Caught in a web of danger

A SEAL will risk everything

Sexy SEAL “Harm” Harmon Payne isn’t looking for love…or trouble. Until he encounters the prettiest creature on the savanna, Talia Montclair. The safari resort owner has been plagued by a series of threatening incidents. This kind of trouble Harm can handle. But when Talia mysteriously disappears, Harm’s SEAL instincts kick in. His new mission: find the only woman he has ever loved.

Mission: Six

ELLE JAMES, a New York Times bestselling author, started writing when her sister challenged her to write a romance novel. She has managed a full-time job and raised three wonderful children, and she and her husband even tried ranching exotic birds (ostriches, emus and rheas). Ask her, and she’ll tell you what it’s like to go toe-to-toe with an angry 350-pound bird! Elle loves to hear from fans at ellejames@earthlink.net or ellejames.com.

Also by Elle James

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Two Dauntless Hearts

Three Courageous Words

Four Relentless Days

Hot Combat

Hot Target

Hot Zone

Hot Velocity

Navy SEAL Survival

Navy SEAL Captive

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Four Relentless Days

Elle James

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-07926-6

FOUR RELENTLESS DAYS

© 2018 Mary Jernigan

Published in Great Britain 2018

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

To my editor, Denise Zaza—thank you for

your continued faith in me as an author

and for all your support and reassurance.

To my daughter Courtney Paige for helping

brainstorm plots. I love you so very much and

wish you great success in your own writing.

To my readers who keep coming back for more.

You’re the reason I do what I do. Thank you

for being so faithful and encouraging.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Extract

About the Publisher

Chapter One

First night back at the All Things Wild Safari and Resort in Kenya, Africa, and Harmon “Harm” Payne had trouble sleeping. Their commander had granted the team a bonus week of vacation. After a particularly difficult mission in South Sudan, cleaning up the damage done by a ruthless warlord bent on wreaking havoc with the locals and stealing their children for his army, the SEAL team deserved this time to unwind.

Though his week of rest and relaxation had begun, he couldn’t rest or relax and paced the sleek wooden floors of his cabin, hoping to get sleepy, but so far, nothing was working.

As a US Navy SEAL, he was used to snatching some shut-eye whenever he had fifteen minutes to spare. Why couldn’t he do it now?

He stood by the window, staring out into the darkness of night, studying the myriad of stars twinkling in the heavens. The setting was perfect, the mission had been a success, but he couldn’t calm his racing pulse. Harm felt on edge, as if he teetered on the precipice of something.

He lay on the bed, forced his eyes to close and counted bullets, hoping the monotony of the numbers would lull him to sleep. Around fifty, he must have slipped into a troubled sleep. The numbers became the beat of a drum; the sleek bullets became gyrating bodies, shiny with sweat and paint, dancing in the flames of a bonfire. The rhythm grew stronger, the dancing more erratic, and a voice called out words in a language he could not understand. A flowing red scarf drifted through the dancers and into the fire, becoming part of the dancing flames.

What did it mean? Why was he there?

A movement in the shadows surrounding the fire caught his attention. The face of a coyote, wolf or jackal appeared, its golden eyes reflecting the glow of the burning embers.

For a moment, Harm’s attention remained riveted on the jackal, his heart beating fast and furious, slamming against his ribs, as if eager to escape the jackal and the confines of his ribs.

Harm swayed with the drumbeat, his body drawn like a moth to the flames, his gaze captivated by the jackal’s eyes, mesmerized in the effect of the dancing flames. His feet moved as if of their own volition, taking him to within reach of the blaze. He would have fallen in had an owl not swooped low, screeching loudly at just that moment.

The sound jerked him back from the fire. The jackal disappeared and Harm sat up in the bed, his heart racing at the close call in the dream. He rubbed his eyes, swung his feet over the side and stood, letting the night air cool his sweating body.

Obviously, sleep wasn’t coming any time soon. At least, not the restful kind he sorely needed.

Closing his eyes now would only bring on a recurrence of the freaky nightmare. Harm pulled on a T-shirt, jeans and boots and left his cabin for the main house, hoping to find a sandwich or a beer. Maybe that would help settle his nerves and let him sleep...dream-free.

In the distance, he heard the scream of something that sounded like a big cat. The night sounds of the savanna were enough to make anyone a little nervous. He was glad he wasn’t sleeping in a tent, exposed to whatever wild animal sniffed him out as a potential meal.

His buddy Buck had been on a recon mission with his doctor lady for a couple days, sleeping in the open, exposed to the elements and wild creatures of South Sudan. They’d managed to survive, with the worst threat being from the warlord they were determined to find and nail.

Surely Harm would be okay walking by himself between the cabin and the main lodge without being stalked by a hungry beast.

Talia had mentioned walking in pairs to discourage the wildlife from singling them out, but he didn’t want to wake any of his teammates. They didn’t have problems with insomnia, apparently.

Harm followed the starlit path to the lodge and climbed the stairs to the front door. As he reached for the door handle, a high-pitched scream pierced the night air, followed by a long wailing cry.

His hand jerked backward and he spun toward the sound.

“It’s just a jackal,” a feminine voice said from the shadows on the wide veranda. “They like to yodel at night.”

Harm turned toward the sound.

Talia Ryan, the resort owner, rose from a porch swing and leaned against the railing, the starlight glinting off her blue-black hair. Beside her lay the resort mascot, Mr. Wiggins, the long, sleek leopard they’d met on their previous visit.

The animal lay stretched out across the decking, completely relaxed and asleep.

“You get used to the sound of the jackals after a while,” Talia said.

“Apparently Mr. Wiggins is unconcerned.”

Talia laughed. “He feels safe here.”

The jackals screamed again, making Harm start.

Talia looked out into the night. “And if it’s not the jackals, it’s the lions chuffing or the elephants trumpeting. There really isn’t such a thing as a quiet night on the savanna.” She turned toward him. “Are the natives keeping you awake?”

He chuckled, though the sound was strained, even to his own ears. Her comment hit far too close to home for comfort. He shrugged it off. “I wish I could blame it on the animal noises, but I just couldn’t sleep. What’s your excuse?”

She shrugged, the slight movement unaffected yet graceful. “Some nights I don’t sleep well. There just happen to be more of them lately.”

Harm admired the curvy silhouette of the beautiful woman, glad for something besides flames, dancing bodies and jackals swirling through his mind. “What would keep a pretty lady like you up at night?”

She stiffened, her gaze turned toward the night and the savanna where the jackal sang. “Nothing my guests need to worry about.”

Harm should have left the conversation there and entered the main lodge in search of that snack, but something kept him on the veranda with Talia.

He liked the woman who owned and managed the resort single-handedly in a country where native women were often treated worse than cattle. “I imagine you have a lot of responsibilities, running a resort by yourself. Is this something you’ve always wanted to do?”

She laughed. “It wasn’t my dream.”

“No? Then whose dream was it?”

She hesitated for a long moment before finally answering, “It was my husband’s.”

“Husband?” Harm hadn’t heard anything about a husband in connection with Talia during the several days they’d spent at the resort a couple weeks before.

“Michael was a freelance photographer. We spent so much of our time here in Africa, we decided to buy the resort and make it permanent.”

“Where is he now?” Harm asked.

“He was killed by a rhinoceros over a year ago.” Her voice was soft, quiet, almost a whisper. But the tone said it all.

The catch in her voice tugged at Harm’s heart. “You miss him still?”

She nodded. “For the first few months, I could barely breathe. I knew life on the savanna could be dangerous, but I never thought I’d lose Michael to the animals he fought so hard to save. He always seemed so good with them. And they were tolerant and accepting of him.”

“They don’t call them wild for nothing,” Harm pointed out.

She nodded. “Still, it was so sudden. One day he was here, the next he was gone. We’d been together since we were teenagers. I really had no idea how to go on without him.”

“You seem to be doing fine now.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t take reservations for over six months, and when I did, I only invited a few guests at a time. My heart wasn’t into it. Not without Michael.”

“You always seem so upbeat around us.”

“I never stopped missing him, but it’s easier to get through the days now than it was after it first happened. The guests keep me from getting sad.” She turned to him. “So thank you.”

The starlight shined down on her face, illuminating her bright eyes, making them sparkle despite the melancholy droop to her lips.

Harm had the sudden urge to pull the woman into his arms, to hold her and make the hurt go away. But she was still grieving for her husband. It wouldn’t be right for him to embrace her.

She dipped her chin. “I guess I miss him more at night, when I slow down from the day’s activities. The past week has been particularly difficult with everything happening at once.”

Harm couldn’t resist. He opened his arms. “I’m not your husband, but I have strong arms.”

She gave him a wobbly smile and stepped into his embrace. “Thanks.” Talia rested her hands on his chest and pressed her forehead to his breastbone. “I didn’t realize how much I missed having a hug.”

“My pleasure,” he said, his tone soft, gentle, as calming as he could make it. The moment she’d stepped into his arms, he realized his mistake. He’d gone a while without female companionship. Her body pressed to his made him hyperaware of that neglect.

She was the perfect height, the top of her head coming up to just beneath his chin. He rested his hands at the small of her back, amazed at how narrow her waist was in comparison to the swell of her luscious hips and breasts. His blood heated and his groin tightened automatically.

Yeah, holding this woman, who still grieved her husband, might not be his smartest move.

For a long moment, Talia stood in his arms. Eventually, she turned her head and laid her cheek against his heart.

He pressed her closer, fully cognizant of even her slightest move. Conscious of his own proximity and desires, he fought to hold himself back from making an idiot of himself.

“Why are you still here at the resort? Why didn’t you leave when your husband passed?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I loved Michael. Leaving here would have been like leaving him all over again. I thought about selling, but I just couldn’t. This was his dream. He saw beauty in every living creature. For the most part, so did I. But when one of his beautiful creatures killed him, I had a hard time seeing them as purely beautiful.”

Finally, he set her at arm’s length and brushed a strand of her dark hair off her cheek, tucking it behind her ear. “Are you okay for now?”

She nodded and then looked up into his eyes. “You’re kind. Thank you.”

“For what? I should be thanking you. It’s been a long time since I’ve held a beautiful woman in my arms.” He clasped his hands together to keep from pulling her back against him.

“Look at us. All this talk about me and my lost love...what about you?” Talia asked.

Harm stiffened. “What about me?”

“You say you haven’t held a woman in your arms for a long time.” Talia pinned him with her wide-eyed stare. “Why not?”

His jaw tightened. “I have a job to do. Women aren’t part of it.”

“But you have to have someone to come home to.”

“Why?” He waved his hand. “Don’t answer that. My job precludes relationships. Besides, unlike you, I don’t believe in true love. It doesn’t exist.”

“Oh, but it does.” She touched his shoulder. “It’s that feeling that you can’t live without that person, that your life is better for having him in it.”

“And when he leaves, sends you a Dear John letter, just walks out of your life or dies?”

She smiled. “You thank God you had him for the time you did.”

“But you said you couldn’t live without him. Yet, here you are.” He raked her with his gaze. “You appear to be very much alive to me.”

She chuckled. “I am. And I had to learn how to live without him, but I wouldn’t trade my time with Michael for anything.”

“If you believe in love, are you going to fall in love again? Knowing what could happen?”

“I don’t know if love can happen for me again, but if it does, I’m not going to pass it up because I’m afraid of losing him. I’d be stupid to walk away when there is so much happiness to be gained.”

“And so much sorrow...” he reminded her.

Talia nodded. “True, but feeling so deeply is a sign that we’re very much alive. If I push past the sorrow, I remember the happiness and it’s all worth it.” She laughed. “I’m sorry. You’re a guest. I shouldn’t be bringing you down with my troubles.”

“You didn’t. I’m just curious. If you’re finally getting over the sorrow, what’s keeping you up at night? When we were here a couple weeks ago, other than the poachers, I didn’t get the feeling you were unhappy.”

“I wasn’t.” She stared out at the night again. “Everything seemed to be getting back on track. And then...strange things started happening.”

He studied her silhouette, noting the frown pulling her brow lower. Normally Harm avoided deep conversations, preferring to remain uninvolved. But Talia had been through so much, and she seemed like a genuinely nice lady. He wanted to get to the bottom of her troubles. “Strange? Like strangers showing up? Or hinky strange?”

She laughed. “Hinky?” Her smile soon faded. “Actually, hinky kind of describes it.”

“Really?”

“Yes.” She stepped away from him and wrapped her arms around her middle. “As the locals would say, the resort has some bad juju going on.”

Harm crossed to the swing and sat. He patted the space beside him. “Tell me about this bad juju.” If it was anything like what he’d been dreaming a few minutes ago, he could understand her concern.

She hesitated before joining him. As she settled, her movement set the swing in motion, gently swaying in the dark.

Again, Harm might have been better off going into the kitchen alone.

Talia’s warm thigh rested against his, and with every sway of the swing, he caught a whiff of her perfume.

“Yesterday, we found native paintings on the doors of the cabins.”

“Graffiti?” Harm asked.

“In a way. Only the content was threatening.”

“How so?”

“They’d painted an owl swooping down over several people.” She snorted. “Stick figures, nothing too dramatic, but enough to scare away the guests who’d been staying in the cabins.”

“Why?”

“I had hired new guards to protect the perimeter. They swear they saw no one sneak past them into the compound. They got to the guests before I did and spooked them by telling them about what omen the images foretold.”

“And what does an owl mean in the local folklore?”

She stopped the swing with a foot on the board of the veranda and stood. “It doesn’t matter.”

Harm stood and rested an arm over her shoulder, cupping her arm with his hand. “You can’t scare me. I’m a crusty old SEAL. I don’t believe in bad juju. But I do believe in bad people who like to frighten women and children.”

She squared her shoulders, shrugging off his grip. “I’m not easily frightened, either, but when it scares my guests, it threatens me and my livelihood.” She lifted her chin and faced Harm. “Around here, if an owl flies close to you or a loved one, it means someone is going to die.”

“You don’t believe that hooey, do you?”

“Normally I don’t.” She looked back over her shoulder toward him. “I believe people painted the signs over the doors. But it’s hard to discount the omens when they happen.”

“What do you mean?”

“The night before my husband died, an owl swooped over my head.” She sighed. “I shrugged it off as coincidence...until they brought Michael back to the lodge the next day. Then I went through everything I could have done to keep him from dying that day.”

“But you couldn’t undo what was done,” Harm said softly.

“No.”

“And you think it’s happening again?”

“I haven’t seen an owl this time around, but someone is planting those superstitions in the heads of my staff and my guests. I can’t run this place by myself. If the juju threats continue, I won’t have staff to take care of the guests and the guests will leave, like the ones who left the day your team arrived. I’ll be out of business.” Talia’s voice lowered to a whisper. “My husband’s dream will be lost.”

Once again, Harm fought the urge to pull Talia into his arms. She had been so very upbeat and friendly from the day she’d first welcomed the SEALs to her resort.

Harm was a fixer. He liked to make things right. But he wasn’t sure he could fix Talia’s problems. He didn’t have any experience with black magic and bad juju.

Chapter Two

Talia hadn’t wanted to bring her new guest into the superstitious world of the locals. Granted, the SEALs seemed of stronger constitutions than her rich guests who’d left the day before, hurrying away because of a painting on their doors.

She stared up at the tall, broad-shouldered SEAL and wanted to laugh.

Harm would not be as easily frightened. Hell, he’d frighten those trespassers who’d dared to draw the omens on the doors. Perhaps having the SEALS there would keep the saboteurs from spreading their portents of bad juju on her property.

“Enough about my troubles.” She pasted a smile on her lips. “Is there anything I can get you?”

“No. Like you told us from the beginning, we can make do for ourselves. I was heading for the kitchen, hoping to snag a sandwich.”

“Do you mind if I join you?” she asked, not ready to be alone after everything that had happened. She’d found temporary comfort in this man’s arms, something she hadn’t counted on, especially after the loss of her husband. A tug of guilt pulled at her heart. At the same time, she felt a spark of something else. She refused to put a name to it. Not yet.

“I’d be honored.” Harm offered her his elbow.

She slipped her hand into the crook of his arm and stepped through the door with him.

They had just crossed the threshold when a shot rang out. One of the cabin doors slammed open and Big Jake burst out running backward, wearing only his boxer shorts, cursing. He held his M4A1 rifle in his hand, pointed back into the cabin.

Pitbull, Diesel, Buck and T-Mac all ran out of their cabins in varying stages of undress, carrying their weapons.

“I heard a shot fired.” T-Mac hurried toward Big Jake, wearing just his jeans, no shirt or shoes.

“Me too.” Diesel joined him on the path, in shorts and nothing else.

“What’s going on?” Pitbull asked, tugging a T-shirt over his head, his jeans pulled up but not buttoned.

Marly emerged seconds later, zipping up her flight suit. “Who’s shooting?”

Harm leaped off the veranda and ran toward Big Jake. “What happened?”

Big Jake shook his head. “I’ve never seen one that big. It was curled up at the foot of my bed.”

“What was curled up at the foot of your bed?” Harm asked as he arrived at Big Jake’s side.

His teammate shook his head and pointed his rifle toward the door. “I was having this strange dream. Drums, painted dancers, incense... I was falling into a fire when I woke up, sat up and stared at a cobra coiled at the foot of my bed, his head up, hood spread and ready to launch himself at me. I did the only thing a good SEAL could do.”

“You blew it away, right?” T-Mac shuddered.

“Damn right I blew it away.” He shot a glance toward Talia. “I’m sorry if I also put a hole in the wall.”

“Holy hell, I hate snakes,” T-Mac said. “That would be one of my worst nightmares—forget the fire and dancers. Snakes are the devil.”

Talia pushed past him, headed into the cabin, then paused at the door. “You did hit it, didn’t you?”

“I’m pretty sure I did.” Big Jake shoved a hand through his hair. “It was all pretty much a blur.”

Harm caught her arm. “Let me go in first.”

“Here.” T-Mac handed him the pistol he’d brought from his cabin. “You’ll need this.”

Harm grinned. “Are you sure you don’t want to make sure the snake is dead?”

T-Mac crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “No. I trust you to make it right.”

“I can take care of this,” Talia said. “We have the occasional snake enter the compound. Although not lately. The villagers see cobras on occasion. They like rats and chickens.”

“And the occasional baby?” Marly asked, a shiver shaking her body.

Talia grimaced. “They don’t usually eat the babies. But some children have been bitten on occasion.”

“Nice,” T-Mac said. “Nightmare, I’m telling you.” He turned to Diesel. “Why did we decide a safari in Kenya was a good idea?”

“You wanted to come as much as the rest of us,” Diesel reminded him. “At least you weren’t stuck in the jungle along the Congo for several nights, sleeping in snake-infested trees.”

“Enough talk about snakes.” T-Mac raised a hand. “Who’s for heading back to Djibouti and the friendly scorpions they have?”

“We’re not going back to Djibouti,” Harm said. “One snake is not a den of snakes.”

“How do you know?” T-Mac asked.

“Shut up, T-Mac.” Harm unlocked the safety on the handgun and stepped past Talia and through the door, switching on the light. “I’ll let you know if there are more when I come out.”

“If you come out alive,” T-Mac muttered behind him.

Cobra bites were deadly if left untreated. But there was treatment, Harm coached himself. Although he wasn’t horribly afraid of snakes like T-Mac, he had a healthy respect for them and the damage they could create with a single bite.

He edged his way into the sitting room, past an overturned end table and a twisted rug. Big Jake had been in a hurry to get out of the cabin. He couldn’t blame the man. He probably would have reacted the same way if he’d awakened to a snake in his bed, much less a deadly cobra.

He searched every nook and cranny in the sitting room before entering the bedroom. As soon as he did, he noticed the long, sleek body of a serpent draped across the bed, its tail hanging over the side. A dark spatter of blood spread across the white comforter and the mosquito netting draped from the ceiling. He rounded the foot of the bed to the other side to check the other end of the snake before he could let go of the breath he’d been holding.

“Dead?” Talia asked from the door.

Harm jumped. “You were supposed to wait outside.”

“You were taking a long time,” she responded. “I got worried.”

“I was making certain there wasn’t another snake in the building. They can hide in the strangest places.”

“You would know this because?” She arched her brows and crossed her arms over her chest.

“I grew up in a small town in Texas. We had our share of rat snakes, rattlers and copperheads. We’d find them in garages, barns and sheds. Sometimes they would make their way into the houses through an open door or window and curl up in the base of a flowerpot or shoebox.”

“Nice.” Talia studied the snake lying across the bed. “Looks like a spitting cobra. Big Jake’s lucky the snake didn’t spit in his eye—its spit can blind a person.”

“Don’t tell T-Mac. He’ll have one more reason to be afraid of snakes, as if being bitten isn’t enough.”

Talia chuckled. “It’s hard to imagine any of you SEALS afraid of anything.”

“As a kid, T-Mac was traumatized by a snake. I think his mother made him hold one once. He’s been terrified ever since.”

“But you must have been in places with snakes before.”

Harm continued his search of the room, dropping to his knees to check under the bed. He was careful, now that he was aware that cobras could spit. “Being a SEAL challenges every one of your fears, but thankfully, they don’t stick you in a pit filled with snakes. I don’t think the cadre liked snakes any more than anyone else, or they would have used them, too.”

The space beneath the bed was free of snakes and surprisingly clean of dust.

“Do you keep all the cabins this clean?” Harm asked.

Talia laughed. “I’m worried about snakes and you’re looking at how clean this place is?”

“I’ve been in hotels that don’t clean as well as this. I don’t see a single dust bunny, even in the corners.”

“My staff keeps the entire compound clean. We pride ourselves in making it a beautiful place to stay for all visitors, not including deadly cobras.” Talia opened the closet and checked inside.

Harm slipped up beside her, ready to shoot anything that moved. “Well, they’ll have their work cut out for them, cleaning up snake parts.”

“I’ll probably handle it myself. I’ve had a hard enough time convincing them to stay after the paintings on the cabin doors. I had to scrub them off myself.”

Harm could picture her cleaning the paint off the doors. “We’ll help you get this place cleaned up.”

“No way.” She shook her head. “You are guests of mine. I won’t have you doing the dirty work.”

“We’re kind of used to dirty work. It’s what we do.” He nodded toward the pillows. “If you don’t mind sacrificing a pillowcase to the cause, I’ll start by removing the offender from the premises.”

“By all means.” She shook a pillow out of its case and held it out for Harm.

He lifted the snake off the bed, dropped it into the case and then took it from her.

“Be careful you don’t let the fangs touch you,” she said. “They still contain poison.”

Holding the bag away from his body, Harm checked all the closets, drawers and corners and then straightened. “I can take care of the cobra, just tell me where you want me to put him.”

Talia shook her head and held out her hand. “I’ll take him and put him in the freezer.”

He kept his hold on the bag. “Please tell me you aren’t cooking up cobra for dinner.”

She laughed. “No, but I know they need antivenin. They might be able to milk a dead snake for its venom, which they use to make antivenin.”

“You’re a woman after my own heart.” Harm followed her out of the cabin, careful not to touch her with the snake in the pillowcase. “Beautiful and practical.” If he was in the market for a wife, she’d be an amazing catch. But then, he wasn’t in the market for a relationship. Especially with a woman who had so completely believed in love.

Harm believed in lust, the natural, chemical reaction between a man and a woman. But love?

No. Absolutely not.

Oh, sure. Once upon a time he thought he had, but one Dear John letter cured him of that fallacy very quickly.

But that didn’t keep him from wanting women. A man had urges, after all.

* * *

“IF YOU’LL FOLLOW ME...” Talia turned toward the lodge and then back to Big Jake. “And I have a room in the lodge for you, Big Jake.”

He nodded. “Good thing, because I wasn’t gonna sleep in there. No, ma’am.”

She laughed. “I can’t blame you. But no worries. We have a snake-free room upstairs with a comfortable bed.”

“The cabin is clear, if you want to grab your gear,” Harm said.

“Yeah.” Big Jake frowned. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure. I even looked in your gear bag. No more snakes.” He held up the bag. “And you killed the one on your bed. He’s not going to bother you again.”

“Damn straight.” Big Jake sucked in a breath and eyed the cabin, as if the structure might assume a life of its own.

“Come on,” Diesel said. “I’ll go with you.”

“I can do it myself,” Big Jake grumbled. “I just need a minute.”

Talia fought back a grin. Seeing a huge SEAL like Big Jake hesitant to enter a building was so unlike the man. She could imagine him charging in like a bull at a bullfight.

Diesel draped an arm over the shaken man’s shoulder. “Take all the time you need, dude. It’s not every day you wake up to a cobra in your bed.”

Big Jake grimaced. “And I hope it never happens again.”

“We’ve got your back,” T-Mac reassured him.

“Good,” Big Jake said. “Then why don’t you go in and get my gear?”

T-Mac backed away, shaking his head. “I said I’ve got your back, not your bag.”

“If it makes you feel better,” Talia said, “I’ve been in the rooms and didn’t see any more snakes.”

“I’m going. I’m going.” Big Jake sucked in a deep breath and followed Diesel into the cabin.

“Let’s get that snake on ice,” Talia said.

Harm followed her into the lodge and through to the kitchen. She flipped on light switches along the way. Once in the massive, updated kitchen, Talia opened the door to the walk-in freezer and held it wide for Harm to carry the bag with the snake inside.

A cool blast of air chilled her hands and cheeks as she waited for Harm to step inside.

“Where do you want me to put him?” Harm asked.

“Let me get a box.” Talia hurried to the pantry, found an empty box and returned to the walk-in freezer. “The far side has empty shelves. I’d like to keep him separated from the food we serve the guests.”

Harm chuckled. “We’d like that, too. I wouldn’t want your chef to confuse chicken and cobra.”

“I’ll warn them not to touch the bag in the box. I don’t want the staff hurt by brushing up against the snake’s fangs.” Her lips twisted into a frown. “Maybe I shouldn’t put the snake in this freezer.”

“If there is a shortage of antivenin, saving this snake could help. You’re doing the right thing,” Harm assured her as he set the bag in the box and the box on a shelf in the farthest corner of the freezer.

When they emerged from the freezer, the kitchen was filled with the rest of Harm’s team, plus Dr. Angela Vega and Marly.

Buck clapped his hands together. “Since we’re all awake, we thought we’d come raid the refrigerator.”

Talia smiled. “I can whip up a casserole in about forty minutes, or I had the chef prepare a ham earlier to make sandwiches for the safari tomorrow. I believe there’s enough meat for snacks tonight and sandwiches tomorrow. It’s up to you.”

“Ham sandwiches sound great,” Diesel said. “But we can help ourselves. You don’t have to stay up on our account.”

Talia smiled. “I wasn’t asleep, and a sandwich sounds good to me, too.” She pulled the container filled with ham slices out of the commercial refrigerator and set it on the counter. Then she laid out freshly baked bread, garden-grown lettuce and tomatoes, plates, utensils and condiments.

“We can take it from here,” Buck said. “Thank you.”

“While you are preparing sandwiches, I’ll check the room upstairs for you, Big Jake.” She turned to leave the kitchen, crossed the wide-open living area and mounted the stairs to the second floor.

Footsteps behind her made her turn back.

Harm climbed the steps a few feet behind her.

Talia stopped midway up the staircase. “Are you following me?”

He nodded. “With all the crazy things happening, I thought I’d check the room for uninvited guests.”

“I can do that myself,” she insisted. “I’ve lived here long enough to know what to look for.”

“Would you have looked for a cobra in your bed?” he asked.

Talia shivered and pressed her lips into a tight line. “Probably not. We’ve never had that happen here at All Things Wild.”

“Then humor me. Let me look first.”

“You’re not going to be around forever. I need to do these things on my own.”

“I get that, but it would make me feel better to help, since I’m here already.” He winked and waved her ahead. “Ladies first. At least to the bedroom door.”

She led the way to the guest room she had in mind for Big Jake. “Maybe I should have all of you move into the lodge if things are getting...how did you say?”

“Hinky. If you have another room in the lodge, I’d like to snag it as well.”

Talia paused in reaching for the door handle of a room. “Are you afraid of snakes, like T-Mac?”

Harm shook his head. “No, but I don’t like that these things are happening to the resort. Someone is playing games with you. They might make it more personal.”

In the back of her mind, Talia had thought the same thing, but she hadn’t let the possibility take root until Harm voiced it. “You think someone is targeting my resort and me?”

Harm took her hand in his. “I don’t know, but while we’re here, let us help. Let me help.”

“But you’re my guests.”

“In case you hadn’t noticed, we’re not your normal uppity clientele. We’ve slept in deserts, jungles and swamps. We’ve been shot at, had explosives go off nearby and nearly been killed so many times, you start to think you’re invincible, or just that your number is not quite up yet.”

“Yet,” she whispered. “You never know when that might happen.”

“Exactly. We could step on an improvised explosive device or be hit by a bus. We don’t borrow trouble. We wait for it to come to us. But that doesn’t mean we don’t take precautions.”

“Like?”

“We brought our own weapons. We’re prepared to take on anything and anyone.”

Talia smiled. “I’m kind of glad my guests left room for you and your team to stay.” She nodded. “Thank you for offering to help. While you’re here, I accept.” She held out her hand. He engulfed it in his own, sending sparks of electricity throughout her body.

As quickly as she took his hand, she pulled hers free, heat suffusing her cheeks. “I’ll just be a minute checking on this room and the one down the hall. Do you think T-Mac would like to stay in the lodge as well? Seeing as he’s so afraid of snakes? I don’t want him to be uncomfortable in one of the cabins. I can’t imagine how that cobra got into Big Jake’s room. These things never happened while Michael was alive.”

Harm touched a finger to her lips. “I’ll ask. In the meantime, let me check the rooms first.”

Talia’s lips tingled where his finger touched them. She fought to keep from puckering and leaving a kiss on that finger.

What was she thinking? It wasn’t as if he’d want her to kiss him. He wasn’t there to get involved, especially with a grieving widow. Harm was there to relax and enjoy his vacation.

Yet Talia couldn’t deny those female parts that had been dormant since her husband’s death had come alive when Harm had touched her. How, after only a year, could she be interested in another man? Knowing what it was like to lose the love of her life, she wasn’t ready, nor was she certain she could handle the potential heartache again.

She’d been blessed with true love with a kind, gentle man who saw the beauty of the earth and shared it through his photography. Talia wasn’t at all sure she could love anyone else. And Harm was completely different. He had harder edges and deeper scars. He wasn’t anything like Michael.

But those hard edges called to her, making her want to smooth them. When he touched her with his callused hands, she could imagine those hands skimming over her naked skin, bringing her body back to life when she thought it wasn’t possible.

Talia stepped back. “Thank you,” she said. Not sure whether she was thanking him for checking the room or for reminding her that she was still alive, a woman who had a body that required more than just food and sleep.

Harm faced her. “You’ll wait here?”

She nodded.

As soon as he turned his back and entered the room, she pressed her palms to her heated cheeks.

Get a grip, woman, she chastised herself. He’s off-limits. You’re not ready.

You loved Michael.

Her last thought brought her back to earth with a thud. She’d loved her husband. Past tense. Michael was gone. But he wasn’t forgotten.

Harm was back far too soon. “All clear.”

“Good.” Talia forced a smile and stepped through the doorway, past Harm and into the bedroom. After a cursory glance to make certain everything was clean and in order, she joined Harm in the hallway and led him to the room he’d sleep in. If it was the one closest to hers, she couldn’t let that bother her. It wasn’t as though she’d picked it intentionally. The room just happened to be available, with clean sheets and a fully equipped bathroom.

So why didn’t you put Big Jake in it?

Talia shrugged off the nagging thought and waited until Harm emerged with the all-clear announcement.

“This will be your room, if you don’t want to stay in the cabin.”

“I’ll grab my gear and move in tonight.” He looked around the hallway. “Where do you stay?”

Talia hesitated.

“It’s okay,” he said with a slight smile. “I’m not going to put the moves on you. I just want to know which way to run if I hear a scream in the night.”

“I’m not worried about that,” she said. “I sleep with a pistol under my pillow.”

Harm’s eyebrows rose. “And I bet you know how to use it.”

She nodded. “With deadly accuracy. My husband taught me how. I practice enough to be good at it. A lone female in the African bush is a natural target. Even when my husband was alive, I was alone quite often when he took groups on camera safaris.”

“I’m glad to hear it. I really am surprised that you haven’t moved back to the States by now.”

She glanced away. “I don’t have anyone back in the States. My parents died in a car crash shortly after I married Michael. It was part of the reason I didn’t mind moving to far-flung places. I didn’t have a home to fall back on. The world was our playground. I followed him around for the first few years of our marriage. Then we bought this place and built it up to what it is today. I couldn’t just walk away when he died.”

“I get it. I don’t have family back in the States. Just my brothers.”

“You don’t have family, but you have brothers?” Talia frowned. “I don’t understand.”

Harm’s chest swelled with the pride of belonging. “My teammates are my brothers. I’d do anything for them.”

“And they’d do anything for you,” Talia added.

“I know families with real brothers who aren’t as close,” Harm said. “I didn’t understand the brotherhood until I became a SEAL. When the going gets tough, I know they have my back, and I have theirs.”

In that moment, Talia envied Harm. When Michael was alive, she could rely on him to be there for her. But he’d died, leaving her without a support system. Yes, she had the staff of the resort, but they had their families, and lately, they were skittish and scared of coming to work.

“I’ll tell you what,” Harm said. “While I’m here, I’ll have your back. You need something, I’m your man.”

“Thanks,” Talia said. “Again, I don’t want to rely on anyone. You and your team are only here for a week. Then you’ll be gone. Besides, I’ve dealt with rumblings before.”

“What do you mean?”

“A while back, the local witch doctor stirred up my staff and the community. Ever since Michael died, Raila Gakuru has been campaigning against the All Things Wild resort, spreading rumors and innuendos. He started out whispering that the area would have very bad luck—bad juju—as long as the resort was run by a woman.”

Harm’s jaw tightened. “Nice guy.”

“For the past year, when bad things happened, Gakuru attributed it to me. I ignored the claims, hoping the rumors would die down. And, for the most part, they had. Until a few weeks ago, when the poachers showed up stealing baby animals for sale to foreign markets.” She smiled. “Thankfully, you and your team were here to thwart their efforts.”

“Seems we didn’t stop all of it.”

Talia crossed the hallway to a linen closet, extracted two bath towels and turned. “My gut tells me this is totally different from the poachers who were stealing animals. I think someone is trying to scare me off.”

“The witch doctor?”

“Maybe.”

“I could have a talk with him, if you like.”

She shook her head. “No. That only gives him more credibility. Ignoring him worked the first time. I’m leaning toward repeating that tactic, since it worked before.”

Harm shrugged. “Seems like it didn’t work well enough, if he’s back at it.”

Talia entered the bedroom and laid the towels on the end of the bed, then straightened. “Either way, it’s not your problem. It’s mine and I’ll handle it. You’re a guest.” She gave him a lopsided smile and moved past him, back out into the hallway. “Enjoy your stay.”

Harm threw a snappy salute. “Yes, ma’am.”

She grinned. “That’s more like it. Now, let me get back down to my kitchen and see if any of your friends want to move to the lodge.” She headed toward the stairs only to be brought up short by a hand on her arm.

“If someone is trying to scare you away, you could be in danger.”

“I have my gun,” she reminded him, her arm tingling where he held it.

“Are you a good enough shot to kill a cobra in your bed?”

She nodded. “I’m that good.” At least she hoped she was. But she wouldn’t let him know she wasn’t quite so sure.

Harm held her gaze for a long moment, his hand tight on her arm. “What if whoever is playing these games gets more personal?”

Talia lifted her chin, her entire body tingling now. Why couldn’t he let go of her and sever the electric current racing along her nerve endings? “What do you mean, more personal?” she asked, her voice breathy. She cleared her throat and continued. “I’d say attacking my clients is already pretty personal.”

“What if someone corners you?” He backed her against the wall. “Are you prepared to fight for your life? Do you know how to defend yourself?”

Her body hummed with the electricity burning through her nerves and veins. “I think I can,” she whispered, her gaze shifting to Harm’s lips. Holy hell, she had the sudden urge to kiss them. What was wrong with her?

Harm shook his head. “There is a difference between thinking and knowing.” He bent close. “I can show you some moves.”

She ran her tongue over her suddenly dry lips. “I’m sure you can...” Sweet heaven, she was sure he had some sexy moves. And now wasn’t the time to demonstrate. Not when she was steps away from the room she’d shared with her dead husband.

“I... I have to go now.” Talia pushed her arms between them and raised them sharply, knocking his hands from where they gripped her shoulders. Then she ducked beneath them and made a dash for the stairs.

A warm chuckle followed her down the staircase, making her insides hot and feeling like liquid. She’d do well to stay away from the handsome SEAL. Harm could rock her world. And she wasn’t ready for her world to be rocked. Though Talia suspected he was halfway there, and it scared the bejesus out of her.

Chapter Three

While Talia was in the kitchen helping his teammates feed their late-night hunger, Harm stepped out of the lodge and hurried to the cabin he’d been assigned, wishing he had a flashlight to shine at the ground. Though he didn’t have a deadly fear of snakes, the cobra in Big Jake’s bed would shake him as much as it had shaken his friend.

Once he reached the cabin, he flipped on the light switch and made a careful study of the interior, just in case another cobra had found its way in while Harm had been away.

The question burning in his mind was how did a cobra get inside Big Jake’s cabin? And why would it end up on the bed?

After a thorough search of his own cabin, Harm studied the bed. The comforter had been neatly fitted over the entire bed with a colorful throw draped at the foot. Someone could have stashed the snake in the throw. Until Big Jake slid beneath the comforter, the snake might not have felt the need to move.

Using a hanger, Harm lifted the throw off the end of the bed. Nothing lay beneath. He shook the fabric. Nothing fell from the folds. Harm released the breath he’d been holding and set his gear bag on the bed. He unearthed the flashlight he kept in an outside pocket of the bag and unzipped the main opening.

A few minutes later, he’d ascertained his bag was free of snakes, bugs or anything else that might keep him up at night. After he zipped the bag, he hefted it onto one shoulder and left the cabin, closing the door behind him.

The screaming howl of jackals filled the night. Harm didn’t consider himself very superstitious, but Africa and the savanna lent itself to being creepy.

He hurried back to the lodge and up the stairs to ditch his bag before joining the rest of the gang in the kitchen.

His five teammates were seated at a large wood and steel kitchen table, digging into ham sandwiches and drinking beer.

“Would you care for a sandwich?” Talia asked.

T-Mac held up what was left of his. “You gotta try the ham. I don’t know what the chef put on it, but it’s damned good.” T-Mac glanced at Talia. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to curse.”

She smiled. “No worries. I’ve heard worse. I think I’ve even said worse.”

Harm’s heart contracted at Talia’s sweet smile. Curse words from her mouth wouldn’t detract one bit from her beauty. Not wanting to leave the kitchen yet, he tipped his head toward the container of ham slices. “I’d like a sandwich, but I can make it myself.”

“No need. Sit with your friends,” she ordered. “It won’t take me a minute.”

“At least let me help.” Harm washed his hands in the sink and returned to pull lettuce off a head on the counter.

Talia laid bread on the counter. “Mustard or mayo?”

“Both,” Harm replied.

She spread mustard on one piece of bread and layered ham slices over it.

Harm laid the lettuce on the ham, while Talia slathered mayonnaise onto the other slice of bread. She laid it on top of the pile of ham and held it from falling off to the side. “Could you hand me the knife?”

Harm reached around her, his chest brushing against her back.

Talia stiffened, her hand freezing on the sandwich.

“I’ll cut that,” he said.

She held the sandwich with one hand.

Harm’s arm curved around her, and he held the knife over the bread. About that time, he caught a whiff of her perfume and couldn’t think past wanting to get closer to identify the scent.

“Are you going to cut it?” she whispered.

Entirely too aware of his hostess, Harm pressed the handle of the knife into her palm. “Maybe it would be best if you did the honors.”

She nodded. “Right.” Her hand shook as she sliced through the bread, ham and lettuce. With quick efficiency, she laid the two sides of the sandwich on a plate and poured potato chips beside it. “Here you go.” Talia shoved the plate toward Harm. “You can help yourself to the drinks in the refrigerator. If you prefer tea or coffee, I’ll make some for you.”

“Thank you. I’ll have a beer, but I can get it myself.” He took the plate from her hands, his fingers brushing against hers, sending an electrical current up his arm and all the way down to his groin.

Talia snatched her hands away and tucked them into the back pockets of her jeans. By the way she was acting, she might have had a similar reaction to his touch.

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he carried the plate to the table. He liked that he unnerved her as much as she did him.

Diesel reached out as if to snag Harm’s sandwich.

“Touch it and I’ll break your fingers,” Harm warned. That sandwich meant more than something to fill his belly. Talia had helped make it. For him.

The other SEAL held up his hands in surrender. “Just kidding with you. I kind of like my fingers the way they are. Need them to shoot.”

“You know better, Diesel. No one comes between a SEAL and his sandwich,” Pitbull said. As if to prove his point, he stuffed the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth and grinned like a chipmunk with his cheeks full of nuts.

Big Jake stood, carried his plate to the sink and stopped at the refrigerator on the way back. He snagged two longneck bottles of beer and handed one to Harm. “Didn’t think you’d want to leave your food unattended with these vultures around.”

“You got that right.” Harm shot a narrow-eyed glare at the others sitting at the table and then gave a chin lift to Big Jake. “Thanks, man.”

“You’re welcome.” He patted his flat stomach and stretched. “I think I’ll be hitting the rack.”

“I’ll show you the room,” Talia offered.

Big Jake grabbed his duffel bag and followed Talia out of the kitchen.

Harm couldn’t focus on his food until Talia had left the room. His pulse hadn’t slowed since he’d touched her hand.

“I’m going to marry that woman,” T-Mac said.

Harm’s gaze shot to his teammate, and he nearly crushed his sandwich in his fist. “Why do you say that?”

T-Mac laughed. “Seriously?” He tipped his head toward the door Talia had disappeared through. “She makes a mean ham sandwich, she’s beautiful, and most of all, she’s not afraid of snakes.”

Dr. Vega set her bottle of water on the table, a frown wrinkling her pretty brow. “And you think those are enough reasons to marry someone?”

“It’s enough in my book,” T-Mac said.

“You barely know the woman,” Pitbull said.

“And how long have you known Marly?” T-Mac raised his eyebrows and smiled at Marly. “No offense, Marly.”

She shook her head, her sandy blond hair swinging around her chin. “None taken.”

Pitbull lifted Marly’s hand. “We’re different. There was a connection between us from the start.”

Marly lifted his knuckles to her lips and pressed a kiss to them. “Well, not from the start, but shortly after. I was more interested in making him sweat in the copilot’s seat of my airplane.”

“And I did,” Pitbull said.

“Yes, but you held strong.” Marly smiled into his eyes. “Even when you were scared out of your mind.”

Pitbull frowned. “I wasn’t scared out of my mind.”

“Uh-huh.” Marly pressed his hand to her cheek. “Even when we landed in the middle of a herd of zebras?”

“Crash-landed,” he corrected.

“I prefer to call it a controlled emergency landing.” Marly lifted her chin. “I was in control the entire time.”

“Yes, you were,” Pitbull said and leaned across to kiss her lips.

Harm watched their public display of affection and found himself wishing he had that kind of relationship with a woman. His thoughts immediately went to Talia and quickly switched back to T-Mac.

He’d be damned if his teammate stole Talia’s heart out from under him. Not that he held her heart. She’d loved her husband.

The tension ebbed from Harm’s body. T-Mac didn’t have a chance with Talia. For that matter, neither did Harm. It would take a very special man to win her heart after the love she’d shared with her husband. Harm wasn’t sure he, T-Mac or anyone else on his team was that special. He loved them like brothers, but none of them were as creative or sensitive to the plight of the animals on the savanna. Yeah, they cared about their existence, but not to the point where they’d choose to give up their lives in the States to run a resort in Kenya.

Talia deserved someone strong, yet sensitive and creative, who would love her so very much he’d be willing to risk it all to keep her safe.

Harm bit into his sandwich, thinking about Talia’s husband, Michael. Any man who would bring his woman out to the wilds of Africa without a backup plan had to be too focused on his own dreams and desires to think about the needs of the woman he promised to love, honor and cherish. Somewhere in those marriage vows should have been another promise...to protect. By dying, Michael had left his wife exposed to all the dangers inherent to life in Africa. He should have had a plan in place for her should he be injured or killed.

The man obviously didn’t love her enough, or he would have left instructions on what to do in the event of his death.

Talia was a lone woman in a country where she didn’t have family or a support system. And from the sound of it, the local witch doctor was using her femininity against her and turning the community against her as well.

“T-Mac, you need to focus on women within your reach,” Pitbull said. “Talia lives in Africa. What kind of relationship could you have if she’s half a world away from you ninety-nine percent of the time?”

T-Mac shrugged. “Love will find a way. I mean, look at you and Marly. All she had to do was blow up her airplane and voilà!” He waved his arm to the side. “She’s moving to the States.”

“Let me get this straight,” Harm said. “Are you planning on blowing up the resort? Because if that’s your plan, you’ll have to go through me to do it.”

“Well, no, but my point is, things have a way of working out.” T-Mac frowned. “You don’t have to take me literally.” He stared across the table at Harm, his eyes narrowing. “Wait. What does this mean? Do you have feelings for our pretty hostess?” His eyes widened and a smile spread across his face.

Harm’s brow dipped. “I didn’t say that. I’m just saying she’s got enough problems without worrying about one of her guests destroying her livelihood.”

T-Mac’s grin broadened. “You like her.” He glanced around at the faces of the other four men in the kitchen. “The most confirmed bachelor of all of us has a thing for Talia.” He whooped. “Hot damn. This ought to be fun to watch. The harder they are, the bigger the fall.”

“I thought it was the bigger they are...” Marly commented. “And what do you mean, Harm’s the most confirmed bachelor? I thought you were all pretty happy being single.”

“I thought we were, too,” Pitbull said. “Then Diesel met Reese, I fell for you, and Buck reunited with Dr. Vega. Apparently, even the most confirmed bachelors are susceptible to falling in love.”

Harm shook his head. “Not me.”

T-Mac laughed. “I’d be willing to give up my pursuit of the beautiful Ms. Talia to see the cynical Harmon Payne fall to the greater power of love.”

Harm frowned at T-Mac. “Yeah, well, it isn’t going to happen. You know as well as I do that we’re not cut out for relationships. Not in our line of work.” He cast a quick glance at Dr. Vega and Marly. “No offense. You might be the exceptions. Although what you see in Pitbull and Buck, I’ll never figure out.”

Thankfully, Marly and Dr. Vega laughed.

“It’s finding the right woman who can handle the long separations,” Buck said. He took Dr. Vega’s hand and smiled down into her eyes. “It takes a very independent woman who is capable of standing on her two feet. I think Talia meets that criteria.”

“She’s a business owner in a challenging industry and country,” Marly pointed out.

“She obviously doesn’t need a man to function,” Dr. Vega said.

“And neither do either of you two women,” T-Mac said.

The ladies nodded.

“But we choose to be with our guys.” Marly laid a hand on Pitbull’s arm.

“Not because we are dependent on them, but because we want to be with them,” Angela Vega said with a smile.

Harm shrugged. “Again, I believe you ladies are the exception.”

“Be careful, Harm,” Marly warned. “You can’t paint all women with the same brush. Many of us are of stronger stock.”

Angela studied him with narrowed eyes. “What happened in the past that turned you against relationships? Did you get a Dear John letter that broke your heart? Or am I getting too personal?”

Harm stiffened. The doctor’s words hit far too close to home.

“Yeah, Harm, who rocked your love boat?” T-Mac asked.

“That’s it.” Harm glared at his teammates. “My love life—”

“Or lack thereof,” T-Mac inserted.

“—is not up for discussion,” Harm continued. “If and when I have a love life, which is highly unlikely, you all will be the last to know.”

“I have a feeling we’ll know before you,” Diesel said. “You’ll be in a huge state of denial.”

“Like you are now,” Buck added.

“Whatever.” Harm spun toward the door. “I’m calling it a night.” He marched toward the door, ready to get the hell out of the conversation.

“You can run from the truth,” T-Mac called out, “but you can’t hide.”

He was so intent on leaving the kitchen, Harm didn’t notice Talia coming from the opposite direction until he plowed right into her.

She bounced off his chest and might have fallen if he hadn’t gripped her arms to steady her.

Laughter erupted behind him.

“See? You can run...” T-Mac said.

“I’m sorry. I should have been more careful,” Talia said, looking up at him with her clear blue eyes, a smile curving her soft lips.

“No,” Harm said, his voice gruff. “My fault. I should have been looking where I was going.” His first inclination was to pull her into his arms and crush her to his chest. But the lingering chuckles behind him reminded him of the conversation his teammates had subjected him to.

He wasn’t in the market to find love. But if he were, Talia was an amazing woman. Strong, sensitive, loyal and beautiful. Damn. “I can’t go there,” he muttered and set her to the side.

“What do you mean?” she asked, her eyebrows forming a V over her nose. “Go where?” She looked past him to the crowd in the kitchen. “Did I miss something?”

T-Mac slapped a hand to his knee and gave a bark of laughter. “Boy, did you.”

Harm had no desire to be humiliated in front of their hostess. “Good night.” He continued toward the staircase and took the steps two at a time, laughter following him all the way up.

He hoped his teammates wouldn’t share their discussion with Talia. He didn’t want her to get the wrong impression. He wasn’t interested in her. Even if her touch sent fire ripping through his veins and her smile made his knees wobble.

* * *

TALIA STOOD IN the doorway of the kitchen, her arms still tingling where Harm had gripped them.

His friends were laughing and grinning like fools. Even Marly and Dr. Vega were smiling.

“I feel like I’m missing out on a joke. Someone want to fill me in?”

T-Mac turned to the others. “Should I?”

“No,” Buck said.

Diesel shook his head. “Just leave it.”

T-Mac frowned. “You take all the fun out of poking the bear.”

Talia stared from T-Mac to Diesel and back. “Bear?”

“Harm.” T-Mac raised his hands. “That’s all I’m going to say.”

“Good,” Marly said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I could use some sleep.”

“Me, too.” T-Mac pushed back from the table and stood. “After I check for snakes.” He carried his plate to the sink.

“You’re welcome to stay in the lodge, if it will make you feel better.” Talia gathered more plates from the table. “I’ll happily make up a room for you and anyone else who wants to move in from the cabins.”

“I’ll risk the cabin.” Buck slipped his arm around Dr. Vega. “If you’re willing.”

Angela smiled up at him. “As long as you go in first and make sure we don’t have a cobra waiting in our bed.”

Buck shuddered. “I can’t imagine what Big Jake must have felt seeing that snake.”

“I would have blown the bed and half the room away trying to kill that cobra,” T-Mac said.

“Because you’re a lousy shot.” Diesel draped an arm over T-Mac’s shoulder. “Come on, I’ll help you clear your cabin so you can sleep without fear of being snake bit. And so you don’t feel the need to put holes in the furniture or walls.”

“Thanks, dude,” T-Mac said with a twisted grin. “You’re a real friend.”

“I’ve got your six, man,” Diesel said.

The two men left the kitchen, followed by Buck and Angela and Marly and Pitbull.

Though they poked and prodded each other, they seemed to be a tight-knit team, willing to do anything for each other.

Eventually, Talia was alone. She cleaned the dishes, dried them and put them away. She knew she was procrastinating, avoiding going to bed. Many nights she’d stayed up into the wee hours of the morning, finally falling asleep in one of the lounge chairs in the common area rather than going up to the room she’d shared with Michael.

A few months after Michael’s death, she’d moved her things out of their room and into a smaller room to open up the master suite to guests. She’d told herself it was because she could charge a premium for the larger room. The reality was she didn’t want to sleep in the room she had shared with Michael. Too many memories kept her awake at night.

But tonight, she wasn’t awake because of her memories of Michael. She didn’t want to walk past the room Harm was sleeping in to get to hers. The thought of only a wall standing between them as they lay in their beds seemed too personal. None of her other guests had that effect on her. Why would Harm?

She wrapped her arms around her middle and walked into the common area. Maybe she’d sleep in one of the lounge chairs. She always woke before her guests. In that case, she could be up and dressed for the day well before they came down for breakfast.

Talia sat on one of the long sofas and tucked her legs beneath her.

Wide-awake and wired, sleep wasn’t going to come to her at once. The cobra, the poachers and other happenings were getting too close for comfort. Something had to give. Her chef had suggested she hire the local witch doctor to lift the evil spell from the walls, floors and grounds. She hadn’t been keen on doing that.

First of all, Talia didn’t believe in magic, but the people who worked for her did. Second, the witch doctor could be the one behind all of the shenanigans. He could be setting her up for extortion.

However, if things didn’t improve soon, her staff would stop coming to work. She’d have to run the place by herself. She could do it during the slow season, but not when the lodge and all the cabins were full. Someone had to lead the safaris while another person cooked enough to feed the guests, tended to the cabins and maintained the grounds.

No, she couldn’t do all those tasks alone. If her staff quit coming to work, she’d have to take fewer and fewer guests. If she couldn’t bring in guests, she couldn’t pay the bills. She’d be forced to close.

Then what? After Michael was killed by a rhino, she’d automatically assumed she’d continue on with the operation of the resort. Yes, it had been primarily Michael’s dream, but while he was alive, she’d shared that dream. After his death, she’d been in such a funk, she couldn’t bring herself to consider other options. Michael was buried in Africa. She hadn’t wanted to leave.

This place, the lodge, the resort, the savanna, had memories seared into every corner, every tree, everywhere she looked.

Yet her thoughts continued to drift up the stairs to the man in the room beside hers. Guilt rushed over her like a heat wave. Only a year had passed since Michael’s death. She shouldn’t be feeling anything for anyone other than her husband. Should she?

Talia reached for one of the throw pillows on the cushion beside her and hugged it to her chest. She missed being able to hug someone. Not just a friendly hug, but one that involved body-to-body contact. A real, warm, lasting hug she never wanted to end.

Not like holding a pillow. A pillow couldn’t return the sentiment. Someone with thick, strong arms was needed to make that connection. Someone who could return the pressure and make her feel safe and loved. And not so very...alone.

“Why are you sitting down here all alone?” a deep resonant voice asked.

Talia started and glanced up into the warm, deep brown eyes of the man she’d been thinking about.

He wore jeans and a well-worn T-shirt stretched tautly over the broad expanse of his chest. And he was barefoot.

Talia fought the urge to drool like Pavlov’s dog. “I...uh...” She gulped hard to keep from squeaking. “...wasn’t sleepy.”

“Too much excitement?” He nodded toward the cushion beside her. “Mind if I sit?”

Excitement? Oh, yeah. She pretended a nonchalance she didn’t feel. “Please. Sit where you like.” Inside she fought a losing battle between self-preservation and desire. If he accepted her offer to take the seat beside her on the sofa, self-preservation didn’t stand a chance.

Harm dropped onto the cushion inches away from Talia.

Her breath caught and her pulse kicked into high gear.

Sitting half facing her, Harm leaned his elbows on his knees. “The snake in Big Jake’s cabin worrying you?”

“For a start,” she admitted. No use telling him she was also worried by her feelings for him. He didn’t need to know that little bit of information. If she thought witchcraft and bad juju were making her vulnerable, letting a man know he made her weak in the knees would expose her in a way she was nowhere near ready to handle.

Talia prayed he didn’t try anything silly, like kissing her. She wasn’t sure she had the power to resist.

Chapter Four

Harm had been in his room, listening for the sounds of Talia’s footsteps on the landing outside his door. When he hadn’t heard them and the lodge had quieted, he’d left his room and descended the stairs, going in search of the pretty hostess.

He’d been surprised to find her sitting alone on a sofa, a pillow clutched to her chest, her blue eyes staring into the distance.

Talia hadn’t noticed his barefoot approach.

If he’d been smart, he’d have crept back up the stairs and gone to bed. But he couldn’t leave her there. The tug at his heart refused to let him leave. So he’d taken the seat beside her, with no idea what to say or how to comfort a widow.

“Thank you for adjusting the room assignments for us,” he said.

She shrugged. “I didn’t have to do much. It’s not like I have an entire lodge full of guests.” She hugged the pillow tighter. “I can’t continue to run this place without a staff or paying guests. If things don’t turn around soon, I’ll be forced to shut the doors, sell the resort and find employment somewhere else.”

“Is it that bad?”

She nodded. “The staff thinks I’m the one causing the problems. Because I’m a woman trying to run the place, I’m creating bad juju.”

Harm’s jaw tightened. “That’s a bunch of bull.”

“You know that and I know that, but my staff is very superstitious. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone else quits tomorrow when he or she finds out there was a cobra in one of the cabins.” Talia drew in a deep breath and let it out on a sigh. “It just makes more work for me. But if I don’t have guests, I won’t need the staff and I won’t have a reason to stay at the resort.”

“Have you considered selling?”

Her lips pressed into a thin line. “Even when Michael was alive, I was in charge of the day-to-day running of the lodge and cabins. Michael took care of expeditions, entertainment and nature hikes.”

She stared around the room at the photos on the walls of the animals in their natural habitat. “He always came back with the most incredible photographs.” Her gaze stopped on Harm. “I took care of everything else. But the lodge and the cabins weren’t why the guests came. They came to see what Michael saw. He sold his photographs worldwide. He was well-known for how beautifully he captured the animals and the savanna. The guests came from all over the world to see what had inspired him.”

Harm snorted softly. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Her cheeks blossomed with color, and she glanced down at the pillow. “I’m sorry. What was the question?”

“Have you considered selling the resort?”

She looked away, gnawing at her bottom lip. “I guess most women who’d lost their husbands would have sold something like the resort by now.” She glanced back at Harm. “I didn’t because I couldn’t imagine anything else. What would I do?”

“You could go back to the States where it’s less dangerous, for one.” He leaned toward her. “You could start over and choose any career you want.”

“But I love running the lodge and catering to the guests.”

“Even now that your husband is gone?”

Talia’s lips twisted. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know, or you’re afraid to say the truth because you’ll feel guilty for wanting something different from what Michael had in mind?”

She tossed the pillow aside and leaped to her feet. “It doesn’t matter what I want. I have the resort. I’m doing the best I can. I just need to figure out who’s behind the threats to me and my guests and take care of it. Life will go on as usual.”

“Will it?” Harm stood and reached for her. He knew it was a mistake as soon as his fingers curled around her arms. “Michael’s gone, you can’t continue to live his dream. What about you, Talia? What do you want?”

She stared up into his eyes, her voice soft...breathy as she said, “I don’t know.” Her bottom lip trembled and her gaze shifted from his eyes to his mouth.

That moment was Harm’s undoing. Talia appeared so vulnerable and confused. He wanted to wipe the concern from her face, to make her lips curl up in a smile. To kiss her.

Before he could think through his next move, he lowered his head and breathed against her lips. “What do you want?”

Her fingers curled into his shirt and she whispered, “You.”

Harm claimed her mouth, his lips crashing down on hers. He pushed his tongue past her teeth to sweep the length of hers, caressing, thrusting and demanding a response.

Instead of pushing him away like she should have, Talia raised her arms to lace them behind Harm’s neck and pulled him closer.

Harm released her arms and ran his hands down her back, cupped her bottom and pressed her hips to his, his groin tight, swelling with a fresh rush of blood and heat. This was where he’d wanted to be all evening. Holding this woman in his arms, kissing her like there was no tomorrow.

She clung to him, her tongue working against his, her fingernails digging into the back of his neck, one leg curling around the back of his thigh.

Holy hell, she was hot, sexy and everything Harm had sworn off when he’d received that Dear John letter so long ago. But here he was kissing Talia, completely captivated by the woman and unable to release her.

When the need for oxygen forced him to come up for air, he lifted his head, dragged in a breath and let it go slowly, trying to calm his racing heart.

Talia pressed her forehead to his chest, her hands dropping to curl into his shirt. “What...just happened?”

He chuckled. “I don’t know, but I want to do it again.”

She shook her head. “No.”

Harm’s heart stuttered and then tripped all over itself to get going again. “No?” He touched his finger to her chin and tilted her face upward, making her look into his eyes. “Why not?”

“It’s not right,” she said, her voice catching.

“Why?”

“Michael...” she said, a tear slipping from the corner of her eye.

“Is dead,” Harm said softly, not wanting to be insensitive to her loss. “But you aren’t.”

“Still,” she said, her hands flattening against his chest. “I loved him.”

“As sensitive a guy as you make him out to be, wouldn’t he have wanted you to go on living?”

“I have.” She pulled her chin free of his finger and looked away. “Just not like this. He—I wouldn’t want you to do it again.”

“No?” Harm’s arms slipped around her. God, he loved the way she felt against him. “Are you sure you don’t want me to kiss you again?”

She tipped her head back and stared into his eyes. “Please,” she said, her lips still swollen from making love to his.

He lowered his head until his mouth was only a breath away from hers. “I won’t kiss you if you don’t want me to. But it seems there were two people involved in that last kiss.”

Her breath caught and her body stiffened in his arms. Then she rose upward on her toes, closing the distance between their lips. Talia wrapped her arms around his neck and dragged him even closer until their bodies melded together, almost becoming one. The only way they could be closer would be if they were naked.

Harm clutched her body to him and deepened the kiss, everything else around him fading into a hazy background until the sound of a throat clearing jolted him out of the lusty haze.

Harm lifted his head and stared across the floor at the intruder.

Big Jake stood in his jeans and nothing else. “Sorry, I was just on my way to the kitchen for a glass of water.” He hurried by. “Don’t mind me. I saw nothing.”

Talia pushed away from Harm and smoothed her hands over her shirt and jeans, her cheeks flaming. “I’d better go to my room.” She spun and ran for the stairs before Harm could stop her.

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