“I know,” she whispered, scooting over to the side to make room for him on the pallet.
He stood, and for a heart-stopping moment, she thought he was leaving. Then his hands went to the fastenings of his pants, and her mouth went dry.
The fabric fell away, revealing the powerful lines of his body. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, muscles that spoke of years spent in combat. Scars marked his chest and arms, thin white lines that told stories she didn’t know. And between his thighs...
She looked away, heat flooding her face.
The furs shifted as he slid under them beside her. His skin was fever-hot against hers, and she couldn’t suppress the gasp that escaped as his arm came around her waist. He pulled her back against his chest, spooning her body against his.
It was heaven. Pure heaven.
His heat soaked into her cold skin, warming her from the outside in. She felt every inch of him pressed against her, the hard planes of his chest, the ridged muscle of his stomach, the unmistakable evidence of his arousal against her lower back. His skin was slightly rough, textured in ways that spoke of his alien heritage, and everywhere he touched sent sparks racing through her.
“Just warming up,” he murmured against her ear, but his voice was strained.
His arm tightened around her waist, and she felt the tension in his body, the way his muscles coiled with restrained power.
One word from her, and that leash would snap.
The thought sent liquid heat pooling low in her belly, making her shift against him in ways that had nothing to do with sharing body heat.
“Michelle.” Her name sounded like a warning on his lips. “Don’t.”
But she could hear the want beneath the warning. Felt it in the way his hand splayed across her stomach, fingertips just brushing the underside of her breast.
Warmth spread through her body, chasing away the numbness. Her fingers were beginning to tingle as circulation returned, and her toes were starting to ache with returning sensation.
Her eyelids grew heavy as warmth seeped into her bones. The steady rhythm of his breathing against her back, the solid wall of heat surrounding her—it was the first time she’d felt truly safe since the ferals had taken her.
“Sleep,” he said, his voice rough. “You need rest.”
She wanted to argue, to turn in his arms and face whatever was building between them. But exhaustion pulled her under, her body finally able to relax now that she was warm and safe.
As consciousness slipped away, she felt his lips brush against her hair, so softly she might have imagined it.
Chapter 6
Zeke’s eyes snapped open to the sound of fabric tearing.
Michelle thrashed against the furs like she was fighting for her life. The makeshift bed groaned under her violent movements, and her skin burned against his arm where they’d been pressed together moments before.
“No,” she gasped, head whipping from side to side. “Don’t... please don’t...”
Heat poured off her body. Sweat plastered dark hair to her skull, and her breathing came in rapid, shallow pants. He rolled away, the sudden absence of contact letting the cabin’s cold air bite at his skin.
Her injured leg kicked out, catching the edge of the wooden frame and she cried out, raw and terrified, but didn’t wake up.
Draanth. What the hell was?—
The smell hit him then. Sweet and rotten, like fruit left too long in the sun. Infection. The scent was unmistakable, and it was coming from her leg.
His hands moved to the bandages he’d wrapped around her calf the night before. The fabric burned against his fingers. When he peeled back the first layer, a yellow-green stain bled across the cloth. The wound beneath was angry red, the edges puffy with inflammation.
Oh gods, he was so draanthing stupid.
He should have seen this coming. The floodwater had been full of debris, rotting vegetation, and probably animal waste. Of course bacteria would have gotten into the open wound.
His jaw clenched as he examined the damage. Pus leaked from the edges of the cut, and the skin around it was hot enough to make him wince when he touched it. The infection was aggressive, red streaks already creeping higher, racing toward her heart.
