Page 6 of Stalking His Prey

I hung up on her after that and went to bed.

“Private conversations, Anna!” I sigh as I put my water bottle back.

I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything less. Anna does have a big mouth, and her taste in men is nothing like mine. Anna loves Todd because of his dad-bod stomach and his enormous beard. Personally, he does nothing for me.

Then again,most mendo nothing for me.

Maybe I’m the problem. Maybe Iamtoo much of a little freak, and that’s why I’m still single and still a virgin. But is it really that absurd to wish for a man who knows just what I want and can give it to me–?

Snap!

Another loud noise causes me to jump. But this time I control myself and don’t spin around wildly like there’s a bear behind me ready to pounce.

A bear? Of course there’s no bear, Penelope!

This time I take a calming breath and slowly turn. And what I see causes my heart to nearly leap out of my throat.

A shirtless man in a black mask stands in the middle of the trail, a coil of rope in his right hand. He’s not a bear, but he looks like a wolf.

I’m so shocked I can’t even scream.

He’s wrapped in muscles, with the physique of a bodybuilder. Insanely thick arms, a massively broad chest, and abs that look like you could do laundry on them. He’s wearing dirty jeans and old running shoes and is staring at me like a predator ready to strike.

And I’m the prey.

A cold shiver runs through my body while at the same time, the heat of a blush comes over my cheeks.

I know instantly there’s nothing I can do. If this man wants to harm me, there’s no one around to save me. I’m out here all on my own.

His eyes are narrow and focused behind the mask, but he raises his chin and smiles, revealing a set of flawless white teeth, complete with savagely pointed canines.

And then he speaks.

“Hello, Penelope.”

I’m off running. Sprinting as fast as I can through the woods as the brush and overgrowth pulls at my ankles and feet.

I ditch my bag. All it will do is slow me down.

My heart is pounding. I feel like it’s about to burst as I put everything I have into forcing my legs to move faster. My muscles are burning as I leap over rocks and fallen trunks of trees.

I hear the masked man behind me, chasing me down, crashing through the forest like some kind of unstoppable force, shattering anything that gets in his way.

I glance back over my shoulder and see him gaining on me. He moves like a runner or some kind of athlete.

How am I going to escape?

I see a half-fallen tree trunk in front of me, leaning against another tree, and an idea springs into my mind. I race to it, spin around, and quickly kick it, dislodging it and sending it rolling down the slope toward my attacker.

But without even a hitch in his step, the masked man simply leaps over my attempted trap and continues his pursuit.

Shit!

My breath comes rapid and short, painful breaths that set my lungs on fire as I run and run and run for what could be my life. I always tell myself I’m in good shape from being on my feet all day serving customers, but I was not prepared for anything like this.

I feel myself starting to falter, my muscles going weak as the slope grows steeper and steeper. But there’s nowhere to go. No shelter here. So I do the only thing I can do.

I keep running.

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