Sand Angel (6 page)

The dark-haired man next to Connor leaned over to address Josh. “Your sister is something.” His grin of appreciation held a little more admiration than Drew cared for. Heat crawled across his face.

As Zoë stopped behind them, Drew and Josh both climbed off their quads. Drew’s first instinct was to jerk her from behind the wheel and carry her kicking and screaming back to camp. They needed to talk and resolve the issues between them. There were too many men sniffing at her heels for his comfort. Even now, Connor and his friend were eyeing Zoë with too much interest, and then there was Trent.

Trent released his death grip on the bar in front of him. “Josh, your sister is crazy.” His chuckle was a little strained.

Zoë’s face showed no expression, her eyes hidden behind shaded goggles. But Drew swore he could feel her steely glare on him. Her perfectly sculpted lips became pinched, puckered slightly as her head turned in his direction. All he could think of was tasting her—kissing the tightness from her mouth.

The little gal had an attitude that he couldn’t wait to adjust.

Josh waved Drew back as he veered around the rail, heading straight for Zoë. “Yeah. I know.” He bent near her and whispered something in her ear that Drew couldn’t hear over the quads tearing down the track behind him.

Zoë’s return comment made Josh’s frown deepen. When he tried to speak to her, she hit the gas, slamming Trent against the back of the seat. The rail’s wheels spun, whirling sand from beneath them and once again roosting everyone within distance.

The vein in Josh’s throat bulged as he watched Zoë disappear beyond a tall dune. Silently, he shook his head and walked back to his quad.

Tension raced across Drew’s shoulders. “Where did she go?”

Josh ignored him. “Come on. Let’s ride.” In seconds he disappeared over another dune in the opposite direction of his sister.

Clearly something was wrong between the siblings. More importantly, Zoë was gone. Alone, with another man.

This was not how Drew had planned their reunion. He needed a plan to get her back.

Chapter Five

With evening came the cooling of temperatures and streaks of orange and red color across the western sky. Trent had stalled the sand rail in the middle of a witch’s eye, a bowl-shaped area surrounded by three or more tall sand dunes. They were hidden from everyone’s view, even the regulation flag that jutted eight feet into the air couldn’t be seen over the ridge of sand.

“Why’d you stop?” Zoë asked as warning bells went off inside her head. She should have remained behind the wheel. “Trent, this isn’t safe.” Someone could be on them in a matter of seconds. If they weren’t watching where they were going they’d land right on top of them.

Trent slipped off his helmet and goggles. His black hair was slick with perspiration. He sat quietly for a moment and gazed at her. His eyes darkened with an emotion Zoë didn’t want to face.

Lust.

She didn’t need this. Not now.

“Be with me this weekend.” His voice was deep and gravelly.

Thank God for colored lenses,
Zoë thought as she hid behind her goggles. She slipped a smile across her dirt-streaked face. What a mess she must look and Trent was making moves on her.

“Trent, get real.” She reached to give him a playful slap against the chest, but he caught her hand. The Velcro made a scratchy sound as he tore back the grip and slowly peeled her glove off before he pressed her wrist to his lips. All the while, his heated gaze remained steadfast on hers.

Her breath caught on an inhale.

Damn. Trent was sexy, looking up at her through heavy lids. Just shy of six feet, he was solid masculinity all the way. Not to mention, he had a smooth, polished way about him that easily drew women to his side. Like Josh, he knew his way around women. He wasn’t a bad lover. But he wasn’t Drew.

Or maybe that’s what she needed—a diversion. Zoë briefly closed her eyes behind her mask.

No. If she had her choice of men, she would give her soul to be with Drew.

“We were good together,” Trent said, refusing to release her hand.

The truth was that last year Trent had been a substitute for the man she really wanted. “You mean we were good in bed,” she corrected. The lighthearted chuckle she anticipated releasing instead came out tight. Even she heard the unease in her attempt to jest.

Okay. A different approach was needed.

“Now’s not the time, Trent. Get us out of this eye.” There was more to her anxiety than knowing someone could appear at the peak of one of the sand dunes and then be on them in a flash.

Shamelessly, Zoë had held Trent while she fucked Drew in her mind. Each moan and cry of ecstasy had been for Drew. Just the thought of Drew tightened her nipples into pebble-hard peaks beneath her jersey. The memory of his warm, wet mouth on her breast earlier released a flood of desire between her thighs.

God, what she would give to feel his cock easing in and out of her aching pussy.

Trent’s brown eyes darkened more as he reached for her. “Zoë, I want you. I’ve always wanted you.”

Zoë tried to pull away, but her seatbelt held her snugly in place. The thought of holding someone else while Drew slept thirty feet away turned her stomach. The idea of him being wrapped in another woman’s arms made every bone in her body ache. She had seen Kari wrapped around his arm. That woman was trouble.

The revving of an engine as a rail topped the crest was the only thing that saved her from the kiss she knew was coming as Trent draped his body over hers.

Startled, he jerked back behind the wheel. “Shit,” he said as the vehicle dodged, barely missing crashing into them. He crammed his helmet on and turned the key, stirring the engine to life.

“Get us the hell out of here,” Zoë yelled as a quad bounded over the dune, once again missing them by a hair. “I want to go back to camp.”

The ride back to camp was done in silence. Trent pulled the sand rail inside the area formed by their trailers, positioning the buggy near his trailer. Theft was high at the Dunes. The closer you slept to your toys, the safer your equipment was.

Zoë climbed out of the vehicle and removed her helmet and goggles. As she moved toward her toy hauler, Trent intercepted her. “Zoë, I mean it. Just think about it.”

She didn’t want to lead him on or give him false hope. “Isn’t going to happen, Trent.” But if she knew him, he wouldn’t stop trying.

The frown Josh flashed her as she walked past him didn’t go unnoticed. He had no right to quote safety dos and don’ts of riding. She was a big girl. Hell, she was better at riding than him and probably most of the guys.

Before her foot landed on the first step of her trailer, fingers closed around her arm, stopping her short. Slowly her gaze moved across the large hand restraining her, cruised along the tight muscled arm, until she came eye-to-eye with Drew.

Well crap.

Anger simmered in his glare. “Where have you been?”

Damn if he and Josh didn’t make her feel like she was sixteen again.

She jerked her arm out of his grasp. “Fuck you.”

With a thud she found her back pinned to her trailer, Drew’s body pressed solidly against hers. The heat of his fury seeped into her skin.

“Don’t push me, Zoë.” His warm breath flowed across her face. “Where have you been?” She watched his full lips move and all she could think about was kissing him, thrusting her tongue into his mouth, tasting and taking what had been denied her for so long.

Instead she said, “Laying low in a witch’s eye, screwing Trent’s brains out. Where the hell do you think I’ve been? Uh…riding?”

The intensity in Drew’s eyes sent a shiver of fear racing up her spine. She had never seen him like this. He was furious. Jealous.

Before she could take a breath, he pressed his mouth against hers. There was anger in his kiss, almost punishing in its force. Teeth struck teeth. His tongue darted between her lips, moving quickly as he jerked her into his embrace.

No. She couldn’t let this happen. But like always, she melted in his arms. She had no willpower when it came to Drew. The grip she had on his bare arms softened. Her tongue dueled with his. Her nerves tingled like live wires, massive energy contained against its will beneath her tight skin. Currents rushed to her nipples, stinging the hard peaks. That familiar drawing sensation, sharp and prickly, made her breasts swell with the need to be fondled and stroked by Drew’s fire.

“Zoë?” Her name barely registered as she saw a flicker of movement behind Drew. The kiss ended as Trent moved closer, so he was now fully within her view. “You okay, Zoë?”

“She’s fine,” Drew growled, refusing to relinquish her. If anything, his body pressed closer to her. His lips brushed lightly against hers as he spoke. “Leave us alone.”

Now this was awkward.

Caught in Drew’s mesmerizing stare, she blinked, trying to break his hold.

“I’ll hear it from her mouth, thank you.” There was a bite in Trent’s response.

Tension built in the air, thick and heavy.

Zoë didn’t want trouble. She just wanted to finish their kiss. No. That wasn’t right. She wanted to get away from Drew.

“I’m fine,” she said, her lips whispering across Drew’s. His hips ground against hers and she could feel his rigid erection. For a second she forgot about the intensity of the moment and just wanted to feel that long, hard cock buried between her thighs. When Trent didn’t move, she repeated, “I’m fine, Trent. Drew was just leaving.” She raised a brow in warning.

“No, baby, I’m not leaving.”

She gave him a firm shove, but he didn’t move. Her voice dropped low. “Listen. Things could get real nasty—fast—if you don’t release me. I know this group of men. You’re the outsider here, Drew. We can talk later.”

Or never, if she had her choice.

He stepped back, but instead of releasing her he grasped her hand. She didn’t miss the challenging look he gave Trent.

This was not good. Not good at all.

“If you two boys want to beat each other’s brains out, be my guest.” She jerked her hand out of Drew’s. “I’m out of here.” Before Drew could grab her hand again, she ducked his attempt and slipped into her trailer.

Zoë waited a heartbeat, listening for crunching bones and growls that didn’t come. Thank God. Someone had changed the twang of country music to the steady beat of rock. The artist sang, “I like big butts,” and the men around the campfire joined in the chorus.

The party had begun.

Chapter Six

Josh threw another glance toward Zoë’s toy hauler as he popped a top on a can of beer and took a swig. He leaned forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his knees. “Her boss called me.” There was a slight edge to his voice. He swallowed hard before he continued. “After her show in Phoenix, she’s got some time off.”

Drew set his plate down on the empty chair next to him. The steak had tasted like leather and went down like chunks of cement. It wasn’t the quality of the food but the foul mood he was in. It had been over an hour since his last interaction with Zoë. Night had fallen. A full moon graced the sky littered with bright stars. While they sat around the campfire smelling the burning pine, laughter and music filled the air as parties began all around them.

And still no Zoë.

He reached into the ice chest that sat between him and Josh and grabbed a bottle of beer. “And?” He knew there was more to what Josh had to say. As Drew twisted the cap, it made a hissing sound. A drip of cold water dropped on his bare thigh just below his denim cutoffs. He held the chilly bottle away from his naked chest and took a drink.

His hair was still wet from his brief shower, but was quickly drying beneath the breeze. His bare feet sat on top of his sandals. It felt good to be clean. If only he could have washed away his mistreatment of Zoë. First his unforgivable behavior in her trailer, and then his he-man act when she returned from riding. Instead of clearing the air between them, he seemed destined to screw it up more.

“And—” Indecision played across Josh’s face as the light from the fire flickered over his features. He took a deep breath. “Her boss thinks she has a death wish.”

Drew sat straight up in his chair. “What?”

Josh shook his head, watching the door to Zoë’s trailer as his voice lowered. “He’s told her to seek counseling.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I haven’t told Mom and Dad. I don’t know how.”

Drew couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I had no idea.”

Josh pinned him with an accusing glare. “How could you? You weren’t around.”

Drew mentally felt the jab of his friend’s words. “The guy’s crazy. Not Zoë.” Not his precious angel. She wouldn’t place her life in danger. Duh. Was he the crazy one? From what he’d already seen of Zoë, she was riding the edge.

Josh’s mouth turned into an incredulous curve. “Are you blind? This isn’t the same little girl you left behind three years ago.” He shot quickly to his feet. “She doesn’t come home, doesn’t call. This is the first time I’ve seen her in over a year. Man, your leaving fucked her up good and proper.”

Felt that barb too.

Uncomfortable having an angry man hover over him, Drew slipped his feet into his sandals and rose. The tendons in Josh’s neck were drawn tight. Even in the dark Drew could see his friend’s eyes bright with concern and accusation.