Page 37 of Two Steps Ahead

“Nothing that’ll fit you, unfortunately. A change of clothes, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, a brush and...my filmcamera.” Kayleigh felt her cheeks warm. “Sorry that you’re having to carry all this stuff. Should we just ditch it?”

She hated the thought of losing the camera she’d owned for so long but knew she needed to keep her priorities straight.

“It’s not slowing me down. Believe me, I carried much heavier packs than this when I was in the military.”

He could probably carry her all the way out of here if he needed to. Thunder boomed over them and she clenched her teeth and forced herself to breathe, hoping she wasn’t going to have to find out if that was the case or not.

She wouldnotbe a burden to him.

“We need to find shelter before this gets worse,” he said.

She wasn’t sure if he wanted to do that because he knew how panicked she was or because the nature reserve tended to flood. It didn’t matter. They started their trek again, and while Weston looked for shelter, Kayleigh checked the phones whenever they stopped for cover. Each time she hoped to see service bars on the screen, but nothing came. She wasn’t surprised. This area was known for no signal.

By the time Weston found an overhang that would work to protect them from most of the storm, they were both close to shivering. Thankfully, they’d heard no signs of pursuit from the men after them, and Weston reassured her that whatever trail they left would be untraceable with the rain.

“Come on. Let’s get you out of those wet clothes and into something warm.”

The little space, about halfway up a small canyon, was barely big enough for them both to lie down in, but it at least protected them from the weather.

She crawled in, stripped out of her jacket and laid it out. “What about you? You don’t have anything to change into.” She wasn’t sure if it would really dry all that much but figured itwouldn’t hurt to try. Once she was changed, she turned back to Weston. “Oh.”

He’d stripped out of his shirt and unbuttoned his pants, though he kept them on before dropping to sit on the ground. Kayleigh was having trouble figuring out exactly where to look. His muscular arms, his toned stomach, his long fingers.

It wasn’t fear that had her resenting the dark now; it was her inability to see him fully.

He took her hand and pulled her down next to him. “You should try to get some sleep. We can’t start a fire, but hopefully if we stay close together, we’ll be warm enough.”

Kayleigh was about to decline, reminding him about her issues with storms, but he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her head onto his chest. She went willingly, laying her ear over his heart. The rhythmic thumping soothed her, reminded her that they were alive and together. And while she could still feel the anxiety from the storm and surrounding darkness pressing on her, it was enough to keep it at bay.

Clinging to Weston with an arm around his waist, Kayleigh let her eyes close. She still wasn’t sure how the boy she’d known had turned into the fierce man in front of her, one who had kept her safe in multiple situations now, but she was grateful.

This overhang may be providing them shelter from the physical storm, but he was her shelter from all the other ones.

WESTONDIDN’TSLEEP, but he didn’t mind that a bit. Even though his back ached from the position he’d been in all night, he couldn’t force himself to wake Kayleigh.

She seemed so peaceful in his arms, her warm breath skittering across his chest with every exhale. He wished the circumstances were different and they were in his bed together.That he could wake her up with a promise of pleasure that would have them both forgetting their own names.

Instead, waking her now would push her straight back into a nightmare. She needed rest because he was afraid the worst part of all of this was still in front of them. The storm may have passed but they had other things to face down.

His mind whirled as the darkness faded into early morning twilight. Whoever was behind this was definitely somebody with inside knowledge of Leo’s network. Weston’s money was on Jasper. Something about him had never sat right. But it could be any of the security team. Hell, any of Leo’s staff altogether.

His lawyer, Dean McClintock, was privileged to all Leo’s inside info—Leo had spent most of the day with him yesterday. Hell, even Gwendolyn couldn’t be discounted.

He needed to get Kayleigh back to civilization and figure out who they could trust.

As much as he hated to do so, he gently shifted once there was full light and woke the beautiful woman lying on him. She shifted then blinked those green eyes at him as it all came back to her.

“Are we safe?” she whispered. “I can’t believe I slept.”

“The storm is gone and there’s been no sign of any bad guys after us. But we need to get moving. We’ll need to find somewhere with service.”

She looked away, the tips of her ears turning red as her stomach growled loudly enough to be heard. “And to get something to eat.”

Weston laughed, though he wasn’t much better off. All he wanted was a bottle of water and a burger. “Let’s get moving then.”

As they left the overhang, he checked for signs of anyone else having been near them and didn’t find any. That didn’t meanthey were out of danger, but they wouldn’t have to set such a grueling pace.

Still, time wasn’t on their side. They made their way through the trees, enjoying the warmth that the slow sunrise brought them. It wasn’t much, but after a wet night outside, it was at least something. After an hour of brisk walking, Kayleigh never complaining despite the damp clothes and growling stomach, Weston’s phone had service.

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