Yesterday

Chapter One

He had caused her to break the heel on her brand new white heels. He had ripped the strap of her sundress, left scratches on her leg and he had made her cry. Anna ran her fingers through her long tangled hair, grimacing at the shape the once neat locks had been brushed into. Her hair fell down her shoulders to the middle of her back now, the clip that had once held it at the nape of her neck long gone.

The sundress was held on one side by the snug fit over her breasts, but the midnight blue linen dress would never be the same again. Her feet were scratched and sore, and she hated the dark. She had always hated the dark. She sniffed as more tears fell from her eyes, and she hated herself for being so frightened that they fell.

Anna prided herself on never crying. But here she was, walking down a deserted country road, barefoot, pissed and crying. Why she wasn t certain. It wasn t as though she really liked the little jerk. She had only gone out with him to satisfy her father who was becoming increasingly worried that his little girl didn t like guys at all.

She sniffed miserably. She did like guys. Well, one guy. Besides, she had standards, and that pip squeak Charlie Austin didn t hardly measure up. She limped down the country road cursing Charlie, her parents and men in general as she made her way home.

Of course, no one would be home when she got there. Her parents had left that day for another long weekend in the mountains, leaving the house silent and lonely. She shivered.

What if he did as he threatened and went to get his friends to help him? What if they got her before she could call the Sheriff?

A cold knot of fear bloomed in her stomach then. She had no place else to go. She rubbed at the chill that chased over her arms despite the heat of the night and fought the hysteria she could feel blooming inside her. As vivid images of just how cruel Charlie Austin could be, chased through her mind the sound of a vehicle coming around the curves behind her had her stilling in terror.

Was it Charlie? She whimpered, her eyes casting around in the dark as she fought for a place to hide. As lights swung toward she moved desperately off the side of the road, stumbling into the small culvert and scraping her legs further as she crouched amid the rough rocks and prayed she hadn t been seen.

The night was damned near moonless, the country laying under a weight of dark heat and restless weather. There was a storm coming and Blake had a feeling it wasn t just the weather. It was his last night of freedom before heading out on another mission. The orders had come in that morning and rather than looking forward to the action to come, he felt a hollow regret instead. He was only twenty-five, but the last seven years had been spent training, fighting, with very little living in between.

He thought perhaps this would be the last mission. He was getting tired and he was smart enough to know that would dull the edge of his reflexes, make him careless. He had a nice little house here, a life he could live, if he was willing to step into it. And a pretty little thing he had his eye on for the past few months. She was young, maybe too damned young for his experience. But he couldn t seem to shake the image of her from her his mind or his cock.

He frowned as he thought about her. He had seen her out with that cocky little Austin boy tonight. Dressed in a little sundress that begged to be peeled from her body, her long red hair flowing down her back, her big green eyes watching Blake with innocent hunger.

And he had decided then and there that it was his last mission. His last war-torn country.

He sighed bleakly. There was no out of this last mission and he knew it. But he d be damned if he was looking forward to it.

As he rounded one of the sharper curves of the small country road, a flash of color ahead had his eyes widening in shock then narrowing in surprise as it suddenly disappeared. It wasn t possible. The fates didn t work this way.

When the flash of blue and red disappeared over the side of the road, the movement furtive, his instincts clicked into overdrive. He slowed as he neared the spot, pulling up just before it, watching the area cautiously as he cut the lights of his car. He pulled his revolver from beneath the seat, the flashlight from the back floorboard and eased out of the car.

There was a small culvert beside the road, deep enough for someone to hide in the rocky ravine. He edged closer, using the darkness for cover though some inner instinct warned him that the danger to come would be more emotional than physical. But more damaging than an enemy s bullet.

As he moved into position, he saw the flash of pale features in the darkness, a shuffle of movement as a small form moved carefully among the rocks. Fury split inside him as he flicked the flashlight on, shining it directly into the small, terrified face below him.