She released their hands and pulled back.
“You’re right. We’ve only known each other for three months. Sleeping together at least two of those months. Doesn’t mean a thing, right?” That didn’t seem to budge him either. She felt defeated.
“It’s because I want to claim you in the strongest, deepest way possible and never let you leave this mountain or me. I want to come in you and see you round with my baby and do it all over again and again.” His expression tightened and his voice grew thick with emotion. “I can’t have that kind of connection to another human being, Remy. Not again. Something that deep-rooted would kill me if I ever lost you.”
Was that what Ethan really believed? Words like those meant one thing. Love. He loved her and all but said it. Her heart broke for him. The pain of loss that kept him from ever finding happiness wouldn’t just disappear which meant he would let her walk away in the end.
“You say those things like they are bad. Like wanting me is akin to having a disease. And what is so bad about wanting to be happy and loved?” Exasperation shot her tone an octave higher but he said it in a way she couldn’t help but feel frustrated over.
Braced against the armrest with his leg spread across her lap she had no choice but to wait. But the itch to pace had her biting her lip.
A tremor quaked in her chest. Maybe this was for the best. She only had a short time on her clock anyway. After they got some help up here, all she had to do was test the water, help the wildlife rangers fix the problem, and she could scoot on out of town. The Savage crew could handle their own problems, and she’d make it damn clear to Ethan he wouldn’t have to worry about her cramping his style or making him feel things he didn’t want to feel.
She pushed her glasses up and rubbed her eyes. Tension cranked the heat up in the room and finally cracked her patience.
She moved to slide his leg to the side and stand when he spoke.
“Remy, what I want with you is beyond simple desire and lust. I don’t know how to fucking handle that shit. Having you close to me is like having heaven within reach and hell chasing and nipping at my heels.”
She pinned Ethan with a hard look. “I guess I’m not worth the risk, right Ethan?”
She looked down at her hands, her fingers finding the edges of the scarf she used as a makeshift bandage. She’d wrung it out and tossed it over the back of the couch as she helped Ethan get comfortable after their shower. A stain, large and purple against the blue scarf caught her eye. She turned the cloth over in her hands and dried petals tumbled out to land on Ethan’s legs and her lap.
She held up a hand for him to wait.
Hope rose. “When I first bandaged your leg with this back in the woods, I saw odd burn marks I know where not made by you getting shot. But when I got you back here and, in the shower, they had faded from angry red to a dull pink. I didn’t know why at first. But this…” she held up the dried petals. “This could be the answer.” There were still a couple of tests to do before she would know for certain but if she was right, they’d stumbled onto what would counter-act the poison Brax had dumped in the lake.
She could see his mind working. “When he shot me, I fell into the water. Some of whatever he dumped could have gotten on me, but I had my clothes on.”
“You had a hole in your pants and the poison had yet to disperse in the water so you got a strong dose of it on your calf and possibly in your wound.”
Remy turned his leg slightly and peeled back an edge of the bandage so she could see the outer part. Just as she thought.
“See these petals?” She held up the tiny wilted leaves that looked like nothing more than weeds that had dropped from her field bandage. “I found them wrapped up in this and it appears they came in contact with the burns. They must have stuck to my scarf when I fell to the ground in the field.”
Darkness clouded his eyes, so she pushed forward quickly. Careful to not aggravate the area any further, she gently removed a side of the bandage and found the edges of the bullet wound not as angry and puckered. “You’ll still need stitches, but how is the pain level?”
“Throbbing, but manageable if I don’t move too much. You did a good job and bandaging me up.”
“Good. Now, I have to take samples of the water and with what I have in my field kit I can run some tests here that will at least tell us if what Brax dumped is lethal to humans, or aimed more toward the wildlife of the area.”
“That’s possible?”
She nodded. “If you know what you’re doing, yes. Just like nature can heal, it can also take lives. And can be altered to target specific DNA. Animal and human DNA can be specifically targeted. But, that’s probably way too sophisticated for the likes of a man like Brax. I think what has been dumped in the water is plant-based and why it’s been so hard to trace. I’ve been looking for the wrong signs. I should have known.”
“You look adorable when you turn all geeky doctor on me.”
She smiled and pushed on. “And with this,” she held up a long cotton Q-tip, “I’ll confirm what I already believe to be true.”
“Remy, you’re not doing what I think you’re saying you wanna do. Forget it, woman.”
Remy pushed to her feet and anchored her hands on her hips. “It’s not like you’re going to do it for me. Besides, I’m a big girl. And it could mean lives, Ethan. Even if they are only animals to you, they are precious and their lives matter too, you know and—”
“That’s not what I meant,” he cut in. “I’m talking about yours, Remy. Your life is the most important to me.” His anger was growing and his words turned into growls. “So forget it. I might have a wounded leg, but I’m not down for the count. You try to walk out that door and I’ll fucking take you over my shoulder and make sure you listen to fucking reason.” He grabbed a fist full of cushion and hauled himself to his feet. He swayed but held a hand up for her to leave him be.
Stubborn to the core. She fought to contain her frustration and the need to scream. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d stomped her foot, but the infuriating man made her feet itch to do some pounding.
“You even touch that door handle, woman, and I’ll have you wrapped around me so damn tight you won’t know where you end and I begin from now to the end of time.”
“Really?” He could try.
He chuckled darkly. “Take it as a promise.” The stubble on his chin gave him a true mountain man look, but the wildness in his eyes is what had her heart nearly stopping.
“I will not let you put yourself in danger.”
Her mouth fell open. “And that’s the only reason, right? To keep me safe. Gotta keep your Boy Scout badges well-polished and shiny.”
He slammed a fist down on the dining room table where she stood organizing the gear she needed for the tests. He moved fast for an injured man. She’d do good to remember that. “Damn it, Remy, look at me.”
Anger made her movements jerky, but she turned to him. Big fat freaking mistake. Her heart lurched in her chest and did a freaking nosedive to the pit of her stomach without stopping so she could catch her breath.
He stalked forward, able to put a little more pressure on his leg than he had when they first walked in the door.
He palmed her face and angled her head to where all she saw was his searing gaze.
“If you go out that door and get hurt, I’ll fucking kill someone or something. Then probably fucking die in the process.”
Eyes wide, her mouth worked but nothing came out. What did he want her to say?
“What do you want from me, Ethan?”
“Marry me, damn it. I want you to fucking marry me and give me babies. Lots of babies.”
His chest was heaving and she could see his pulse racing with the bulging vein in his neck.
“My savage mountain.” He wrapped a strong arm around her and hauled into his arms and she rested her cheek against his chest. The sound of his racing heart calmed hers.
She pulled back enough to look into
his eyes. She could see the man meant every word he uttered. His eyes glowed with the truth of them and a silent plea for her to obey.
“Do you mean it?” She wanted to hear the words.
“Every last one,” he growled before claiming her mouth with a claiming kiss so deep her soul felt the pain inside him and welcomed the burden. He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth and nipped at the tender flesh. Between them his cock grew hard.
She broke away and stepped from his arms, hard as it was. He met her gaze with a fire in his eyes. He took a step toward her and then another.
“Stay here.” It tore her apart to move that small fraction away from him. She clipped her pistol to her belt, gathered her gear and the case of vials in one hand, and tossed a water bottle his way to land on the couch with the others she tried to force down him to no avail. “You need lots of liquids. I won’t take long. But this is something I have to do. Please understand.”
“Fuck that,” he rumbled and the sound of his dark laughter had her pausing.
“It’ll take a bullet to my head and not my leg to keep me here laid up on the couch like some pussy while my woman puts herself in danger for me or anyone else. Don’t ever ask that of me again.”
She kind of liked his all alpha mode, but that little tidbit stayed with her.
“I’d do anything for you, but it’s not like I’m going out there unarmed,” she corrected, turning to him. He crossed the short distance between them, leaning heavily on the couch and each piece of furniture between them for support. Nothing was holding him back, apparently.
She dropped her supplies and pressed both palms to his cheeks. “You do know you have a fever and you’ve been shot, right? Do you know why you can’t breathe and you’re probably seeing two of me?”
“’Cause you’re tearing my insides to pieces!” A deep growl rumbled through her as he wrapped his arms around her and pressed her against his chest.
“Please don’t go. Damon will be up this way in a day or two to check on the place. He always does. We can hold up until then.”
Damon was Ethan’s second eldest brother and the quiet one of the Savage brothers. She had met him a handful of times at Sunday dinner with their large family. He either stuck to the bar and bakery he owned or spent his time in the woods for the most part. You never experienced a true Alaskan family gathering until you had ten plus burly men in one room with a table full of food.
“You are fighting off the poison that seeped into your bloodstream. How much I don’t know. Waiting isn’t an option. What we don’t know could mean your life. I’m only guessing it affect animals only. What if I’m wrong, Ethan? I’m not willing to risk it out of fear of the unknown.”
He crossed his arms and took a stance that screamed he was budging.
“Look, I need to know what kind of danger we are in. If I don’t find out how to help you, we could have a major crisis on our hands.”
Realization of their situation hit and his eyes became razor-focused. “Fine.” Anger threatened to take hold, but she watched him tap it down. She spent enough time around her brothers to know it simmered just beneath the surface and would find an outlet sooner or later.
“Damon has a radio. Getting to his place will be a bitch and slow, but faster than waiting for him. We’ll call in support while you do your testing back at his place.”
“Since you refuse to leave, think you can you make it?”
“If it kills me.”
“Not funny, Ethan.”
“Not really laughing, Doc.” He grabbed her arm and spun her around as she reached for the door handle.
Momentum carried her straight into his waiting arms. Damn if her hands didn’t land on the firm space his chest took up. Looking up at him wide-eyed, she held his gaze as he lowered his face closer to hers. “We’re not done here. This thing between you and me, we clear this up, figure out what the hell Brax is up to and then this,” he waved a finger between the small space separating their noses, “will be addressed. I want a formal answer to my question and I plan on asking you again to make sure I get it.” His tone held no room for negotiations nor did the hard kiss he stole that left her breathless. Honestly, seeing him face his fear head-on and taking what he wanted turned her on. And she was kind of curious to find out how he planned on asking her to marry him again.
Remy leveled her gaze with his. “Touché, mountain man. Touché.”
Chapter Seven
A mixture of fog from the surrounding mountains and mist from the lake rolled in sometime during the night. Heavy weighted sheets of the stuff collected in the valley like some botched science experiment to create one hell of a freaking wall he couldn’t see through. Every damn shadow had him on high alert. Why the hell did he agree to risk her safety for a few samples of water? He could have easily come here alone for whatever she needed.
His gaze shot from one side of the tree line to the other. Off in the distance, the low call of an elk bull sounded off before everything grew quiet again. Above, endless blue sky woke from the night’s slumber with an array of blue hues.
His legs trembled and his heart felt like it wanted to either come to a full stop or explode from the strain of his efforts. But he’d shake this off like he did everything else—it was just taking longer.
Fear for him drove her out here and his fear for her wouldn’t keep him pinned down for the world.
Her silence as they made their way to the lake carried a heavy weight, and he flirted with the idea of slinging her over his shoulder and doing what he promised. She would be mad as a hungry grizzly, but at least she’d be alive.
Maybe he’d picked the wrong time to drop the question on her. Hell, he knew he had, but she had a way of riling him up.
He took another step and then another, shoving down the bolts of white-hot pain that blazed up his left leg every time his foot connected with the solid ground. He’d found another staff to serve as a cane, but at this point, nothing really helped.
He pushed harder and worked to steady his trembling heartbeats, but it didn’t seem to work.
“You grit your teeth any harder and they’re gonna crack.”
Ethan tore a hand through his hair and squinted one eye closed as a drunkard would to help counteract the seesawing motion of the ground.
He ached to reach out and pull her in close, but she kept a solid three paces in front of him since stepping off the back porch thirty minutes ago. “We’re almost there. Then I can rest.”
Normally at this hour, robins and hares would be out foraging for berries and little insects to feed on. Instead, everything was quiet, even his little minx.
“Are you okay,” he asked when she slowed to walk beside him.
“I’m just focusing on what I need to do.”
Ethan took a couple of deep breaths. Sunlight twinkled between the branches to softly stroke along her exposed shoulders and kissed the lobes of her ears. The effect settled in his mind and worked like a painkiller.
But he couldn’t fight back the anger as it slipped deeper in his gut and wrapped around his insides until he could barely breathe. Brax, the fucker, had almost taken her away from him yesterday.
Ethan wanted blood. Today he and his brother would put a stop to him and whatever the hell he had up his sleeve. One way or the other, which worried him, too. The man had been part of their family for so long he felt like a brother.
He’d sensed a shift in the man’s attitude toward the family months ago at the onset of winter. When he disappeared three months ago, none of them knew what to make of it. The second he showed his face, filled with scars and strange bruises, to Drake a couple weeks back, he and his brothers knew something was up. His explanation of a tussle in a bar up north didn’t fly then and made lesser sense now.
He frowned. “Let’s pick up the pace.”
She had the ends of that damn scarf of hers wound tight around her fingers and her glasses perched slightly off-kilter. A vision of adorable geeky beauty. He wanted to smile
but couldn’t find the energy.
Remy pegged him with a curious, worried expression. “You sure?” Though his command grated on her judging by the way her steps faltered, she didn’t miss a beat and kept up with his long, lopsided strides.
He reached for her hand and gave her fingers a light squeeze.
Sweat dripped down his back and his hold slipped on his wooden cane, forcing him to refocus and tighten his grip. Erratic heartbeat after erratic heartbeat had him breathing heavier than usual, but they didn’t have time for him to stop and rest.
He hunched over briefly and stumbled over an unexposed root that poked out of the heaving ground that wouldn’t stay still no matter how many times he blinked.
He grimaced.
“We have to stop. You can’t go any further. I’ll go ahead and get the samples. You stay here and rest.”
“No.” He gathered the last of his strength and she slipped beneath his other arm and helped steady him. “We go together or we don’t go at all.”
“That’s not an option, Ethan.”
“Exactly. Now let’s go, Doc.” Her back grew rigid, but she didn’t press him for more. Thank God. He didn’t have the strength to argue with her and walk at the same time.
The small trail through the tall grass rounded a bend that cut through the trees and came to the open field hugging the lake. Unease settled between his shoulder blades as though someone watched.
“We’re here.”
“Grab what you need, and be quick so we can be on our way. We’re way too exposed out here.” Every word came with a struggle. He grunted as he pulled to a stop and narrowed his eyes on the horizon where the trees still stood in deep shadow, the fog impenetrable.
Glass rattled. “Shit.”
“It’s okay, baby. You don’t need to be nervous,” he rasped, unable to swallow. Black spots clouded his vision as he lowered himself to his good leg to try to rest before the even longer hike to his brothers.
“I know. I know. It’s just I don’t have many bullets left and what if, you know…” She slid those sexy black-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose for the fifth time in as little minutes. It drove him mad and made his finger itch to pluck them off her face and kiss her worry away.
Claimed by Her Mountain Man: A Steamy Mountain Man Friends to Lovers Romance (Her Savage Mountain Men Book 2) Page 6