She ran her fingers through the dirt, desperately searching.
Come on, come on, where are you?
“Get the fuck out here, Sandler!”
She flinched at Jarrad’s shout. It was distant, but not so far off that she couldn’t make out his words.
“You fuckingshotme and probably killed my father. You’re gonna pay!”
Her fingers brushed over cold metal.
Yes.
Quickly, she grabbed the gun and crawled behind a tree. She tried to force her breathing to calm. Force the short, jagged breaths to deepen. It wasn’t easy when the pain in her ribs was like a living, breathing creature, squeezing her from the inside.
She wrapped her fingers so tightly around the gun that her knuckles ached.
When the silence around her stretched, her belly began to cramp and an icy chill swept over her skin. At least when Jarrad had been yelling at her, she’d known approximately where he was. How far. How much time she had to prepare. When he was quiet, he could be anywhere.
Her heart began to pound so hard that every beat felt like a punch to her ribs.
Then she heard it—the small snap of a stick right beside her.
She swung the gun around, but before she could fire, it was whipped out of her hand in a move so skilled and efficient, she barely felt the weapon being removed from her hold.
Then she was lifted and spun…and suddenly there was a body behind her, a hand pressed to her mouth.
She grunted at the ache to her ribs but still tried to fight. To kick and hit and do what she could to get away—until a voice sounded in her ear.
“You’re safe.”
She stilled. That wasn’t the voice of Jarrad or Mr. Anderson.
“I’m Jace Walker.”
Her eyes widened.Jace Walker?As in—
“I believe you’re dating my brother Eastern. Not sure why you’d pick that knucklehead, but here we are. I called him. He won’t be long.”
Eastern’s brother was here…and he wasjokingwith her. Was she dreaming? Maybe she’d passed out somewhere along the way.
But if she wasn’t, if this was real, then Eastern knew where she was. Not only that, but he was coming for her. And until he got here, his brother was keeping her safe. A brother who was former special forces, just like Eastern.
“I’m gonna take my hand off your mouth, but I need you to remain quiet. Okay?” His deep, gravelly voice sounded so much like Eastern’s.
She nodded quickly.
He removed his hand slowly, like he was scared she was still going to scream or make a noise.
“You’re hurt,” he said quietly. It wasn’t a question.
“My ribs…I think some are broken.”
A small growl sounded from him.
She turned her head, just making out the blue of his eyes in the little remaining light. Eyes that looked eerily similar to Eastern’s. But that was where the similarities stopped. While Eastern had dark hair, Jace had light. He also had lines around his eyes…laugh lines?
Despite their situation, he grinned at her. “Hey there, gorgeous. Don’t worry, I may look all sex and charm, but I know how to handle myself in a dangerous situation.”
