To Desire a Wilde by Kimberly Kaye Terry Page B

the palm. She felt the dart of his tongue against her palm for a split second, his dark glittering gaze over her face, and goose bumps spiked up her arm and through her body at the sensuality of his gesture.
    She inhaled a shaky breath.
    Their food forgotten for the moment, it was just the two of them in the pub, and everything and everyone around faded to background noise. Ellie licked her dry mouth, heat whirling through her.
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    Shilah kept her hand in his, his eyes on hers as he trailed a path from her palm to her inner wrist with his tongue. He felt the shudder that ran through her, and knew she was just as affected by him as he was by her.
    He saw her swallow and felt the fine tremble that shook her hand. When she tugged at her hand, reluctantly he released it.
    As much as he wanted to stake a claim, he knew he had to give her room, breathing space. If only to allow her mind to catch up with what her body was telling her was the inescapable truth.
    She brought her hand up and tucked errant strands that had escaped the low ponytail she wore, something he noticed she did whenever she was nervous.
    â€œWhy don’t you ever wear your hair down anymore?” he asked, resisting the urge to replace her hands with his, to feel the soft, silky strands against his fingers.
    She shrugged an elegant shoulder. “My hair is long and it’s easier if I keep it held back, particularly when I’m seeing animals.”
    â€œI remember when we were kids, you always wore it down,” he said, and laughed in memory as the image of a younger Ellie, her long brown hair flying behind her as she raced ahead of him, came to his mind.
    â€œI’ve never forgotten the way you looked, racing ahead of me…”
    â€œTaunting you because you could never beat me,” she finished, joining him in the shared memory.
    â€œOh, I could have caught you if I’d wanted to. It was just a lot more fun letting you think you’d won.”
    At that, Ellie laughed out loud, the tension between them breaking, something he’d wanted to happen. “Oh, you could have? As competitive as you and your brothers were, even then, I highly doubt that,” she scoffed. But he saw the way her eyes twinkled.
    â€œIf that helps you sleep at night, okay,” Shilah replied, hiding his grin behind the rim of the glass he brought to his lips.
    Her eyes narrowed. “Just admit you got beat, fair and square.”
    He shook his head. “Nope. Not happening. I let you win. Poor little El.”
    He held his breath, knowing he’d taken a gamble with that one. The jab had been intentional, meant to push past an invisible barrier he’d detected, one he’d once not felt between them.
    Her eyes narrowed. “If that helps you sleep at night…think what you want, Shilah Wilde,” she quipped, turning the tables on him. “I can take you, anytime, anyplace,” she finished, reminding him of the many times she’d said the exact same thing when he’d taunted her when they were younger.
    Things had just gotten a hell of a lot more interesting, Shilah thought, hiding his grin of satisfaction.

Chapter 8
    â€œW e’ve got ten pens set up and the men have rounded up roughly 70 to 75 cattle to start. That sound about right? Is that the number you were thinking to start with, El?”
    Ellie turned around and glanced over her shoulder at Shilah as he sat astride his large stallion, his gaze fixed on the pen holding the cattle in preparation for the first stages of Ellie’s investigation.
    Ellie frowned, running a critical glance over the large pen. “Hmm,” she murmured, biting the corner of her lip, her brow furrowed in concentration. She checked the small clipboard she held, containing notes that she used religiously whenever doing fieldwork. She took pride in the detailed system she’d created on paper, hoping it would work the way she’d planned; she hoped it would create