A Wicked Persuasion: No Going Back / No Holds Barred / No One Needs to Know

“Well, there wasn’t much opportunity for a close shave while I was out there,” he said offhandedly. “I got back to base just before you arrived, so not much chance to clean up, either. Sorry.”

“So how did you end up becoming my escort?” she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. “I don’t know much about the military, but if I had to guess I’d say you were special forces. They’re the only ones who get to grow facial hair, right? So why would they assign someone like you to bring me to the different concert sites? I promise you I’m not dangerous.”

Chase stopped eating the second she suggested he was special forces, and listened to her with a combination of amusement and surprise. But when she said she wasn’t dangerous, he gave a soft laugh and muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like, “you have no idea.”

Now he sat back in his chair and considered her. “Okay,” he said, a smile still tilting his lips. “You’re right. I’m an Army Ranger, part of a special-operations unit. But my team screwed up on a recent operation and so here I am—” he gestured expansively with his hands “—anxious to prove to my commanding officer that I can complete this assignment without incident.”

“Ah,” she said, meaningfully. “So this is sort of like a punishment for you.” Leaning forward, she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I promise to be on my best behavior.”

“Uh-huh.” His voice said he didn’t believe her, but he couldn’t hide the dimples that dented his cheeks, evidence of his amusement. “If I can’t handle one woman, then I have no business being an Army Ranger.”

Kate laughed in astonishment. “Oh, wow. Be careful what you say. That just sounded like a challenge.”

Chase grinned. “Going to give me a run for my money?”

“I just might.” Kate let her gaze drift over him. She watched his hands as he toyed with the saltshaker. They were a lot like him, lean and strong. She wondered how they would feel on her body. “I’d be doing you a favor. After all, I wouldn’t want you to get soft, considering your current assignment is so easy.”

He snapped his eyes to hers. “Trust me,” he said drily. “There’s no chance of that happening around you.” Before she could register what he’d said, he stood up. “Are you going to finish your meal?”

Kate pushed the plate away. “No, I don’t think so. I’m actually not that hungry. What I’d really like is to head over to where the first concert event will be held.”

Chase nodded and began stacking their plates on his tray. “No problem.”

She watched as he disposed of their dishes, her heart still thumping unevenly. Had he meant his words the way she had interpreted them? That she aroused him physically? The very thought sent hot blood surging through her veins. She wondered what had happened to get him pulled off his last assignment. He had made light of it, but Kate could see it bothered him. She didn’t know him at all, but guessed he would much rather be back in the field with his men than here with her. Especially if he found himself attracted to her. She didn’t know him well, but guessed that he was the kind of guy who would keep his professional and private lives completely separate. And right now, she was definitely part of his professional life.

When he returned to the table, she drew in a deep breath. “Listen, Chase, if you’d rather not take me over to the concert site, I’m sure I can get someone else to go with me. I understand that this probably isn’t your favorite thing to do.”

“No chance,” he said smoothly. “You’ve been assigned to me, and I’ll be the only one to take you over there.”

She’d been assigned to him. As if she were nothing more than a number, or an unpleasant project that he just needed to get done. Realistically, she knew that wasn’t true, but in that instant she realized she wanted him to see her as more than a task or an assignment. She wanted him to see her as a woman.

“Okay.” She stood up and pushed her chair in. “Then let’s do this.”

Outside, the sun had finally dipped behind the mountains and the base was quickly growing dark. Kate welcomed the change, both because the temperature had dropped and because the indistinct light made it more difficult for Major Rawlins to read her expression. They walked in silence, and she didn’t miss how he adjusted his stride so that she could keep up with him. She was fading quickly from sheer exhaustion. Part of her wanted to suggest that they wait until morning to view the concert site, but the stubborn part of her—the part that wanted to impress this tough man—refused to capitulate.

Thankfully, the parade field wasn’t far from the dining facility. A large stage had been constructed at one end of the field, and an enormous American flag had been hung behind it as a patriotic backdrop. Dozens of heavy-duty extension cords snaked across the ground near the stage, and two tall light poles provided illumination.

“This is where the bands will perform,” Chase said, kicking several of the cords out of her way. “Of course, it will look much different once all the equipment is set up.”

Kate walked around the stage, silently acknowledging that it would more than suffice for Tenley’s band. She had brought her planner with her, and she jotted down notes as they surveyed the site.

“How far back will the audience be from the performers?” She measured off several paces from the front of the stage. “I don’t want them too close, and I’m going to insist on security personnel to keep the crowds back.”

Chase laughed softly and scratched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t know what kind of audiences your client performs for, but this isn’t a Texas roadhouse. This is the U.S. military, and they will be respectful.”

Kate frowned, wanting to believe him, but recalling at least one instance when Tenley had been accosted by a fan who had breached the security and climbed onto the stage.

“Look at me,” Chase said, and put his hands on her shoulders, dipping his head to stare directly into her eyes. “I will keep Tenley Miles safe, okay? You can trust me.”

Kate searched his eyes and realized that she did trust him. He was bigger than life, a guy who obviously took his job seriously. Knowing that she could rely on him was an amazing feeling. She’d always had to be the strong one; the person who made all the decisions and ensured everything went smoothly. That this man was willing to take that burden from her meant more to her than she could express.

“Thank you,” she said. “Tenley has already had one bad experience with a fan.”

“You have my word that nothing like that will happen here,” he said firmly. “But I’ll arrange to have military police positioned around the stage and throughout the audience.”

“Thank you. May I see the administrative building where the performers will stay?”

Chase preceded her through the large building directly behind the stage. Immediately inside the doors was a spacious auditorium where the band members could relax while waiting to perform.

“I’m not familiar with the exact details,” Chase said as they walked through the room, “but I understand the USO will set up food and drink stations for the performers, and they’ll have access to pretty much whatever they need.”

The space was more than generous, and Kate could easily envision Tenley relaxing here as she prepared to perform. Even with other entertainers using the room, there was little likelihood that Tenley would feel crowded. Kate nodded her approval and took some more notes. Once she left here, it would be easy to get the sites confused, and she wanted to go over everything in advance with Tenley, so that her sister would know what to expect.

Leaving the auditorium, Chase led her down a main corridor and showed her several rooms that were in the process of being converted to bunk rooms for the entertainers. Try as she might, Kate couldn’t find anything to criticize. Granted, the accommodations weren’t luxurious, but they were adequate for Tenley’s needs, especially considering they were on a military base in Afghanistan.

After snapping the lights off in the last room and closing the door, Kate fell into step beside Chase as they made their way back through the building to the parade field.

“Well, it certainly appears that the USO has thought of everything,” Kate remarked as they stepped outside. “Will I have an opportunity to meet with the USO coordinators tomorrow? Tenley has some, um, unique requirements that I’d like to address with them.”

Chase cast her one swift, questioning look. “Like what?”

“Well, she’s deathly afraid of buses, so I want to be sure that she won’t have to travel in one, not even from the flight line to where she’ll be staying.”

“Okay,” he said quietly. “Can I ask why?”

“Her parents were killed in a bus crash when she was just six years old. Tenley was trapped in the wreckage with them for several hours before rescue crews could free her.”

“Jesus,” he breathed. “Poor kid.”

Kate gave him a grateful look. “She claims not to remember anything about the crash, but some nights she has terrible nightmares.”

Chase nodded. “The USO would normally transport all the entertainers in a troop bus, but I can arrange for a private vehicle to pick her up at the terminal. Anything else?”

“Just that I need to stay with her, in her sleeping quarters.”

“Because of the nightmares?”

Kate nodded. “Something like that.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem.”

Kate glanced at him, surprised at how easily he accepted Tenley’s needs and agreed to accommodate them. In another place and time, Chase Rawlins was exactly the kind of man that she would have given anything to be with, even for just one night.

They walked in silence toward the tent where Kate would sleep, but she could almost hear the gears turning in his head.

“You’ve been great,” she finally said, breaking the silence. “About everything. And I can’t tell you how much it means to me. I had a lot of anxiety, not knowing what to expect, but so far you’ve managed to alleviate all my fears.”

They reached her tent and he turned to face her. “I hope so,” he said quietly. “I don’t want you to be afraid of anything while you’re here. That’s why you have me.”

His words caused her imagination to surge, and suddenly she wanted to know what it would be like to have him—to really have him. For one night, or for as many nights as she might be here. But she also knew she lacked the courage required to make any kind of move on him. He didn’t wear a wedding band, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t already committed to someone else. So she just nodded, acknowledging the small promise he was able to give her.

“I do have a question, though,” he said, watching her closely. “I’m pretty good at reading people, and there’s something I just can’t figure out.”

“What’s that?”

“I don’t know anything about Tenley Miles, but I do know that your devotion to her seems to go beyond that of other entertainers and their publicists.” He paused. “Am I wrong?”

Few people knew that Kate and Tenley were even related, never mind sisters. They didn’t share the same last name, nor did they look at all alike, so no one made the connection and it wasn’t something they publicized. Kate had no problem with anyone knowing about their relationship, but much of Tenley’s popularity stemmed from the fact that she was the orphaned child of two famous entertainers. The fact that she’d been left alone in the world yet still managed to overcome her personal tragedy to fulfill her musical destiny was like a fairytale. If people knew that she’d actually had an adult sister who had dropped everything in order to be at her side and raise her, that fairytale would lose some of its luster. So when Tenley had first shown signs of being musically gifted, Kate had decided to present herself as Tenley’s publicist, rather than her sister.

“No,” she said, looking at Chase. “You’re not wrong. Tenley is my sister. Well, my half sister, actually. If I’m a little overprotective, it’s because she’s been through so much.”

His face registered his surprise, but he quickly schooled his features. “That makes sense. So did you also lose a parent in that bus crash?”

Kate nodded. “My mother. But I was eighteen at that point, and accustomed to being on my own. Her death hit Tenley a lot harder.”

Chase looked at her for a long moment, and Kate wondered what he was thinking. Finally, he stepped back.

“Well, she’s lucky to have you,” he said. “You look beat, so I’m going to let you turn in.”

“Okay,” she said, nodding. “Thanks again. For everything.” Kate turned toward the tent and then looked back at him. “So I’ll see you in the morning?”

“If not sooner,” he said, and closed one eye in a conspiratorial wink.

Kate knew her mouth opened, but before she could ask what he meant, he turned and walked away. Slowly, she entered the tent and got ready for bed. His words echoed in her head, and she knew she’d never sleep.

5

KATE WAS AWAKENED BY someone shaking her shoulder. She tried to bury herself deeper in her covers, but there was no escaping.

“Time to wake up, Kate.”

The masculine voice shocked her into action and she sat up, heart pounding. Disoriented, Kate blinked at the hard-eyed soldier who stood over her, holding a flashlight directed at the ground. The indirect light was sufficient for her to make out Chase Rawlins’s features. For a moment, she had no idea where she was, or why she was sleeping in a tent. Then everything came rushing back, and her gaze snapped to the entrance.

“What time is it?”

“Oh-dot-dark.” His low voice was laced with amusement.

Kate could see it was still pitch black outside. “Why are you here?”

“Didn’t you promise to call your sister?”

Kate stared up at Chase, bewildered. Looking around her, she could just make out the shapeless lumps of the other women asleep on their cots. “Yes,” she whispered fiercely. “At six o’clock, not the middle of the night.”

“I’m sorry to tell you that on the East Coast of the United States, it’s almost six o’clock in the evening. They’re eight and a half hours behind us. If you still want to make that call, you’d better hustle.”

With a groan, Kate realized she hadn’t considered the extreme time difference. She was half tempted to change her mind about calling Tenley, but in her mind’s eye she saw her sister waiting to hear from her. If she didn’t place the call, Tenley would be frantic. She’d think the worst and put herself through hell. Kate couldn’t do that to her.

She scrubbed her hands over her face. “Okay, fine. Give me ten minutes.”

“You’ve got five. I’ll wait for you outside.”

She watched the bobbing light of his flashlight as he crossed the tent and disappeared through the flap, and decided she would need to speak to someone about tightening up the security on the sleeping quarters.

Pushing back the sleeping bag, she swung her legs to the floor, shivering in the predawn chill. Her eyes felt gritty and every muscle in her body ached with exhaustion. Fumbling on the floor beneath her cot, she found her shoes and pulled them on, not bothering to change into street clothes. Her flannel lounge pants and long-sleeve top were adequate, and would enable her to jump right back into bed after she’d talked with Tenley.

Despite her exhaustion, she’d been right about not being able to fall asleep after Chase had left her. Her biggest surprise had come when she’d unzipped her duffel bag and discovered a jar of licorice inside. It was the same jar from Chase’s housing unit, and she realized he must have stashed it in her bag after she’d made that first failed telephone call to Tenley. She found the gesture oddly touching.

She’d lain awake thinking about him. Now she understood what he’d meant when he’d said he would see her sooner than the morning, but at the time her imagination had conjured up all kinds of erotic fantasies about him. On top of that, the cot was uncomfortable, and she was unaccustomed to sleeping in such close quarters with other people. The unfamiliar sounds of the base had kept her awake until finally she’d fallen into a fitful sleep, only to be wakened by Chase.

Yawning hugely, she pulled back the flap of the tent and found Chase standing just outside. His eyes swept over her, taking in every detail of her lounge pants and thin top, lingering just a little too long on her breasts. Glancing down, Kate saw her nipples were stiff from the cold and poked against the fabric of her shirt. She crossed her arms over her chest.

“You realize that I only fell asleep like fifteen minutes ago,” she said crossly. “Why didn’t you tell me I’d need to wake up at two-thirty in the morning if I wanted to talk to Tenley? I could have chosen a different time.”

“Do you want to make the call or not?”

Kate frowned at his impatient tone, and guessed that he was no happier about being awake at this hour than she was. Her bones ached and she actually felt a little sick. More than anything, she wanted to crawl back into her cot and sleep, but she’d told Tenley she would call her, and she intended to make good on her word.

“Yes.”

“Then let’s go.”

Without waiting for her response, he turned and walked away while Kate watched in dismay. He gave a low whistle and a dark shape materialized from the shadows. A dog trotted toward him, its tail wagging enthusiastically as Chase reached down and gave it a friendly rub behind the ears. The animal wore a harness and stayed close to Chase’s side.

The night air was chilly, and for a brief second Kate debated on going back for a sweater, but Chase wasn’t waiting for her. With a sound of frustration, she followed him. The roads were covered with small rocks, which made walking treacherous when you couldn’t see where you were going. After she’d stumbled twice, Chase finally stopped and waited for her to catch up, using his flashlight to illuminate her path.

“So, did you wake up just so I could make my phone call, or do you not sleep?” Kate asked, hugging herself around the middle and trying to keep her teeth from chattering. She wouldn’t have been at all surprised if Chase responded that he didn’t require sleep; he was a machine.

“I caught some sleep, but I don’t need much to get by.”

“Will you go back to bed after this?” she asked, partly because she was interested, and partly because she was just trying to make conversation.

“Well, I guess that depends,” he mused.

Kate shot him a startled look. Had she only imagined the sexual suggestion in his voice? She tried to read his expression, but the darkness made it nearly impossible.

“Actually,” he continued smoothly, “I’m up for the day.”

Kate should have felt relieved, but found his words left her oddly deflated. She remembered what he had said earlier that day: I have no intention of sleeping with you. Either the change in time zones had seriously messed with her biorhythms, or she had definitely gone too long without sex, because she spent way too much time imagining him naked. “Who’s your friend?” she asked, in an effort to change the subject. Kate tried to pat the dog, but the animal shied away from her hand.

“This is Charity.”

“Ah,” she said meaningfully.

Chase looked at her. “What does that mean?”

Kate shrugged. “When you and the other guys were talking about Charity, I thought you had a girlfriend on the base. I never would have guessed you were talking about a dog.”

“Well, I think Charity would disagree. I’m pretty sure she thinks she’s human.”

“So, do you?”

“What?”

“Have a girlfriend?”

He gave a surprised laugh. “No, I do not. Right now, Charity is the only female in my life.” He glanced at her. “Aside from you, of course.”

Kate had already noticed that he wore no rings, but felt a surge of satisfaction in knowing he was single.

“Where did you get her?” she asked, moving to safer territory.

“She was a stray that I rescued from a village in the mountains. I guess you could say we adopted each other.”

“Do you keep her in your housing unit?”

“She won’t come inside, but when I’m on base she’ll sleep outside my door. When I’m in the field, I leave her with the K-9 unit. She gets along with the other dogs, and the handlers have been teaching her how to track.”

The mention of his housing unit reminded her of the small gift he had left in her duffel bag. “By the way, thank you for the licorice. I feel guilty that you gave it to me.”

“Don’t.” He rubbed a hand over his flat stomach. “I try to avoid sweets, but I can’t resist licorice drops. It’s better if you take them. Besides, my mother will send another jar in her next care package.”

They had reached his housing unit, and Kate welcomed the warmth of the interior after the chill of the night air. As Chase dialed an outside line, she stood in the middle of the room and looked around. Although she had already been inside his unit once, everything looked different at night. A desk lamp cast a warm glow, making the room seem almost cozy.

While Chase was concentrating on the phone, she took a covert peek into his bedroom. Disappointingly, his bed was neatly made and there was nothing to indicate that he had slept there at all. She would have enjoyed seeing rumpled blankets or clothes on the floor—anything to indicate the guy wasn’t completely perfect.

“Something interesting in there?” Chase asked, catching her.

Kate flushed. “I was, uh, just checking out your bed.”

His eyes grew hot, and Kate’s body responded instantly. Her breathing quickened and her imagination surged with images of the two of them, naked and entwined in his sheets. She would have sworn those same images were swirling through his head, too, but then he thrust the phone receiver at her, breaking whatever spell she had been under.

“Make your call,” he growled, and spun away.

Keeping a wary eye on him, Kate quickly dialed Tenley’s number, frustrated when the call went to voicemail.

“Tenley, it’s Katie. I told you that I’d be calling. Why aren’t you there?” She lowered her voice. “I don’t want you to worry about anything, okay? Russell will drive you to the airport tonight, and I’ll be right here waiting for you when you arrive. Okay, I’ll try to call you later.”

She hung up the phone and stood for a moment, chewing the edge of her finger. Where was Tenley and why wasn’t she answering the phone? She briefly considered calling Russell to ask him to check on her sister, and just as quickly discarded the idea. She’d asked both the housekeeper and Russell to keep an eye on Tenley and she trusted they would. There was a reasonable explanation for why her sister wasn’t answering the phone. She was not going to freak out, especially not when there wasn’t anything she could do about it.

She blew out a hard breath. “She’s not home.”

“Jeez, what a surprise,” Chase said drily. Seeing Kate’s annoyed expression, he spread his hands. “What? She’s not exactly Miss Responsible. If she was, you wouldn’t be here.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Chase gave her a tolerant look. “C’mon, Kate, don’t play coy with me. We both know that the only reason you’re here is to try and save your sister’s career.”

Kate desperately wanted to tell him he was wrong and that Tenley was coming over for all the right reasons. But seeing the truth in Chase’s eyes took the fight out of her. Plunking herself down on the nearby chair, she dropped her head into her hands.

“You’re right,” she admitted in a weary voice. “I’m not even sure she’ll come. I should have stayed behind and flown here with her, but she actually seemed excited about the prospect of coming.” Raising her head, she looked helplessly at Chase. “What if she doesn’t get on that plane? I mean, I can’t make her. I just thought if I came first and assured her that it wasn’t nearly as scary as everyone made her believe, then she wouldn’t be so reluctant.”