“Mac, you can’t just up and leave. The trap nearly took your damn leg off!”

I bristle at the memory. It hurt like a bitch, and it will hurt worse once the painkillers wear off.

“I’ve got a job to do,” I say, gritting my teeth as I clench my fist.

“And what? Risk getting yourself killed?”

“I found it,” I blurt out. “I finally found the silver lynx,” I admit. “And someone here is laying serious traps for it.”

Ben’s expression darkens, his jaw clenching.

“Jesus, Mac, you could have been killed,” he says, running a hand through his hair.

“I know. I was caught, remember?”

Ben sighs, his shoulders slumping forward.

“Damn it, Mac. You don’t know how glad I am that JT found you when he did. He carried you back here, by the way. Wouldn’t let any of us help.”

The memory of being cradled in JT’s arms, his arms like steel around me, flashes through my mind, and I feel the heatcreeping onto my cheeks. I clear my throat, trying to refocus the conversation.

“Who does the trap belong to?” I ask him. “Who put that trap there, Ben?” Before he answers, the other two idiots appear behind him like phantoms.

Gorgeous, tall, muscle bound idiots. They’re both dressed in worn jackets and dirty jeans from working outside all morning.

“What are you two doing?” Hank asks, his voice hard as granite.

“We need you outside right now, Ben,” JT says on top of him.

“I told you I was going to check on her,” Ben shoots back, turning to glare at Hank.

“Gentlemen,” I interrupt, putting a hand up. “Let’s not turn this into a pissing contest, alright?”

They all stare at me, jaws clenched, but they don’t say anything else.

“The trap?” I ask again, steeling myself for the answer.

Ben sighed. “We don’t know.”

“I don’t know if I believe you.”

“Of course you don’t,” Hank mutters, crossing his thick arms over his chest.

“Can all of this wait for a bit?” Ben starts. “You need to rest and heal, otherwise you won’t be any good, to us or yourself.”

“How long?” I ask.

“A few days, at least,” JT says firmly.

I groan, it’s not what I want to hear, but I know they’re right. “Fine. But I’m not going to just sit here and do nothing.”

“Oh. Yes. That is exactly what you are going to do,” JT says flatly. His eyes darken at those words as he steps forward.

“Like hell I am!” I snap back, my fists clenching at my sides.

“You listen here, princess—” Hank starts to say, but I cut him off with a glare that could stop a bear in its tracks.

“My name is Mac,” I say through gritted teeth. “And I don’t care if I’m in your territory. I’m not going to sit here and twiddle my damn thumbs while my job and my life’s work is out there!”