Lover Beware

remain very still,” she said softly. “You’re trespassing on private property and we just don’t like that sort of thing around here.” As she spoke, she kept a wary eye on the man by the window. She raised her voice. “Damon, have you called the sheriff? You’ve got a couple of night visitors out here that may need a place to stay for a few days and I heard the jail was empty tonight.”
    “Is that you, Sarah?”
    “I was taking a little stroll and saw a high-powered rifle kind of lying around in the dirt.” She kicked the rifle out of the captured man’s hands. “It’s truly a thing of beauty; I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get a good look at it.” There was a hint of laughter in her voice, but the muzzle of her gun remained very firmly pressed against her captive’s neck. “You should stay right there, Damon. There’s two of them out here and they look a bit aggravated.” She leaned close to the man on the ground, but kept her eyes on his partner by the window. “You might want to check yourself the minute you’re in jail. You’re probably crawling with ticks. Nasty little bugs, they burrow in, drink your blood, and pass on all sorts of interesting things, from staph to Lyme disease. That bush you were hiding in is lousy with them.”
    Her heart was still pounding out a rhythm of warning. Then she knew. Sarah flung herself to her right, rolling away, even as she heard the whine of bullets zinging past her and thudding into the ground. Of course there had to be a third man, a driver waiting in the darkness up on the road. She had been unable to scout out the land properly. It made perfect sense they would have a driver, a backup should there be need.
    The man next to her scrambled up and dove on top of her, making a grab for her gun. Sarah managed to get one bent leg into his stomach to launch him over her head. She felt the sting of her earlobe as her earring, tangled in his shirt, was jerked from her ear. He swore viciously as he picked himself up and raced away from her toward the road. The one closest to the house was already in motion, staggering up the hill, still holding his jaw in his hands. The driver provided cover, pinning her down with a spray of bullets. The silencer indicated the men had no desire to announce their presence to the townspeople.
    “Sarah? You all right out there?” Damon called anxiously. Even with the silencer, he couldn’t fail to hear the telltale whine of bullets.
    “Yes.” She was disgusted with herself. She could hear the motor of the car roar to life, the wheels spinning in dirt for a moment before they caught and the vehicle raced away down the coastal highway. “I’m sorry, Damon, I let them get away.”
    “ You’re sorry! You could have been killed, Sarah. And no, I didn’t call the sheriff. I was hoping they were neighborhood kids looking to do a prank.”
    “And I took you for such a brilliant man, too,” she teased, sitting up and pulling twigs out of her hair. She touched her stinging ear, came away with blood on her fingers. It was her favorite earring, too.
    The drapes rustled and Damon poked his head out the window. “Are we going to call back and forth or are you going to come in here and talk with me.” There was more demand than question in his voice.
    Sarah laughed softly. “Do you think that’s such a good idea? Can you imagine what Inez would say if she knew I was visiting you in the middle of the night?” She reached for the rifle, taking care to pick it up using a handkerchief. “She’d ask you your intentions. You’d have to deny you had any. The word would spread that you’d ruined me and I’d be pitied. I couldn’t take that. It’s better if I just slink home quietly.”
    Damon leaned farther out the window. “Damn it, Sarah, I’m not amused. You could have been killed. Do you even understand that? These men were dangerous and you’re out taking a little stroll in the moonlight and playing neighborhood cop.” His voice was harsher than he intended, but she’d scared the hell out of him. He rubbed a hand over his face, feeling sick at the thought of her in danger.
    “I wasn’t in any danger, Damon,” Sarah assured him. “This rifle, in case you’re interested, has tranqs in it, not bullets. At least they weren’t trying to kill you, they wanted you alive.”
    He sighed. She was just sitting there on the ground with the sliver of moonlight spilling over her. The rifle was lying across her