“You ok to get home? Not driving, I hope?” He asked Carter, concern crossing his lined face.
“Fuck no, I walked. Won’t take me long to get back.” Carter took a deep breath to help him sober up, before stepping out into the dark night. As soon as the door had closed behind him, the full force of the storm hit him head on and he almost turned around and walked back inside. The cold air and rain felt good against his heated skin, though, and he started to make his way back to the house. Without needing much thought, he decided to take the little road above the village back to the cottage as he didn’t think the beach would be a good option. As he started walking, he realized just how strong the storm was and a niggling unease settled in his chest. Madison was on her own in that isolated beach cottage and if the power went, she’d have no light, no heat and no one to help her. Not that he’d be much use in the state he was in and he was pretty sure she wouldn't thank him for turning up on her doorstep — drunk, at this late hour in the middle of a storm.
The wind whipped and tugged at his clothes and he found it difficult to walk in a straight line with the strong gusts that were pushing him sideways. Or maybe that was the scotch, he wasn’t sure. It took close to half an hour to reach the cottage, something that would normally only take fifteen minutes, and he gratefully let himself in. The heavens had opened up before he reached the house and he was soaked to his skin. He stood in the hallway for a couple of minutes just catching his breath before peeling his wet clothes off in a pile by the door. He didn’t want to drip water all over the floors. No one would see him walk naked through the house anyway. A hot shower warmed him up before he pulled on some sweats and a Henley shirt under his hoodie. Turning on a small light by the couch, he settled down with a bottle of water and his book to try to unwind and purge the alcohol from his system.
He moved about restlessly on the sofa for half an hour while the uneasiness grew in his chest. It felt as if there was something wrong with Madison. He just didn’t know what it was — or what made him think that. He put it down to an overactive imagination after the crazy dream he’d had the night before. No matter what he did to get comfortable nothing worked and in the end, he had to give up. He sat up and rubbed the back of his neck to try and ease the tension that was tugging at his muscles. Suddenly, the room was plunged into darkness. Fumbling for his cell and coming up empty, he got up to find the breaker, cursing loudly as he went. He flipped the switch several times, but realized the power must have gone out in a larger area, not just his place. The unease he’d felt all evening was all of a sudden growing stronger and burning a hole in chest. He had to find out if Madison was ok because he knew he wouldn't get any rest until he was certain there was nothing to worry about. If she got mad at him for waking her up and scaring her then so be it. He’d try his best not to startle her, but one way or another he had to know. In case she was still up he’d try her cell first and fished the phone out of the pocket of his still wet jeans. He quickly tried dialing her number, but all he got was a big fat nothing. The power outage must have been affecting the cell service in the area, too. Feeling more worried by the minute, Carter threw on his rain parka and a pair of hiking boots before picking up a heavy-duty flashlight and walking back out into the fierce storm.
Again, he took the safer option of the road rather than the beach and jogged through the heavy rain until he got to what he thought was Madison’s drive. It was difficult to see in the dark and the wind made his eyes sting with the salt from the ocean. He drew a sigh of relief when he bumped into her car in the driveway. Swearing under his breath, he rubbed his knee where it had hit the bumper. It only took a few more steps before he stood by her front door and was knocking loud enough to be heard over the raging storm.
“Madison! Are you in there? I just need to know you’re ok?” Carter called out and waited for an answer, but he couldn't hear anything. Maybe the storm was too loud for her to be able to hear, or maybe she was asleep and blissfully unaware? No, there was no way anyone could sleep through this storm. The windows in the little beach cottage were rattling from the winds that came howling in from the sea. The only thing he could think of was that she might have sought shelter in a hotel in Port St. George for the night, although that idea was quickly dismissed. Her car was still there so she had to be as well. He banged on the door a few more times and shouted her name, but there was still no reply. Growing more and more concerned, he stalked around to the porch and tried the door there. It was locked but moved on its hinges. If he had to, he could break it down with one kick. He’d deal with the consequences later. Carter kept calling her name and tried to look through the windows. The house was in total darkness — not even a candle burning anywhere. Only a few shadows of the furniture were visible in the living room. He carried on past the porch and to the side of the building. All of a sudden, he was out of the wind and was met with a deafening silence. His ears were ringing from the abrupt change and he stopped to catch his breath. A whimpering sound from inside the house made his ears prick up and he listened intently. It was coming from the window above his head which he guessed to be the main bathroom. He grasped the window frame and tried to pry it open, but it wouldn't budge.
“Maddie? Madison! Are you in there? Is everything ok?” He shouted at the top of his lungs, hoping he wasn't scaring the life out of her. Still, there was no answer. He was just about to move back towards the front door when he heard the whimpering again. Only this time it sounded more like someone crying in fear and pain. His heart lodged in his throat when a terrifying scream pierced the air. It sliced right through Carter’s chest and his lungs constricted.
In seconds, he was by the porch door holding on for dear life as the wind tried to throw him off if he so much as loosened his grip. He grabbed the flimsy door tight and gave it good tug. It flew open so fast it was nearly pulled clean off its hinges and Carter stumbled backwards before regaining his balance. With the flashlight in one hand, he felt his way through the pitch-black house towards where the main bathroom was. The door to her bedroom was open and he swept the beam of light through the empty room. The bed sheets were rumpled, and she’d obviously gone to bed some time earlier. However, the question remained, where was she now? Was it her he could hear, or was there someone else in the house? It wasn’t likely, but as an agent he knew to always expect the unexpected and not assume things were what they seemed.
“Maddie, are you in here? Please answer me!” Again, he tried to listen hard to hear anything over the sound of the violent gusts buffeting the house. There! Another whimper came from the far end of the passageway. He made his way down to the last door and tried to push it open, but there was something blocking it.
“Madison, it’s me, Carter. I’m coming in, ok? I just want to know you’re allright.” He pushed hard on the door and felt it move against something heavy on the other side. Pressing a shoulder at the wood he managed to shove it open enough to squeeze through. He pushed a small chest of drawers aside that had been barricading the door and shone the flashlight around the little bathroom, stopping when he saw the moving bundle in the far corner. The whimpering was louder now, interspersed with deep sobs and crying. He could just about see the top of her head underneath a heavy blanket and almost felt her shivering and shaking from where he stood. Kneeling down beside her, he pulled her into his arms, and with a gentle touch pushed her hair out of her face so he could see her better. Her eyes were open but glazed over and she seemed terrified. It was as if she was caught in a waking nightmare she couldn't pull herself out of.
“Hey, sweetie. You’re safe now, I’ve got you. Come on, let’s get you out of here.” Carter gathered her in his arms and easily picked up the petite woman as if she weighed nothing. Treading carefully through the dark, he made his way to her bedroom and placed her gently on the bed.
“Maddie, I’m gonna go and make you a cup of tea, all right? I’ll only be a minute.”
She clung tightly to him and wouldn't let go so he sat back down on
the bed and cradled her in his arms while talking soothingly in her ear. After a few minutes, her whimpering and shivering calmed down and with his free hand he cupped her cheek and tilted her face up. He couldn't see her very well as he didn't want to shine the flashlight in her face, but he could make out the large silent tears that caught in her eyelashes before slowly trickling down her pale cheeks. She still didn't respond to his questions and he figured she had to be in shock. The question was why? If she was that afraid of storms, why hadn’t she said anything earlier? You’re an idiot! Of course she wouldn’t mention it when she knew you were going out drinking! Most likely she hadn’t wanted to disrupt his evening. He held her tight for a while longer until she seemed a bit more relaxed and the tremors had tapered off.
Carefully, he laid her down and pulled the throw over her to keep her warm. With the strong winds attacking the house, the temperatures had dropped considerably, and every room felt chilly. Back in the kitchen, he was relieved to see the stove ran on gas so he could make her a cup of strong, sweet tea. He’d almost started to think he’d have to make a fire in the fireplace to heat up some water, but soon had some boiling as the gas wasn’t affected by the outage.
As he returned to Maddie’s bedroom, she startled from the noise and scooted up in the corner of the bed with the throw wrapped tightly around her. The whimpering was back, and words were falling from her lips at a frantic pace, over and over.
“No, no, no, I can’t go back there. I can’t… He’ll kill me!”
Anger and concern ran through Carter’s chest. Had he heard her right? Was she really in fear of her life, or was it just a nightmare not wanting to let go and made worse by the power cut and the vicious storm outside? After he’d made her drink a few mouthfuls of the tea, he pulled her back in his embrace and was relieved when she leaned into him and snuck her arms around his waist. It felt right, somehow, having her close. At that very moment, though, he couldn’t allow himself those feelings. She needed him to make her feel safe while they waited out the storm. He leaned back against the headboard and her head rested against his chest, her slim body tucked close to his side. For a long time, he just sat there in the dark, enjoying the sensation of her soft body against his. For once, his dick behaved itself and he could relax for the first time that evening. Soothed by her gentle breaths and a small hand close to the open v of his shirt, he felt her fingers resting gently against his bare skin. It was like being touched by a gentle fire. Nothing in this world would make him do anything to risk her moving her hand away.
Chapter Fifteen
Carter woke around seven the next morning, according to his cell. Sometime during the night he’d stretched out on the bed next to Madison and she was now lying on her side with an arm over his chest and a shapely leg slung over his. Her hand was almost completely inside his shirt and her head still in the hollow under his chin. He felt so comfortable and relaxed he had no wish to move, but he knew if she woke up and found herself in his arms she might freak out and refuse to see him again. Slowly, and very carefully, he extricated himself from her hold and pulled the covers over her. Being as quiet as possible, he snuck out of the bedroom and closed the door behind him. In the kitchen, he was pleased to see the power had been restored and he started pulling things out of the fridge to prepare a good breakfast for Madison. First, he’d let her sleep another couple of hours as she was most likely exhausted from the night before. The words he thought he’d heard her say were still swirling around in his head, but in the end, he had to put them down to a nightmare induced by the massive storm.
“Hey.” Her voice was just a a whisper, but he still heard her behind him.
He’d been listening out for her for the last half hour and knew exactly when she finally awoke and went into the bathroom. He’d decided to wait for her on the porch as he figured it was the least threatening place in the house. The sun shone once again from clear blue skies, but the water was sill rough and gray in color. A lot of debris had been churned up from the bottom and it would take a little while for everything to settle down. He’d already checked the outside of her house and her car, but it all seemed to have survived intact. It was only her porch door that had suffered some damage when he forced his way in, and he’d be able to fix that in no time with the tools Nathan kept at his place.
“Hey, yourself. How are you feeling?”
“Uhm, I’m ok, I guess. What happened last night? Why are you here?” She looked at him from under her eyelashes.
“You don’t remember? I came over to check on you last night and you were asleep but seemed to be having a nightmare. The power had gone out, so I decided to stay in case you needed me or just didn't feel like being alone. That was some storm last night. I checked the house out and it seems to have survived with no damage. Your car is ok as well. It’s just this door here on the porch that needs a little bit of fixing. I tugged quite hard at it last night when I heard you cry out, and the wind kind of helped almost pull it off its hinges. I’ll get it fixed later today.”
“Thank you. For being here, and for fixing the door. All I remember is going to sleep as the storm hit. I figured it was best to just sleep through it. I hate storms. They’ve made me feel unsettled and nervous since I was a kid. I’m not sure why, I guess something must have happened… I’m sorry. This is the second time you’ve had to come and rescue me and once again I don’t remember anything. I don’t know why this keeps happening.” Her voice stilled and she turned away from Carter so he couldn't see her face.
He felt as if she’d revealed more than she’d intended and once again, he decided to just ignore it and not pry. As much as he wanted to find out what had happened to her in her life, he wanted her to tell him when she was ready.
“My pleasure. Want some breakfast?” Carter grinned at her and uncurled himself from the lounger like a cat, all lean and graceful. Returning to the kitchen, it wasn’t long before he had some poached eggs, bacon and a large stack of pancakes ready for them. Madison’s eyes went wide as saucers at what he’d prepared for them and was soon tucking into the steaming hot food.
After breakfast, Carter went back to his house to shower, shave and freshen up. He promised Madison he’d be back in the afternoon to fix the door and anything else that he might have missed earlier.
“I’ll see you later, ok? Why don’t you take a nap and send me a text when you’re up? You look as if you could do with a few more hours of sleep.” Concern colored his voice as he noted her pale cheeks and the dark shadows under her eyes.
“Yeah, maybe I will. I’m exhausted even though I think I slept most of the night.” She peered up at him.
Carter didn’t reply. He knew exactly why she was feeling tired, but didn’t see the need for bringing it up.
Madison stayed quiet and just looked at him with those big green eyes that sent unfamiliar feelings tumbling through his chest. She stretched up on her tip toes and gave him a soft kiss goodbye on his stubbled cheek.
Half an hour later, as he stood in the shower in his own bathroom, he could still feel her lips against his jaw. It was if they’d left a permanent mark on his skin and had branded him as hers. He shook his head at his ridiculous thoughts, but somewhere deep inside, his heart stuttered happily.
He went back in the afternoon to fix the door, which only took about ten minutes, as well as a window lock that had come loose. They cleared up the driveway from fallen debris together and straightened the porch where a couple of chairs and the little table had toppled in the wind.
“Ok, that’s all done. The door is secure and so is the window in the kitchen that was loose. Nothing else seems to be broken but let me know if you find anything else you want help with.” Carter smiled at her.
“Thank you, it’s really nice of you to do this.”
“Well, since I was the one to break your door I figured I should be the one to repair it as well. The rest was nothing, just a couple of missing screws.”
“I’m still very grateful. Can I c
ook you dinner in return? I don’t have much, but I can do some grilled chicken and a salad.”
Carter studied her face. He was tempted to accept her invitation just so he could spend a bit more time with her, but he could see how tired she still was even after a nap. She needed a good night’s sleep to recover and it would only be selfish of him to say yes. He tilted his head to the side while he considered his reply.
“Can I take a raincheck? You look as if you need an early night and I could probably do with one as well.”
“Of course, whenever you want.” Madison looked down at her hands before lifting her gaze to meet his again. Her eyes weren’t quite as bright as normal, but they still made his heart skip a beat whenever she looked at him.
“I’ll see you in the morning as usual, but let’s make it a bit later. Say around seven? I’m sure you could do with a lie in after last night’s disturbances.” Carter knew that come evening, when he sat down with a bag of chips and a beer instead of a home cooked meal, he’d probably regret his decision, but he knew it was the right one to make.
“Ok, that actually sounds really good. I’ll see you then.” A smile lit up her face and he struggled to stop himself from pulling her into his chest and crush his lips against hers. Before he could do something stupid, he returned her smile with one of his own and then turned on his heel and left.
He looked back at her house as he walked down the beach towards his cottage and saw her give a small wave before turning back and go inside. He had an ominous feeling that it would be the last time he saw her.
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