Lucky 7 Bad Boys Contemporary Romance Boxed Set (70 page)

Her carefree mood slipped precariously.

With a gnarled hand, the ancient leader of the warriors lowered the long staff he carried and pointed it right at Rini. A tingle of panic skittered up her spine.

She edged backward, out of the gang of wild-looking men, but her back bumped firmly up against a solid wall. Then the wall moved. It reached out and grasped her bare arms with warm, strong hands.

Letting out a gasp, she spun around, and was greeted by the sight of a porcupine-quill chest plate that covered a male torso so broad it nearly blocked out the hot California sun. The man it adorned was tall and lean, his ample muscles oiled and rippling under his sparse clothing. All he wore was the chest plate, a long, fringed breechclout, moccasins, and a few bells tied around his athletic legs.

Oh. My. God.

She shivered, tore her eyes up from the warrior's body, and looked into his face. His obsidian hair hung long, thick, and loose, braided on one side with beads and leather thongs, and topped with a small headdress bearing two upright feathers. A pipe-beaded choker graced his powerful neck below his Adam's apple. Black stripes and dots had been smeared across his high cheekbones and square chin. Deep, brooding eyes peered back at her from behind a solid black painted mask.

The stranger was just about the most intriguing, sensual man Rini had ever seen in her life. He had the body of a dangerous warrior, but, oh, those eyes—they were the dark, fathomless eyes of a passionate lover.

Not that she’d know anything about lovers, passionate or otherwise. But this man...he stirred something hidden deep within her. Something she'd never felt before. Something almost...primal. Senses whirling, she nibbled her lip and took a calming breath.

"Hey, bro, no terrorizing the tourists!" an amused male voice called out from behind her.

Her warrior's somber face split into a saucy grin that did the oddest things to her pulse. He looked her up and down, as if considering whether or not to fling her over his shoulder and carry her off to an uncertain fate.

Whoa
. She took a step back.

He glanced past her and, in a voice too dark to suit his finely chiseled features, he muttered, "Damn. No scalping, or flaming arrows?"

The solemn answer came from behind her. "Sorry, bro."

"No tying them to anthills?"

"Hells, no."

The handsome warrior folded his arms over his chest and slid a leisurely, flutter-inducing gaze down her body, all the way to the tips of her sandaled toes, and then slowly slid it up again. "No doing unspeakable things to their womenfolk?"

Her eyes widened and a small sound escaped her throat. The cap sleeve of her new sundress slid off her shoulder. Swallowing self-consciously, she tugged it up.

"
Especially
not that."

The warrior let out a sigh. "Well, shit. Things are getting way too civilized these days."

Just then a loudspeaker directly overhead blared out an announcement that the Grand Procession was about to begin from the east side of the dance ring.

Rini suddenly realized she was standing right in the middle of the queued-up dancers.
Damn.
How did she always manage to be in the way? She attempted to sidle past the warrior, aiming for the crowd of tourists behind him.

A gust of wind lifted the ends of her hair and his gaze followed the movement before settling back on hers. "Well, sweet thing, looks like I'll have to spare you this time." Then he winked.

Her body tingled as a thousand tiny fireworks went off in her bloodstream. She bit her bottom lip harder to give herself a much-needed jolt back to reality.

What was with her? Here she was, barely weeks out of the ego-numbing relationship with her ex-fiancé, David, and already she was practically swooning at another man's feet! This was totally unlike her. Riniarina Herelius did not swoon over strange men. Hell, Rini did not swoon over men at all. At least not these days.

"Go on," her warrior urged, smiling. "Your boyfriend will be looking for you."

Her gaze narrowed and she frowned. "No." Thoughts of swooning vanished, and she shook her head determinedly. "No boyfriend."

A question played in his eyes. "Husband, then?"

Inexplicably, her vision blurred.
No. Not that, either
. She shook her head again, turned, and fled into the crowd. She didn't stop running until she passed the booth farthest from the dance circle, then leaned against a wooden fence post. She gulped down several steadying breaths. The beat of drums kicked up over the loudspeaker, the nasal wail of the singers joining in. Exhaling slowly, she forced her heart to resume its normal cadence.

She swiped at her eyes.
Damn that warrior, anyway.
She did not want to think about David and all her crushed dreams. Not today.

Today was a celebration! She had come to the Cardinal Ranch Powwow to lose herself in the bright colors, the haunting music, and the beautiful dancing. In the wonderful tastes and smells and diversity the world had to offer. To revel in life. A life that was her own and no one else’s.

She was free! Free of the past. Free to choose her own future.

Running unsteady fingers along the warm wood of the split rail fence, she repeated the word firmly to herself.
Free.
Not betrayed. Not defeated. But truly free. Liberated, after two long years of trying to be someone she couldn't—wouldn't—ever be. Free to follow her own almost-forgotten dreams and rebuild the fragile self-esteem that had been so soundly shattered.

Lord, how could she have stayed so long with a man who didn't love her? A man who had taken every opportunity to belittle her opinions and crush her hopes? A man who had cheated on her, and when she’d left him, had shouted after her that she wasn't woman enough for him, anyway.

How naive she had been! To think she'd honestly believed David would change, that her love and loyalty could transform him from the thoughtless, domineering bully he’d turned into lately, back to the man he’d been in the beginning of their relationship—a person worthy of her devotion. Or so she’d thought.

But she'd finally realized that was never going to happen.

Thinking one person could ever change another was a huge mistake, one she had no intention of repeating in this lifetime.

She was so grateful for the courage she had somehow scraped together to leave him. To start over. And this time, to do it right.

Now she would do with her life what she had dreamed of for as long as she could remember—finishing the course work for her nursing degree. She would slowly put her life and her self-esteem back together. And most important, she would make her own choices. Choices neither David nor her mother would ever again be able to mock.

Closing her eyes, she let out a long breath that ended in a smile. No, she wouldn't let David ruin today. She wouldn't allow him to ruin any day, ever again.

No man, she promised herself, would ever ruin another single solitary day of her life.

She lifted her gaze to the glittering heavens. It was truly a glorious morning. In more ways than one. Yesterday she had gotten a letter from UCLA confirming her reacceptance to the nursing program. And a few minutes ago, a sexy, intriguing man had actually flirted with her.

Oh, yeah. Life was good.

The weather matched her buoyant spirits. A sparkling bright sun shone in a brilliant blue, cloudless sky. A breeze whispered through the fragrant wildflowers on the rolling, grassy hilltop where the powwow grounds were located, stirring the canopied booths that were filled with sweet and savory foods, silver and turquoise jewelry, antique reproductions, souvenirs, and T-shirts sporting political and decorative logos.

She pushed off the fence, fueled by the newfound happiness and determination that had arisen from the ashes of her shattered relationship.

Finally she was in control of her own fate.

Laughing, she swung around in a circle, the full skirt of her colorful summer dress billowing about her like a bell. She felt lightheaded and happy. For the first time in years she felt feminine and attractive.

This was crazy! She wanted to twirl up and down the rolling hills until she fell over with giddiness!
She
was crazy.

For the first time in her life she wanted to
do
something crazy!

The sound of drums and bells and the thump of dancers' feet vibrated over the meadow. She felt a warm glow wash over her as she thought of one handsome dancer in particular.
The warrior.

Now
there
was a choice bit of craziness just waiting to happen.

* * *

Colton Lonetree spotted the tourist woman at the Navajo taco stand. He'd been thinking about her ever since she dashed off so quickly after he'd put his foot in his mouth at the dance circle. And he'd thought he was being so subtle, asking about a boyfriend.

The woman was pretty as a picture in that cute little sundress, blond curls cascading over her shoulders. He didn't usually go for the tourists. In fact, he never did. Ever. He came to these things strictly for the dancing, to see his friends from the Rez, and to clap for his students. But this one… Well, this one just might be an exception. In any case, she was definitely worth a closer look.

He pushed through the crowd in front of the taco stand. Luckily, it was run by his pal, Ricky Lee. The throng of gawking tourists parted readily for an Indian in full regalia, until Cole stood just behind the woman, who was giving her order to Ricky. The intriguing scents of gardenias and fry bread mingled in his nostrils.

"Hey, good buddy," Ricky said, grinning over the blonde's head as he counted out her change.

Cole smiled at her as she turned to him in surprise. He reached around her and gave Ricky a good-natured thump on the arm, brushing hers as he did so. He heard her little intake of breath, and grinned inwardly. Definitely no boyfriend.

Ricky ducked into the depths of the booth, and Cole glanced back at the woman. He had her effectively cornered between his body, the booth, and the condiment table. This time she wouldn't get away so easily.

"Was it something I said?" he asked.

Her head came around. "Sorry?"

"When you ran away."

"Ah." Her mouth parted slightly, and the tip of her tongue peeked out, moistening her upper lip. "No." She shrugged a shoulder, then tugged up the sliver of sleeve that slipped over it at the movement.

Hell.
He really wished the damn thing would stop doing that. Her smooth, bare shoulder was driving him to distraction big time.

"I was a bit embarrassed at being where I wasn't supposed to be, that's all," she murmured.

"No need. We did sort of swoop down on you. The guys never could resist teasing a beautiful woman."

She lowered her lashes, blushing, and when she raised her sky-blue eyes again, fire danced in them like sparklers on the Fourth of July. Beautiful blue fire eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Ricky returned and looked from Cole to the woman and back again. With lifted eyebrows, Ricky handed her a Navajo taco and a can of soda. "Condiments are over there," he said, pointing to the table behind her. "You eating,
amigo?"

"Better not. I'm dancing hoops in half an hour." Cole waved and followed Fire Eyes to the napkin dispenser. She juggled her plate in one hand, the plastic fork and a root beer in the other, so he obligingly peeled out a few napkins for her. He paused, searching her hands for somewhere to put them, then pursed his lips and examined her dress for a possibility. He didn't get much further than the curvy bodice with about a million tiny buttons running down the front.
Ho boy.

"Don't suppose you've got a pocket anywhere?"

She shook her head. As his gaze fastened on her scoop neckline, her eyes widened in alarm. "Don't you dare!" She tried to step back, but the table blocked her path. Her sleeve slid off her shoulder.

He swallowed hard.

Prying two of her fingers away from the soda can, he inserted the napkins, then gingerly moved to pull up her sleeve. His fingers lingered on the silky-looking cotton fabric, close enough to her skin to feel the warmth emanating from it.

He looked into her fire eyes. "Watch me dance later?"

Slowly, she nodded. “Um, sure.”

He smiled then, and forced himself to turn and walk away before he made a complete idiot of himself—as there was no doubt in his mind he would. Those fire eyes did things to him no other woman had managed to do in more years than he cared to count.

And made him completely forget about women and how they always,
always
left.

* * *

Checking her watch, Rini eased herself through the crowd of people lining the dance circle. She didn’t want to be late. The master of ceremonies had just announced the hoop dance demonstration. She didn't catch the dancer's name. A buzz in the public address system prevented her from hearing anything more than that he hailed from the Luiseño nation, but somehow she knew it would be her warrior.