Reilly's Woman Read Online Free PDF Page A

stiffly in protest. The opposite side of the material resembled aluminium. Its silvery finish glistened in the flashlight beam. "Besides, higher up the mountain there are some loose tailings from an abandoned mine. The rain might bring it down and block the door by morning. Out here, we might get wet and cold—it wouldn't be any warmer in the plane—but we wouldn't be trapped inside the mangled wreckage."
    Again, Leah had to submit to the wisdom of his reasoning. But she was wet and cold, and getting colder. Her teeth had started to chatter and her arm was beginning to stiffen and feel sore.
    "What are we going to do?" Her gaze wearily moved to him. Since all her thoughts seemed to have been wrong, it was time he suggested something.  
    "Stand up."
    His hand was at her elbow, lifting her upright. Leah stood, waiting uncertainly for his next move. The thin, blanket-size sheet was partially wrapped around her, rising above her head in a stiff half-hood.
    "Hold the side," Reilly instructed, pushing an edge of the material into her fingers. He hesitated, drawing her curious gaze. "What we're going to do is wrap ourselves together in this blanket, using our body heat to keep us warm and the blanket to keep out as much of the rain as possible."
    "You're saying we should sleep together." Leah repeated the essence of his words. She was shivering and trying to keep her teeth from chattering too loudly. "It's the logical and practical thing to do, isn't it?" she added wryly.
    "Yes," he nodded with a faint smile on his wet face.
    She was too cold and wet and miserable to care that her straitlaced parents would be horrified to learn their daughter was sleeping under the same blanket with a virtual stranger.
    "By all means, let's do it," she agreed, weakly returning his smile.
    An arm slid around the bulky folds of the raincoat at her waist as he drew the stiff blanket behind and around him. At his signal, they eased themselves to the ground in unison.
    Reilly lay on his back, drawing Leah's head and shoulders on his chest and curving the rest of her against his length. Pellets of rain struck at the blanket, hammering to get in, but the waterproof material kept them dry.
    At first she was conscious only of the cold wetness of his hard form, then gradually she felt his body warmth steaming through his soaked clothes and she snuggled closer, shivering uncontrollably. His hands began rubbing her back, shoulders and waist, stimulating her circulation while taking care to avoid her injured arm that throbbed dully now.
    "Is that better?" Warm breath stirred the air near her forehead.
    "Much better." She inhaled deeply in contentment. The musky scent of his maleness was heightened by the rain.
    His hands maintained their slow, steady rhythm. A small fire was glowing inside her. She was beginning to feel human again. Her mind stopped dwelling on her physical discomfort and started to wander on to other subjects.
    "A search party will start looking for us tomorrow, won't they?" she said quietly.
    "Yes."
    "How long do you think it will take them to find us?"
    "It's hard to say," For a minute Leah thought that was the only reply Reilly was going to make, then he enlarged upon his answer. "There wasn't time for a mayday call to give our location. Grady had his hands full trying to keep from nosing into the side of the  
    mountain. If he filed a flight plan, he flew off-course trying to avoid the center of the storm. A search would initially cover the planned route, then widen its area if the plane wasn't found."
    "Then it could be late tomorrow before they find us?"
    A moment of slight hesitation followed her question.
    "There's a lot of rugged terrain a party would have to cover. It could be Sunday—or Monday."
    Leah shuddered, this time not from the cold. "I'm glad I didn't let Lonnie know I was coming. He won't be worrying about me for a while anyway, wondering if I'm dead or alive."
    The authorities would first notify her