Heart of the Wild (2 page)

After placing the cake in the oven, Kasie went into the living room. She'd felt restless and edgy all week, not having a clue as to why.

The word "run" came to mind. It always had when her folks became too controlling.

Seeing Rick's picture on the mantle, Kasie sighed again. Most women swooned at the sight of Rick Springer. Most women! She hadn't swooned over a man since—since eight years ago. Since Chayton Amory! At least this relationship was based on something solid—trust and understanding. Who needed love?

Running her fingers over the picture, she wondered why she didn't feel elated about the wedding or Rick. She should miss him by now. She hadn't seen him in over two weeks. He'd flown to Los Angeles for a concert and photo layout for his next album. So why didn't she feel lonesome? Why didn't her heart jump when looking at his picture? Wedding jitters, that's all it was, she told herself as she turned Rick's picture over and placed it face down.

Yet, deep in her heart, she knew there was another reason.

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Chapter One

"Silly bird, look what you made me do." Kasie Moore glanced at the seagull that continued to circle above. He seemed more interested in her red ball cap than the fish in the sea, she decided as she bent to retrieve her wet cap from the edge of the shore. "Go build your nest with someone else's cap," she muttered aloud, as she cast the bird a quick appraisal.

Wiping her wet hands on her fish-smeared jeans, she curled her braid back into the ball cap, and slipped it on top of her head.

She didn't know why she felt so grouchy this morning, yelling at a seagull. She loved animals, birds and fish. Perhaps lack of caffeine did it. Rick insisted she needed to lay off coffee. She had tried, but this morning she could almost smell that beautiful blend perking through the lobby of the hotel.

Dammit, didn't Rick realize people needed a few bad habits?

He meant well, though. She shouldn't be mad. It was for her own good. Now, who did that sound like? Her parents!

The Pacific waters stretched forever against an early awakening, California horizon. Kasie sighed with contentment, as her gaze swept the skies. The warm, blue-green blanket of water teased the shore as the gentle breeze whimpered an early winter, and the pungent sea air tickled her nose.

Then without warning, everything changed. The magnificent glow of pre-dawn faded. Her red ball cap disappeared as her head was covered with what felt like a dirty knitted cap. She felt herself being hefted and effortlessly flung against a solid form. Bouncing first one way, then another, on what felt like tremendously strong shoulders, Kasie struggled. Bone and muscle meshed. A corduroy jacket rubbed where her damp sweatshirt rose up from her waist. It felt soft, against a man that was obviously neither. A whiff of pine and woods and clean earth floated about her nose as she twisted her head and struggled with the musky old cap that had been crammed over her head and face.

She grabbed at her neck, and realized the cap had been tied and knotted with a string.

Hair tickled her belly as the man's head turned several times, as though he might be looking for direction. It had to be one of the guy's in Rick's band, playing a joke.

"This is cute. Is Rick having me abducted? What a cute idea."

There was no answer. She formed a tight fist, and let the first punch fly. A grown man should know better.

No answer came, although she thought she heard the man mumble something incoherent under his breath. A dead silence prevailed, and still he kept walking. His gait was light, springy, as though traveling up and down hills on foot were nothing to him.

"Let me go! This isn't funny!" Kasie yelled seconds later from under the thick knitted cap that smothered her words like a audio tape gone bad. She had never liked practical jokes, although Rick had been known to pull some.

"Get this dirty thing off my face!" She struggled for clean air. Tiny flecks of light filtered through the cap, but she still couldn't see. If this was Rick's idea of a prank, she didn't like it.

Her words choked her, as she blindly struggled against the man.

Kasie heard him rumble with what had to be laughter, and an odd sense of knowing hit the pit of her stomach. For a moment, her memory jangled, then left her again as she continued to struggle.

It had ceased to be funny. If this was a joke, she didn't like it.

Something about this man seemed familiar, though. Panic stricken, her mind reeled with possibilities. Most kidnappers were not strangers. At least that was what she'd heard on one of those news talk shows. Thank God, she'd paid attention.

Okay, so the trick was to stay alert. Use the senses, she remembered. She heard the shoreline disappearing into the distance. He walked up a steep incline. It had to be the hill directly above the beach. At least she still had her sense of direction.

The man hadn't even puffed. He was in better shape than most; in top form, in fact. Not brawny, but hard and lean and well acquainted with hard labor. No—he wasn't in Rick's band.

"Who are you? What do you want with me?" she demanded, as she let another punch fly just below his belt, onto a solid backside. Solid and well shaped.

Still no reaction.

Were there people about? Couldn't anyone see what was happening? He couldn't get away with this in broad daylight, could he?

Yet, he was getting away with it.

It was barely five in the morning. Sensible people were tucked into their soft beds, sleeping. That's where her mother was. That's where Rick was, most likely. And that's where she should be. Why hadn't she been able to sleep? Why had this impending wedding disconcerted her so? Why did solitary walks and quick stolen fishing trips seem mandatory now to her? Perhaps because she hadn't wanted a wedding at all. She was happy with Rick, wasn't she? Why couldn't they just live together? People did it all the time. But then, she knew she wasn't that sophisticated. Rick loved her, didn't he? In his way. And she loved him, in her way. Wasn't that all that mattered?

No time to deliberate happiness now, as the kidnapper veered in another direction. She had to pay attention to his moves.

Still, this rock hard man would not get away with kidnapping John Douglas and Ava Moore's daughter. This beast, whoever he was, would pay. Who'd he think he was, Tarzan?

Her feet went into immediate action, coming up hard below the man's waist. He made little more than a grunt and continued on his journey. An ordinary man would have doubled over from that precise blow.

His breathing was labored now. Good, at least something affected him. She continued her assault, hoping to find a weaker spot and best him. It was possible to best a man of his strength, she remembered reading that somewhere, probably Reader's Digest. Funny how the mind seemed to escape into strange places at a time like this.

The man readjusted her, and carried her onward. His big hands clasped her feet, as he gave her one good slap on her bottom and kept moving. She yelped in surprise.

How dare he touch her bottom! But then, he might dare a lot of things, and she needed to prepare to fight him tooth and nail.

Getting a grip on the situation, Kasie tried to grasp which direction he was taking her, but he seemed to be walking in circles, until she became totally confused. Obviously, he wanted to confuse her. He was a very smart man; she must never underestimate him.

The only thing she was sure of was that he carried her away from the beach. The sting of the salty air disappearing told her that much. She heard the swish of passing cars. Could that be the coastal highway in the distance? Yes, he was at the highway now. She had to stay fully alert, and as helpful as possible in her own rescue. She would be rescued; it was only a matter of time. Her mother would have the FBI, the CIA and half the cops in California after him for this.

"You can't get away with this, you idiot," she yelled as loud as she could. An intelligent man would know this.

No response.

He obviously wasn't intelligent.

She grabbed for his hair and yanked, finding it velvety soft between her fingers, and much longer than she expected. He could be George Michaels from Rick's band; he had long hair. Only she doubted it would ever be that silky. And George certainly wasn't lean.

Who could this character be, and what did he want? Her mind scrambled for answers.

Kidnapped. She was being kidnapped! Insane! Things like this didn't happen in real life. In the movies maybe, but not in real life.

Being practically shoved into a hard seat, and hearing the door shut behind her, told her she was now in a vehicle. However, this particular vehicle seemed different, somehow. The noise from the traffic sounded louder than it should, perhaps a convertible, or a jeep?

Kasie waited, proud that she hadn't panicked. She sat very still, waiting until she heard him getting in on the other side, and starting the motor. It had to be a jeep; no convertible would sound so loud.

Who did she know that owned a jeep? Who did she know that was built like a hard and lean block of steel? She racked her brain.

She tried another angle. Who would want to kidnap her? Just because her father, John Douglas III, was one of the ten richest men in the country, and her mother, Ava Moore was a movie legend, made her a likely target. Naturally, she'd been warned many times by both her father's close friends and her mother's bodyguard that it could happen. But what were the odds?

Who'd have the gall, knowing the wrath of her parents?

Miles down the road, after complete silence, she heard a deep, rather condescending voice rumble with suppressed laughter.

The tension in her body eased somewhat. So this was a big joke. Perhaps she should view it as such. She could take a joke as well as the next person, even though at the moment it didn't seem that funny.

But his laughter sounded oddly familiar, and when he spoke, he confirmed her worst fears. She jumped in her seat with surprise, glad he couldn't see her stunned expression. She needed time to assimilate the situation, get herself under control.

"Sorry, Kasie."

"Amory? C-Chayton Amory?" Kasie stiffened and straightened. Control; that's what she needed. Lots of control.

"Back to last names again, I see. I liked it better when you called me Chay." He smiled as he gently removed the cap, and glanced at her disheveled face and hair. His eyes moved slowly over her, thoroughly, as though he enjoyed embarrassing her, or looking at her. "Nice to see you, too, Kasie. It's been a while."

"Not long enough!" she snapped. Dear God, her knees were shaking, but eight years ago, Chayton Amory had been a gangly young logging engineer. Today he was a Herculean.

She unwound the long braid, so that it dangled down her back to her waist.

"So, to what do I owe this intrusion? Or should I guess, it's dear old dad, isn't it? Naturally, why else would
you
be here?"

"Guess you got me on that one," he agreed, casting her a mock frown. He watched her toss the dirty cap out the window, and chuckled again. "Sorry about that, Kasie, it's been under the seat since last winter, and I had to tie it, or you would have ripped it off, first thing. And yes, you're right. Your father wants to see you."

"Really." She batted her eyes at him dramatically. "That's too bad, because I'm busy. I've got a wedding to go to tomorrow. Mine! But then, I'm sure he's heard. Everyone has, thanks to Mother." She glanced about, but didn't recognize her surroundings. The beach was still there, but they were already miles down the road from where he'd found her.

"He's aware of it," came the brief reply, his eyes going back to the highway swiftly. Something in his voice had changed, but she couldn't be sure if it was sarcasm or bitterness.

"If he wanted to talk, he should have come in person instead of sending his yes man. I would think he could at least attend my wedding in person, if he's at all interested. I suppose you are representing him? So why the dramatics? Why pull a kidnapping routine? Why scare me out of my wits?" Her voice rose to a scale even she didn't recognize.

"The Kasie I knew didn't scare that easily."

"I'm not that Kasie anymore."

"I guess not. No dramatics, and certainly no routine, Kasie. But you're right, I am sort of kidnapping you."

Kasie turned her body toward him, a big mistake! Her heart stopped, fluttered, and stopped again. Nothing had changed. He could still turn her upside down with one glance.