years ago, and you’re a far sight sexier. Hell, I thought we were good together before, but last night blew my mind. When are you going to get it through your stubborn skull that you’re a stunningly attractive woman?”

She touched the scar on her neck. “Most people think this thing is rather stunning. Repulsive, in fact.”

Mac snorted. “Have you seen the scar on my chest? It’s twice the size of that puny thing.”

Susan stared at him, dumbfounded. He was serious! He honestly didn’t think her scar was all that ugly, or interesting for that matter. Most people couldn’t take their eyes off it. Entire conversations were known to take place with her scar. Not to mention people’s squirming discomfort and solicitous fussing over her limp.

“What is it about having a fancy scar or a limp that made you believe you can’t ever get married or have a family?” he asked, cutting straight to the heart of the matter.

She winced. Boy, his aim was dead-on today. She answered lightly, “It takes two people to pursue getting married or having a family. I’ve never found any man who could take his eyes off my scar or get over my limp long enough to be interested in me.”

“Then the men you’ve dated are blind idiots,” he growled.

His outburst sent warmth shooting through her. “What about you, Mac? Any thoughts of marriage and family?”

One corner of his mouth twitched into a humorless smile. “Hard to do the marriage thing when you’re out of country two hundred plus days a year. Not many women will put up with that.”

If a guy like Mac Conlon wanted to marry her, she’d certainly wait for him, even if they only had a few months a year together. Just knowing that someone like him loved her would be infinitely better than the lonely existence she led now.

Mac changed subjects abruptly, which was just as well. That line of thought had been leading her in a truly dangerous direction. “Colonel Foley called this morning. The guys chasing us around the back forty with Ruala are definitely Ferrare’s men. So, we’ve got positive proof the two of them are still in cahoots. Makes our legal case against Ruala that much stronger.”

Like there had ever been any doubt that Ruala and the shadowy, international crime lord, Eduardo Ferrare, were still working together. She asked reluctantly, “So, what comes next in this little cat-and-mouse game?”

Mac hesitated. And she knew him too well to miss it. “Don’t even think about feeding me another lame line about being safe. Give it to me straight.” She added earnestly, “Please.”

He sighed. “Look, I’m not supposed to talk to you about this stuff. I’m supposed to be keeping you calm and relaxed.” He frowned. Paused. And then, “I’m sick and tired of playing games with you in the name of procedure.”

She blinked in surprise as he continued.

“After our encounter out in the canyons, Ruala and his men know you’re being professionally guarded. They know they can’t just waltz in here and knock you off. My best guess is they’ll hit us with a well-planned and executed military-style strike next time. It’s our assessment that the addition of the extra thugs to his team will raise the threat to you to an unacceptable level.”

She swallowed hard. Maybe demanding to know everything hadn’t been such a great idea. Still. She would rather know the unpleasant truth than fear the unknown.

Mac sighed. “I don’t want to scare you, but the truth is, this is a no-kidding, serious situation we’re heading into.”

Her innards felt wobbly and her hands shook. “What do you need me to do next?” she choked out.

Mac jumped on that one. “I need you to leave. I need you to go into protective custody a long ways away from here so the Blackjacks can nail this bastard once and for all without putting you in danger.”

Frustration swirled through her. That was the last thing she wanted to do! She’d just found Mac. No way was she walking away from him and letting a mission tear them apart again!

“Don’t give me that look,” he warned. “You’re not a trained Special Forces soldier. And believe me, it’s gonna take all our training to get through the back end of this mission. Leave this to me and the Blackjacks.”

Susan scowled. He might be right, but that didn’t mean she had to like it.

Mac balled up his sandwich wrapping and shifted his weight like he was going to stand up. “Come on. I’ve got stuff to do to get ready for our visitors. The colonel said to expect them within a couple of days.”

A couple of days? Foley thought the assault would come that soon? Oh, God. She wasn’t ready for it! As if she would ever be ready for a bunch of criminals to try to kill her.

“I’m not leaving,” she said warningly.

He glanced over at her. She could swear that was a momentary glint of pride in his eyes. “I warned the colonel that you’d probably feel that way.”

Mac popped to his feet easily. A twinge of jealousy touched her. What she wouldn’t give to be as athletic and graceful as Mac again. She sighed and took the hand he offered her.

He lifted her lightly and she came upright only inches away from him. His eyes had gone a dark, midnight shade of blue. It was a color she could happily lose herself in forever. No matter what had gone on between them, past or present, there had never been another man like him in her life. Never would be.

“Mac,” she whispered. “I lo—”

His mouth swooped down on hers, stopping the words before they crossed her lips. His arms came around her, dragging her up against him in a crushingly tight embrace. She looped her arms around his neck, pulling his head closer, deepening the kiss.

Their mouths slanted across each other, wet and hot, tongues tangling in a wild dance. Mac’s embrace lifted her completely off her feet. She felt the desperation coursing through him. It vibrated in every fiber of his being. Was he that worried about her safety? She fought off the answering panic that flitted through her. She held him close, cradling his body with hers, silently reassuring them both that everything would be fine. She was his and he was hers.

Eventually he relaxed, accepting what she offered. His grip on her loosened enough for her to slide down his body until her feet touched the ground. “God, I can’t get enough of you,” he groaned. “But unfortunately, duty calls. I’m still under orders to talk you into leaving the ranch ASAP. What’s it going to take? I’ll do anything to keep you safe and get you out of here. You name it.”

She looked deep into his eyes. And said quietly, “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away from you. I’m sorry, but I’m not going anywhere.”

Chagrin filled his dark gaze. “Dammit, Susan, if you stay because of me and get killed, how am I going to live with that?”

She smiled gently. “Then I guess I’d better not get killed.”

He swore under his breath. But at least he had the good grace not to argue with her any further. For now. He mumbled, “Colonel Foley’s going to have my head on a platter for screwing up this mission.”

She asked reasonably, “How can he blame you? I’m the one refusing to leave.”

He answered heavily, “I’m the one who gave you a reason to stay.”

She frowned and tugged him to a stop. He pivoted to face her in surprise. “Once and for all, Mac Conlon,” she declared, “get over it! I’m a big girl and I make my own decisions. You did not force me into this situation. I’m here acting as bait for Ruala because it’s the right thing to do and because I’m the right person to do it.”

He still looked unconvinced. Nonetheless, he tucked her hand in the crook of his arm and held it there until they came into sight of the house. Then he let go and stepped away to an impersonal distance. Even that tiny loss of his nearness caused an ache in her heart.

He couldn’t leave her—or make her leave him—again. She would never survive another messy ending with him. So why had she hopped on this runaway train…again?

* * *

Mac tried to catch a nap after supper before his turn at the night watch, but he couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned in Susan’s bed, the scent of her heady in his nostrils, his thoughts a jumbled mess.

He kept circling back to the same question. What was he going to do if anything bad happened to Susan? He knew better than to fixate on something like that. It could paralyze him if and when the time came to save her life for real.

Colonel Foley had told him to stay focused. Focused definitely didn’t include sleeping with the woman he was supposed to be protecting. Nor did it include putting his career or the lives of his teammates at risk. If he blew a Tango One mission, particularly because he’d gotten involved with a woman in the middle of an op, he would be bounced out of the Blackjacks so fast it would make his head spin.

The only option was to give up Susan. Right now. Cold turkey. At least until the mission was over. Problem was, if he abruptly cut things off with her she’d be devastated.

He could explain it to her. She was a smart cookie. She would understand that he had to concentrate completely on his work for now. But once this mission was wrapped up and she was safe again, he would take some time off. They’d go away somewhere, just the two of them, spend some time together. Find out if what they had between them was strong enough to last a lifetime.

It was dark and quiet when Susan slipped into bed beside him sometime later. He must have dozed off because he woke up just enough to be aware of her presence. Her body slid over his in the same silken dream he’d imagined a thousand times, seducing him and loving him. Her mouth was warm and sweet and lured him slowly toward consciousness. Finally, when every nerve was tingling, every muscle clenched, his blood pounding hard and fast, he rolled over with a growl, trapping her beneath him.

She looked up at him innocently in the scant moonlight seeping past the drapes. “I’m sorry. Did I wake you?”

He gave her a dark look. “I thought I warned you before not to tease me.”

“Who’s teasing? I’m prepared to follow through,” she purred.

“About that—” He cleared his throat. “We need to talk—”

“Later,” she murmured. She wound her arms around his neck and arched up into him in the way that drove him crazy.

Discipline, dammit! He had to stop this. But then her thigh rubbed against his erection and his body revved to full alert, demanding her hungrily. His heart warred with his logic. His desire for her ran as deep, as fundamental, as his need to breathe.

“Don’t tease me either, Mac,” she pleaded. “I want you. Tonight I don’t want any holding back. No boundaries, no limits. I want all of you. As wild and free as that storm.”

He groaned as his control slipped another notch. He had to have her. Just the way she’d said. Now, his heart prodded him. Aww, hell. He was so going to lose the battle with himself. He could feel his resolve slipping, inch by hard-fought inch.

“Come on, Mac. Fly with me,” she whispered.

She had no idea what she was getting into. He was edgy and tense right now. The violence that had been so thoroughly trained into him was bubbling close to the surface tonight.

He grabbed her wrists in a one-handed grip, stilling the delicious roamings of her fingers against his chest. “Suzie, you don’t know what you’re asking. I can’t let go all the way.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Ohh, puhlease. We’ve been over that ground already.”

“I’m serious. I’ve changed a lot in the past ten years. You don’t know me as well as you think you do. Don’t push it.”

“Ohh, you’ve gone all dark and dangerous on me, have you?” she teased.

He scowled at the laughter in her voice.

“Susan, you need to stay away from me for your own well-being.”

Her voice caressed him like velvet. “Mac, I hate to tell you this, but for my own well-being, I can’t possibly stay away from you. I need you like I need air to breathe.”

He closed his eyes, experiencing actual physical pain at the temptation she offered. What sane man could walk away from a woman like her when she said something like that?

“You’re killing me,” he groaned.

“Then let me give life back to you like you gave it to me,” she murmured right before she arched up into him. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and although he refused to sink down into her, she rose to meet him.

It was too much. He couldn’t resist her forever. She was the only woman he’d ever loved, and no matter what he told himself was right, he still wanted her beyond all reason. He gave in to the kiss. Gave in to Susan. Always Susan. Only Susan.

Liberated by the surrender, he cradled her close, savoring every inch of her satiny sleek body pressed against him, enjoying every soft breath she took. He rolled onto his side so he wouldn’t crush her and tucked her close against his body. He murmured into her hair, “What am I going to do with you?”

“Make love to me until we’re both too exhausted to walk.”

In spite of everything, she still made him laugh. “Until we can’t walk, huh? A tall order, but I think I’m up to it,” he joked back.

She groaned and jabbed his ribs. “Behave yourself, Mac Conlon. I’m a lady, and I won’t have such crass innuendoes in my bed.”

He laughed and pulled her down on top of him. “A lady, indeed. Come here and teach me some manners, ma’am.”

Their gazes met and he watched the humor fade from Susan’s eyes. Her pupils slowly dilated, and the expression in their black depths grew limpid. They looked at each other for a long time. There was no need for words. Unspoken promises hung between them as real as if they’d been uttered aloud. Duty be damned. Some things were more important than duty, bigger than notions of right and wrong.

His hand slid under the heaviness of her hair and slowly he pulled her down to him. It was an exquisite journey of slow torture and joyous anticipation. Their lips met and the world fell away, leaving them perched on a summit of their own making, beyond the realm of mortals. They soared on currents of heat and passion, ever higher.

Their joining took his breath away. It was so perfect it was frightening. Their movements synchronized in a stunning symphony that crescendoed until he thought he would explode into a million pieces. They hurtled over the edge and out into space together, drifting back down slowly in a fog of pleasure for he knew not how long.

They slept.

Mac woke up sometime later and retrieved the blankets. Taking care not to wake her, he arranged them into some semblance of order over Susan’s sleeping form.

He lay beside her for a long time, staring at the ceiling bleakly. After loving her like that, how could he even consider calling their relationship off, even for a few days until the mission was over and Ruala neutralized? He sighed.

He slid out of bed and donned his clothes. Quiet as a cat, he slipped out of the room and eased the door shut behind him. Gliding down the stairs, skipping the step that squeaked, he headed for the kitchen. The other guys were still up, clustered around terrain maps of Susan’s ranch spread out on the kitchen table.

“Hey,” he mumbled. He felt guilty as hell that he’d been making passionate love to Susan while his teammates sat down here and worked. Hoping against hope they didn’t notice the heat in his cheeks, he turned his attention to the battle plan they were carefully shaping.

It was almost 1:00 a.m. before Mac pushed back from the table, shaking his head. For the dozenth time he protested, “There’s got to be another way.”

Howdy spoke patiently. “If Susan won’t leave, then we have to stick with the original plan and lay a trap for Ruala here. We’ve been over a dozen different options. And every one of them keeps coming back to using Susan. She’s the only person who will work as bait.”

“Can’t someone dress up to look like Susan?” Mac asked.

Dutch piped up. “Ruala and his men will see right through something like that. They’re not amateurs. They will all have studied pictures of her and know what she looks like.”

Howdy again. “Face it Mac. The bait’s got to be Susan.”

The other men were unanimous that if Susan wouldn’t go into protective custody, they had to nail Ruala now. And that meant using Susan to lure Ruala to show himself. No matter how much Mac argued, he failed to budge any of them on that one.

And truth be told, he knew they were right. He was actually arguing against himself. The pathetic part was that his teammates knew it and were patiently walking him through the logic of why absolutely any other alternative wouldn’t work. Susan had to leave, or she had to be full on bait for final confrontation with Ruala now. Those were the only options. Which meant he had no choice whatsoever. He had to break her heart again and send her away. Even if it killed him, too.

He tried one last time to fight the inevitable. “Look. Susan functions amazingly well, but I don’t think you guys realize just how serious her knee injury is. She’s ambulatory, but not a hell of a lot more. Just because she lives a day-to-day life without much trouble doesn’t mean she can handle the kind of acrobatics that might be necessary to pull her out of an ambush safely.”

Dutch sighed. “We don’t need the bait to run. We just need it to sit here looking tasty and lure in the sharks.”

Mac’s voice rose. “And I’m telling you she’s going to get hurt. She’s not going to be able to get out of the way once the shooting starts.”

Dutch argued back. “You’re underestimating her, man. I know you’re all hot and bothered to keep every little hair on her head safe and sound, but a certain amount of risk is necessary here!”

Mac stood up, leaning his hands on the table. “Dammit, Dutch! It’s not her job to die out there. It’s mine!”

Howdy intervened. “Nobody’s going to die, Mac. We’ll dangle Susan as bait, and the second Ruala and his men move in, we’ll pull her out. It’ll be fine.”

They didn’t get it. She couldn’t defend herself. And nothing could happen to Susan!

Mac’s thin control finally snapped. “For God’s sake,” he shouted. “She’s crippled!”

An abrupt, deep silence fell over the room. The kind that falls when people are horribly uncomfortable and don’t know what to say.

Mac looked up.

Susan stood in the doorway to the kitchen. Staring. At him.

She’d heard.

Her face was ashen and her eyes way too big as she stared at him. Without a word, she turned around and disappeared down the hallway.

Mother of God. What had he done?