She sat on a fallen log, her breath coming out in sharp pants.The toll of fear, running for her life, and struggling with the injury was catching up to her.“I’ll tell you when you get here.”
“I’m close.Less than five minutes.”
Thank god.
“Hang tight, and—”
“Quin?”she squeaked.
“Yeah?”The timbre of his voice calmed her nerves.
“Stay on the phone with me, okay?”
A beat passed.“’Course.”
He asked her random questions, keeping her talking even though she gave only one-word answers.The wind picked up strength, making the trees sway and the leaves stir.
But it did nothing to dispel the sensation that she was being watched.
Not watched.Hunted.
***
Quin whipped thevehicle to the side of the road and kicked open his door.Tire tracks ate up the gravel on the shoulder at the edge of the pavement, confirming the spot Josie had described.Fuck him sideways.The skid marks ran a good fifteen feet.“I’m here,” he said into the phone, still pressed to his ear.
He’d managed to escape from Frasier’s house undetected.He’d hid in the bedroom closet while Frasier ran in with his shoes on, snagged his laptop from the bed, and left.Had he been caught, he probably would have killed the sonofabitch, which wouldn’t have done him, Josie, or Liam any justice.
Now, Frasier entered his mind once again.He’d been out of the house while Josie had been attacked.It wasn’t inconceivable that he’d spotted her running and taken action.He balled his free hand into a fist and stomped over the ditch and into the woods.
He and Liam had hiked near Voyer Lake often, so the area wasn’t unfamiliar.If he wasn’t mistaken, the ravine started about a hundred feet from the road.
“Call out to me,” he said, his tone terse.
A sharp whistle sounded straight ahead and in the speaker of his phone.He picked up his pace.Movement up ahead caught his eye.Josie stood from a fallen log and lifted her hand in the air.She lowered her phone and he disconnected, dropping the device into his pocket.
He approached, brushing away tree branches and the mosquitos that had come out like vampires now that the sun was buried in clouds and raindrops fell outside the forest.
Strands fell from Josie’s ponytail, making her hair fluff out around her face in cute curls.Her cheeks were stained pink and a path of dirt dotted her forehead and ran all the way down to her toes.
She took a step forward and her mouth twisted in pain.He caught her elbow, relieving the pressure on her foot.“What the hell happened?”
“I fell down the ravine.”
He nodded at her foot.“Is it sprained?”
“It’s not serious.Just needs some ice.”
He bent down and caught her knees, but her hand clapped his shoulder.“No.I can walk—I just need assistance.”
He snorted.“It’s raining.A storm’s rolling in.Sorry, darlin’, but I’m not shuffling through the forest to get eaten by mosquitos so you can save a shred of pride.”
She lifted her chin and harumphed.“Well, you’re notcarryingme for heaven’s sake.”
“Watch me.”He swept her into his arms, cradling her to his chest.
A scowl pierced her brow, and the dirt across it only accentuated how royally pissed off she was.“You can thank me later when you’re able to walk,” he said.
She exhaled through her nose, and her weight relaxed in his arms.Her hand fell to press against his chest, scorching his skin through his long-sleeved shirt.Rain filtered through the treetops, dampening his shoulders and face.If he was getting this wet in the forest, it was probably pouring now.A million questions sizzled in his mind—like, who the fuck had run her off the road?But he pressed his tongue to the roof of his mouth.He didn’t have a free hand to fight, so they were both vulnerable.
