beautiful woman, but she doesn’t fucking belong here. You know that as well as I do,” Mathieson retorts angrily.
“You can’t deny how fucking long it has been since we’ve…”
“Shut the hell up, both of you! I need to figure shit out, and you two arseholes need to keep your heads, got it?” Franklin, the person I’ve deduced to be the leader of the trio, demands. His tone is authoritative and brooks no arguments.
“Fine. What’s the plan then?” Berrin asks, the smile in his voice replaced instead with seriousness.
There’s a moment of silence before Franklin speaks once more. “The storm’s still passing through and will be for a few more days, so I think we should get to know our little trespasser better. I guess there’s no time like the present.”
Before I can even contemplate creeping back down the stairs and arming myself for protection, the door is pulled open and I find myself looking up at the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. Beautiful like a panther… or bear, but terrifying at the same time. He’s a predator wrapped up in a stunning exterior that lulls you into a false sense of security.
“Well hello, sweetheart. You’re awake.”
“I—I’m…” I stutter, completely taken aback by the huge guy peering down at me with light blonde hair and hazel eyes. The lower half of his face is covered in a short beard, a shade darker than his hair, that makes him look even more rugged and handsome. He leans against the door frame, his huge forearms flexing as they fold against his chest. He regards me impassively, little shavings of wood stuck to his red and black plaid shirt. This must be Franklin.
I should be running, I should be fighting, I should be screaming for help, but all I can do is look up at this man and remain still. There’s no flight or fight instinct, just a deer caught in headlights reaction. I can’t seem to move, react, let alone speak.
“I—I’m…” I start again, trying and failing to form any words.
“Wearing my t-shirt,” he comments, tipping his head to the side as his fingers pluck at the collar.
When his knuckles brush against the side of my neck, a strange kind of heat blooms beneath my skin chasing a shiver down my spine. Swallowing hard and blinking back my shock at his touch, words spill from my mouth in a breathy rush. “It was left on the bed.”
“Was it now?” he murmurs, cupping my cheek. I stiffen, and he frowns. Concern and something I can’t quite read seems to edge his gaze, crinkling the fine lines around his eyes and deepening the groove between his eyebrows. The look is fleeting and disappears when two more faces appear behind him.
“Yeah, it was the only one clean.” A man grins down at me, his expression full of mirth as his green eyes sparkle with amusement, the Irish accent giving him away. This must be Berrin. He has a flop of medium brown hair lighted with natural golden streaks that fall into his eyes. “Hey, darling,” he says. “You’re even more beautiful in the light of day.”
I shuffle backwards, fully aware that I’m precariously close to falling backwards down the stairs, but not actually giving a shit because right now, he’s looking at me like I’m his next meal. He grins at me from beneath a thick brown beard that is a little longer in length than Franklin’s.
“Stop! You’re about a foot away from breaking your neck,” the final guy says, shoving Franklin aside and lunging for me. He grabs my upper arms, pulls me to my feet and holds me against his broad chest before I even get the chance to really take in his appearance. His scent is divine, like warm, salt-crusted bread and for a moment, I’m caught in his hold, the length of me pressed against the length of him. He’s all hard muscles and sharp edges opposed to my more supple, curvy figure. The way he holds me is gentle, surprisingly, given he was the one who’d said that I didn’t belong here.
“I’m f—fine,” I manage to stutter, trying to pull away but he holds me tighter.
“You’re far from fine,” he whispers.
I draw in a shocked breath as he scoops me up in his arms and strides down the steps oblivious to the tremors wracking my body. He lays me gently on the bed, and I immediately scrabble backwards away from him, my gaze fixed firmly on his grey eyes shadowed