“I’m going to make a few phone calls and see if I can find out anything that might help us tonight.”
As she went into the bedroom, her thoughts were racing. Ranger wasn’t just some ex-military racing-team mechanic who moonlighted guarding witnesses for the police. With the knowledge and equipment he was using, it was beginning to look more and more like he was a plainclothes policeman…or maybe even a member of the Brotherhood of Warriors. The fact that he knew Hastiin Sani well enough to mourn over his death suggested a close association. But she needed facts, not guesses. His name hadn’t been on the partial list she’d been shown.
It would have made matters easier if she could have trusted Ranger and told him that what they had to do was find Hastiin Dííl. But she’d promised Hastiin Sani not to divulge the information he’d given her to anyone except Hastiin Dííl. And even if it hadn’t meant breaking her promise, it would have still been risky telling Ranger anything. There was no way to predict his reaction once he learned that she was in possession of names no Anglo was supposed to have, especially because she’d never be able to prove how she got that information now that her friend was dead.
There were other reasons why that wouldn’t work, too. She had a feeling he still wasn’t totally convinced that she hadn’t set up Hastiin Sani. He’d never take her to see Hastiin Dííl under those circumstances. In fact, he might have taken steps to make sure she stayed as far away from Hastiin Dííl as possible.
As those thoughts circled in her mind, she realized that there was also another serious problem with her trying to find the new Brotherhood of Warriors leader. She was currently Trujillo ’s target. If they were somehow followed, she’d be taking Hastiin Sani’s killers right to Hastiin Dííl’s doorstep.
Of course she’d have a far better chance of going undetected if she traveled alone…but that wasn’t going to happen, at least for now. The best she could hope for was that Hastiin Dííl had already gone into hiding and was well beyond everyone’s reach.
When she’d given her word to pass the names on to Hastiin Dííl, she’d had no idea how complicated that would become. The names, for now, would have to remain locked away in her mind.
Dana opened the closet door, and saw the vast array of clothing inside. As Ranger had promised, there were plenty of styles to choose from, everything from formal evening wear to medical scrubs.
It took her forty-five minutes to complete a look that was totally unlike her own and still a good comfortable disguise. Wearing a short, dark-haired wig, a contrast to her shoulder-length copper-colored hair, black slacks and a hot pink long-sleeved T-shirt, she surveyed herself in the mirror. She didn’t even recognize herself.
As Dana went back down the hall to show Ranger the results, she heard him on the kitchen phone. Judging from his end of the conversation, he was giving FBI Agent Harris an update.
Not wanting to interrupt him, she stayed well back. Standing to the side of the large bay window that faced the fenced backyard, she caught a glimpse of movement to her right. Suddenly a furry head with large ears poked out between the wooden slats of the fence. Then a small body followed, barely squeezing through. It was a domestic rabbit, probably the neighbor’s pet. She smiled, thinking some child would soon come looking for the bunny.
Realizing in a heartbeat the danger of anything that might call attention to them-unfamiliar residents at the house-she stepped out into the yard through the side door.
It took only a few minutes to gather up the rabbit, which came right to her, and push it back through the space between the slats. She was down on her knees, having just placed a large rock in the gap so the rabbit couldn’t get back through, when someone grabbed her arms firmly from behind.
She jerked her head back, hitting her attacker, and twisted away, rolling onto her back and kicking out. But her attacker was already too close. He evaded her legs and straddled her at the waist, pinning her arms down by her side.
She saw Ranger’s face clearly and relaxed. But there was no immediate recognition on his face-just deadly intent. It was a side of him she’d never seen, and it was directed at her.
“It’s me,” Dana said quickly, forcing him to look past the heavy makeup and wig.
“Dana?” He stared, but didn’t release her. “What were you doing out here?”
She could sense his anger and gave him a cold, level stare. “Isn’t it obvious? I was trying to run away through a six-inch hole in the wooden fence. Now would you please get off me?” As she shifted her hips, she heard him bite back a groan.
“Why should I move? I like this position.” He smiled slowly. It was one of those killer grins guaranteed to melt any normal female’s heart.
“Because we’re outside-in the open.”
“Spoilsport,” he said, then gave her a hand up. “Good disguise. But what were you doing out here crawling around on the grass?”
“I wasn’t crawling around. I was returning the neighbor’s bunny, who’d just sneaked through the fence. I didn’t want anyone coming over who might start asking questions.”
“So you were handling a security issue?” He grinned, and rubbed his chest where she’d whacked him with the back of her head.
“Yeah…that is, until I got assaulted.” She could still feel the warm outline of his body against the cradle of her thighs. She sighed softly.
“Yeah, you do that to me, too.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. The grass was cold,” she protested primly.
“Not anymore,” he answered, hurrying back inside with her, then closing and locking the door.
Trying to focus her thoughts, Dana stared across the room at nothing in particular and forced her breathing to even out. His reaction to a perceived threat had been lightning fast and very effective. His training was obviously top-notch and the incident proved that she was in very good hands. And those hands…so rough, yet so incredibly gentle. She shivered.
“Stop fighting the attraction between us,” he whispered in her ear. “Put yourself in my hands.”
The temptation was overwhelming, but she stepped away from him. “Don’t flatter yourself. I’m nowhere near that attracted to you. Now let me go fix this wig.” She stormed down the hall, went directly to the bedroom and slammed the door shut.
Alone again, she plopped down on the edge of the bed and took a deep, steadying breath. She had no idea how to deal with her feelings for Ranger. She wasn’t an innocent. Casual sex might have been an option if she hadn’t been absolutely positive that there’d be nothing casual about it with Ranger. Her feelings, though undefined, were too strong, and went well beyond a physical attraction. Ranger simply wasn’t the kind of man who brought out halfway emotions.
Finding grass stains on her wig and clothes, she opted for an entirely new disguise. Dana selected a long, blond-haired wig, jeans, and a light knit royal blue sweater. After adjusting her makeup to match her new look, she went back down the hallway.
When she drew close to the kitchen, she heard Ranger speaking softly on the phone. The fact that he was deliberately keeping his voice down made her curious, and she stopped to listen.
“I’ll find out what she’s holding back and if she’s really as innocent as she claims to be. But with Dana, if I rush it, I’ll get nowhere. I need time to work.”
Ranger’s words squeezed the air out of her lungs. He hadn’t been attracted to her at all. It had all been a game of manipulation-a way to soften her up and get her to lower her defenses. Seething, she walked back to the living room. But as her gaze fell on the laptop computer her anger gave way to logic…and a crushing sense of disappointment.