Page 72 of Savage Revenge

Holy crap.

I did it!

I’m free.

Well, not totally. But one step closer.

Ducking low, I move along the wall awkwardly, trying to watch where I’m stepping. There are definitely snakes and spiders out there, and I’d prefer not to have an encounter with either.

Slowly, and as carefully as possible, I start moving along the wall, thankful for it guiding me, hopefully to freedom. Sweat gathers at the back of my neck.

“I couldn’t have been kidnapped in the winter. It just had to be while it’s a million freaking degrees outside.” I’m not one to normally talk to myself, but I need it right now.

I wipe my brow and trudge through the brush, hissing when something scrapes against my leg. “Stupid desert. Who the hell would want to actually go hiking in this shit?”

Definitely not Cash. Thank God. I would have told him to kill me if he’d tried to take me hiking. In a way, I’m glad the date between Eliott and me didn’t happen because it never would have ended well anyway. The man probably enjoys eating healthy, too. No, thank you. I’m not opposed to it in moderation, but I’m the type of girl who likes to eat things that make me happy. If I’m going to cry, I’d rather cry into a bag of salty chips than a salad. Of course, that’s why I look like this, and Elliott looks like a stone statue.

Then again, Cash is just as hard-bodied and fit as Elliott. He’s definitely more muscular and bigger than Elliott. The man can lift me and toss me around like I weigh nothing. It’s the hottest freaking thing ever. And though I hate Cash more than anything, I’ll always be grateful for how sexy and feminine he made me feel while we got along.

“I can’t believe I fucked him. What the hell was I thinking? I had sex with my captor. Oh, God. I’m going to be on one of those TV shows where I have to admit to the world that I fell in love with the man who drugged and kidnapped me.” I shake my headand sigh. Not my finest moment. To be fair, Cash Savage is more than he appears to the outside world. He’s deeper than he seems.

“He’s still an asshole,” I mutter to myself. “An asshole who secretly recorded me in the bathroom.”

Shaking my head, I squint under the sun’s rays. I pause and look around, trying to catch my breath. I haven’t made it very far. Navigating through the brush is harder than I thought. Though, how would I have known? I’m a city girl and proud of it.

When I’ve gotten my heart rate down a bit, I start moving again, though at this rate, it will be Christmas by the time I reach the road. Maybe the person who picks me up will have mercy on me if it’s the holidays, though, and decide not to murder me.

I laugh and shake my head, my mouth starting to feel like I have sand in it. “I’m losing it. What the hell was I thinking?”

An arm clamps around me, yanking me back against something rock hard that smells like wood and spice.

Caleb.

“I was wondering the same thing,” he agrees. “Kept me entertained watching you for the last hour, though.”

Heat rises to my cheeks as I try throwing an elbow into his stomach, but it does nothing to get him to release me.

“Let me go!” I scream.

He chuckles and starts backtracking, moving much more agilely than I was through the brush. “Sorry, Miss Kingston. I have a job to do.”

“You haven’t even been around, asshole, so why are you suddenly doing your job now? Let me go!” I swing my hand, hoping to connect with his balls. Instead, it lands on his thigh, and I wince as I connect with nothing but rock-hard muscle.

“Been here the whole time. The boss told me to keep my distance so you would feel more at home.”

His words hit me like a ton of bricks, and I’m stunned into silence as I soak it in.

So I would feel more at home.

In his house.

Within minutes, we’re back at the stone wall. He doesn’t let me go before he hoists both of us up and over without getting winded.

“I hate you,” I hiss.

No one should be that fit. It’s just wrong.

Caleb laughs, and as much as I hate to admit it, I missed this big lug. He’s still absolutely an asshole, though.

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