Free Mountain Moonlight by Jane Toombs

sweetness lay a throbbing current of need that she sensed in him, even as she felt it herself.
    He pulled away. "Dream of me," he ordered.
    As Vala undressed in her tent and crawled into her sleeping bag, his command echoed in her mind. I won't, she told herself firmly. Isn't it enough he's invaded my every thought? I refuse to let him into my dreams.
    Unfortunately, once she was asleep, she couldn't command her unconscious mind....
    She and Bram raced across the country on a big Harley, what bikers call a hog. Clinging to him as they flew down a lonesome desert highway, she relished the feel of the wind blowing past. To either side of the road, bright patches of red dotted the barrenness--flowers of the ocotillo, she knew, bloomed in May.
    But this wasn't May--was it?
    She brushed away the sense of wrongness. What could be more right than fleeing with Bram on his bike?
    Fleeing? From what?
    Unease threatened her contentment. Was there something important she'd forgotten? Left behind? Yet what could be more important than Bram?
    He was taking her away from loneliness, from boredom, taking them into a fantasy realm of happiness for just the two of them. Once they reached this fabulous spot, he'd wrap his arms around her and never let her go. They'd never return, the two of them would dwell forever in that magic place.
    If only this feeling she was forgetting something would vanish she'd be blissfully happy...
     
     

 
    Chapter 6
     
    When Vala awoke in the morning, the dream was still haunting her. It took her a few moments to realize that Davis wasn't in the tent, which didn't alarm her. On this trip he'd almost always been up and about before she roused. As she dressed, she thought about the dream and suddenly realized Davis hadn't been in it, any more than he was in the tent. He was what she'd left behind. Something she'd never do.
    Shaking her head, she emerged from the tent and glanced around. The day was fair and slightly cool. Neither Davis nor Bram were in sight. Undisturbed--Davis was in good company--she poured herself a cup of coffee and sipped at it while she breathed in the fresh mountain air.
    When, from behind her, Bram said, "Good morning," she almost dropped the cup in her startlement.
    "You scared me half to death, sneaking up behind me like that," she accused.
    "Not intentional. Davis sleeping in?"
    She gaped at him for a moment, belatedly aware her son was still nowhere in sight. "He wasn't with you?"
    Bram shook his head. "Haven't seen him at all this morning. You mean he's not in the tent?"
    "No!"
    As one they turned to look at the horses. All four were still tethered. Davis hadn't taken any of them.
    "He's lost!" Vala cried. "He's lost up here with poisonous snakes and lizards all around. He could have fallen off a cliff or..."
    "Calm down." Bram told her. "Where we are now there are no cliffs he could fall off. And he knows about poisonous reptiles. My guess is he went exploring while he was waiting for us to get up."
    "But you sleep outside. You must have seen him."
    "I slept later than usual."
    "Do something, can't you?" she demanded. "My son's lost on this cactus-infested mountain and you stand there telling me to calm down." She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Davis!"
    An echo was the only reply.
    "We've got to find him before it's too late," she said. "I'll go this way and you go that." She started off.
    His hand gripped her arm, stopping her. "I run this outfit." His voice was flat and hard. "I give the orders. We don't split up. I repeat, we do not split up. First thing you know there'd be two lost people instead of one. And I don't mean me."
    Panic rose in Vala. Wasn't he going to do anything? "He's only nine," she reminded him.
    "Davis has been to summer camps. And he's listened to my reminders of what to do if you get lost. It may take a little time, but we'll find him."
    "Your reminders!" She flung the words at him. "I can barely recall whatever advice you gave. If I was