last thing I need is to be surrounded in his earthy, delicious scent while my body is still buzzing from his mouth on mine.
“It’s warmer up there. More comfortable.” He steps out of his boots, and I realize I’m still wearing mine. “You’ll need a couple good nights’ rest for the hike out.”
I don’t answer him.
“Get up there, or I’ll put you there myself.”
“Stop ordering me around!” I push up to my feet, unlace and kick my boots at him, then strip out of the flannel, sweatpants, and my jeans, leaving me in only my long underwear.
I try to ignore how his eyes never waver from me. Try not to notice how they darken and settle on my breasts as if he’s reliving the night before. Everything between my hips tingles and clenches, and before I set myself up for another rejection, I climb the ladder to the bed platform.
Thirteen
Alexander
Hours after she went up the ladder to go to bed, I lie on the floor and stare at the ceiling, waiting for her to fall asleep. I can hear the whisper of bedding as she tosses and turns, every murmured curse word and huff of restless frustration.
She’s not alone. My own body feels as though it’s been hooked up to a live wire. My blood is too hot and skin too tight, and an anxious energy stirs inside me. I snapped on her tonight, hurt her just like I feared I would. Finding her alone and sleeping against a tree without a fire and completely off guard snapped the last of my control. I bit her like an animal. To think, the only thing she should truly fear isn’t the beasts in the forest, but me. She was right to call me deranged. I’m glad she finally sees that I’m not a white knight.
My thoughts come to an abrupt halt when I hear more rustling from the bed platform, followed by the creak of the ladder rungs. I can tell she’s trying to be quiet as she creeps slowly down. She shouldn’t put forth the effort. From brain to groin—and every cell in between—has been obsessing on thoughts of her.
When her socked feet hit the wood floor, I keep my eyes closed, feeling the air shift around me as she moves through the cabin. Is she grabbing my rifle? Will she attempt to make a run for the door?
I wasn’t lying when I told her she should sleep in my bed to get a better night’s sleep, but I left out the detail of my keeping watch to ensure she doesn’t disappear on me again.
Her steps are nearly silent as she moves closer to the door. Heat burns and builds in my gut as I wait, listening for her to slip on her coat and boots. I will continue to hunt her. Every time she runs, I will track her down. But if she really wants out of here, there are things that must be done first, and I can’t do those things when I’m forced to keep saving her life.
I startle at the feeling of a warm weight against my thighs. My eyes shoot open, and I move to sit up, only to go still when I see her seated across my hips.
“Don’t talk,” she says firmly. “I have something I need to say.”
Not sure if she’s going to talk or put a knife to my throat, I prop up on my elbows and prepare to toss her away if needed. I nod once.
“I couldn’t sleep.” Her dark hair is wavy around her face, her cheeks flush from the heat of the woodstove, and her lower lip is bruised and swollen from my bite. That shit should not make me feel as satisfied as it does. I’m a sick fuck.
My gaze drops to the spot where the apex of her thighs meets my dick, and I swell beneath my jeans.
“I realized something while I was up there, surrounded by your woodsy scent and thinking over our last few weeks.”
“Get to the point,” I growl. “I’m not known for my self-control.”
Her tongue quickly presses against her swollen lip, and I wonder if she’s aware she even did it. “You like me.”
“That so?”
“Yes, that is so.” She braces her hand on my pec and leans forward to bring her face a little closer. The friction of the move against my body has me sucking in a breath. “Despite your annoyance to my talking and my questions, you still fed me, nursed