There was a small kitchenette, an open door that showed the bathroom, a closed door that was probably a closet, a fireplace with a small couch and chair situated in front of it, and books. Lots and lots of books.
She glanced back at the bed and saw that he hadn’t moved an inch and his eyes were still closed. Filling a glass with water, she shook two tablets from the bottle Michael had given her and set them on a table near the bed. A quick trip to the bathroom procured a washcloth and towel. The water from the tap didn’t warm up and it took her a minute to realize it wasn’t going to. As much of her life as she’d spent in the woods, it hadn’t been at places that didn’t have gas, electricity and phone lines.
She squeezed as much of the cold water out of the cloth as she could before bringing it to his body. He jerked at the first contact, but soothed easily as she ran the cloth around his sweaty chest, arms and face. She tried to think like a nurse, rather than a woman who hadn’t had sex in nearly a year. Yeah, right. Deciding he didn’t need to be wiped down below the waist, she left the sheet where it was, nipping temptation in the bud.
Easing a hand under his head, she picked up the pills.
“Adam, you need to take some Tylenol.”
He grunted.
She lifted his head and his eyes opened to slits again, an adorable glare on his face.
She smiled sweetly and shoved the pills against his lips, then followed quickly with the water glass when he opened his mouth. He swallowed, managed another grunt, and turned his head away when she lowered it back to the pillow.
She watched him for a time, wiped him down again with the cloth.
When she moved away, he shifted restlessly but settled down quickly. She walked outside, leaving the door open so she could still see him. Michael answered on the first ring and she assured him that she was fine, Adam was sleeping, and the cabin was more than adequate. She spoke to the pack doctor for a few minutes, but learned nothing new.
Back inside, she surveyed her options. There were no window coverings, so no way to keep the bright afternoon light from bathing her patient. She went into the kitchen and found a couple of cans of chicken noodle soup, setting them aside for later. A quick search produced a can opener, bowls and pan. She made a mental note to be sure to fix the soup before she lost the light coming in through the windows, rather than deal with cooking by the light of a lantern.
She dragged the reading chair to the side of the bed, set another glass of water on the bedside table, and picked out a book. Curling up on the chair, she opened the book but found her gaze on the sleeping man, rather than the pages. His rest seemed healthier now, though she wasn’t sure how much of that was reality and how much her fancy. He breathed deep and evenly and he was no longer flushed.
He had the muscles of someone who worked his body hard on a daily basis. What did he do out here all day? Obviously, he’d chopped the logs by the fire, and she guessed there was an even larger stack of them somewhere outside. He worked his garden, certainly. And he read. But what else? She couldn’t even begin to imagine. Certainly, she enjoyed her solitude on occasion. It was the thing she looked forward to the most as her busy year as National President came to a close. But she also knew that after her return to normalcy, to life without the additional demands of her term, she’d be eager to surround herself with pack. With family and friends.
Adam stirred, his hand coming up to scratch lightly at his chest before settling back down. His long fingers rested in the light dusting of hair surrounding one nipple and she stared at it a bit hungrily before blinking.
What the hell was wrong with her? The poor man was sick and she was lusting after his body. To be fair, it was a mighty fine body, but still.
That was another reason he shouldn’t be holing himself away in the lonely cabin. He needed to find his mate. A stab of jealousy at that idea surprised her, and had Myra tearing her gaze away from the sleeping man and forcing her concentration to the book.
CHAPTER THREE
Adam woke biting back a scream. He refused to give them the pleasure of his screams. He shook his head, grimacing at the dull throbbing he became aware of, and forced his eyes open. It took him a second to understand why the scene looked wrong. He was in his cabin, not in Arizona.
Flashback. Jesus, he hadn’t had a flashback in a long time. Still, something nagged at him, insisting there was more wrong than the nightmare reminder of when he’d become a monster.
Scrubbing at his face, he swung his legs over the side of the bed, jerking free of the tangling blankets, amazed at how weak he felt. He smelled rank. Like fear and desperation. More than the flashback could account for. And he felt like shit. A quick glance around the room didn’t produce any clues, but a slight scent made its way to his nose around his own stink. A woman’s scent.
A quick flash of memory…of wavy brown hair, piercing dark eyes and strong, supportive arms. He’d been sick, and she’d been taking care of him.
He stumbled over to turn on the switch for the hot water, collapsed onto the dining room chair to wait.
His stomach roiled as the memory of meeting her in the woods struck him. She was a wolf. She was dominant. She’d controlled him.
Sheer force of will was the only thing that kept the soup and water she’d been feeding him from re-emerging. Fuck. No wonder he’d had a flashback to Arizona. To when that prick Cage had abducted him, chained him to a wall and turned him into a monster. It was the last time he’d allowed something to happen to him without his control.
Until now.
Until her.
Shit.
He took another look around the small cabin but there was nothing to indicate where the woman might be. Forcing his brain to work despite the headache, he tried to remember what had happened before he’d run into her and the local alpha. He hadn’t exactly been in control then, had he? No matter how hard he tried to focus, he could only remember smelling intruders and being certain they were up to no good. He’d been ready to attack, but was pretty sure he’d managed to give them a warning, give them a chance to escape. If they’d run, he’d have let them go. He hoped.
But they hadn’t run. They’d faced him down, and they’d won.She’dwon. Put him on the ground like a newborn pup. Fuck.
Forcing his stiff body to stand, he decided to forget about what had happened and focus on the now. Yeah, right. He didn’t believe the lie even as he issued the order. Still, he dragged himself to the shower and stood under the warm spray, wishing it was harder. His whole body went on alert when he heard a sound over the water.
