Page 20 of Rescued

They all turned back into humans—all naked, all bleeding. Two of them picked up what was left of their clothes and stalked off up the hill into the forest, but the other one stayed with Gunn, his wanger dangling in a very disconcerting way that neither of them really seemed to notice.

They all seemed pretty much okay, despite the blood. She tried to tell herself, maybe the fight wasn’t as bad as it looked? Boomer’s brother was probably kidding about them fighting to the death. Maybe it was like… like a bar fight. Something the wolves did to let off steam and prove who had the biggest balls, or something.

Maybe now that they were gone, she should try going out again. But Boomer and his brother were still there, and the sight of all that snarling and blood was too fresh in her mind.

She was suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to be anywhere but here. She didn’t want to have to find a way out, figure out how to get out of the country, be brave enough to cash in on the stuff she’d stolen from Quentin.

Not alone.

Especially when she had nothing but boxers, a borrowed t-shirt, and strappy heels.

She also still felt a little sick, but maybe that was because her stomach was completely empty. She hadn’t had anything to eat besides a couple of canapes since yesterday’s breakfast, and she’d thrown those up in a field in the middle of nowhere.

Food seemed possibly doable—assuming Switch had any. Domesticity was clearly not his thing, but everyone had to eat, right?

She went to the little kitchen and started opening doors and cupboards. There seemed to be nothing but bacon, eggs, cheese, bourbon, and pretzel bites stuffed with fake cheese filling.

And steaks. The freezer was full of steaks.

That was it. There were enough calories in that kitchen to kill her modeling career before it even got started.

At least there was coffee. And some half and half that seemed to be just this side of spoiled.

She started a pot of coffee and thought about boiling an egg. How many calories was that? She wished she had a phone so she could look it up.

Somehow, ridiculously, that was the last straw. Guns and bullets and bloodthirsty wolves, and nothing here she could eat without blowing up like a balloon, and it was all just too much. Leaning her hands on the kitchen counter, she just put her head against the cupboard door and cried.

Behind her, she heard the door open. Breanna tried to pull herself together, but the tears wouldn’t stop.

“Hey! Oh shit. Hey there, now.” It was Switch. She heard him walk across the room, and then a loaded canvas bag landed on the floor beside her with a muffled thump.

He put his hands gently on her shoulders, turning her around. “Are you okay? What’s wrong? Did Boomer and his brother do something?”

She shook her head, rubbing the backs of her hands over her eyes. “I’m not crying.”

Stupid. Like her face wasn’t all blotchy, with tears dripping off her nose.

Unbelievably, he pulled her to his chest, wrapping his arms around her and rubbing her back. “Hey, now. You’re okay. Everything’s okay.”

That was clearly a lie, but he was big and warm, and his hand on her back was incredibly soothing.

She had the terrifying desire to just cling to him and never let go. It didn’t even matter that he didn’t want her here.

Gradually she calmed down, and his touch on her back subtly changed. She could feel his awareness of her becoming physical—right when she became aware of the feeling of his chest against her breasts, his hard thighs against hers.

The smell of his skin, warm and musky with a faint scent of rain and pine trees.

His hand slid up to the back of her neck, and he pulled back, looking into her face. Very gently, he cupped her cheek and wiped a stray tear away with his thumb.

She’d forgotten how… everything… he was. Those piercing blue eyes, the hard muscles of his chest and abs. His hair was mussed and he had sexy morning scruff on his face, and he was staring down at her like she’d just turned into breakfast.

His head dipped down and his lips touched hers. Gently at first, but then when she shifted her weight towards him he deepened the kiss, his tongue meeting hers.

Heat spread from the top of Breanna’s head all the way to her toes. She felt like she’d fallen into a pool of sun-warmed honey, sweet and lazy and impossible to get out of.

Assuming she ever wanted to.

Chapter 9