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My pussy clenched at the recollection. I was still hideously turned on despite how much I abhorred the treatment.

“Yeah...” His voice trailed into silence as he rose to his feet and walked toward the space. “I see it.”

“What is it?”

The shifting shadows revealed what looked like a black butt of a gun.

Another gun?

Whatever trepidation I thought I’d known before that point was dwarfed by the ballooning horror swelling at the sight.

“It looks like a rifle.” He peered back at me as though he, too, was surprised. “The last ranger must have left it.”

A thousand alarms sounded in my head.

Why was there a freaking rifle in the cabin? It was awful enough that he was carrying a handgun for ostensible protection in the forest, but the weapon he collected from the floor looked far worse—blacker, longer, and more foreboding.

“Get it out of here, please.”

I forced myself to my feet on shaky legs, no longer waiting for his purported permission to rise. There were two guns in the cabin, and I couldn’t just kneel there like a hapless target, although how I expected to defend myself without my hands was anyone’s guess.

“Little girl.” A line appeared in his brow as he turned to discover me no longer in the place he’d left me. “Who said you could move?”

“Please!” I was practically hyperventilating as I edged backward. “I hate guns.”

“It’s okay.” Cocking the weapon, he checked the barrel for ammunition. “There are no bullets.”

“Thank God.” Relief radiated from me.

Eli had already proved himself both unpredictable and comfortable with a gun. The last thing I needed was a second, unknown weapon in the vicinity.

“You didn’t answer my question, little girl.” He’d traveled the length of the cabin to tower over me. “I never told you to move, so who did?”

“No one.” Nausea stirred in my stomach. “I’m sorry, Eli. This has been fun and all, but I can’t do it anymore.”

“You can’t dowhat?” His hand rose to my chin, directing my focus to his face. “And don’t think I haven’t noticed how you’re not referring to me properly.”

I pulled in a breath, turning away from his insistent fingers.

“I can’t do this.” My gaze gestured around the room. “Whatever this is. I can’t be here with you anymore, like this...”

My attention fell past his hand to my exposed breasts. It had been some time since his climax, and he still hadn’t even offered to cover me. Presumably, he was more than content with the status quo.

“I need to get dressed and get out of here.” Scanning his face, I searched his eyes for any sign of the man who’d wanted to look out for my welfare. He had to be in there somewhere. “Chelle could still be out there, and—"

“Oh, Erin.” He pressed his fingertips to my mouth, and the way his lips curled sent shivers racing rapidly along my back. “Don’t be silly, little girl. You’re not going anywhere.”

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