Line of Fire Read Online Free Page B

to stage a fake kidnapping and pretend to rescue me. That way you can run around acting like the macho jerks you are and prove to me how necessary the new sniper rifle is.”
    “To stage…” Tex trailed off, sputtering. His face took on a distinct flush.
    Yup. She’d caught him red-handed.
    “Miss Stanton, I assure you. This is most definitely not a fake kidnapping or a pretend rescue. Actual bad guys are chasing us as we speak, and the odds are excellent that they’ll kill us both if they catch us.”
    She waved a casual hand. “Whatever. I’m sure you guys cooked up a wonderful training scenario. If it makes you feel any better, I don’t really care about the gun one way or the other. The main focus of my lobbying is in disbanding teams like yours who’d use the sniper rifle in the first place.”
    “Miss Stanton.” His voice rang with irritation. “I don’t care one way or the other if you believe me or not. But I do require that you do what I tell you to, when I tell you to do it. While you float around in your fantasy world of denial, I’m going to do my best to keep you alive and get you home.”
    She refused to play along with this whole stupid game. She struck a disdainful pose, but when his burning gaze locked on to her thrust-out chest, she wilted and crossed her arms defensively across her breasts.
    “Put these on.” He tossed her a wad of fabric.
    A stale, sour smell, redolent of rancid refried beans, rose from the bundle. She held up the mess and made out a soiled, disgusting pair of army fatigues. She didn’t even want to think about their previous owner. She drawled, “My dear sir, the grunge look is so passé.”
    His eyes glinted and he drawled back, “But it’s all the rage in the jungle, my dear.”
    She tossed the repulsive things back to him. “Take some advice from a fashion trendsetter—dare to be different.”
    He shrugged as he tied them around his waist, where they were sure to get even sweatier and dirtier. “Let me know when you’re ready to put them on,” he commented nonchalantly.
    She stared at him, startled at his easy capitulation. A moment of doubt sliced through her. Maybe G.I. Joe knew something she didn’t. Maybe she should’ve donned the awful things. But then she bolstered her resolve. She wasn’t going to succumb to barbarism just because he insisted on pretending they were Jane and Tarzan running around in the jungle.
    Tex’s voice interrupted her turbulent thoughts. “Let’s get a move on,” he ordered.
    Her eyes narrowed. That was the very same tone of voice her father used when he waxed autocratic. It never failed to provoke her into doing the exact opposite of what he demanded, purely out of general principles.
    Tex stopped several yards in front of her and looked over his shoulder. “You coming?”
    “This is nuts,” she announced, not budging. “I’m not playing along with your stupid game.”
    He glared for a moment and then sighed with long-suffering patience. “Indulge me. Let’s pretend that what I’ve said is true. Let’s pretend someone very dangerous is chasing us and that we need to get away.”
    “And then what? You’ll drag me all over creation and put me at risk of serious injury or worse?”
    “You won’t get hurt. I promise.”
    She stuck out her chin stubbornly. “I refuse to let your delusions of invincibility get me hurt or killed.”
    “My what?” he asked, his voice dangerously quiet.
    “You heard me. I’ve got you figured out. You have some sick, hero complex thing going and need to prove to me how studly you Special Forces guys are. I won’t buy into it.”
    He stared at her for a long moment. Then he turned deliberately and began to walk away.
    Even though she could still see him, the loss of his strong presence terrified her for some reason. Regardless of whether this was Quantico’s back forty or a real jungle the Air Force had flown her to for this little demonstration, it still pressed in on her