Page 35 of Their Wicked Secrets: Untouched, Vol 5 of 6

“Not a Sidney fan.” I bump against him and see a dark spot on a tree. But the light moves away from it. “Wait! Go back.”

Luke slowly turns the light in the same direction it had been.

“There!” The spot is in view. I release Luke’s hand to walk toward it, but Luke grabs the back of my jeans, not letting me get an inch away from him. I turn to scowl at him.

“Don’t let go of my hand, princess.” He flashes the flashlight on my chest. At least it’s not in my eyes.

“It’s just over there.” I gesture back to the spot.

He drags me in close to him and turns off the light. “Not an option. We’ve been here during the day. We know this place. You don’t.”

“We’re in a wooded area.” I gesture around us and at the ground. “Are you afraid a frog will get me?”

He shakes his head. “If anything happens to you, I wouldn’t be able to breathe.”

The fire of anger turns to smoke at his soft words. I relax against him.

“Nothing’s going to happen to me, Luke.” I cup his jaw, and he twists to press a kiss to my palm. My heart feels like it’s going to burst.

“It’s bad enough I can’t hold you during the night. Can’t protect you from everything determined to get you. But this is something I can control. So let me, princess.” He touches our foreheads together and takes my hand. “Let me keep you safe.”

I push up on my toes and press my lips to his. Before I can pull away, he buries his hand in my hair to cradle my head and deepens the kiss. I make a little noise in my throat as I surrender to him.

“You know.” Eli’s voice breaks through the fog of desire. “I find I search better with my eyes open.”

Luke sighs against my lips before releasing me. Well, almost. His hand remains in mine.

Luke starts, “We were just discussing⁠—”

Eli laughs.

“With your tongue in her mouth? Come on.” Eli glances around. “I searched my area. Did she notice anything?”

“I noticed a dark spot on a tree that I was going to investigate.” I clear my throat of the lust clogging it. “Luke and I were just going to check it out.”

Eli turns his flashlight on under his chin and arches an eyebrow, giving us a wicked look. “I believe you.”

Rolling my eyes, I tug on Luke’s hand and head in the direction of the tree. He turns the flashlight back on and pulls ahead of me. I wrap myself around his arm, hugging it close to me. My heart skips at his need to protect me.

Eli follows close behind us. “I’m not sure how long the others will take. If anything was in my location, it’s gone by now.”

“It was worth a look.” Luke shrugs and comes to a halt in front of the tree I saw the dark mark on. He shines his light on it, and it’s just some moss growing.

My heart deflates. “Damn.”

“We can come back with your mom, kitten. She won’t stay away forever.” Eli rubs his hand down my back. When I turn to look at him, my gaze catches on a hint of blue.

“Can I have a flashlight?” I hold out my hand, and Eli puts a flashlight into it. Giving him a smile, I direct the light at the blue. It bleeds down the tree like someone threw paint at it.

I draw Luke closer, and he kneels down beside the tree to examine it. As he follows it down, he pushes the grass away from what looks like a carving.

“What is it?” I can’t help asking.

“Someone carved into the wood. Maybe some initials?”

“Why is it blue?” My heart pounds so hard in my chest, and I squeeze Luke’s hand. Is this it? Is this what my dad was talking about?

“Some sort of fungus or growth?” Eli steps next to me. “The bark is off that part, making the tree vulnerable.”