Page 41 of Unlawful Seduction

“I need to make certain what I’m dealing with.”

I hated the way his voice was soft and velvety while being rough and tumble at the same time. I had both heat flashes and chills at the same time. “I’m the one who was attacked.” As soon as the words left my mouth, I dropped my head. “Hold on. You didn’t tangle with a hunter. You were shot by an assailant.” Reality hitme hard. “You killed the first guy. Didn’t you? There were two of them.”

“Very good, Doc.”

Holy fuck. I willed my mind to shut down, but it was impossible.

“They really want you dead.” I was stating the obvious and somehow, my interaction with the man had placed me in harm’s way.

At least I was rewarded with a strange yet very provocative smile. “They also wanted you dead. At least we won’t need to worry about either of them.”

My assumptions were spot on. He’d killed the person who’d shot him and Jax. This kind of thing didn’t occur in my world. “So you’re holding me captive?”

“Right now, the snowstorm is.”

I’d already heard the howling wind and of course knew the weather forecast. The thought of being snowed in with a strange and highly dangerous man was terrifying. Even though he’d saved my life.

We locked eyes as we’d done several times before. We were searching for answers that I wasn’t certain either one of us had.

“Then what?” I blurted out.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning when the storm has blown out of here, what next? You stand by to ensure more killers aren’t ready to attack or you disappear?”

“Then you go back to living your life.”

I laughed. Of course the sound was one of extreme nervousness. How could I not be anxious around him? “Just like that.”

“Just like that.”

“Aren’t there more of these… killers out there?” I couldn’t believe the conversation I was having with a man I’d watched kill someone. Okay, the dude had been a bad man with horrible intentions on his mind, but still.

“Highly doubtful, but I’m ensuring no one bothers you.”

“For the rest of my life?”

“If that’s what it takes.”

He was serious. Jax lifted his head as if offering confirmation his master would take care of me. “I’ll ask you again. Who are you?”

“A very bad man.” He slowly turned his head toward the fire. “I need to be able to trust you, Doc. Can I do that?”

There were no adequate words around what he’d just told me. None. But he was waiting for if not demanding an answer. “You don’t have anything to fear from me, Beckett. If that’s your real name.”

“Are you hungry?” he asked over the crackling roar of the fire. His expression was still hard, but also far too sensual. I forced myself to look away.

“No. Just tired.” He was shutting down the conversation. Meanwhile, my mind was pitching wild stories and none of them ended well.

“You can have one of the bedrooms. First door up the stairs. Let me take you.”

When he started to stand, I threw my arm out. “I’m perfectly capable of doing this myself.” I placed my glass on the table, tossing back the blanket and trying to act nonchalant when I stood. My legs were like noodles from a combination of the continued pain and fear, as well as a downward spiraling rush of adrenaline.

As soon as I took a single step away from the couch, my legs gave out. My hero was right there yet again, swooping me up into his arms even though I protested immediately.

“I can do this.” I pressed my hand against his chest, but he headed toward a set of stairs. I felt another bandage under the thin material.

“Evidently not. You’ll feel better in the morning.” He glanced down quickly at what I was doing.

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