by Rye Hart
If there was one thing I was certain of, it was that I needed to put Paul down. I needed to keep him away from Abby and protect her at all costs.
I staggered forward, grimacing and grunting in pain. I fell to my knees and doubled over, clutching my wounded side. As I howled in pain, I slipped the knife out of the sheath I had on my belt and waited, grunting in pain, working hard to sell it. I was playing it up and really overacting, hoping that Paul would take the bait.
He did.
Believing I was injured too badly to be a threat, Paul strode toward me, a look of malignant delight on his face. He loomed over me, his face etched with a manic sort of glee. The blade was still clutched in his hand, but he hesitated once more. This time, he hesitated not out of fear of killing me – I thought he'd somehow quickly gotten past that – but to savor the moment. He'd defeated me. He was the conqueror. Victory was his – and to the victor went the spoils. In this case, the spoils of victory was Abby.
I took the opening he gave me and, without hesitation, drove my blade into his gut. His eyes widened and he looked at me and then down at the knife protruding from his belly. Blood blossomed around the blade and begin to roll down his shirt. His own blade fell to the ground with a hard thud and he stared at the blade like he didn't know what it was or how it got there.
I got to my feet, a victorious little smile tugging at the corner of my own mouth. Grabbing Paul by the hair, I lifted his head, forcing him to look me in the eye. When he did, I saw panic on his face. Terror. I saw a man who did not want to die.
“Let me just tell you now, if you ever, and I do mean ever, come near Abby again,” I said, my voice colder than Minnesota in winter, “you are going to pay a hefty price for it.”
“Fuck you,” he managed to croak.
I pulled my arm back and then unleashed it, driving it straight into his face. He was out cold before he even hit the ground. I staggered backward, the pain starting to overwhelm me. I fell to my knees and tried to hold on to consciousness. I fell backward, onto the driveway, and stared up at the sky. I watched big, fluffy clouds floating by.
Then Abby's face entered my field of vision, and the sound of sirens shattered the still air around us, growing louder by the moment – she'd called the cops. Hopefully, she'd had the foresight to call an ambulance to go along with it.
“You're safe now, Abby,” I said. “You're safe.”
Tears rolled down her face, splashing upon my skin. She looked at me with fear and grief in her eyes. I guess my wound was worse than I thought if she looked like I already had a foot in the grave. She laid my head in her lap and leaned down, kissing me on the forehead.
“You're going to be fine,” she said, though her voice lacked conviction. “You're going to be just fine. You'll see. You have to be, because we have a conversation that must be had. You have to be fine.”
“Abby, it's okay – ”
“Ssshhh,” she said. “Don't speak. It's going to be okay. You'll be okay.”
My vision began to waver and grow dark at the edges. The sirens grew impossibly loud, and just as the sky around me started to pulse with the red and blue lights of the sirens, the darkness overwhelmed me. It claimed me, pulled me under, and I knew no more.
CHAPTER TEN
ABBY
The bright, white fluorescent lights of the hospital were giving me a headache. As was the overpowering stench of the antiseptic cleaner they used. It smelled like a combination of bleach and oranges. It was enough to turn my stomach.
I stared up at the ceiling and counted the row of lights for the hundredth time. Waiting was the hardest part. I wasn't the most patient person by nature, but when it was something as stressful as this, my impatience grew even worse. Chase hadn't been released yet, so we couldn't see each other. Which meant I was alone. Thankfully, though, because of Chase, I was safe.
Paul had been arrested and, after being treated for his wounds, had been taken away. Far, far away. Chase was going to live, the news bringing me a greater sense of relief than anything else in my life ever had. Chase was going to live. That was all that mattered.
I was fine, just waiting for the results of tests I didn't need run. I wasn't the one battling it out in the driveway. Maybe it was shock but, except for the headache, I felt fine. Okay, I was less than fine. I was exhausted, my entire body feeling heavy and overcome with the intense need to sleep.
I couldn't sleep though. It was a lost cause. I was still riding an adrenaline high – and honestly, I didn’t know when I would come down from it. Probably not while Chase was still being held here. There was also way too much going on around me for me to get any decent sort of rest. There was too much noise and too many people coming in and out of my room. I kept asking to see Chase but, so far, nobody had made our little reunion a priority. I needed to see him though. I needed to thank him for saving me from Paul. There weren't a lot of men out there who'd be willing to take a literal knife for you.
I sighed and started counting the ceiling tiles this time, frustrated, scared and bored. I jumped and let out a small squeak, though, when there was a knock at the door – a knock that was quickly followed by Chase's voice.
“Hey, you,” he said quietly.
His posture was a little stiff, and he held his side as he walked into the room. He grimaced and I saw that his face was etched with pain, but he was smiling – and that smile went all the way to his eyes. He was okay. I was okay. No matter what happens from there on out – we were the survivors, and we never had to deal with Paul again.
Chase sat down at the side of my hospital bed, taking my hand in his. He kissed the back of my knuckles gently, pressing his lips to my skin and setting my heart fluttering. I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath, a powerful wave of relief washing through me. I felt the tension in my shoulders release the moment he sat down beside me. I looked at him and, somehow, managed to feel better about things.
“Hay is for horses,” I said.
It was a bad joke, but it still made us both chuckle. Leaning down, he kissed the tip of my nose, then moved lower to my lips, quickly pressing his mouth to mine. It was just a chaste little peck, nothing serious, but it warmed my entire body and made me open my eyes with a newfound energy flowing through me.
He stroked my hair, pushing a few loose strands back from my face and just stared at me, long and hard. It was almost like he was checking me over to make sure it was really me, that I was still alive and well. I squeezed his hand and gave him a smile, reassuring him that I was, indeed, alive and well.
“They released you, huh?” I asked.
“Yep. Said it was just a scratch. Nothing vital damaged at all,” he said. “Gave me some stupid pain pills, even though I told 'em I wouldn't need them. Ibuprofen usually does fine for things like that.”
“Get stabbed often, do you?” I asked, laughing.
“Farming is dangerous work,” he said, returning my smile.
“It's their job, baby,” I said softly. “They wouldn't want you to get home and not have anything to help if you needed it. Worst case scenario, you don't use them and they sit in your bathroom for ten years.”
“I suppose so,” he said. “But I'm more worried about you.”
“I'm alive,” I said with a crooked grin.
Our hands rested on my belly and I stared down at where our fingers were intertwined on top of me. Was it a coincidence? Or was Chase giving me a subtle, subconscious sign that he was concerned not just for me, but for our potential baby as well?
“About earlier,” I said. “I know – ”
“Shh,” he said, pressing a finger to my lips. “Not now, Abby. Nothing else matters right now. You're alive, and that's all I care about. That's all that matters.”
Tears welled in his eyes and they glistened in the light. Crying was about the last thing I ever expected to see form him, but there it was. I reached up and wiped away a fat tear that rolled down his cheek, my heart breaking as I watched them fall. Seeing tears on such
a big, rough, gruff, and rugged man was somehow so much more real and so much more emotional to me – and because it was who it was, a man I cared about intensely – it went double.
“Oh baby,” I said. “Don't cry – I'm fine. Promise.”
“It's not that, Abby,” he said, his voice soft. “It's just for so long, I didn't let anyone get close to me because I didn't want to lose them. I've lost too many people in my life. My best friend to an IED attack overseas. Cody to suicide when his PTSD became too much for him to bear. My parents. Everyone. I didn't want to care about you because I knew how much it hurt to lose someone you care about – and yet I almost lost you today. But, it made me realize something.”
“What's that, Chase?” I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper.
“It's too late,” he said, his eyes fixed on mine. “I already care about you, and I can't lose you. No matter what.”
My heart raced as I looked him in the eye, heard the sincerity in his words – and saw the genuine emotion on his face. I cupped his face in my hands, stroking his beard with my fingers.
“You're not going to lose me, Chase,” I whispered.
“Promise?”
“Yes, I promise you,” I chuckled. “You've been stuck with me ever since the day you saved me from the cows. You just didn't know it then.”
He laughed, raising my hand to his lips. The tears were drying up and he looked happier. More settled. Yet, there was still the elephant in the room.
If I turned out to be pregnant – what then? We were still so new at this, new at being together, that there were unanswered – and unasked – questions aplenty.
The biggest one, though, was whether Chase would be okay with a baby. Would I have to choose? Because God knew, I'd choose my baby – I'd have to. There was no doubt about it. No question about it. Not that I ever wanted to break my promise to Chase. But, I was going to have the baby no matter what. Of course, I wanted Chase to be a part of our child's life, but I wasn't going to force him to do anything he didn't want to do.
There was another knock at the door. This time it was the doctor.
“Abby, good news,” Dr. Rivera said, smiling brightly, her voice cheery and comforting, rolling over my skin like velvet. “Everything has come back normal. You're healthy and, while you're still only a few weeks along, the baby looks fine too.”
“The baby,” I whispered.
My head fell back against the pillows and I stared at the ceiling. I couldn't look at Chase. I was too afraid to see the look on his face. My hand rested on top of my belly, and I thought about the life growing inside of me. I'd lost one child already thanks to Paul's abuse. Nothing in this world would make me lose another. Not if I could help it.
Chase's hand joined mine, resting atop my belly, and I looked over at him. He was smiling, though I could see the naked fear in his eyes. I wouldn't have expected him not to be afraid. But, mixed in with all the fear and apprehension, I saw a good dose of happiness too.
I was so focused on Chase, so fixed on him, I barely heard the rest of what the doctor had said.
“We're going to release you,” I heard her say when I finally tuned back in. “But, we encourage you to check in with an OB/Gyn soon for your regular checkups.”
“Of course,” I said.
My voice sounded far away from me. Like it was in a tunnel. Dr. Rivera left the room, leaving me alone with Chase. Neither one of us said anything until we were alone again – and not for a little while after that.
“Chase, I know you're not – ”
“Abby, listen,” he said, cutting me off. “I was a fool. I'm scared of fatherhood for the same reasons I was afraid of letting you in. I didn't want to care about anyone else. I didn't want to lose them. But it's too late for that, like I said, and I'm going to be there for my kid. No matter what, I'm not going to make the same mistakes my dad did.”
It felt like my heart had grown three sizes. I couldn't believe my ears.
“You mean you want to--”
“I want to be a family, Abby,” he said softly.
“God, me too,” I said, choking back the tears – though, this time, they were tears of happiness for a change. “I've wanted nothing more than to have a family of my own. Chase, I love you – ”
I stopped as soon as the words had slipped out, feeling my eyes widen, and an expression of absolute horror and mortification spreading across my face. Chase looked back at me, his expression one of surprise. Of astonishment. It was like somebody had sucked all the oxygen out of the room and I was finding it difficult to believe that I'd made such a terrible faux pas.
I hadn't meant to say the words. I thought them of course, but I never meant to say them out loud.
But, it was too late. They were already out there. My feelings were already out there, and there was no taking them back now. All I could do was sit back and hope that Chase had either not heard me, or would choose to ignore it, believing I was out of my mind on pain meds or something.
But, then he spoke again, and I felt like the wind had been driven from my lungs. I was beyond ecstatic.
“I - love you too, Abby,” he said.
I stared at him wide-eyed and felt the tears slipping down my face. My heart swelled to the point it felt like it was going to burst, and I couldn't keep the smile off my face. Not that long ago, my world had been turned upside down, and my life had been turned to shit. It was amazing how quickly things changed.
At least, if you let yourself be open to those changes. I was, and suddenly, it felt like all of my dreams were finally coming true and everything I ever wanted was well within my reach.
I couldn't have possibly been happier than I was in that moment.
The End
CABIN FEVER
A Mountain Man Romance
PROLOGUE
The temperature outside the walls of the cabin were near subzero, but I could feel my body heat rising. He stood staring at me like I was his prey and it was time he finally relented to the animal inside of him.
God, I fucking hoped so.
He kissed me, long and hard, and I felt his erection pressing into me. He picked me up effortlessly and carried me down the hallway with our lips still intertwined and every single part of me was electrified. He carried me into his room and laid me lightly on the bed. Then his heated gaze hooked onto mine for just a split second.
I reached up and ran my fingertips through his beard. His hair was so soft, his skin so warm. His lips encompassed mine again while my hands rounded his neck and, suddenly, I was parting my legs for him as he settled between them.
I could feel him fighting, volleying between keeping his composure and letting himself loose. I could hear him taking deep breaths, trying to quell the rising flood of energy in his body while his muscles twitched underneath every single touch. I moved his flannel button-down from his shoulders before my hands raked across his back and, in an instant, he was peeling my clothes off.
Jeans and underwear and shirts got tossed to the side. His lips were on my neck, my chest, and around my tits while his hand ran down my leg. The passion his body contained was unlike anything I’d ever felt in my life and, soon, I could feel his cock rising against my skin. It was thick and pulsing, begging for entrance while his lips suckled red welts upon my skin. I ran my hands through his hair while his lips traveled downward, kissing all the way to my toes before he got up onto his knees.
The chiseled body he hid underneath his clothes took my breath away. I could feel my arousal growing, begging for any part of him to touch me where I wanted him most.
He was staring at me like I was his prey and it was time he finally relented to the animal inside of him.
“Take me,” I said breathlessly.
His eyes connected with mine and, for a split second, I thought he was going to flee. I saw the war raging behind his eyes as the peridot sparkle I’d come to enjoy faded into a stormy blue sea. Darkness was coming as it engulfed his features and, soon, his hands were pl
anted beside my head while he hovered over me.
“Don’t ask for something you can’t handle,” he said.
I rose up and caught his lips with mine. His hand came up and cupped my cheek. My tongue slowly prodded to find the tip of his. His hand slid down my chest, massaging my tit as I moaned into his mouth and, soon, his strong, sinewy arm was wrapped around my back and holding me flush against his body.
“Please,” I said, whispering.
In an instant, I was off the bed. My back was against the wall and he was pinning me there, his lips devouring my neck. I could feel myself spilling into my pussy folds, my body trying desperately to hold itself back until he granted me what I wanted. His chest was strong and his lips were hot. His skin pulled a red tint from the confines of my body while I wrapped my legs around his waist. I didn’t care about the pain in my ankle and I didn’t care about the weather outside. I didn’t care that we didn’t know one another and I sure as hell didn’t care that I wouldn’t see him again after this.
All I cared about was the fire being stoked inside of me. A fire I hadn’t felt in years.
“Please fuck me.”
His eyes connected with mine and, slowly, he lined himself up with my entrance. I held my breath, scared to utter another word lest he punish me with loneliness. The grin that slid across his cheeks was nothing short of devilish.
The Guardian of Lust was taunting me and I was playing right into his hand.
CHAPTER 1
LIAM
Let’s get this shit show on the road.
It didn’t matter that it was my discharge party, or that soldiers like Santiago were genuinely going to miss me. I wanted to get the fuck out of there.
“Are you sure we can’t convince you to stay?” asked Santiago.
“I’m sure,” I said. “This is the right move for me.”