Page 53 of Savage Escape

An honest to god smile and pushed to her feet. She took position beside his seated figure and subconsciously squared her stance, preparing for an attack.

“Caden, it’s all right. You’re safe here. They’re my brothers.” It was aggravating how slowly his body was moving. “We’re safe.”

“You gonna live?” She was examining his bullet holes and ignoring Reid’s pointed huff.

“Yep. One bullet nicked an artery, but they both went clean through. Reid patched me up.” How could he tell her he brought her home to meet his parents without her bolting?

“Will you sit?” Impatient and concerned, Reid hovered three steps away, looking like he had murder in mind. “How are you burning through the meds so quickly? You should still be out cold. And you’ve pulled out your damn IV again.”

Caden sat.

Beside him.

Her knee touching his knee.

Her thigh touching his thigh.

18

CADEN

There was just silence.

Awkward, awkward silence.

All eyes were on her. Holden was glaring. Reid was muttering to himself, going over every battered inch of her. Nathan was grinning stupidly at her knees. The unknown was smiling widely at her.

It was unnerving as fuck. Inwardly, she was noting exits and using her peripherals to check for the lumps of her confiscated armory. They, the knife and gun she’d made them surrender, were still there. An arm’s length away. Outwardly her face was fixed in a placid expression she saved special for interrogations.

Nathan wasn’t helping the awkward silence at all. He kept grinning at her knees like they’d up and sprouted cancer-curing flowers. The silence stretched. The awkward intensified and Caden was two seconds from bolting. She wanted to swat the grinning idiot. He wasn’t pumped full of morphine. His green eyes lacked that glazed-over drugged quality they’d had the day before (Was it just a day? Who the hell knew how long she’d been out?). So all that happy was just him being Nathan.

Weirdo.

Grinning, ridiculous, finely toned, idiot.

Holy Christ, she wanted him.

That thought shut down her whole brain for a good ten seconds. She’d known before that she wanted to kiss him, feel him up a bit, and maybe get in his pants. But this was a whole other level of want.

Reid’s unceasing mutterings brought her back around. She had to focus on the current situation and not be plotting on how she was going to get in Savage’s pants. It probably wouldn’t be too hard. He seemed like the easy kind. It didn’t hurt that he seemed to already have their next ten years mapped out.

Weirdo.

Unabashed, smiling, muscle-bound male whose pants she was going to get in.

“You alright there, Nate?” The unknown one spoke up and slapped Caden right back into defense mode. “You look like... you’re high as a kite. You gonna pass out?”

“What—no.” His head jerked up to swivel towards Reid, caution in his eyes. Like those words would trigger the ‘only goddamn certified doctor in the room so they had better listen to him by god or there would be hell to pay’ into some kind of rampage. “I am fine. The painkiller is kickin’ in.”

“You sure? ‘Cause you look like you could use—” He shifted in his seat and glanced towards the leaner meaner version of Nathan with a small grin.

“I am fine, Maddox. Thanks for the moving and heartfelt concern.” Nathan was glaring now, and the giant was smirking. “Now if you’d like to see yourself out?—”

“What, so you two can make out while we’re in there slaving away over a hot stove?” This was a new voice that came from the door. Caden recognized the guy as the one she’d broken, her toes breaking his ribs. More men, big men, stood behind him trying to shove past into the room.

Alarm bells clanged in her mind. Her heart kicked into overdrive, and Caden positioned herself so that the weapons were within reach. And then immediately felt foolish for responding like they were the enemy. They were his family.

“Youcook?” someone said; Caden lost track of who was speaking. There were too many threats to contend with. Too many giants filling the room.

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