Heat flushed through her cheeks. “Well, I guess that’s something of a relief for everyone involved.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Everyone? Don’t know about you, but I generally only go to bed with one woman at a time.”
“And I,” she said, in the haughtiest tone she could manage, “don’t go to bed with any.”
He grinned and saluted her with his glass. Then he froze. Her stomach fell through to her toes. “What?” she said, voice edgy and harsh.
“A car coming up the driveway.” He quickly blew out the candles. Lights swept across the curtained windows, and the sound of a car engine seemed as loud as thunder in the silence.
Alarm raced through her. He touched her hand, squeezing her fingers lightly. “Don’t panic.”
“But what if they come into the house? What are we going to do?”
“Nothing yet. Stay here.”
He left the chair and disappeared into the darkness. A moment later she saw the curtain move slightly to one side. In the stillness, two doors slammed. Jaunty whistling moved away from the house, and a water pump kicked into gear.
He’s watering the stock.
What if he wants to feed them? Our car is in the shed.
He’s making no move toward the shed just yet. If he does, I’ll deal with it. He hesitated. Someone else is moving toward us. Grab the glasses and wrap everything else in the tablecloth.
She quickly gathered everything, her hands shaking so badly she could barely hold the glasses. He was beside her in an instant, one hand full of plastic bags and wet dishcloths. He took her free hand and led her quickly down the hall. Did you leave much mess in the bathroom?
Other than a damp towel, my bag and those oils you gave me, no.
Wait here. He let her go and disappeared again. She heard him moving about, then the sound of vigorous wiping. What are you doing?
Wiping the moisture off the bathtub.
Behind them, in the living room, came the sound of a key scraping in the lock. She shifted from one foot to the other, battling the urge to run. Hurry.
Hurrying will get us caught. Caution is the key—believe me.
Tension drew her muscles so tight they were beginning to ache. In the living room, the door opened and lights were swept on. If you don’t move right now, it’ll be caution that gets us caught.
He appeared out of the bathroom and ushered her into the nearest bedroom. Quick, under the bed.
She pushed aside the comforter and slithered under the old fashioned, high-off-the-floor wooden bed. Dust stirred, tickling her nose. She held back a sneeze and pulled in the bags, towels and tablecloth that he shoved in, trying to leave him some room.
He’d barely pulled the comforter back into place when the hall lights came on. Footsteps approached, loud and heavy despite the carpet. Fear squeezed her throat so tightly she could barely breathe, and for an instant, it felt as though her heart were going to leap out of her chest. She closed her eyes, battling the terror pounding through her.
It’s okay. We’re okay. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, but his attention was on the hall outside. They were hardly out of the woods yet.
The footsteps moved past their bedroom hideaway, and another light burned brightly. After a few seconds came the sound of soft tinkling.
Despite her fear, laughter bubbled through her. The intruder was using the toilet?
Minutes ticked by. Finally, the toilet flushed, lights went out and the footsteps moved back down the hall. But they didn’t entirely retreat. From the kitchen came the sound of running water.
She’s filling something. He shifted around until he was facing her.
Oh God, don’t tell me they’re settling in
to have a cup of coffee?
Could be. There’s nothing much we can do but wait them out.