Page 202 of Mountain Men Heroes

He pulled in a deep breath and strode to a spot a little farther away. “She went in here. Paw prints are in a small patch of wet dirt. See?”

“I do.” I peered into the dense greenery. The forest here was thick and full with plenty of places for a small animal to hide. I sighed. “This is going to be like finding a needle in a haystack, isn’t it?”

Dyson didn’t respond. He took a few steps into the trees and then shifted to the right, following whatever it was trackers followed. I kept up, realizing this hadn’t been a bad idea after all. This really would have been an impossible task for me, but Dyson was known for his ability to find anything and anyone. It’s what made him a great marine and now a member of the Kratos team.

With a glance at him, I couldn’t help but wonder what it must have been like to use his abilities while deployed. To hunt down the enemy. It made me wonder if it was part of what had happened to him when he was overseas to make him this way?

A sharp crack of a tree branch falling came from our left. I jumped, startled, but turned to continue following Dyson.

Only Dyson was no longer moving. He’d frozen solid in his spot. He stood stock-still, his eyes wide and frightened, the breath coming from him in harsh pants that made his chest rise and fall rapidly.

I eased up beside him. “Dyson?”

His wild gaze slid to me, and I had to hold back a gasp. His face was a mask of horror that I couldn’t even put words to. His dark eyes seemed to be looking at something I couldn’t see, something far away from Hardwood’s dense forest where we stood.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. We’re okay.” I used the voice I often used to coax an injured animal into trusting me. “The sound was just a falling branch. And we’re safe right here.”

As I spoke, I could see reality leaching back in. It took a few more seconds for his eyes to lose the faraway look and for him to focus on me. Even as he did, I could see tremors shake through him. It started at his hands and worked outward from there.

I moved forward slowly, not wanting to startle him with any sudden movements. “We’re okay. What do you need, Dyson?”

His lips parted, but before he could speak, I reached him and gently placed my hand on his back, intending to offer comfort.

But the instant my hand made contact, something changed. Dyson seemed to slide right back into consciousness, his gaze going from a little fuzzy to laser-focused in half a heartbeat.

Deep inside me something changed, too. A fierce desire ripped through me with such force, it was a struggle to keep on my feet.

I swayed, lips parted, staring up into his dark, molten eyes. The same word that floated through my mind at my aunt’s gathering came back to me, this time with a vengeance.

Mine, mine, mine, mine.

“Clara.” His voice came on a deep growl with a note of the same possessiveness I felt deep inside.

My name on Dyson’s lips and the sound of his voice, made me shiver. I slid my hand around to rest on his chest and my other one joined it. Dyson’s arms came up and around me, crushing my body to his.

“Dyson. I?—”

I wasn’t sure how I planned to finish the sentence, but a crashing sound tore the chance away from me and it grew closer and closer.

I gasped as the cat we’d been searching for came charging out from underneath a bush, moving straight toward us. I broke free of Dyson, and scooped her into my arms.

Dyson rocked back on his heels, drawing my gaze even as I whispered to the animal in my arms. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ve got you.”

At my words, something shifted again behind Dyson’s eyes, the coldness seeping back in.

No, no, no. Damn it.

I didn’t know what happened when I touched him, but I felt him coming back to me. Felt him calming from his panic and beginning to come to life again. All from my touch.

The cat wiggled in my grasp and I turned my attention back to her. “You’re okay. I’ve got you.” I kept one arm underneath her to support her and used my other hand to stroke softly from her ears down her back, whispering nonsense to her the whole time.

In minutes, the cat slumbered in my arms, eyes at half-mast as she purred under my hand. As soon as I knew she wasn’t going to leap away from me, I flicked my gaze back up to Dyson.

He stood a few feet away, his hands on his hips. His eyes were a little wild and his breath came in shallow huffs.

Damn. I lost him again.

“Dyson!” A male voice came at us from the area where we'd parked the car.

---