“Hey, hotshot. Thanks for saving my life. A beanbag to the face might have altered my good looks.” Diesel marched over to the side of his bed, obviously ignoring Wyatt and Valene’s clasped hands. Cam and Axel rolled their eyes at the remark about their brother’s good looks.
“No worries. Were you able to bring the two prisoners in?”
“Yep. Easy. The other search team rounded up six more in the Eastern sector of our search grid, so we are down to seven escapees left roaming the woods.”
Wyatt looked around the lab for a clock. “What time is it?”
“Time to go back and get the rest of the alien wild bunch,” Axel said. “Are you ready to go?”
Wyatt tensed his abs, pleased to find the pain was nearly gone. He sat up as Gage moved closer to fiddle with the IV in his arm.
“Whatever you gave me is working great. Are you sure it isn’t some alien wonder drug?”
“I’m sure. Just good old earthling pain meds. You’re good to go, but I’d wear a vest. A second beanbag shot—or a hit from any other kind of projectile—to the same area would do serious damage to your insides, maybe the permanent kind.”
Wyatt nodded. “Got it.” He hated wearing a vest, but would do it. The idea of anything touching, let alone striking, his bruised belly once the pain returned made him a little nauseous.
Gage detached him from the IV. Wyatt slid to his feet. He felt pretty good, all things considered. Cam handed him the shackle rifle, or rather, the alien purple goo splatter gun, as he now thought of it.
“How long have I been out?”
Cam said, “Almost an hour.”
“So the search grid has moved further west?”
He nodded. “But we lucked out. Someone called in a complaint about animals foraging in some roadside garbage cans near a cabin on Old Pine Sap Road.”
Wyatt nodded. “That’s another mile further and in the same direction as we were headed.”
“And where we are headed now, if you’re up to it.”
“Areyou up to it?” Valene asked. She sounded amused.
“Does a bear poop in the woods?” She giggled, as he expected.
Her brothers groaned at the joke, but filed out of the room one by one, smiling. Gage handed him a small envelope with two white pills inside. “Take these in a couple of hours. Don’t forget, okay? You want to stay ahead of the pain.”
Wyatt shoved them into his shirt pocket. “Right.”
Valene grabbed his hand. “I’ll remind him.”
He followed the group through the large area below the Big Bang Truck Stop and back out to the wooded area near the still chained and floating prison ship.
Diesel pointed to his SUV. “It’ll be faster if we take the rural route near the bauxite mine.” They all climbed in. Cam claimed shotgun once more and Valene sat between Axel and Wyatt in the back. All Wyatt could concentrate on was Valene’s leg pressed up against his and how much he wanted to kiss her, even at the expense of her three brothers beating the crap out of him for even thinking of it.
Cam turned in his seat to give Wyatt a narrow-eyed look. “We wouldn’t beat the crap out of you for justthinkingit.”
Wyatt pushed out a frustrated sigh. “You really need to stay out of my head, bro.” Wyatt turned to stare out the window, pulling his leg away from Valene’s.
She immediately reconnected their thighs, pushing into him, and slid her soft fingers along his jawline so he faced her.
And then she kissed him…hard. She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him harder.
Wyatt kissed her back like three of her brothers weren’t possibly wrathful alien witnesses within arm’s reach of his neck.
When she drew away, she whispered, “I love you, Wyatt. I’ve loved you since the first time I saw you shooting in that tournament. While you are still privy to all my deepest secrets, I intend to take full advantage and kiss you every chance I get. If my annoying brothers don’t like it, they can go suck a bushel of lemons dry.”
The annoying brothers in question all laughed. Diesel started the truck and they were on the road in no time. Valene laced their fingers and rested her head on Wyatt’s shoulder.
