I hurry up to the main floor again with the metal poles in my hand, banging against the door frame as I rush through it. The guys step out of my way and stare open-mouthed after me as I run out the back door. The screen door barely claps behind me before I hear the guys rushing after me.
Lightning flashes off in the distance, and I count to four before the thunder growls its hello. The clouds above us give up their hold on the rain, and I’m pelted by it as I rush over to the plot of land I use as a garden. This storm is fast and furious. My favorite kind. I find the perfect isolated spot out back, and jam the base of the first metal piece into the somewhat damp ground, and then get to work constructing the rest of it.
“What the hell are you doing?” Theo shouts over the wind at me, his shirt already soaked form the rain.
I look over at him and the others and gesture to the very obvious metal tree I’m putting up. “Lightning!” I tell him, pointing to the sky. “Gotta get this conductor in the ground.”
They stare at me, and Brant rubs his temples. When Theo tries to stop me from installing the next piece, I slap his hand away. “I’m in a hurry. Believe me, this conductor is tried and true. We do not want to be here when the lightning hits it.”
Madix swears loudly and thenhe’sslappingmyhands away. He grabs the heavier pieces of the metal tree and starts snapping them into place using the hooks and built-in fasteners. He doesn’t even have to jump up to do the last piece, because he’s that tall. I rub the water away from my face and look on, adequately impressed as his soaking-wet shirt shows off every muscle that bulges and stiffens as he puts together one of my many masterpieces.
He snaps the last piece into place like he’s been putting the metal contraption together his whole life, and fastens it on the top. All four of us look at the impressive metal tree, nicely pointed and isolated for the perfect lightning attraction. And speaking of attraction...wet GI Joes are just as appealing as dry ones, no doubt about that.
“Nicely done,” I tell him with an approving nod as I turn back toward the house.
As soon as I step through the back door and out of the rain, I see Brant’s dog standing at attention in the kitchen with a suspicious puddle on the hardwood floor directly underneath her.
“Puddles,” Brant says with exasperation as he steps into the kitchen and spots the same thing. He winces and looks at me. “Sorry. She hates thunderstorms.”
“Yep,” Theo says, coming inside and running a hand through his brown hair, getting water all over the rug. I’m not the least bit bothered. The whole sopping wet and slicked back look is really working for him. “It’s why he named her Puddles. As soon as she hears thunder, she freezes up and lets loose a piss storm.”
Madix comes in last, unlacing his muddy boots and setting them by the door. Dude really is a neat freak. “What the fuck was that?” he asks.
His level of anger takes me aback. “What?”
He points out the window as he slams the door shut.“That.Why the hell did you run outtowardthe storm to install a fucking metal conductor?”
Geez Louise, he’s wound up tight. I’d like to unwind him. Using his penis. I wonder how many twists it would take…
“Well?” Madix’s furious tone rips me from my dirty thoughts.
“Oh. Well, lightning is an amazing fertilizer. Obviously,” I tell him as I start to strip off the soaked flannel that’s suctioned to me.
“That was stupid and fucking dangerous,” he growls. “Your father sending us out here to get you makes a hell of a lot more sense now,” he goes on. It sounds like he’s gearing up for a really long lecture, so I stay quiet and continue taking off the rest of my wet clothes. I don’t want to track even more water into the house. “You can’t be trusted to ride this virus out on your own. You’re hazardous to your own safety,” he says, and then he goes on about how I probably have an abnormally good immune system based on my living conditions, because a normal person would probably have died from salmonella or something by now.
I snort as I pop open the button of my jeans and yank off the wet denim down my hips and thighs. As soon as I kick them off, Madix stops speaking mid-word, like he’s just now noticed that I’m undressing. I yank the shirt off over my head next and then stand there, perfectly happy for them to look their fill as I stand in my underwear. Brant quickly looks away, which is adorable. Theo peruses me unashamedly, while Madix’s angry gaze turns aggressively hungry.
I’m not the sort of girl to be embarrassed by my body, or cower away from the gaze of a man, I find their different reactions to my current state of undress amusing. Madix looks like he’s trying hard to hang onto his irritation so he can still be pissed at me, but he also wants to fuck me. He has that hungry alpha asshole look down pat. Speaking of down… I look down at their crotches and see three hardening lengths tenting their black cargos. I nod with satisfaction. “Very impressive,” I admit.
It takes several long seconds, but Brant finally clears his throat and moves to the pile of wood stacked next to my fireplace. The goosebumps on my skin confirm the drop in temperature in the house, and I watch for a minute as Brant stacks the logs and adds kindling before lighting it all up.
“I’m gonna shower. You boys feel free to join me,” I tell them with a wink before walking my panty-clad ass down the hall. I think I hear one of them groan, and I smile as a clap of thunder rumbles through the house, drowning out the noise. My time on the mountain just got way more exciting.
7
Brant
Theo slaps a hand over his face while Madix just stares after Remi, shaking his head. Well, she sure as hell isn’t what any of us thought she was going to be. Theshepart was quite the surprise, plus the odd and quirky part that is proving to keep us on our toes, and then there’s the hot as fuck part, which is the surprise we seem to be struggling with the most. No disrespect to Sheriff April, but his daughter is downright fuckable. If only she weren’t so crazy.
The distinct sound of a shower turning on reaches us in the living room, but it soon blends in with the sound of the rain falling furiously outside. Theo and Madix turn to me and we all stare at one another, completely bewildered. Puddles sits down at my feet and gives a squeaky doggy yawn, like none of this is a big deal. I give her a look that lets her know I haven’t forgotten about her traitorous ways.
“So, what the fuck do we do now?” Madix asks, always the one to need a solid plan he can then execute flawlessly.
From the looks of things so far, this Remi chick is going to do all she can to mess up any plans we may have for the simple recovery and return mission we thought this was going to be. Thunder pounds through the house, and my fingers twitch at my side. Puddles presses into me and I take deep breaths, reminding myself it’s a storm—not bombs, not gunfire, not a threat.
“You think she’ll actually go with us?” Theo asks. “Because that’s not the impression I got. I don’t know what went down with her and the sheriff, but she seems intent on staying out here, regardless of what’s happening with the rest of the country.”
“She might be fine out here. She’s pretty isolated, already off the grid, and clearly self-sufficient,” I offer, and Theo nods his agreement.
