He smirked. “You’re into me.”
She flushed deeper. He was so cocky. Instead of responding, she furrowed her brow.
He shrugged. “We can’t continue this.”
“Continue what?” Sweat beaded on her forehead even though it was not hot in the cabin.
“This arrangement. I can’t be with you.”
“Why the hell not?” She was getting a little pissed, half with him and half with herself. She didn’t want to start something with him either for dozens of reasons, but it still stung to have him blatantly point out he was uninterested. And why was he being so arrogant?
“Because I want to fuck you. It’s distracting.”
She released his arms and set her hands on her hips. Was he trying to be a dick? “Okay. I’m not sure why you have to be so crude about it. And I’m sorry you find me so distracting. But my job is to protect you. Surely you can keep your dick in your pants while I do my job.” She had no idea why she chose to respond to his crude language with her own.
He ran a hand through his hair and stepped back. “Don’t take it personal, but this isn’t a good fit. I don’t need a bodyguard anyway. I can fire a weapon. I’ll be fine.”
“What the hell are you talking about? This isn’t up to you.” He was all over the place. One kiss and he seemed to have lost a few marbles. Or the entire jar.
“I’m pretty certain I still have free will. I can decline assistance if I want. And I’m exercising that right. You need to go back to the bunker.”
She lifted both brows. “Not a chance in hell. I have no idea what’s going on inside that head of yours, but you need to snap out of it. You’re stuck here with me for the duration.” At the moment, half of her wanted to give him his wish and walk right out the front door. Lucky for him, the ground was covered with a foot of snow, making it impossible for her to leave.
He shook his head. Defiant.
“What the hell, Dade?” She shoved off the counter and rushed toward him, slamming her hands against his chest in frustration.
He grabbed her wrists, shocking her with his ability to restrain her. She wouldn’t have thought he would have the energy yet. “You can’t stay with me.”
“Why? Give me one goddamn good reason why?” she shouted, tugging on her wrists.
“Because I care about you,” he retorted, also shouting. “Because you’re kind and funny and cute and strong and you kiss like an angel…and you’re into me.”
She jerked her head back, still pressing against his chest with her fists. “That makes no sense. Why would you want me to leave if you think I’m so amazing?”
“Because I can’t risk anything happening to you while you protect me. It would kill me. And I won’t have you watching me die. I’d rather end it now than see the look in your eyes as I get sick and then slowly die.”
“Don’t you dare even fucking suggest such a thing.” She was shaking, her entire body on alert, a chill and a sweat breaking out at the same time. She shook her head. “Never. Don’t ever fucking joke about taking your life. Ever. You hear me? It’s not fucking funny.”
He stiffened, frowning. “Jesus, Blair. It was a figure of speech. I wasn’t talking about suicide. I’m talking about us. We have to end this relationship before it begins. I won’t do this to you.”
Now she was fuming. “Do what to me? I think you’re trying to escape having to feel. Feel anything at all. You think it’ll be easier for you if you crawl into a cave alone to die so that it won’t hurt so bad? Don’t put this on me. It’s you who doesn’t want to receive kindness from someone because you’re worried about hurting yourself.
“One ill-timed kiss and you think you get to change the game and run away.” She shook her head. “Not a chance in hell. I signed on to this job because you need me. You still need me. And I’m damn well going to keep you alive. For much longer than you seem to believe.”
“That’s crazy. You’ve been reading too many psychology books. Don’t try to climb into my head and tell me how to feel. I’m perfectly fine. Thank you for shaking me up when I most needed it. I’m standing on my own two feet now. I can walk alone. Go back to the bunker and find someone else to rescue.”
She was struggling to keep from crying, drained from thinking he had suggested that he might kill himself. She needed to get away from him. She need air. She needed to lie down before she passed out. She jerked her hands free and jumped back to put distance between them. “It’s not going to happen, so get over yourself, and ditch that cocky attitude super fast, because you’re stuck here with me whether you like it or not.
“I’m a grown woman, perfectly capable of deciding what I’m willing to do. You don’t get to make choices for me. I was paid to do this job, and I’m not leaving.” She crossed her arms defiantly. “If kissing me is that big of a distraction to you, then don’t fucking do it again. But I’m here until the bitter end, whatever that might look like.”
She had no idea why she was arguing her point so fiercely when what she should be doing was agreeing with him, getting the hell out of Dodge, and letting him go it alone. It would be a safer route as far as her own heart was concerned. But for some reason, she couldn’t stand the idea of him thinking he could make demands of her and she would simply defer to him and walk out the door.
Or maybe she was kidding herself, and she should admit that kiss meant something and accept she had feelings for him. Her hard and fast personal rule to never let her heart get entangled with anyone was teetering on the edge of disaster.
She narrowed her gaze, hands on her hips, fighting the urge to walk away, forcing herself to be the bigger person. “You have two choices—keep your distance or take me up on my offer to help with your research. I might not know anything about science, but I can follow directions.”
“Help me?” He flinched.
“Yeah, help you. You know, when one person offers their time in exchange for nothing. A volunteer? Ring a bell?”
He stared at her like she had two heads. “That’s a terrible idea.”
She fumed, unsure if he was insinuating she was too stupid to be of assistance or that he didn’t want her so close to him. Either way, she was tapped out of emotional control. This conversation was officially over. “Fuck you,” she shouted out of self-preservation, as she stomped from the kitchen, slammed the door to her bedroom, and turned the lock.
Dade stood in the kitchen, staring at her bedroom door, the first door in the hallway. He could still hear the banging sound of it slamming as if it were on an infinite echo. He could also hear her last words ringing in his head. Fuck you.
He had no idea what came over him. Why did he kiss her in the first place? She’d been standing so close and smelled so good, and she wore another one of those damn tight shirts that accentuated her chest and the fucking leggings that showed off every muscle in her legs and ass. Her eyes. The blue was like a siren’s call.
He had no idea what to do either. She had thrown him completely off balance with her comebacks. He’d meant for this to be simple. He told her to leave, and she left. He should have known it wouldn’t go down like that, but he hadn’t been thinking clearly. The moment his lips touched hers, he knew he needed to end this thing before it started, so he blurted the first thing that came to mind.
If he wasn’t so flummoxed at the moment, he would laugh at the absurdity of thinking he could simply order her to leave and expect her to walk away. She wasn’t that kind of woman. She was strong and powerful and bossy. The same qualities he found attractive.
She had also told him where he could stuff his plan.
He was in way over his head now. He never should have crossed that line with her. Fuck. Not only had he kissed her, but he’d been a huge asshole afterward. Unnecessarily crude. Telling a woman you wanted to fuck her was probably not the best line. He’d made it sound like she was a hot piece of ass instead of a human being with feelings.
He started pacing in order to clear his head. When that didn’t he
lp, he stopped to stare out the back door at the snow. The sun was bright, but it was too cold for the snow to melt. Even the icicles hanging off the roof were there to stay, much like the owner of the cabin.
He had fucked things up good. He should go talk to her.
On second thought, she hadn’t seemed receptive to that idea as she left the room.
There was no way in hell he could let himself get involved with her or even feel anything for her. It would cloud his mind and distract him from what he really needed to be doing. Research. His exploration had grown beyond tinkering with the treatment that hadn’t been perfected.
This morning he’d had a new idea. Surely someone somewhere in the world had survived this new mutation of AA2. He needed to find them. He needed more hours in the day.
He needed an assistant.
He spun around and stared at her bedroom door again. “Fuck.” That had been exactly what Blair had been suggesting when he’d lost his mind and touched her lips with his.
Leaning against the door, he pondered this new development further. He could continue to demand she leave, but he felt certain no matter how much he argued with her, he would lose. She was determined.
He sure as hell couldn’t kiss her again. Or even touch her. He needed her to wear more clothes too. If she insisted on putting her life in danger for him, he would have to figure out a way to live through it.
He wasn’t a complete asshole, for heaven’s sake. He could keep his dick in his pants. She was just a cute woman. The world was filled with women. None of them had managed to derail him from life before. This one wouldn’t either.
Right.
Now he just needed to talk to her. Probably later would be better. She was pissed when she left him standing there. Instead, he decided to use his time coming up with a plan that would delegate some of his workload to his new assistant. They would need another computer. Ryan could bring one when he came with supplies. In the meantime, he could print out the data from the bunker’s research and work with that while she used the computer.
After a lot of thinking and planning and talking himself down from the ledge, he started making dinner. A peace offering. Perhaps the scents would lure her out of her room without him having to go get her.
As soon as he had the pasta sauce simmering, she opened the door and leaned against the frame, arms crossed, face hard. “Is this how you expect to convince me to leave? With Italian food? It’s your worst skill set?”
He chuckled, crossing the room toward her. “No. It’s how I intend to apologize.”
She took a deep breath, her eyes fluttering. “It might work.”
“I’m sorry,” he said when he reached her. “I was a dick. I shouldn’t have overreacted, and I shouldn’t have kissed you. It was insensitive and rude. I didn’t even ask. I just took without warning. It was also unprofessional, and for all intents and purposes, we’re like coworkers.”
She stared at him, mouth dropping open.
He didn’t give her a chance to speak, however. “It won’t happen again. I promise. And if you’re still willing, I would love for you to help me research.”
She rolled her eyes. “You didn’t exactly force me to kiss you, Dade. I was a willing participant. I should have backed away, but I didn’t. I wanted to know as badly as you did. And now we know.” Her gaze was direct, unfaltering.
He read between the lines at her meaning. Yeah, now they knew. But they would just have to ignore that revelation and stuff it into a closet.
“I’m sorry too,” she continued. “It was unprofessional for me as well. It can’t happen again. I can’t do my job if I’m constantly distracted by…other things.”
“Speaking of distracted…” he glanced at her chest and then back up, “…don’t you have any big sweatshirts or something you could wear?” He waved a hand through the air in the general direction of her body. She was still wearing the fitted shirt from earlier and those damn skintight pants.
She hugged her arms tighter under her chest, making it rise, while she narrowed her gaze and gave him the evil eye. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No,” he murmured.
“Well, get over yourself. This is who I am. It’s how I’m comfortable. Are you going to keep working out with nothing but shorts on?” She lifted a brow.
He smirked. “Are you going to keep working out wearing less material than what makes up my shorts?” he retorted.
“Are you saying you can’t control yourself in front of me?” Now she had a full smile. “Interesting.”
“Why is that interesting?” His hands were shaking, and he fisted them at his sides. “You’re thirty-five years old. Don’t tell me you aren’t aware of your appeal. I don’t believe for a second that men don’t come on to you every day.” It occurred to him that maybe someone had who shouldn’t have. Perhaps her commanding officer had done more than she’d let on, which would shed further light on her decision to leave the army.
“This is the twenty-first century. I work in a man’s world. Every one of my coworkers knows better than to treat me with any less respect than they would anyone else in the room. If they did, they would be in hot water. You should know that. You were in the military yourself. Did you have trouble keeping your dick in your pants when you were enlisted?”
Oh, she was on fire. He needed to keep his wits to spar with her. “Of course not.”
“Then how is this different?”
“We aren’t in the barracks. We’re in a small cabin. Alone.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Fine. You start wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants when you work out.”
“That’s crazy. I’d burn up.”
She lifted both brows. “So it’s okay for you to expose your entire chest, but I can’t have just my abs showing? If you want to be equal, I could stop wearing a bra.”
He groaned. “Not the same thing.”
“Of course it is. Your chest is smoking hot. I don’t know how you managed to keep so toned for ten years. It’s crazy. It’s a wonder I don’t drop a weight on my foot when you flex.”
He flinched, shocked at her admission.
“Look, the truth is, we’re physically attracted to each other. It happens. Doesn’t mean we can’t ignore it. We’re adults. We might even be irrationally lustful because there’s no one else around. So…we agree to ignore it and get back to work. We have a disease to cure. We don’t have time for distractions.”
He searched her face. She was serious. No way was he going to point out that he didn’t think it would work when she obviously was convinced they could pretend that kiss never happened.
If she truly believed any of that horseshit, then she wasn’t half as into him as he was her. But she was right. He needed to rein in the little head and ignore its demands. He nodded. “You’re right.”
“Now, feed me. That sauce smells delicious.” She flattened a palm on his chest as she walked past him, making his heart flutter.
As he watched her firm ass move into the kitchen, he groaned silently. She was going to be a challenge. Lucky for him, he never shied away from a challenge.
Chapter 10
One week later…
* * *
Dade opened the front door as Ryan pulled up to the cabin. He’d never been so relieved to see other humans in his life.
To say the last week had been challenging would be an understatement. He and Blair had settled into a routine that worked for them. He usually hit the home gym before her in the mornings so they didn’t have to share the space more than necessary. Then she worked out while he cooked breakfast.
After that, he spent the mornings on the computer while she cleaned the kitchen and then retreated to her room for a while to shower and give him space. After lunch, she worked on the computer, looking up whatever he suggested while he went through notes. Sometimes he used her iPad.
Their routine was about to change now that Ryan was bringing them another computer.
When Tushar and Tri
sh stepped out of the same delivery truck that had transported Dade and Blair the week before, Dade’s smile widened. He rushed down the porch stairs to greet them. Without a word, he gave Tushar a giant hug and then Trish. “Damn,” he said, as he held her at arm’s length. “It’s like not a day went by.”
She smiled. “For you too. It’s so weird.”
Blair brushed by Dade to greet their guests too. “Welcome. Come on inside. It’s freezing out here.”
Everyone grabbed several bags from the back of the truck and then headed for the cabin.
Dade put the groceries away while the rest of them took seats at the table. After all, he was the one who made the list, and he would be the one doing most of the cooking.
Everyone talked over one another, sharing news and events and life. When Dade finally slid onto a stool at the end of the table between Ryan and Tushar, he found both men looking at him.
Tushar cleared his throat. “A strange thing happened. I didn’t want to say anything until I was sure it was legitimate.”
Dade’s heart stopped, thinking they had found a possible cure, which would have been absurd if he paused to think about it. He was as privy to the data as anyone else, and it wasn’t rational. He took a breath when he realized this mysterious topic had to be unrelated.
“So, you know that your grandfather passed away three years ago?”
“Yes.”
“Well, he left you his estate.”
“Pardon?” Dade jerked back a few inches. “How is that even possible? He had no idea I would ever be reanimated. Could he even do that?”
Tushar nodded.
Ryan spoke next. “I looked into it. A person can do anything they want with their money, no matter how absurd it might seem, as long as they have someone to follow their wishes. Your grandfather assigned an executor to the estate. Apparently he saved a lot of money in his old age. He never needed nursing care, and he died peacefully in his sleep. He kept stashing money away, just in case.”
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