Free Wild Thing by Robin Kaye Page A

needed it. Karma laughed. “Am I worried?” If she were worried about anything, it would be Hunter getting in way over his head with this chick. She shook her head. “No, not especially.” Damn, this was easier than third-grade math and a lot more fun.
    The door swung open and hit the wall. Aw hell, Hunter had caught her, and just when things were beginning to get interesting.
    “Damnit, Karma. When did you get here?”
    Hunter saw she’d been there long enough to make a sandwich and wolf down more than half of it. Not to mention drink his last Coke. He grabbed the can off the table and finished it. “Did Mom make me cookies?”
    “Yeah, they’re on the refrigerator. I put the book in your desk and stashed the other things I thought you might need in your bedside table.”
    Karma smiled that wicked smile of hers, and he knew exactly what she’d stuck in his drawer—damn, the girl was embarrassing, not to mention perceptive.
    “You’re welcome, by the way.”
    Toni’s eyes went wide when he tugged on Karma’s hair. “Toni, I see you’ve met my little sister, Karma. I’m sorry.”
    Karma looked up at him with that same grin she always wore when she was getting him in trouble.
    What the hell was she up to? God, the possibilities were endless. “I trust you’re not behaving.” He grabbed the tin off the top of the fridge. “And you helped yourself to my cookies too.”
    “You’re just lucky there’s any left after the trip. I left before I could eat breakfast, and I missed dinner last night since I was driving all over Boise running your little errands. I had to go to two stores.” She turned to Toni. “I do him a huge favor, and this is the thanks I get.”
    Hunter shoved a cookie in his mouth and offered the tin to Toni. She shook her head and slid the tin away. “Thanks, but no. She’s your sister?”
    Hunter nodded. “Yeah, why? Who did you think she was?” Damn Karma and her games.
    Toni shrugged. “I don’t know… a girlfriend maybe?”
    Hunter closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead where a headache was settling. “Karma? Why would Toni think that?”
    Karma threw out her arms. “I haven’t the foggiest.”
    “You could have introduced yourself.”
    Karma’s Cheshire grin peeked out again. “Well, what would be the fun in that?”
    Toni pushed away her lunch before crossing her arms. “Where have I heard that before?”
    Hunter couldn’t help but notice Toni had hardly eaten a thing. “If you don’t like the sandwich, I could fix you something else. I have plenty of food.”
    “No thanks, I’m not very hungry. Besides, you’re the one who said I’m heavier than I look, remember?”
    “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
    Karma laughed. “I’m sorry, Toni. You’ll have to excuse my brother. He can’t help himself. I’m told he takes after our father—a sweet-talker he is not. His mouth sees more feet than a treadmill at a crowded gym. I know him. Any comment he made about your weight was meant as a compliment. It’s his way of saying you’re in great shape, which, by the way, you are.”
    Hunter couldn’t wait to get rid of his sister. He’d thought once she grew up, Karma wouldn’t be such a pest. He’d been wrong.
    Karma’s hand slid toward the open tin. Hunter slapped the top on. Craning her neck back, Karma looked up at him. “Do you really want to go there?”
    “Fine. You can have one more, but that’s it.”
    Shaking her head, Karma looked back at Toni. “Brothers.”
    Hunter secured his stash of cookies and grinned. “Oh, look, you’ve finished your lunch. Thanks for stopping by.” He pulled the little brat right out of her seat and walked her toward the door. “It’s a long drive back. You better get on it.”
    “Oh, no rush. I’m not working tonight, and lucky you, I have a few days off. I was thinking of hanging out here. You don’t mind, do you?”
    “As a matter of fact—”
    She cut him off. “Where are Fisher and Trapper? I