Page 13 of Mountain Man Grinch
But I can’t say any of that.
So, I say the only thing I can. “Because you’re mine to protect.”
Her breath stutters.
Outside, the storm howls.
Inside, something hotter cracks open between us.
And for the first time all day, the danger isn’t the only thing I’m afraid of.
Chapter
Four
ARIELLE
Iwonder if Davin can hear the pounding of my heart. I try to take a deep breath, organize the meager ingredients on the counter to find culinary inspiration. Instead, I drop the jar of pepper, watching it roll across the floor.
Gus paces around my ankles, picking up on my energy. “It’s okay, little guy,” I lie, voice breaking.
Davin circles the perimeter with a soldier’s precision. As I watch him pass a window, it hits me like a ton of bricks. Despite my frayed nerves and rapid pulse, his presence makes me feelsecure.
Nobody has ever protected me like this. Nobody has ever made me feel this safe … or this out of control.
He grabs his cell phone, pulls something up on the screen as he heads down the hallway. Then, I hear his voice, talking to someone.
I strain to listen. Gus pants and snorts. Blood rushes through my temples. I can’t make out his words.
The fire crackles in the hearth, the wind blowing in gusts around the cabin. It could all be so cozy and ideal … if I hadn’t brought trouble with me.
The floorboards creak, and smoke and leather fill the air as Davin steps back into the room. “Surveillance camera caught two men dressed in black. Look familiar?” He flashes the screen toward me. The backs of my eyes sting as I watch the grainy black-and-white images.
“They’re sweeping the area. We can’t stay.”
“But where do we go?” my voice creaks.
“Leave that to me.” His face is unreadable, devoid of emotion. I carry them for us both, knees shaking, breath coming faster.
“Hey,” he says, stopping in front of me, pushing a stray lock of hair off my face. “You have nothing to worry about, Arielle. You’re safe with me. But we need to move fast. Take only what you need.” He crosses the room, grabs an empty backpack hanging from the coat rack, and throws it to me. “We’re out in ten.”
Outside, the fog lies so thick I can barely see my hand in front of my face. Snow mixes with it, leisurely fluttering … the antithesis of everything I feel. Inside, fear skitters—wild, frantic, desperate.
Gus snuggles beneath my jacket as we trudge through the snow and fog. My boot slides, and I nearly tumble to the ground. Davin hooks his hand around mine, warm and steady, pulling me through the drift.
Flames climb my arm, ignited by his touch. My breath steams in front of my face as we move, so does Davin’s, two white columns mixing in the wintry vale.
Panic seizes me as my head bobs around. I can’t see anything. My voice hitches.
“Arielle. I’ve got you.”
His words are a lifeline as we move through the eerie landscape. I don’t know what scares me more. the men chasing us, or what I feel at Davin’s touch.
“Not the most comfortable ride,” he says suddenly, straddling a snowmobile. He motions for me to crawl on behind him. “But it’ll get the job done. Don’t let go,” he growls as the wind picks up, chasing fog but replacing it with icy curtains of powder.
“But I don’t want to crush Gus,” I say, moving the fluff ball around in my jacket.
“Damn, Princess,” he mutters under his breath as I wrap my arms around him, and he pulls me tighter. “Hold on.” He fires up the engine, and it roars beneath us.
