Page 24 of Single Mom for the Mountain Men
She turns to me and gives me a small smile. “Sure. Let’s get it over with.”
As we start training back out in the yard, I get the feeling that something is off. I try to put it out of my mind for now as I tie Lena’s hands together tightly with a rope and toss away the pocket knife that I keep on me at all times.
“Try to get your hands free,” I command her quietly. “Do it before I finish tying your legs together.”
“You’ve tied them too tight,” she complains as I advance closer to her, like a predator stalking its prey.
“That’s the point. If James is out there, he could get his hands on you, and his first instinct will be to tie you up. You have to know how to escape as quickly as possible.”
She licks her lips, and fire burns in her eyes. “I willneverlet myself be caught.”
I smirk. “That’s the spirit. But right now, youhavebeen caught. Let me see you escape.”
She starts kicking at me instead of trying to untie her hands. It’s not difficult for me to subdue her, and I have a loop around one of her legs in no time. She grunts, using the full force of her free leg to get away from me.
“That isn’t what I told you to do, Lena,” I remind her while gripping her other leg tightly as I loop the rope around it as well. She squirms on the ground, her hair tangled over her face as she breathes harshly.
“Stop, I can’t,” she heaves, twisting her upper body around so she can look at me. “I don’t want to do this.”
“Try, Lena. Unless you feel this desperation, your mind won’t push itself to get you out of this situation when it’s the real deal.”
“I’m done, Aiden, please!” she yells, her body going limp. My hands twitch around her ankle, and I quickly untie her hands and her feet with one pull of the rope.
“Are you sure you don’t want to—” I try again as she’s getting up, only to have her yell at me once more.
“I said I’mdone!”
She storms away without another word. I stand there, dumbfounded for a moment, before I remember her psychotic ex possibly being out there, watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Stalking after her, I find her sitting under an oak tree, her hands pressed against her eyes as she sniffs.
“Lena,” I breathe as I approach her. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“I’m just—tired and scared,” she says, her voice thick with her tears. “I feel useless and like a burden—I can’t get anything right, and this is all so much to remember. I can’t protect Sophie, not when I can’t even protect myself.”
I sit beside her and curve my arms around her frame, hugging her tightly. “It’s all right, Lena. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself. I get this is all so much for you, and it’s all happening too soon. But you’re the bravest woman I know. The strongest, too. You’ll get it soon, I promise you.”
She pulls her hands away from her face, those gorgeous green eyes wet and sad. I wipe away her tears with my thumbs, and she nuzzles her face into my palm, closing her eyes again. Pressing my forehead against hers, I breathe in sync with her, trying to calm her down.
Her breaths return to normal after a while, and her eyes open to look at me. They aren’t flooded with tears anymore.
My thumb brushes against her cheek, and I feel us falling victim to the same chemistry that always sparks between us. Our lips are about to brush, and that’s when she pulls away.
I eye her with confusion as she pulls my hands off her face and holds them between her palms.
“Aiden, you’re so kind to me. I like what we have. It’s soft and relaxing. But I feel like I should just focus on me and Sophie for now. With everything that happened to me in the past, and now with James potentially showing up, I don’t want this to turn intosomething more. My previous relationship has left scars that I need to deal with first.”
I wrap my arms around her in a tight embrace and murmur in her ear, “I’ll do anything you want me to, Lena, you just have to say the word. I don’t want anythingyoudon’t want, so you don’t worry about that.”
She relaxes in my hold. When she’s feeling better, I walk her and Sophie back to their cabin, keeping my eyes peeled for any unwanted visitors as I do.
Chapter twelve
CHAPTER 12: Brody
A shrill scream pierces through the night right when Aiden returns, just as he’s about to close the door behind him.
Tanner and I pause as we listen for the direction the sound came from, Aiden frozen halfway through the doorway.
