The chance of taking a hit was more than he cared for, but the chance they would die if they simply sat there and waited was much higher. Cord didn’t know who was out there, but he did know that whoever it was, wanted them bothdead.
He closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and launched from around the truck. One step.Two—
A gunshot crack popped. The glass of the driver’s side door shattered. Cord ducked and threw up his hands, diving through the waterfall of glass into the cab of the truck. Laying full out on the bench seat, he rolled to his back and grabbed therifle.
Pop. Pop. Two bullet holes formed in the windshield inches above him and thumped into the seat cushion, a hair’s breadth above his head. “Son of a bitch.” Cord kept the rifle clutched to his chest and yanked back on the lever, finding one round chambered. With steady hands, he popped the lock on the glove box, shoved the box of bullets into the waistband of his pants, and then reached for the passenger’s side door handle. He’d have to dive out headfirst, roll, and dive behind the truck if he had any hope of makingit.
“Sam, stay down. Coming toyou!”
Knowing he’d have to move fast, Cord rolled to his stomach. He grabbed the door handle and shoved. The rusty metal squeaked open. Without stopping, Cord launched himself from the cab of the truck, one hand clutching the rifle, the other holding on to the frame forbalance.
He ducked his head, went sideways, and rolled, coming up on his good foot right next to the rear tire of the truck. A barrage of bullets filled the empty air, peppering the dirt near his feet and clinking into the passenger’s side door. Cord ran for the tailgate. Bullets flew; chunks of dirt popped into his skin. And then he was behind the truck, and Sam’s hands were all overhim.
“Cord, were you hit?” Her soft palms skimmed down his face and arms, and then historso.
Adrenaline pumping through his veins, Cord chuckled. “Told you I’d befine.”
Her horrified expression turned to one of shock and then a barely there, shaky smile stretched across her lips. “Youdid.”
Unable to resist the temptation, he traced her flushed cheek with the back of his fingers, all of his senses heightened and tuned in to her. “And after this is over, I’m going to spend the rest of the day apologizing for getting you into thismess.”
He brushed his thumb across her lower lip, his gut tightening when her eyesdarkened.
“Just the rest of the day?” she asked in a huskyvoice.
Cord grabbed her chin, took her lips in a fierce kiss, and said, “Tonight is just the warm-up.”
Another bullet tapped into the already abused metal of the truck, hitting near the right, rear tire this time. The bastard was moving, circling to get a better shot. “Keep your head down,okay?”
Another shot. Samantha flinched. “Don’t worry, I’m not goinganywhere.”
Cord dropped his hand from her soft body to the smooth, polished wood stock of the Remington 223. “Nicepiece.”
“I’m just glad I’ve never had to useit.”
Cord looked up at her and bit back a smile, a wicked rush of adrenaline zinging through his veins. “I’d say it’s time we put this bad boy touse.”
He checked the chamber round once more, yanking back on the single-bolt action, and then, with one knee on the ground, lifted the scope to his eye quickly and efficiently checking thesites.
The rifle had a decent scope, nowhere near the power or features of his own sniper rifle, but then again, this gun had never been intended to be used in long-range, small-target shooting. He knew Samantha had it to take out a coyote or a rattlesnake. Today Cord used it to hunt aman.
Carefully Cord eased down onto his stomach and rolled to his side, lifting the scope to his eye. Hard dirt and sharp rocks dug into his shoulder. Tiny swirls of dust swept across his line of vision. Slowly, he adjusted his sites until the pebbles dotting the ground came into focus. Millimeter by millimeter he swept right, searching for histarget.
Ten seconds later, he zeroed in on the edge of a boot poking out from behind aboulder.
“He’s set up and hiding behind a rock.” Which meant he had them sighted in. “We need to draw himout.”
Cord slowly shimmied back from beneath the truck. Sam pressed her fingers to her lips, the sweet rosy glow that had returned to her cheeks only moments before was now gone. “He’s going to kill us. I should’ve known better than to think he’d ever leave mealone.”
“You can’t stop being who you are out of fear.” And if he had anything to say about it, she would never have to worry about it again. Cord opened the box of shells and placed them on the bumper, and then he pulled one out and handed it to Sam. “When I tell you, hand this to me. If I miss with the first shot, I won’t have a lot of time with thesecond.”
She nodded at him, her eyes filling up with moisture. “Are you going to killhim?”
Every cell in his body wanted to murder the bastard for trying to hurt Sam, and he wasn’t exactly happy with becoming a target too. “Honey, if I don’t incapacitate him, he’s going to keep onshooting.”
Her bottom lip trembled, and he could see she was on the verge of cracking. Damn, he hated seeing her cry. He was man enough to admit to himself that if she did, he might even try to give in. But then Samantha surprised him. Her lips thinned and pressed together and she gave him a jerky nod, swiping the back of her hand across her eyes. “Do what you have todo.”
Pride surged through his chest. She was one of the strongest women he’d ever seen, and she always had been. She’d never caved to pressure in high school to fit in with the popular crowd, never cared what others thought about her, and now look at her, venturing out into territory unknown by opening a home for the lost in a wild and unforgiving land. Damn, he loved thiswoman.
