Page 15 of Outbreak

Pulling the blanket out of the way, I toss the pillow by the opposite door, stretching out. Leaning up, I stare at him standing outside the truck, and the reality of this situation slaps me right in the face. There’s only one place to sleep. And it’s not nearly far enough away from each other.

Throwing myself back down on the pillow, I scoot as far into the back of the seat as possible, rolling onto my side and finding literally anything out the back glass to stare at. He doesn’t speak as he climbs into the truck and shuts us inside. He grabs the blanket I tossed aside, covering us both as he gets comfortable behind me— as comfortable as a giant man can get stretched out in the backseat of a truck. I don’t look, but I imagine his legs are too long for this space.

I try to shut everything out of my mind and ignore the strange man behind me. It’s nearly impossible. It hasn’t even been sixty seconds since he closed the door, and already I want to get the fuck out of here. Who needs sleep anyway? My feetfidget, the heels of my boots tapping together. I wring my hands together, alternating between tapping and twisting my fingers to distract myself.

“Enough,” he growls in my ear, wrapping his whole body around me from behind. He throws his massive leg over mine, pinning me down. His heavy arm bands around my upper body, trapping my hands in his. “Sleep.”

“I can’t!” I snap at him, trying to jerk my body free.

“Close your eyes, Rue.” He doesn’t let up, just keeps his body molded to mine, holding me down as my body jerks and jolts. He doesn’t yell or get angry; he doesn’t speak at all. And somehow, the pressure from him against me eventually calms me down. It’s like a drain pulled inside me, letting all the anxiousness swirl away. I finally feel sleep tugging at me as I relax in his arms, feeling his heart beating vigorously against my back. I don’t know how long it takes for sleep to take me, but I welcome it like a lost friend.

CHAPTER 13

Rue

Warmth radiates through me, cocooned around my body like a furnace. And I hate it. Sweat slicks my skin, making my tank top stick to me. Where the fuck did I fall asleep? A fucking oven?

Stretching out like a cat, I arch my back and try to raise my arms, but I’m pinned beneath something—no, someone. Something long and hard—and entirely too big—presses into my ass.

It doesn’t take but a second to remember where I am and who I’m with before I stiffen my back and try to pull as far away as his heavy body will allow.

How the fuck do I get out of this?

Maybe I can scoot down and get out of the truck before he wakes up? It’s worth a shot. Though I have no idea where I am or how I’m going to get back to school, that sounds like a problem for later me. If it works.

Holding my breath, I slowly inch down the air bed, trying not to disturb the sleeping giant behind me. If I didn’t want to get the fuck out of here so badly, I would take this opportunity tounmask him and see who he really is. I’ll just have to live with never knowing. He can forever live as the masked stranger in my memories. I don’t need to know.

Liar, liar.

I make it about a foot down the bed when I feel something pulling at my wrist every time I move.What the fuck is this?I lift my arm; his arm moves, and something hard digs into my skin.

“Going somewhere, Rue?” His sleepy, hoarse voice sends goosebumps prickling across my overheated skin. Tossing the blanket off of us, he lifts his arm, making mine dangle too. “Where are we going?”

This motherfucker handcuffed us together.

He sits up, his mask still firmly in place. The sunlight streaming in through the dark tinted glass is enough to see his eyes—a sea green shade that pierces right through my defenses. My breath catches as my heart stalls and I feel all of the blood drain from my face.

It’s not him. It can’t be.

The voice is wrong. The size.Hisvoice wasn’t nearly as deep or gritty, and he was tall but not built like this stranger. My mind is playing tricks on me. Reminding me of the worst I’ve ever felt in my life. He is probably married by now—to a nice, normal girl with one and a half kids and a white picket fence.

“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

His mocking tone pulls me out of my head and back into the reality of this situation. Jerking my arm back as hard as I can, I fix my face and fix him with my best death glare.

“Who are you?” My eyes narrow as he stares back at me, propped up on one elbow.

“I already told you that,” he says, his eyes crinkling around the corners as he smirks beneath the mask. “No more questions.”

A yelp escapes me as he pulls me back beside him, my back into his front. Our handcuffs clink together as he presses his hips into my ass and slides his hand slowly up my stomach, over the swell of my chest that’s rising and falling at a very concerning pace. Bringing it to rest at the base of my throat, he inhales deeply into my hair.

Why does this asshole keep sniffing me?

“I can’t help it. You drive me fucking crazy,” he growls behind me, sending a shiver through me, all the way to my toes.

Fuck! I must have said that aloud.

I can’t trust myself when he invades my space like this, so rather than even try to bite back at him, I keep my mouth shut.

---