Page 87 of A Rebel's Shot

“I promised to make it worth your while.” He wasn’t going to let her continue down her thought path. “What do you want?”

She stared at him, her eyes softening.

“You.” She smiled and shrugged. “Just you.”

Satisfaction burned through him with her declaration.

“Done.” He growled as he pushed her onto her back and captured her lips in a bruising kiss.

A branch snapped not too far away. He jerked back from her.

Right.

Danger.

Bears and mountains trying to kill them. Definitely not the time for kissing.

THIRTY-TWO

As she almost reached what had to be the two hundredth ridge of the last three days, Merritt huffed out a strained breath.

Her lungs burned.

Her calves ached.

Heck, even her toes screamed at her to stop walking.

But if they wanted to get to safety—and she really, really wanted to—she had to keep up with the brutal pace Tiikâan set. He’d get them to civilization.

Even if they had to cross a thousand mountain peaks to do it.

Oh, please let it not be a thousand.

“Almost there, Skeet,” Tiikâan encouraged her again.

He always seemed to know when she was on the verge of collapse.

“Liar.” Her retort didn’t hold any heat.

The smile he sent her had all her hairs standing on end and waving for attention. It was a smile that promised reward.

She’d come to love his rewards.

She hiked faster, trying to think of a way to distract herself from the pain radiating from her head to her feet.

“If my horrible uncle hadn’t tried to kill us, what were your plans after the job with me was done?” She threw the question out that had plagued her mind during their run-in with the cliff and bear.

He stopped short, his chest heaving as he looked at her with furrowed brows. “What?”

“You heard me.”

He took a deep breath and shrugged. “Start flying hunters again.”

She shook her head and stopped next to him. “You’re a planner, Tiikâan Rebel. There was more to it than just flying hunters.”

She grabbed the water hanging from her pack and raised her eyebrows at him as she took a long drink. He rubbed his hand along the back of his neck.

Why was he so hesitant?

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