Ali nodded, though every instinct she had was screaming at her to ignore the radio and finish what they'd started.The mate bond was making it hard to think about anything other than the taste of his mouth and the feel of his hands on her body.
"This isn't over," Tim said, his voice carrying a promise that had her shivering with anticipation.
"No," Ali agreed, settling back into her seat on unsteady legs."It's not."
As Tim put the truck back in gear and pulled onto the highway, Ali caught sight of herself in the side mirror.Her lips were swollen from his kisses, her cheeks flushed with arousal, and her hair looked like she'd been thoroughly claimed.
Behind them, the convoy was forming up.Ahead of them, law enforcement was mobilizing to stop their medical delivery.And beside her, the man she was falling for was driving them all toward a confrontation that would either make them legends or get them all arrested.
"No pressure or anything," Ali muttered, touching her tingling lips.
Tim's laugh was rough but genuine."Sweetheart, pressure is what makes diamonds."
Chapter 4
Grizz
Sheriff Grizzley T.Lawman was having what he liked to call "a crisis of professional confidence," which was a fancy way of saying he was madder than a wet cat in a washing machine and trying to figure out how Sheriff Cottonmouth had managed to convince him that a convoy of truckers was somehow a threat to public safety.
The phone call had come in an hour ago, all urgent tones and federal implications that made Grizz feel like he was part of something bigger than traffic tickets and bar fights.
"Smokie."he bellowed from behind his desk, which groaned under the weight of his considerable frame and a stack of incident reports."Get your scrawny ass in here and bring that cotton-stuffed husband of yours."
Deputy Smokie Lawman appeared in the doorway within seconds, clutching Mr.Snuggles to his chest like the teddy bear might provide protection from his father's legendary temper.The bear was wearing a tiny sheriff's hat today, complete with a miniature badge that Smokie had crafted from a bottle cap and some gold paint.
"Yes, Daddy?"Smokie's voice carried the nervous quality it always had when Grizz was in what the department called "full grizzly mode."
"Boy, sit yourself down.We got ourselves a situation."Grizz gestured at the chair across from his desk."Sheriff Cottonmouth just called with intelligence about a convoy of criminals using our highways for illegal transportation operations."
Smokie settled into the chair, adjusting Mr.Snuggles so the bear could "see" properly."What kind of illegal operations, Daddy?"
"The sophisticated kind, son.Professional smuggling ring masquerading as legitimate truckers."Grizz pulled out his notebook, flipping through pages with theatrical authority."According to Sheriff Cottonmouth, they're running contraband under the cover of medical supply deliveries."
"Mr.Snuggles wants to know what kind of contraband," Smokie said, holding the bear up to his ear.
"Well, that's the clever part of their operation, boy.They disguise drugs and weapons as medical supplies, see?Sheriff Cottonmouth says it's one of the most sophisticated smuggling schemes he's ever encountered."Grizz leaned back in his chair, which protested under his weight."Man's got federal contacts tracking this ring across three states."
