Walking back down the stairs she stopped in the middle of the foyer. The dappling sunlight streaked across the wood flooring, highlighting tiny particles in the air along the way. Staring at the bedroom door, Everly stared unseeingly as she thought about what lay ahead of her tonight.
Making her decision, she grabbed her things from the hall closet.
Standing a few yards away, Everly braced herself against the cold wind as she watched Zane place the heavy pane of glass from atop the ladder. Wearing a thick khaki canvas work jacket and jeans Zane worked silently not noticing her presence. With his face strained with concentration, Zane carefully maneuvered the piece into position before sitting back with a sigh. Grabbing his drill from the tool bag he had hanging off his ladder, he finally noticed her with surprise.
“Hi there, sweetheart,” his eyes hungrily roved her body taking in all the winter garments approvingly. “Come to lend me a hand?”
Eyeing the large pile of supplies on the ground, she raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think I would be much help,” she replied honestly.
“I doubt that,” replacing the head of the drill, he gave her a wink. “But I won’t risk you getting hurt either way. Right now, there are too many sharp and heavy unsecured pieces everywhere to get you anywhere near this thing.”
Nodding, she examined the glass building just as her eye caught the large structure a few yards away practically hidden by the trees. The large dark green building blended in effortlessly with its woodland surroundings, one could miss it with just a glance.
“What’s in the barn?” They never mentioned having animals.
“It’s more of a giant storage shed than it is a barn. Hell, when we were building the cabin, it was our house.” The loud whine of the drill disturbed the winter silence around them as he leaned forward to attach another piece. “Now we just keep our construction equipment and vehicles in there, and our gym.” Standing astride the ladder now, Zane leaned forward and drilled in another piece before straightening and looking at her. “It’s locked right now, but I’ll show it to you when I get done.”
“Okay,” she whispered. She didn’t want to see it, she just wanted to talk to him now to buy herself time for later. Everly only needed just a little of his trust, just enough to give her buffer time to run.
“Did you think we kept animals in there?” His question nearly made her jump. Lost in her plans, she focused back on the man holding another heavy glass panel in one hand.
“Ummm… I wasn’t sure really, it reminded me of a barn my neigh…” Everly stopped herself. She was going to say it looked like the one her neighbors had growing up. What was she thinking? She shouldn’t be telling him any of this, he didn’t deserve any information from her especially details of her past. Stick to the plan Everly, she ordered herself.
Cold wind gusted around them whipping a few stray hairs loose from her long black braid. Silently, Zane studied her, wanting for her to say more. Shivering against another burst of strong wind, Everly bit her lip.
“Button your top button and pull your hat down further,” though the command was friendlier than any tone Reid would have used, Everly still recognized the expectation of compliance in the order. Zane waited for her to comply before continuing, his voice much gentler now. “Did your family have any farm animals?”
She debated telling him anything. Squinting through the strong gust of wind she caught his curious stare. The searching look in his eyes affected her more than she cared to admit. Relenting, she turned to look at the cold Lake in the distance. “We had chickens and a couple of cows. I mostly cared for the chickens though.”
“Mmm,” Nodding, Zane turned away to reach for another glass panel, Everly couldn’t see the expression that matched that disgruntled sound. “We had chickens growing up too, about thirty of the assholes.” Stepping to the side Everly moved to get a better angle on his face, she wasn’t sure why she just wanted to see his face as he recounted the past. “Christ, we hated those things, we didn’t mind eating them of course,” he let out a depreciating laugh, “it was just a pain in the ass taking care of them as kids.” Sitting back down on top of the ladder Zane tilted his head to the sky recalling the old memories with a grim smile. “I swear something was always trying to get them if it wasn’t one of our dumb dogs, a wild dog, or a snake.” The familiar heavy resignation in his voice surprised her. That was a feeling she knew intimately.
Opening her mouth to say more, to inquire more about the familiar pain she suspected lurked beneath his upbeat personality, Everly caught herself. What was she doing? Time was wasting and her window of escape was shrinking.
Nodding she buried her hands deeper into her coat pockets. “May I walk around the island?”
Turning around Zane looked at her, those bright blue eyes examining everything about her before flicking off towards the distance beyond her as if mentally surveying the entire island. Seconds passed like excruciating hours, Everly had to stop herself from nervously fidgeting under the mounting anxiety.
“Sure, sweetheart,” slowly he met her gaze again giving her a handsome smile. “Just be careful and stay away from the island’s edges. The temperature is steadily dropping and the wind is picking up, there are icy spots scattered along the ground.”
Her heart twisted with guilt at his worrying.
“I will,” she choked out, her stomach churning with anxious, cold fire.
Carefully, she turned and walked away, she could feel the weight of his gaze on her back as she slowly walked over the dead crumbling leaves. It felt like an eternity before she finally rounded the back of the cabin cutting off her view from Zane. Shoulders sagging under the pressure of relief she quickened her step. It would have been quicker if she simply would have walked directly to the front gate from the greenhouse, but that would have been too obvious. Going around the cabin and back up to the front counterclockwise seemed smarter.
Sticking close to the cabin, Everly walked quickly through the clear pathway that seemed to circle the house providing a small barrier in front of the tree line. Reaching the west side of the island, Everly looked up to see the large windows to the bedroom. Since the cabin sat on a tall pier and beam structure, the cabin sat high off the ground, only giving her a partial view of the bedroom wall and ceiling rafters. Looking back towards the water Everly stepped closer to the edge. She remembered Zane turning the truck left onto the island after they drove along the coast. That meant there had to be a road on the mainland. Standing as close to the island’s edge as she could Everly strained to see any sign of a road along the coastal edge. Nothing, just rocks and trees, but there was a road, there had to be.
She couldn’t waste any more time looking, she wasn’t sure how long Zane would allow her to wander unattended. Quickly she ran to the front of the house making sure to stay hidden in the tree-line. Looking at her watch, she confirmed it only had been a few minutes since she walked away from Zane. Perfect.
Standing still, she listened for the sounds of his drill whining in the wind. Hopefully, he would stay focused on his work. Keeping a cautious eye in the direction of the greenhouse, Everly made her way forward to the island’s only exit, the bridge. The trees weren’t so thick in front of the cabin considering most were likely cut down for the driveway. Losing some of her shelter Everly could see the greenhouse more clearly and the man on top. Her heart thudded in her ears as she waited behind the one remaining cluster of spruce. Turning away from her direction, Zane picked up and placed another glass panel with his back towards her.
Inhaling, Everly darted across the clearing to the safety of trees and thick bushes on either side of the bridge. Crouching Everly held her breath as she listened for Zane. The silence stretched by, causing her lungs to constrict painfully. Any second she feared Zane would pop up behind her. The mechanical sound of the drill continuing in the distance nearly made her cry. Relieved, she turned awkwardly in her crouch position towards the bridge. From the last time she was outside, Everly knew the
bridge had an alarm that linked up with hidden speakers scattered along the property. The combination of the motion sensing alarm and impenetrable metal gate told her using the actual bridge wasn’t an option.
But that didn’t mean she couldn’t go around.
Sliding down the natural embankment, Everly was able to stand up a little straighter instead of the deep crouch. The foliage around the bridge offered her privacy from Zane’s direct line of sight at the greenhouse. Standing on the embankment’s shallow edge. Everly’s heart sunk at the sight before her. The island’s edge sat high above the water, much higher than she expected. Sloshing and lapping against the rocks below, the lake’s cold depths surrounded them. Swallowing, Everly stepped back, the churning water was much deeper than she realized— too deep. The violent currents beneath her roared against the chaotic wind and beat against the gabion wall of the bridge. Running her hand along the chain-linked wrapped stone wall, Everly realized they were telling the truth— this really was an island. The mainland sat about ten to twelve yards away, too far to try to swim through the hellish waters below. Frowning she tried to think, she had to get across, she had come too far now. She refused to give up.
Running her gloved hand against the wall, Everly gripped the chain-link wiring covering the stone. It was a lot like a chain-link fence, just thicker and backed by stone. She could climb this. Hope surging through her veins, Everly grabbed onto the thick diamond latticed wire, hooking the toe of each boot into a hole. Using the top edge of the bridge, Everly supported her top half with her arms wrapped around the bridge’s ledge. Slowly she inched herself forward, along the edge before re-hooking her feet to new holes.
Her arms and back screamed in pain at the overexertion, but Everly ignored it. All she had to do was keep going and not look down. Breathing heavily, she adjusted her body as the bridge tapered to its arch forcing her to crouch tighter against the wall putting even more pressure on her arms. Groaning in pain, Everly glanced at the other side of the bridge, she was halfway there, just a little further.
Hooking her toes into the lattice, she shimmied again along the freezing cement edge of the bridge, the cold was seeping past her jacket and sweater making her arms go numb.
A faint sound on the wind stopped her.
Straining to listen past her own labored breathing, her eyes widened when she heard it again. Clearly this time.
“Everly!” Her name floated on the cold wind, she could hear the anger and worry in Zane’s voice.
She had to hurry. If she could make it across she could hide in the tree line and follow the road to whatever town it ran to. Doubling her efforts, Everly ignored the fire in her muscles and shimmied faster along the side of the bridge. Blindly feeling for another toehold, Everly shifted her weight to her feet so she could scoot further on the edge. The toe of her boots slipped from the metal lattice. Unable to catch herself Everly’s legs dangled in the open archway of the bridge forcing all of her weight onto her hold along the edge. Screaming in shock Everly tightened her hold around the ledge.
“Everly!!” Zane’s voice was coming closer, she could hear the rustling of the bushes nearby. “Where are you?” He yelled.
The strength in her arms was fading fast, she wasn’t strong enough to support her full body weight like this much longer. The icy wind was picking up around her, beating at her back. Everly could hear the waves sloshing violently in the tunnel beneath her. Oh God, she couldn’t fall down there, not into that deep icy water, the chaos of currents beneath her told her it would drag her right under.
Her grip was slipping.
Movement to her right caught her attention. Crashing through the trees, Zane stopped at the corner of the bridge with a shocked expression. “Everly! What the…Hold on!” He yelled.
Running over the bridge, she heard him curse as he quickly hit the keypad. The large metal doors started to slowly open. The strength in her grip was vanishing, she was going to fall. Squeezing through the crack of the opening door Zane lunged for her.
“Hold on!” he yelled.
Terrified she felt it happening with no way to stop it, meeting his gaze head-on she slowly watched the angry determination melt from his face as his eyes widened in shock. Lunging forward just out of reach he roared her name, “EVERLY!!”
It was too late. Her scream bounced off the stone wall as she fell backward into the icy waters below.
Chapter 11
Zane knew the moment he watched her walk away from him at the greenhouse something was wrong. The shadow dancing in those beautiful brown eyes of hers warned him, and like an idiot, he didn’t listen. Anxiously he worked on that damn greenhouse and with every minute she didn’t reappear his instincts went haywire.
Every time he called out to her and heard no reply, Zane felt a little of his sanity slip away. Something was wrong, he knew that for certain. He ran around the back of the house and she wasn’t anywhere in sight. He had his boot on the porch stairs when he heard the scream. Taking off in the direction of the noise he barreled through the tangled shrubs until he stopped cold at the sight.
Hanging from the side of the bridge, Everly struggled to hang on. Anger and panic swamped his senses, as he ran to open the gate. Pure, focused adrenaline kept his hands from shaking as he punched in the gate code. Not waiting for the gate to open any wider Zane forced himself through the slowly widening crack lunging forward he yelled for her to “hold on.”
The desperate command went unheeded.
No, God no!
Still reaching uselessly over the edge, Zane watched with cold unending agony as she submerged into the deep rushing water.
Ignoring the pain that spread through his body like veins, Zane turned on his heel to the other side of the bridge. Throwing off his heavy jacket, Zane rushed the four-foot wall and planted one hand on the ledge before vaulting over the other side.
±
Kicking open the cabin door, Zane carried her inside. They were both drenched from head to toe. With her teeth chattering, Everly sagged against Zane’s soggy chest shivering all over. She couldn’t stop shaking.
With each thundering purposeful step, Zane’s soaked boots sloshed across the wooden floors. Reaching the bathroom, he walked directly into the shower setting her down on the tiled bench.
Not a word, Zane had not said one word since he pulled her from the water. Everly’s memory was hazy and segmented after she fell into the water. She remembered the icy shock of the water jolting through her, she even remembered fighting against the cold current, but that was all she could remember at this moment. It must have happened fast because it seemed like Zane was right there pulling her to the surface only seconds after she went under.
Turning on the hot spray, Zane began pulling at her clothes. Too cold to do anything, Everly sat stiffly as Zane yanked and pulled at her clothes tossing them into a big soaking pile in the corner of the shower. The hot spray from the water hit her body like needles, she was so cold it felt like they were just bouncing off of her. Pulling her knees up to her chest, Everly wrapped her arms around her legs and pressed her breast to her thighs trying to do anything to maintain her warmth and hide her nudity. With her body still trembling and teeth chattering, Everly could only sit numbly under the water as Zane stepped back and began removing his own wet clothes. She wanted to say something, to turn away, to do anything but sit there shivering against the wall unable to move. The murderous expression on his face told her without words not to even think of moving. Pulling off the last of his remaining clothes, Zane turned the second nozzle on the opposite wall, activating the second rain faucet overhead. Water cascaded down around them in a steamy downpour enveloping them in its warmth.
“Come here,” he ordered gruffly, grabbing her hand and tugging her to stand. Completely disregarding his own nudity, Zane forced her to stand inches away from him.
Reaching behind her for the shelf in the corner of the shower, Everly sucked in her breath at the feel of his wet chest brushing across he
r shoulder. Water poured over her head and down her face as she tried to bow her head to the onslaught, but that only served to put her line of sight at the jutting protrusion between his legs. Embarrassed, Everly began to step back, to retreat to the far side of the shower.
“Stand still,” the rough command froze her to the spot. Scooping up her pink loofah, Zane grabbed her by the shoulder as he began to run the scratchy soapy material over her body.
“I can…,” She clamored, she would much rather do it herself.
“Don’t,” Zane snapped, his voice icy with anger.
Chastised and hurt, Everly bit her trembling lips to keep from breaking out into sobs as Zane continued. Running the soapy loofah across her shoulders and breasts, Everly forced herself to focus on the mural of ink permanently painted across his chest. The collage of dark images began to actually hold her focus and help her ignore his softening strokes across her belly or his other hand bracing her to him sliding down her body to hold her steady. Pulling her forward, Zane broke her trance forcing her cheek flat against his slick broad chest. The feeling of his firm muscular flesh pushing her breasts flat against him was mind-rendering, distracting her from her hurt feelings and his anger.
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