enjoyed the shiver she gave him in response. “I would be lying if I said I didn’t want you with me. From the moment we met, I’ve wanted to be near you. I just assumed you would be safe back in the states before I faced them.”
“I thought I pushed myself on you too hard,” she said, laying her head against his shoulder. Her arm snaked out and hugged his back. Beneath the cotton cloth of his shirt, he could feel her soft hand tracing the lines of his shoulder blades.
“You can push yourself on me anytime you want,” he chuckled. His voice was husky again.
Braden wished he could bury his face in her hair and pull her closer. Her nearness, her touch – she did something to him he had never felt with anyone else.
Turning her face up at him, he could see the slight stain of a blush redden her cheeks. With eyes wide, her heart was racing in response to his attempt at flirting. The truth was, he very much wanted her to desire him.
Leaning closer, he considered kissing her. Liz’s lips were perfectly shaped and a pleasing shade of pink. He wanted to taste her and see if she was as sweet as he imagined. If the warmth he received from her touch would carry through to her kiss.
Suddenly, a flapping sound swooshed overhead. Liz’s head yanked back quickly. Crying out in alarm, her hands nested into her hair. “Ouch! Something just scratched my scalp.”
Jumping to his feet, Braden scanned his surroundings, looking for the culprit. Perched on the fire extinguisher by the door, was an owl. “How the hell did that thing get in here?”
“What is it? I can’t see anything,” she said, standing.
“A greyish brown owl. I’ve seen them back home, but never like this, the sucker’s huge.”
“Aren’t they nocturnal?”
“Usually. I don’t know how it got in here.”
Chastising himself for not paying close enough attention to what was around them, Braden tried clearing his head. He was lucky it wasn’t a draugr. Thinking about Liz in any way other than on a flight to Maine was bound to get her hurt. It was just so tempting, being alone with a beautiful girl so close in the dark. It made him want more in a way that felt right but unfamiliar.
The only problem was Liz didn’t feel the same way about him and even if she did, it wasn’t going to get them out of Vancouver alive.
15
LIZ
An early evening rain had fallen. In the encroaching darkness, Liz and Braden headed back upstairs to change their clothes and tidy up before the others awoke.
Having ventured out in the weather for a quick walk in search of food and bottled water, Liz was saturated. Braden, too. Everything they owned was back at the motel, but Braden didn’t think they had enough time to catch a cab there and back before sunset. Liz didn’t push it. She knew if they got in a cab, he would end up changing his mind again about her staying with him. Instead, they had settled with what the neighborhood minimart had on hand.
There were a few tourist shirts for sale along with post cards and “I heart Canada” shot glasses, but not a lot of variety. Liz chuckled when Braden settled for a muscle shirt that read, “These guns don’t belong in any holster.” It was that or the “Free Hugs and Kisses” top. For the sake of getting dry, her preppy damphyr settled with a shirt that made him look like a cast member for “Jersey Shore.”
Riley left them at dawn. With the promise to return as soon as the sun set, Riley’s only warning was to stay out of the basement. Other than that they were left to their devices. No locking the doors, no barricading the stairwell shut. The whole thing was confusing.
While Braden cleaned up in the next room, Liz tried making herself look as pleasant and non-threatening as possible. Dragging a comb through her long hair, she missed her flat iron. Liz preferred wrestling her hair into submission, leaving the natural look for Lexie, but she was out of options. The lose waves had a mind of their own. Giving up, she tossed the comb into her purse and sat down with a bag of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies.
Nibbling on the baked good, Liz wondered about Braden. She hadn’t seen him eat anything at all. Unless he went hunting the night before their flight, she was pretty