Page 55 of Eyes Like a Hurricane

“No,” I chuckle. “We were sort of run off from the waterfall by a large male mountain lion. There was no way for Aislinn to get her shoes and clothes back on without crouching down, so I had her climb my back. A little unconventional, but it worked. We returned safe and in one piece.”

Aislinn starts to climb down, but I hang on tight. I plan to keep her warm body against me a little longer. I also have no desire to show her figure off to any other male. My adrenalineis still high, and the man in me doesn’t want to share her with anyone.

“Well, we are going to go get cleaned up and put some fresh clothes on,” I say gruffly, nodding toward the house.

Without waiting for their response, I stride toward my backyard. My thighs and shoulders are burning, but I want a little more alone time with Aislinn. We both need to release the adrenaline, and I know just the way.

“Hey, Callum,” I shout over my shoulder. “A little later, will you ride back out there with me so I can gather our stuff?”

The only response I hear is swearing under his breath and Ingrid's giggle.

Chapter 40

Aislinn

The pounding on my front door has me rushing down the stairs with half my hair still in an alligator clip. I pull the door open and come face to face with three sets of eyes. Kieran’s eyes are tight as he bites his lip, trying to keep from laughing. Paisley’s eyes are wide, and her jaw is slack. Great, she’s in shock. Then there’s Leo, who is looking at me with one eyebrow arched and his mouth pushed to the side.

“I’m afraid to see how you leave the house without my help. I honestly believe you are regressing. Was it too many years in Granola Central? Please tell me you don’t wear socks with sandals,” Leo says, shaking his head.

Planting a hand on his hip, he motions with his other hand for me to spin. I twist my head just enough to show him my hair.

I sigh. “You caught me in the middle of doing my hair. I was just about ready to straighten it. But I have a good excuse as to why I’m running late.”

Kieran chuckles. “Let me guess. You were chased by a bear?”

My hands fly to my mouth. “Oh, that would have actually been worse! But no. You guys! I was almost attacked by a mountain lion while hiking in my bikini!”

Leo sucks in a sharp breath. “Did it not like your swimsuit?”

Kieran’s eyes widen. “I didn’t actually think you were attacked by a wild animal. I thought you would say you fell asleep reading or were baking cookies. Are you okay?”

Paisley is standing there with a smirk. “I want to know why you were practically naked on a hike. Please tell me there was a naked Lachlan involved.”

I motion for them to step inside. “Well, I was hiking to a waterfall with Lachlan. While I was walking toward the water to—” I pause, deciding how much to divulge, then resume, “swim, a mountain lion came out of the trees on the other side of the pool.”

I suck in a deep breath as my pulse starts to race from the memory. “I froze, you guys. Lachlan talked me to safety and then carried me the half mile, on his back, to the ranch.”

“Was he naked too?” Leo hisses, his eyes going as wide as dinner plates.

I thwack him with the sleeve of the plaid shirt I have tied around my waist. Kieran wraps me in a hug.

Ignoring Leo’s comment, he murmurs, “I will have to thank Lachlan when I see him for saving you. Again. You are becoming a full-time job for him to keep alive. I can’t lose you too, Sis.”

I squeeze him tightly and then step back, ignoring his teasing remark, and motion to my hair.

Leo shakes his head before I can say anything. “We don’t have time to flat iron that mess of curls. I will do a quick Frenchbraid, and then we will fix whatever you did with your eyeliner. I'll finish tonight's look with a neutral lip gloss. Come on.”

Once Leo finishes applying my lip gloss, he turns me in the mirror and rests his head on my shoulder. “Well, if you were a 9.9 before, now you are a solid ten. You are looking darn fine in those blue jeans. Look, we match!”

He twists his leg to show me the color of our denim is almost an identical shade. I shake my head and give him a hug.

“Thank you for making me look presentable to the public,” I whisper.

He pats my back. “You know I will always be there to help pull you up and put you together.”

We head back downstairs to see where Kieran and Paisley went but find them waiting in the entryway.

The drive into town is quick, and we pull up to Glaciers. As Kieran backs his Durango into a front-row spot, a black Mercedes honks, swerving around us.

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