Sara
The shower felt like heaven.Steam curled around me, and for the first time in hours I was warm. No more shivering. No more teeth chattering. The water beat against my skin in a steady rhythm, washing away the sting of the wind and the ache in my bones.
Beyond the door I could hear low voices and laughter. These men weren’t like the ones in the main house. They were less intimidating but still carried that edge of quiet respect that came with knowing real danger. Respectful or not, though, I wasn’t about to waltz out there in nothing but a borrowed T-shirt.
I glanced down at the thin fabric clinging to my damp skin. Lucas would probably want to burn it once he got it back. I ran a hand over it, hesitating.
The mirror on the wall was still fogged, but not enough to hide the faint bruises shadowing my arms and legs. My throat tightened. Maybe if the lights were low, he wouldn’t notice.
I cracked the door open with every intention of making a mad dash to his room. But the second I caught his stare, I froze.
Lucas’s eyes found me instantly, his jaw going slack for a fraction of a second before he closed it again. His gaze flicked around the room like a quick assessment, then he stepped forward, instinctively putting himself between me and the men at the table.
I wasn’t sure if my heart was racing because I thought he didn’t want to be seen with me like this… or because he was. God, I hoped it was the second one, because everything about him, his size, his steadiness, that quiet intensity, it all had my body reacting in ways it hadn’t in a very long time.
It felt like high school all over again, except this time there was no quarterback controlling the narrative, no social ladder for me to cling to while pretending I was happy. It was just Lucas. And whatever emotion flickered in his eyes, it wasn’t anger. I knew anger. This was something else.
Two strides and he was next to me, his hand finding my waist like it belonged there. The heat of his palm seared through the thin fabric as he guided me firmly toward the back hall.
I almost smiled as he steered me away from the common room. Not because of the attention, but because of what it made me feel… beautiful, protected, seen. Worthy of someone stepping between me and the world. After years of neglect and second guessing myself, that simple gesture was anything but ordinary.
And I wanted to follow it wherever it led. What if I never got another chance like this? What if, after the storm passed, I ended up back in town, miserable and lonely again?
What if this was my one shot at something real? Something happy?
Lucas’s hand stayed firm at my waist as he guided me down the short hallway, away from the low voices and card shuffling of the other men. Each step seemed to echo, my pulse loud in my ears, my body hyperaware of his heat beside me.
The door to his room clicked shut behind us, sealing us off from the rest of the world. My breath caught, and I turned slightly, expecting him to let go, to put some space between us now that we were alone.
He didn’t.
If anything, his grip tightened, drawing me closer until my back brushed the solid wall of his chest. The heat of him, the strength, the quiet control, it was overwhelming.
“You shouldn’t be walking around out there like that,” he said, his voice a low rumble near my ear. Not angry. Possessive.
I swallowed hard. “I didn’t exactly have a lot of options.”
He exhaled sharply, his breath grazing my neck. “You don’t get it, Sara. The way they looked at you… the way they could look at you.” His thumb swept across my hip, slow and deliberate. “You’re mine to protect. They know it. Now you do too.”
My heart hammered so loudly I swore he must feel it against his chest. The words should have scared me, but instead they wrapped around me like a promise I’d been craving for years.
I turned in his arms, tilting my head back to meet his gaze. His eyes were dark and stormy, like the night raging outside.
“Lucas…” My voice shook. “What happens when the storm ends? When this is over and life goes back to what it was?”
His jaw flexed, and for a second I saw the boy I’d once known. The boy who’d been my secret crush while I belonged to someone who’d never truly seen me.
“It doesn’t go back,” he said, the words fierce and final. “Not after this. Not after you.”
My breath caught, and then his lips were on mine.
The kiss wasn’t soft or tentative. It was deep, claiming, years of longing and buried want that ignited in a single touch. My fingers fisted in his shirt, pulling him closer, needing more.
His hands slid to my thighs, and I sucked in a sharp breath, instinctively flinching.
Lucas froze, his gaze snapping down. That’s when he saw them. The dark smudges marring my skin, faint but unmistakable under the thin shirt.
His chest rose on a slow, dangerous breath. “Sara…”
