Diamond Dust

…and her. Headed across the bridge and into the forest.

Tyler shoved his bear aside. His human needed no encouragement—and the animal part within him was far too excited at the prospect of running his quarry down. He glanced at his watch and gave her another sixty seconds before setting out to retrieve his prize.

Chapter Fourteen

She ran as if being chased by a predator, which she totally was.

The ground underfoot sent up little puffs of dust as her feet hit the hard-packed surface. The land was dry as a bone. Caroline scanned the area and rapidly thought through her options.

It was only a matter of time before he caught her, and she’d like it to be in a private location, now that she’d poked his bear.

Veering away from the main riverside path, Caroline took the high route. It angled sharply toward the mountaintop for a couple of minutes of thigh-burning altitude gain before leveling off and disappearing into the trees. She didn’t bother to set him any side trails like she’d done with the wolves any time she’d planned hide- and-seek games before. With only five minutes to get ahead of Tyler, she had no time to waste. It was all or nothing.

The trees fell behind her in a smooth rhythm as she found her stride, the light pack on her back jiggling as she surged forward. Tyler didn’t know the area, so his lack of familiarity should slow him enough she could reach her goal. To her right, portions of the river flashed in the sunlight like paparazzi having a heyday.

For a moment she debated the wisdom of the chase. Not the sexual kink she’d set up—it was the remembrance of the bears fighting last night that made her hesitate. What if she and Tyler were caught unawares by some of his enemies?

Yet how would the other clans know where to find them? It would have taken a bit of talent to follow them from her apartment to the restaurant then off the highway later.

And really, the fact remained. It was either hide in a backroom the entire time he was here for conclave, or trust he could protect them no matter what ended up happening.

The knife she carried was no guarantee of safety either, but she wasn’t helpless.

Her ankle rolled, and she snapped to attention, concentrating before she got hurt. Ahead was her target, and she scrambled up the low section of cliff face, easily making it to where the lone pine stood as a sentinel beside the cliff in its sad but enduring glory.

There was nothing left of the majestic tree anymore but its tall skeleton. Nearly fossilized and iron hard, the tree had been around when the original Gold Rushers had barreled through the area, shooting the life-threatening river that had since been tamed. In the day, though, the rapids had claimed more than one life, and this path had offered an alternative route to safety.

Well, not this route, the one she was currently taking up the bare limbs of the behemoth. She’d been climbing the tree since she was a girl, a human child with a brand-new daddy who could turn into a wolf. As a little girl with a head full of fairy tales and wonder, the only unbelievable thing was being informed there was no magic she could partake in to make the same kind of transformation.

Her shifter father had hugged her, reassured her, then proceeded to teach her everything he could about living in the wilderness and dealing with the wild creatures shifters could be. His careful teaching had saved her in the end. Made it possible for her to live in the North Country she loved.

Made it possible for her to be playing a game of sexually twisted hide-and-go-seek with another wild creature out of fairy-tale lore.

She was well warmed up by the time she reached the highest branches, muscles invigorated and ready to meet her demands. She glanced back, eyeing the bits and pieces of trail that were visible as it meandered back to the main highway.

A flash of blue shot past.

Tyler.

She pulled herself along the sturdy limb, grabbed the branch in her hands and swung off, rotating until her feet lightly touched the ground, now at the top of the cliff instead of the bottom. A glance over the edge showed Tyler was too close for her to stay in one place, but her climb had given her time to set up a bit of trickery.

Three paths left the clearing she stood in. She raced down the first, cut through a connecting trail and scooted back the second trail to reach her original starting point. One more loop was all she had time for, leaving her scent on all three trails.

Then she ignored the escape routes and instead climbed the rock face behind her. The low wall emptied onto a second platform with a narrow ledge of a path rounding the corner to yet another maze of trails. Leaving her current location was impossible without edging cautiously along the precipice.

There was no way she could outrun him. No way he wouldn’t find her. But where she crouched was hidden from view of everyone but a person actually climbing onto the platform, or risking life and limb on the narrowest of trails. The chance of anyone stumbling into their party was slim. With the wind coming directly at her, the fake trails in the woods should catch Tyler’s attention first.

She lay on her stomach on the smooth rock surface to admire him as he reached the top of the tree. He’d removed his jacket, and his arms were bare, strong forearms with a dusting of hair on them. His fingers flexed powerfully as he wrapped them around the limbs, pulling himself up before swinging to the ground, knees absorbing the impact.

He rotated to admire the scenery. Her heart skipped. Did he figure she was such easy prey he had enough time to smell the roses and look around? Or did his light-hearted break make her glad?

He was a good man. The longer she spent with him, the clearer his character became. He wasn’t very civilized, though. The facade was there. The formal trappings of sophistication, but it was a layer of pretense on top of the real Tyler.

The real Tyler, who appreciated the view in the middle of a hunt.

The man obviously needed more chances to get away from it all and take it easy. She stopped herself from snorting. Kind of like herself—workaholic.

Tyler faced the trees, his gaze darting over the three options. The angle was wrong for her to be able to read his expression, but he moved slowly, deliberate in his approach. No panicked race forward. A considered and rational assessment.

He stepped to the center path and paused, hesitating at the edge of the forest and breathing deep enough his chest rose. Caroline held her own breath for fear he’d hear her.

Only he didn’t take the bait. None of the three paths led him astray. He stood for a while taking long sniffs, testing and tasting the air. He eliminated all her fake routes then stepped back into the clearing. His fingers came up to rub his chin, the rough stubble on his unshaved chin making him look like a dangerous beast. Made him handsomer than he had any right to be.

She gasped as he lifted his gaze and looked directly into her eyes.

Shoot.

She couldn’t look away. He kept eye contact as he walked to the base of her hiding spot without stumbling even once on the uneven ground. The heat from her earlier exertions had morphed into slow desire as she considered what exactly she’d set up.

He laid a hand on the smooth rock rising to her hiding spot and grinned. “You didn’t make that too difficult.”

“I’m still out of reach,” she teased, sitting upright on the edge of her cliff.

He examined her, the bits he could see. Heat danced on her nerve endings, sensitizing her skin. Growing desire edged toward all the pertinent girl parts that couldn’t wait to see what he’d do next.

Tyler stepped back half a foot. “You think it’ll take me long to get up there, think again. I’m coming for you.”

She scrambled to her feet and retreated to the back of the platform. He was right—there was no way the cliff would stop him for long. She dropped her backpack to the ground, lost her coat. The game was no longer