Page 35 of Brutal Mate

“No way!” Miley snapped, and his eyes flew open just in time to see her rise from the bed. “I am not going—”

Miley cut off mid-sentence as she started to stumble forward, her hand reaching for her forehead as if she felt woozy.

Without stopping to think, Kane rushed to her side. He grabbed her before she could fall and pulled her close.

The scent of her wafted into his nostrils once more. It was different still, earthier somehow. He told himself it was the day she had spent on the farm.

She trembled in his arms, fragile and dainty, and he felt the urge to pick her up again.

Instead, he reached down and placed his fingers beneath her chin to turn her face up toward his. “What's the matter?”

She didn't answer immediately. Her beautiful green eyes met his, sparkling with something he couldn't quite put his finger on. Whatever it was, he liked it on her a little too much.

He forced himself to blink, and whatever spell had come between them dissipated. She cleared her throat said, “It’s nothing. I'm just exhausted, and it's making me dizzy.”

Kane's stomach twisted when she pulled herself from his arms and said, “You should leave me to rest.”

“I…I should leave you to rest,” he repeated, but in that moment, it was the very last thing he wanted to do.

Though she had pulled away, she was still so close, and the urge to take her into his arms again was infuriating.

“If you need anything, just shout,” Kane told her gently, brushing back a strand of her hair back behind her ear, the same strand she had shoved back earlier.

Miley smacked his hand away and glowered at him. “Don't pretend to care about me.”

The disgust in her tone stung Kane. He bit back the urge to tell her he wasn't pretending. What good would it do? She wouldn't believe him, anyway.

Dipping his head silently, he left her to rest, closing the door firmly behind him.

For a while he stood at the door, his back to it, able to feel her just on the other side. He could sense how she slipped back onto the bed and how her breathing slowed as if she really were trying to rest.

And when he closed his eyes, he could still feel how wonderful it had felt for her to be in his arms, even if it had only lasted a moment or so.

The smell of her lingered on his clothes, and he picked up the hem of his t-shirt to breathe her in deeply. Closing his eyes, he breathed her in again, wishing he could return to her room and tell her the truth.

But what good would that do? She would never believe him. She would never believe he had been unable to stop from thinking of her since that very first day he had laid eyes on her in her father's hardware shop.

No, it was best to try and put all that out of his mind, at least for now. The most important thing was her safety, not what he felt for her.

And besides, he could barely admit it to himself; how was he supposed to admit it to her?

“How is she?”

The question shocked Kane. He had been so intent on his thoughts he hadn't even heard Grandma Peters approaching from the kitchen.

Kane shrugged and sighed, “As stubborn as ever.”

“Well, since you're here and she's all tuckered out, perhaps you might be able to help me? It's been a while since I had a man about the house.”

Kane couldn't help but smile. The boldness and cheek of old women had always amused him.

“What exactly did you have in mind?”

Chapter 14 - Miley

The hand that gripped Miley's throat ought to have terrified her. She had been attacked one too many times of late.

But the hand was warm, and though there was pressure, it was not painful. The grip itself was almost tender.

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