“Remy, you okay? The tallest of the three called out to her, his head low and his eyes leveled on the intruders.
She nodded, pushing to her feet.
“What are you kneeling for? Were you praying?”
“Maybe.” She answered Damon with a shrug, still aimed at the enemy. “Actually, yeah. I was kissing my ass goodbye. But thank God the cavalry showed up.” That had Ethan’s brothers smiling. If you could call the Savage brothers’ single-sided grins a form of smiling. To her and half the town it was more an easy glide that held so much sexiness, it kind of left a woman breathless.
“Yes, ma’am.”
One second all three men stood shoulder to shoulder, and in the next, they were by her side taking on what looked like Brax’s whole family. There were more hiding out of sight and didn’t make themselves known until the Savage boys appeared.
Small miracles. They did happen.
Murder shone in their eyes and she was caught in the middle. Damon moved her behind him. “Find Ethan,” he said and then it was all-out war.
She dodged around a tree but the young sapling did nothing to protect her when two-hundred pounds of muscle barreled into her.
How the hell did she end up in this position? Adventure. Right. Now she remembered. Her brothers said it would be fun.
“Oh shit.”
Damon took a blow to the face and then two men jumped on him. The former cop now bakery owner didn’t let the uneven odds hold him back.
She held her ground, but the closer the fight advanced the more nervous she became. She rounded a tree and narrowly missed a meaty fist angled at her head before a Savage brother could stop the hit.
“Low blow. Low blow, dude,” she chastised as she tucked behind yet another tree. They wouldn’t stop coming. Splinters broke off and shattered, catching her in the face and chest. Ferocious bellows rocked the forest and her heart hit the ground so many times she didn’t think it would ever recover from the beating it took.
Keep it together, chick! Keep. It. Together.
She hit the floor and rolled as Ethan’s came out of nowhere and flew over her to land on top of a man gunning for her.
He took him down and they rolled with Ethan coming out on top.
To her left, Brax stumbled out of the tree line and fell forward but didn’t make it far. Massive blows to the face had his eyes swollen halfway shut and blood oozed from several gashes. Ethan on the other hand only had a few marks in comparison. She knew the second the adrenaline crash hit he’d feel every inch of his body and the bullet hole in his leg, but right now he was too jacked up to feel a damn thing.
His brothers quickly surrounded them with Ethan coming to stand in front of her, dragging Brax with him by the throat.
She thought living in L.A. was wild.
“Why” Ethan bellowed.
Ethan backhanded Brax when he didn’t answer.
“Why, damn you!” He bellowed again. “Answer me!”
Brax struggled to regain his breathing. “Family,” he wheezed, his shoulders rising and falling with each hard breath. “It’s my only way back in. You of all people should know what that means.”
“No. You don’t get an easy pass. You’re nothing like me. There’s not a loyal bone in your treacherous body. We are nothing alike!” Ethan roared, lashing out with a solid punch across the face.
“Just kill me already and get it over with.”
“We took you in. Why, Brax? Your lie of loyalty makes no sense.”
“I never belonged. My father gave this land to yours in exchange for taking me in.”
She looked on in silence as Brax rose to his knees. “I get this land back for my father so he can sell to the new lodge coming in and I’ll be accepted back in. Your girl was just a bonus.”
Brax sneered my way.
Ethan snarled and lunged forward. “You’ll never get her or this land!”
She stepped closer and laid a hand on his shoulder. He jerked his head around, and she could see the murderous rage in his tight expression.
Her gaze followed Ethan as he approached Brax who knelt, blood seeping from wounds on his chest.
“Before you leave my land, tell me if it was worth it. Worth betraying the one family who accepted you into their homes and hearts and never once treated you like the bastard they should have.”
“Stupid and weak is all I see when I look at a Savage.”
“Father promised a place for me in the family. I only had to do one thing.” He lowered his head and narrowed his eyes on her.
She noticed the murderous shift in him a second too late.
“Now that I’ve failed, I can still have one small victory.”
Having the advantage of the higher ground, Brax lunged for her, but Ethan was faster. He caught him around the throat and threw him back to the ground.
“I told you, you’ll die before you touch her.”
From her left, pristine white hair caught her eye. A man well over six feet and wider than a semi-truck with shoulder-length white hair stood over Brax, gun drawn.
The Savage men didn’t seem alarmed so she tried not to let her imagination fly away with what happened now. The fact he wore a badge helped settle her nerves. Still, she gathered the end of her scarf in her hands to keep her hands busy at least.
“Shots fired were reported by rangers,” The stranger spoke, taking his cuffs out. For a man of the law he didn’t have many questions. “I’ve been looking for my brothers for a while now. It seems you guys found them for me.”
“Someone should put them on a leash,” Ethan stated flatly that had the white-haired man grinning.
“Maybe. They can get a little out of hand at times, but that’s going to change.”
“Grab your baggage,” he snapped at his brothers. “You have some explaining to do to your father and the Judge back in Savage Ridge.”
The white-haired man who looked to be about Ethan’s age turned back and nailed Ethan with a piercing stare. They stood like that for what felt like a solid five minutes before he spoke. “You were kind to someone who never should have darkened your family with his presence. That kind of acceptance won’t go unnoticed. You’re a good family. If our father was half the man your father is, this sorry lot would have turned out better.”
The Savage brothers didn’t say anything as they stood around her like a shield.
“You should know this—I do not share the same beliefs as my father. The old man is on the way out and the bad ideas he puts into these boys will come to a stop.”
Fog tumbled around their feet and she could tell the effect of what Brax put in the water grated on their senses, if not their skin too.
She rubbed a flat palm along the length of her forehead trying to warn off the headache it was brought on for her.
The white-haired man hauled Brax over his shoulder like he weighed nothing more than a bag of flour and signaled for the rest of his brothers to get a move on.
“Wait. The fireweed. You…you use it to counter the poison,” she stuttered, before they could completely step out of sight. “Mix it with some yarrow as a tea.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s Remy.”
“Remy,” he repeated in a slow drawl.
“Maybe we’ll see you around.” Why the hell did she keep talking?
He smiled in answer.
Ethan approached her and pulled her in close with a soft kiss. She twined the ends of her scarf and only looked up when he slipped a finger beneath her chin. Slowly he nodded as though silently finding some answer he’d been seeking and turned back to call over his shoulder to give them one last look.
“What’s your name?” she called after him.
“Bram, but friends call me Reaper.” He’d already started up the path, every muscle in his body contorting with each step.
He didn’t look like death, but he sure the hell moved swift, silently and deadly.
Both her and Ethan’s brows climbed a little at that.
Chapter Nine
Remy pulled from Ethan’s arms and walked beside him, her gaze glued to the damn ground. Her fingers worked the cloth of her scarf like a priest did his rosary.
His mind had locked in protective mode and he feared he might have scared her. Now that the poison had burned through his system, with the help of her quick thinking, his mind was finally clear again.
With the danger gone, the adrenaline still pumped through his veins and his leg hurt like a mother fucker, but he still had a ton of energy coursing through his body.
Step after step, as they made their way back to his brother’s place a quarter of a mile beyond the ridge that separated their homes, the silence thickened in the dense fog.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” he asked quietly. His brothers walked ahead to give them privacy.
She wrapped her arms around herself, her small fingers digging into the flesh of her arms.
Her eyebrows furrowed, but she didn’t answer. Could he blame her? What she witnessed had to be unnerving, to say the least. He tore a hand through his hair and slowed their pace with a gentle hand to her shoulder.
“I’m okay, Ethan. Let’s just get back to town and figure all this out.” From where he stood his chances didn’t look so hot. He might have taken the long road around telling her he loved her and wanted her to stay, but he hadn’t truly opened up to her in the way she wanted. Today she’d seen a side of him no one else had ever seen. He didn’t regret protecting her, but what if she’d seen a part of him that scared her?
She looked after his brothers as they continued on, giving them space.
“We need to keep up. Damon said he’d give us a ride back to town after gathering our things from the cabin.” Instead of pushing her glasses up her nose, which she’d lost at some point, she twisted the ends of her scarf around her fingers, let the material fall and then repeated the process.
He stilled her hands.
She looked down, unable to meet his gaze. Or unwilling? “I’m all right. We all are. You know I wouldn’t let anything or anyone hurt you, right? Please talk to me.” He’d get down on both knees and beg for one smile. Just one. He didn’t care how weak it made him look.
“I know. Thank you, and I owe your brothers a big thanks too. Our cans were toast there for a while. Can we get going now?”
“Remy, look at me.” He didn’t want her thanks. As far as he was concerned his whole existence started and stopped with her. His life was hers.
Remy looked up at him. “You’re fine now and your brothers have already disappeared over the hill. Let’s not make them wait. Plus, we need to call the rangers and get them out here ASAP.” She crossed her arms over her chest as if the topic was closed. He shoved down the frustration that wanted to become a belly-deep roar. The little minx.
“Fuck my brothers. I’ll carry you on my back all the way to town if I have to. What I need to know is if we are all right? I’m not taking another step until you tell me one way or the other. Did I scare you off today?” He gathered her hands in his.
“Are you kidding?” Her eyes went wide as she took his face in her hands. “You Ethan Savage have done nothing wrong. I refuse to let you even think that for a minute.”
“We live in a violent world up here, Remy. This isn’t L.A. or some swanky town back east.”
“Apparently you haven’t been to Los Angeles lately. This place is tame in comparison, trust me. I rather be on this mountain on most days.”
That made him laugh.
She turned to him and rested her face against his chest when he circled his arms around her. “We’re okay, Ethan. I’m just trying to digest everything. It’s all so much to take in. I can’t imagine what your mom and will think after they hear of Brax’s betrayal.”
“From now on, anything you want to know about me, just ask. I’ll always answer you honestly. Anything you want to know. No more distance between us.”
She kept quiet for several moments, “Does that mean you’re willing to give us a try?”
“No. There is no trying with us. I’m going to get you back to my brothers and once they’re all gone I’m going to sink my cock so deep inside your sweet, addictive pussy and all it will take is one try to get my baby inside you.”
She muffled her giggle against his chest. “A little direct.”
He shrugged. “I said you would get nothing but honesty from me and that is exactly what I’m thinking about right now.”
She pulled back and he looked down into her smiling face. “We’ve only known each other for three months. I can’t believe we’re already here. In the baby stages.”
“People have fallen in love in less time, baby.”
Back at his brother’s cabin no sooner had he swung open the screen door to did his brothers have Remy pulled inside and sitting on a barstool between them.
Remy laughed and he took a moment to grab the fastest shower he’d ever taken in his life. Dressed in borrowed jeans and T-shirt he entered the kitchen to find all three of his brothers—Drake, Holden, and Damon—hanging on every word that left Remy’s mouth as she went over the events of the last day and a half. She was now on the part about her herbal cure.
“After a couple of more cups full of this tea, everyone should be okay. I’m not going anywhere so if you have any questions, just reach out.”
He decided if he didn’t already love her, he’d be a goner right then and there.
“But stay out of the water until we can get it cleaned up. If you have any more friends or know anyone who comes out here to camp, please warn them off.”
They circled around on all sides and he felt a pang of jealousy at how they had all her attention.
She toyed with the ends of the damn scarf that would survive the freaking apocalypse if there ever was one. The delicate tassels swayed in the soft currents of cool air from the vent above.
“I see you’ve worked your magic over my brothers. They look as smitten as I feel.”
Ethan pushed off the door frame he’d been leaning against and made his way to Remy’s side with a limp. His leg screamed like a bitch under his weight, but he’d had worse.
Remy placed her mug on the countertop. “I was just telling your brothers thank you for saving our asses back there.”
Drake pulled her in for a quick hug. “It’s what family does.”
“Speaking of,” Damon started. “How did it come to all this? The poisoning of the water and shooting you?”
“We’re still trying to figure it all out, but I think it all boils down to a man not knowing where he belonged.” He didn’t like the sad tone to Remy’s voice.
“Do you guys have a phone or a radio I can use? I need to call in the rangers.” She rose from her stool.
“Uh, sure. This way.” Holden guided Remy from the kitchen. The second they rounded the corner into the living room, he turned to his brothers. “You need to leave. Like now. As soon as she comes back, you need to be out the door.”
Damon clasped his shoulder as Holden walked back in. “We were thinking the same thing.”
He looked all three in the eye as he braced his hands on the kitchen counter. “Thank you all for being there today.”
“We came up to get out of town for a couple of days. Glad we did,” Holden said. “Heard the gunshots and from the echo that bounced around the valley, we knew no hunter would use such a small caliber.” Holden grabbed the keys off the counter and started gathering his things. Drake and Damon doing the same. “Next best answer was you and Remy in trouble. Either way, we couldn’t just not check it out.”
He hugged each of them as they headed for the door.
“Make sure you don’t let her slip away man. She makes you a better man,” Drake whispered in his ear before pushing off and leaving him alone with Remy.
“Where did everybody go?” Remy stepped into the kitchen and look
ed around.
His hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her to him before she could protest. Not that she would once he had her naked and under him. “I think I need to show you how much I love you. He hunched forward and placed his shoulder at the crook of her waist. “And the only way I can do that is it seems is by showing you.” He loved the little squeak of surprise as he lifted.
“Ethan Savage, you put me down right now.”
“Hold on, baby.”
He took the steps a little slower than usual, wound back through the wide hallway to where several bedrooms were situated facing the sunset. He shoved open the door and tossed her onto the bed among massive amounts of mismatched throw pillows. And the perfect headboard. He smiled.
There were no curtains to speak of so the large window opposite the bed let a flood of afternoon sunlight drench the room, especially the bed. He loved the way the sunlight kissed his woman’s beautiful skin.
He shucked off his pants and shirt while earning him a narrow-eyed glare.
“What do you think you’re doing?” She swung her feet over the side, but he pegged her with a daring look and she froze.
His cock twitched eagerly. “I told you had a question to ask the proper way.”
“Oh.”
She didn’t say a word after that. He inched closer to the bed until his thighs brushed the comforter. He reached forward and caught her foot when she moved to draw it back. Just looking at her gorgeous face had his cock thick and hard. A white pearl of cum already dripped from the crown.
Her eyes raked the length of his bare chest and the second she noticed it, her pink little tongue darted out, hungry for a taste.
He smiled.
He pulled on the heel of one shoe followed by the second and tossed them both into the corner. His gaze traveled up the length of her bare legs until they fell on the cut-off shorts. She pushed back to the headboard, fluffy pillows falling every which way. “What do you plan doing to me, mountain man?”
“Claiming you thoroughly, city girl.”
He watched as her breathing hitched.
She reached for the hem of her shirt and tugged, tossing it in the floor.
Claimed by Her Mountain Man: A Steamy Mountain Man Friends to Lovers Romance (Her Savage Mountain Men Book 2) Page 8