Blood Trails Read Online Free PDF Page A

the Hunter. He tried not to think about that man also being Holly’s birth father. After what he’d learned, the only reason he hadn’t ignored her demand to go alone was because so many years had passed and no new murders had been linked to the Hunter. Knowing that, he couldn’t help but believe the man was either dead or had long since moved on.
    The fact that the woman he loved still didn’t know how he felt—might never know—left him with a sick, empty feeling, as if his life were on hold. The only thing he did know was that he wasn’t going to be the one to mess up their relationship. If all she ever wanted from him was the brotherly, family-friend relationship they had now, then so be it.
    He glanced at the clock on the dashboard, then increased speed. Check-in at Missoula International Airport wasn’t usually an issue, but he didn’t want to add to her nervousness by making her have to run for her gate. Then he noticed her digging through her purse and wondered if she’d forgotten something.
    “You doing okay?” he asked.
    “Yes, just double-checking,” Holly said. “Remember, I left my hotel information on the notepad in the kitchen. Don’t forget to take extra food to the barn to feed that old mama cat, since she’s due to have babies soon. And have the hands do the heavy work until your hand has healed. If—”
    Bud interrupted her. “Dang it, Holly, I am a fully grown man. I can figure this out by myself. Just do what you have to do and quit worrying about everything else, okay?”
    Holly tried a smile, but the anger in his voice was unsettling. She couldn’t bear to leave him on a sour note.
    “Are you mad at me about something?”
    He sighed. “Lord no. I’m just feeling sorry for myself and worried about you, okay?”
    “Okay,” Holly said, and settled back.
    When they finally reached the airport, Bud drove up to the departure area, popped the trunk and got out to help.
    The chill of the early-morning air was sharp. Holly shuddered as she stepped out of the car and shouldered her purse, but she wasn’t fast enough to beat Bud to the trunk.
    “I can do it,” she said when he started to lift her suitcase out of the trunk. But he ignored her and hefted it out with one hand. “Okay, I’m duly impressed at how strong you are.”
    Bud sat the suitcase on the curb and then turned around to face her.
    Holly started to tease him but was suddenly silenced by the look on his face. Then she saw him take a deep breath, and within seconds the expression was gone and his familiar smile was back in place.
    “Don’t come inside with me,” Holly said. “I’m afraid I’ll cry in front of everyone when it’s time to go.”
    Bud’s heart dropped, but he made himself smile. “So, am I going to get my goodbye hug?” He opened his arms.
    Holly walked into his embrace and laid her cheek against his chest, struggling against the urge to cry as he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close. For a second she thought about throwing herself on his mercy and begging him to love her.
    “I’m going to miss you,” Holly said, as she leaned back to meet his gaze.
    Bud saw her lips part, and the urge to kiss them nearly felled him. Instead, he made himself smile again.
    “I’m going to miss you, too, sugar. Promise me you’ll be careful, that you won’t take crazy chances…and that you’ll call me. With all three of you gone, I swear to God I’m going to get ulcers.”
    Holly grinned. “I will. I promise.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “’Bye, Bud.” She pointed at his bandage. “And be careful.”
    “I will if you will,” he said, then glanced back at the traffic. “I’m going to have to move.”
    When he walked away, Holly began to panic, but she couldn’t let it show. Instead of throwing herself into his arms and begging him to take her back home, she smiled.
    “Drive safely,” she called after him. “I’ll call as soon as I get to the hotel.”
    “Call