LITMIR.BIZ

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alerted her to another presence. No sudden intake of breath. No stirring of foot against rubble. And the cat’s call had once more sounded pitiful rather than angry.

      If any threat had been present a moment ago, surely now it was gone.

      Not wanting to think too deeply on it, she muttered, “Give me a minute, kitty, and I’ll get us both out of here.” And willed her hands to unclench.

      Panic receding, Josie carefully slid her bottom forward over creaking boards and hunched up as close to her foot as her aching middle would allow. Blindly, she felt for the problem. Ragged wood had gashed and caught the worn leather of her boot and held it fast in several places.

      Concentrating on working herself free, Josie almost missed the import of several quiet footfalls coming at her.

      Then her hands stiffened again and sweat popped down her spine. A wave of intense heat poured through her as she literally ripped at the wooden slivers trapping her boot. Carefully, she wiggled her foot and pulled…even as a bright light suddenly blinded her more effectively than had the dark.

      “What are you up to?” came an arrogant male demand.

      Freed at last, avoiding looking directly into the beam, Josie put out a hand to shade her eyes. All she could fathom was a dark silhouette against the bright light. Her impression was of a tall man, one broader than most. She cautiously rose, careful not to step back into trouble.

      “Maybe you should be the one answering that,” she said more bravely than she was feeling.

      “I’m not the one sneaking around here in the dark.”

      “I wasn’t sneaking! I heard the cat—”

      “What cat?” The disembodied voice sounded rife with suspicion.

      Helpfully, the animal she’d been trying to rescue chose that moment to agree in the tiniest of voices—one Josie hadn’t before heard—almost as if the feline were satisfied that her rescue was imminent.

      The bright beam moved away from her toward the sound. She followed its course and finally was able to see the object she’d been fumbling over—a cat carrier with a glowing-eyed occupant peering out hopefully at them.

      “Meow.”

      Josie reconnoitered, decided to get going and fast. But she wasn’t about to leave the animal she’d determined to rescue. Thinking she could use the carrier as a weapon if she needed to—only if forced, of course, lest she further scared the poor creature inside—Josie swooped down on the cage. Ignoring the pain that twinged through her middle, she grabbed hold of the handle and proceeded to bluff her way out of the place, a distant gray haze identifying the general area that would lead to the street.

      “Wait a minute!”

      She quickened her step toward the film of light ahead, muttering, “Forget it. I’m outta here!”

      The beam turned and swept before her. “Have some light before you really hurt yourself.”

      Josie didn’t so much as falter. She kept right on going, straight out the door. Just in case she needed some, she looked around for help. The street was deserted—no chatty women, no sleepy cowpoke. But the black SUV had been abandoned at the curb opposite.

      Had the driver been looking for her, after all?

      Knowing she was alone but for her furry companion, Josie flipped around and bravely faced him.

      He was tall. He was broad. And he was definitely unhappy. A scowl marred an otherwise attractive face—rather, as much as she could see of it beneath his broad-brimmed black hat. His hard gaze met hers, trapping her as effectively as had the broken boards.

      Any thanks for the rescue she might have uttered died on her lips.

      “So what was this cat doing inside what should be a boarded-up building?”

      His demand for an explanation immediately made her bristle. “Like I should know?”

      “You obviously knew the cat was there.”

      He moved closer to her, and his aura of power threatened to smother her. Normally she didn’t put credence to that sort of thing, but when her pulse lurched, Josie took a step back. Then she winced when the cat carrier smacked into a sore spot. A sudden acid taste in her mouth soured her mood further. If anyone had meant her harm in there, this man couldn’t have been the one, she assured herself, or he wouldn’t be asking so many questions.

      Realizing that she probably had been alone, that she had spooked herself, and that her imagination had conjured some other “presence,” that, sensing her fear, the cat had appropriately responded to, Josie couldn’t figure out why this stranger had such a suffocating effect on her.

      What in the world was wrong with her?

      “I told you I heard the cat,” she finally said to break his invisible grip.

      “And so you just went inside…”

      “Right.”

      “…and wandered around a decaying building blindly.”

      “Why should I explain myself to you, anyhow?”

      She tried pushing by him, but he caught her upper arm and held her fast. And though he didn’t hurt her, his fingers seemed to burn into her flesh right through the denim jacket. Her heart at first fluttered, then began to pound.

      “We’re not done here.”

      She went still and cold inside, and with difficulty, choked out, “What are you? A cop or something?”

      The thought made her fight panic once more, if for a very different reason. What if there was a warrant for her arrest? What if he really had been searching for her?

      His “Not exactly” didn’t exactly relieve her building anxiety.

      “Then you won’t mind if I get going.” Pointedly, she stared at his hand on her arm until he let go. Her tense stomach relaxed and she trembled with relief.

      “Where to?”

      “Home.”

      “You live in Silver Springs?”

      Of course he would know everyone who lived in a town this small. “Well, I do for the moment…over at the Springs Bed-and-Breakfast.”

      He seemed to digest that before musing, “The bed-and-breakfast, huh? Then what about the cat?”

      Josie stared at him stupidly for a moment before it dawned on her. “Oh, right.”

      She couldn’t just surprise the woman who’d been good enough to give her shelter with another mouth to feed…possibly an unappreciated mouth. Besides, the cat probably had an owner somewhere looking for her.

      She raised the carrier and stared at the little white face edged by soft gray ears and a gray chin. Almond-shaped blue eyes stared back at her trustingly.

      Josie asked, “You don’t happen to recognize her, do you?”

      “Her?”

      “The cat. Just a guess about the ‘her’ part,” she added hurriedly.

      “Afraid not.”

      “Maybe she knows how to get herself home.”

      Not knowing what else to do, Josie set down the carrier and opened the door, all the while praying the owner would be glad to see the animal. Heaven forbid some irresponsible person had been trying to get rid of a pet…exactly what she feared, considering the circumstances.

      But when the cat stepped out of her cage, she didn’t run off as Josie had expected. Instead, the animal pranced, showing off her beautiful white-and-gray coat, then arched her back and rubbed herself against Josie’s legs.

      “She likes you.”

      Caught by the man’s obvious amusement,

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