"Stop." Ellie holds up her hand. "You don't have to convince me. Go get Dane and bring him inside before those bastardssee him." She gestures at the door and grimaces in reluctant surrender, and I'm on my feet before she can change her mind.
"Thank you. Thank you so much." Relief floods me as I open the back door and signal to Dane. He emerges from the shadows, gun tucked away but clearly wary. When he reaches the porch, his eyes meet mine with a question and I pull him inside. He drops the bags by the door, and I can feel how rigid his muscles are, how tense he is.
"It's okay," I mumble to him, but I still feel his hesitation. There is a hint of fear any time you trust someone with your secrets because it makes you vulnerable.
But Ellie's already pulling another mug from the cabinet. "Sit, both of you. You look half-dead." She slinks to the lights and flips them off, and the kitchen plunges into darkness. But the glow from the microwave clock is enough to see her moving.
We sink into chairs at her kitchen table while she makes tea that smells heavenly. Her back is to us, and I squint my eyes to see Dane's face screwed up into a dark scowl. He hates asking someone for help, but I'm going to show him that it will be alright. I find his hand under the table and squeeze it, but he pulls away after that.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into this," Dane says when Ellie sets steaming mugs in front of us. "The people after us are dangerous. If they find out you're helping?—"
"Let me worry about that." She sits across from us, wrapping her hands around her own mug. "I've lived in Sutter's Gap my entire life. I know everyone in this town, and they know me. If some city thugs think they can intimidate us, they're in for a surprise."
"Ellie, they shot the sheriff." I don't know if she quite understands what we're up against. "Wade tried to talk to them and they shot him without hesitation."
Her face falls. "Yeah, we heard something happened, but no one is pointing fingers yet. Doctors say he'll make it, but it was close. Varen's been coordinating with state police, trying to get additional support, but it's chaos out there." She looks between us. "What did you do to make these people so angry?"
"I, uh…" Dane falters for a second, and I know he's never going to tell her the full story. He'd be a fool to do so. "Let's just say sometimes, people have a hard time letting go of the past. And Sloane and I neither one kept our hands entirely clean as far as these men go." I squeeze his knee this time and feel his hand cover mine.
"It's just better that you don’t know, Ellie. Those men, they're scary.“ I try my hardest to keep her in the dark as much as possible, and she seems to get the point.
"I understand. And for what it's worth, I figured you weren't really ex-military. You move wrong, talk wrong. I've known enough veterans to spot one." She stands and moves toward the hallway. "Well, I'm exhausted and you two need rest. I've got a guest room down the hall. Fresh towels in the bathroom. You can shower, sleep… Stay as long as you'd like." Her shuffled walk reveals just how tired she is. I pick up my mug and nod at Dane who stands and does the same, then collects our bags from the back door.
"We can't thank you enough," I say, following her up the hall, Dane behind me. "This is more than we could've hoped for."
"You don't have to thank me." She opens a door to reveal a modest bedroom with a double bed and a nightlight in the corner. "Just keep the lights off. If anyone's watching the houses around town, they'll see you inside." Her eyes are tired as she smiles at me. "Thank you for trusting me with at least part of the truth."
I feel like I'm going to cry. I knew coming here was a good idea, even when Dane swore it wasn't safe. I reach out and take her hand and she nods at me and smiles. "Thank you, Ellie, for being a friend."
"Get some rest and warm up. If I'm gone before you wake, it's because I have to open the diner."
She closes the door, leaving us alone in the quiet room. For the first time in days, I feel warm enough to remove my jacket and relax. The relief is overwhelming.
"She's good people," Dane says, pulling off his jacket. "Better than we deserve."
"She saw right through us." I'm already moving toward the bathroom, desperate for hot water. And I smile at her confession. It must've been so obvious I wasn't his sister by the way I look at him. The sheriff probably saw it too.
"Everyone probably knew," he grumbles, still acting grumpy. "We're not exactly subtle." He follows me, and when I turn on the shower, steam immediately fills the small space. When he shuts the door and flicks the light on, I'm already half naked. "You shower first and warm up."
"Or you could join me…" I say, inviting him with a flick of my eyes. "It's practical… saves water…" I pull him toward the shower as I kick my shoes off and undo my jeans with one hand.
His eyes darken as one eyebrow lifts. "There's nothing practical about what I'm thinking right now, Sloane."
"Good." I start stripping off my jeans. "I'm thinking the same thing."
Steam curls around us like a living thing, cloaking the bathroom in its warmth. Dane’s eyes lock on me, and I’m already peeling off the rest of my clothes, socks slapping against the tile, jeans kicked into the corner. My skin prickles as the spray hits me, scalding me and washing away hours of frostbite and tension.
I step under the water and crook a finger at him. “Get in here, Strouse.”
"It's Barrett, actually," he mumbles, but I'm not surprised. I wonder what else I'm going to learn about him in the coming days, and I feel like nothing could surprise me at this point.
His boots thud on the floor. Then his shirt's gone, jeans shoved down. And then he’s naked and gorgeous and hard, stepping in behind me. The second his chest meets my back, I melt. His hands slide around my waist, up to my breasts, thumbs brushing my nipples until I have to bite my lip to keep from moaning out loud.
“Shh,” he growls against my ear, voice rough. “Ellie’s right down the hall.”
“Then you'd better make this quick and quiet,” I whisper back, grinding my ass against his cock.
He grunts as I turn in his arms, water streaming between us, and crash my mouth into his. His lips part on a rough exhale, tongue sliding against mine, and I'm desperate for this. I bite his bottomlip, just hard enough, and he growls into me, hands sliding down to grip my ass and haul me flush against his body.
