Page 9 of Gentle Giant

You are the woman I’ve been looking for.

And what the heck did that mean?

“I knew you would be coming,” his deep voice was a rumble at my ear, “and I have prepared my rooms in the cavern for your arrival. I promise you will have a comfortable place to sleep and a private bathing area. I also promise to provide for you. For as long as we are mated, and I pray to the Great Spirit it will be a long, long time, I will bring you at least three freshly caught fish each day. I will also provide for any children we might have.”

For as long as we are mated…

Oh God, help me. He wanted to make me Mrs. Sasquatch.

I recalled the intense desire I’d experienced for him during the dreams and flushed. I couldn’t claim to feel much beyond fear at this moment. He’d stolen away with me.

I tried to pay attention to the path he was taking through the forest, but in the darkness, it wasn’t easy, and I soon gave up. I hoped the cavern he’d mentioned wasn’t too far from the cabin. If I managed to escape, I could hurry back to the cabin and use the video comm to call for help. Maybe someone would answer next time.

Would any of the transport companies I’d called come looking for me? My heart sank. Most drivers required a deposit before they picked you up. But Ihadpromised to pay double. If a driver came upon the empty cabin and noticed the door kicked open, would they assume a crime had been committed and contact the authorities on my behalf? I could only hope.

“Your name,” Brutus said. “Please tell me your name.” He paused in a clearing and stared down at me, his pale eyes glowing in the darkness. His gaze was soft and brimmed withtenderness. The sort of look you might give a lover who held your heart.

My world suddenly tilted. No one had ever looked at me this way before. Not even Nick, the man I’d almost married.

“Hailey,” I whispered. “My name is Hailey, and you must let me go. Please.”

“Hailey,” he repeated. “Hailey.” He said my name with such reverence, it almost brought tears to my eyes. Almost.

And then, as he peered down at me in the middle of the dark forest, I felt the stirrings of desire in my core, the beginning of a pulsing ache between my thighs. The same breathless passion from my dreams. His masculine scent washed over me, and I couldn’t help but revel in the warmth of his arms. Heat seemed to radiate off his huge form.

The fear started to fade, though in my stubbornness, I tried to cling to it. He was a beast who’d kidnapped me. I should be afraid of him. Perhaps I should even hate him.

“I can’t believe Sasquatches are real,” I said, more to myself than to him.

In the darkness, I couldn’t make out all his features, but I thought he gave me a smile. “My people are known as the Montikaans, though I am aware that some humans call us Sasquatch or Bigfoot, among other names. There are many different tribes of Montikaans in the Cascades and in lands far away.”

“Why do you keep looking at me as though you know me? As though you… care about me?” I held my breath as I awaited his response.

“I saw you in a vision. You are meant to become my mate, sweet human. That is why I look at you as though I care about you. Because I know we will mate and one day share a heart-bond.”

“A heart-bond?” I asked, even though I was pretty sure I knew what he meant.

“Eternal love,” he said, confirming my suspicions. “The deep devotion that eventually grows between lifemates.”

“I’m not going to mate with you.” I tried to ignore the abrupt sadness that spread over me after making this statement. “I’m not going to mate with you so you might as well save yourself the trouble and let me go. Because I assure you, if you bring me back to your home, I’ll be nothing but trouble. I’ll make you sorry you ever kidnapped me.”

Now I knew he was smiling. His eyes twinkled bright as stars. “You are a tiny creature, Hailey. I am stronger and larger than you, and I am also a fast runner. I will handle your trouble without difficulty.”

I scoffed but didn’t bother with a response.

Not only were Sasquatches real, but I was having an argument with a rather arrogant one.

Hours passed and fatigue pulled at me. I tried to stay alert but kept drifting off, only to jolt awake with a gasp. Then I would look at the huge man-beast holding me, and the memories would come crashing back. The dreams. The break-in at the cabin. All of it.

I resolved not to tell Brutus about the dreams. It was unnerving enough that he recognized me from a vision. I didn’t want to give him more reason to think we belonged together.

“You can sleep in my arms, sweet human.” His voice was warm, all arrogance from earlier gone.

I dared a glance into his eyes and experienced another unwanted pang of heat between my thighs. I kept telling myself I wanted to escape, that I needed to escape, but I also couldn’t stop the desire from coming, nor could I summon even a vestige of the terror I’d felt when I’d first glimpsed him at the cabin.

Safe. His arms felt increasingly safe, and the idea of falling asleep while he carried me over the dark mountainside started to appeal more and more. I was exhausted, and I trusted he would protect me from any dangers in the forest. I thought of the bears, cougars, and wolves that Shelly Cornwall (aka worst Airbnb host ever) had mentioned and suppressed a shiver. But I doubted any of those animals would pick a fight with a large beast like Brutus.

Eventually, I drifted into a restful slumber, lulled by the gentle swaying as my captor carried me deeper into the forest.

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