CHAPTER EIGHT
Logan
Logan jolted awake at the scream. It was a woman. It was Tess. He struggled out of his sleeping bag and then his tent. The others were slowly emerging too.
“Is that Tess?” Grayson asked.
Logan didn’t bother answering. He hurried to her tent, and after confirming she wasn’t in it, crawled in to find her weapon. It was in the red backpack, just where she’d shown them.
No time for shoes or explanation to the other men, he ran headlong into the woods toward the sound of Tess’s voice.
He found her by her flashlight, which she swung above her head as if advertising a nightclub in Vegas. As he approached, none too quietly, she yelled at him to stop, which he did immediately. They were maybe ten feet away from each other.
“What is it?” he asked.
“Wolves,” she said. “They’ve circled up on me. There’s one to your left, about three feet from you.” She pointed her flashlight to indicate the spot.
“Tell me what to do,” he said.
“Where’s everyone else? If we outnumber ’em, it’s possible we can scare ’em off.”
Logan looked back the way he’d come. “Um. I’m not sure they’re coming.”
Tess growled. “Don’t suppose you brought a gun.”
“I did.” He held it up.
“Good. Okay.” She paused to think. “Shooting is a last resort, but trying to shoo them off hasn’t worked. They know they’ve got the upper hand.”
Off to Logan’s left, one of the wolves slunk menacingly out of the bush.
“Tess,” Logan hissed.
“I see it.” She braced herself and prepared to use her flashlight as a weapon.
Logan stretched out both arms, gun in one hand, flashlight in the other, and took aim. He was ready. And when the wolf leaped to attack, he fired. The beast dropped to the ground.
He trudged loudly, yelling and making nonsensical noises, while closing the gap to reach Tess. The remaining animals scurried away, leaving their fallen friend behind. It must have been pure reflex that caused Tess to throw her arms around him.
“Thank you,” she said breathlessly.
“No problem.” He tried not to notice her long, lean body pressed against his. It would be unprofessional to notice such a thing. But inhuman and unmanly not to. Tough as she was, she felt soft in his arms, and he held on tight. A few seconds later, she backed away, slightly embarrassed, if he wasn’t mistaken.
“You just saved me from a good mauling,” she said.
“As opposed to a bad one?”
She huffed.
“Probably wouldn’t get my deposit back if I let my guide get eaten by wolves.”
“Definitely not.” She toed the dead wolf with her boot. “Um, thanks for not shooting me! That was kind of close.”
“You were a solid three feet away. And at this range, even if I missed the wolf, I knew I wasn’t in any danger of hitting you.”
“If you say so,” she said. “Let’s get back to camp. Where are your shoes?”
He shrugged. “It didn’t really sound like there was time.”
