Page 29 of Kage

A sudden pull forced water into my mouth. Suddenly, hands were wrapped around my throat. Gasping, I shoved and pushed, moaning as water filled my lungs. I was suffocating.

I was dying.

“No!” I grabbed my throat and sucked in several breaths. Blinking, I tried to focus, anticipating monsters.

A huge face appeared in front of me. A beast ready to tear me limb from limb.

Jerking back, I issued a sharp cry, but a familiar thump caught my attention.

When I was finally able to focus, I realized big brown eyes were framed in a huge, furry face, with lopsided ears and a wide-open mouth completing the creature.

“Tank,” I gritted out, half laughing as soon as I did. “It’s you.”

He whined appropriately, instantly lifting one leg to hand me a paw. Tentatively, I reached out. “You are a nice little boy. Aren’t you?”

Woof.

Thinking my words were an invitation, he crowded my space and instead of trying to push him off as I’d done before, I allowed him to lick my face. His tongue was raspy and long, his saliva refreshing.

“Okay. Okay, boy.” He finally settled down a few seconds later and I glanced around the room, realizing I’d been lying in bed. Another hard swallow gave me the strength to glance down at myself. I was still wearing the same soiled clothes as before. I wiggled my legs to make certain they were still working. My shoes had been removed.

I stunk to high heaven.

“Where’s your master? Huh?” The only sound being his heavy breathing combined with mine wasn’t necessarily comforting. “Kage?” I called, my whispered word met with silence. “I guess he’s not here.” Where would he go?

After wrestling myself from underneath Tank, I pulled back the covers. The ache in almost every muscle remained and my mouth was dry as a bone. Noticing an unopened bottle of water on the nightstand, I was instantly grateful, cracking the plastic and pulling the slightly cool water to my lips.

I’d learned from before, taking small sips at a time. Fortunately, my stomach didn’t regurgitate. I was starving. A good sign. But what I needed more than anything was a shower. The stench of myself and the damp space I’d lived in for days lingered on my skin.

Tank allowed me to climb off the bed but trailed behind me as I headed to the bathroom.

“You’re not allowed inside buddy. Okay?” I disliked dogs and now I was talking to one. Well, he was adorable. I’d give him that.

His whine brought a smile to my face. Maybe the pup would add some comic relief since my companion and savior obviously had a bone to pick.

Or a stick stuck up his carved ass.

I closed the door, sagging against it. At least I was free.

For now.

One look in the mirror and I grimaced. I looked like shit. Thankful to find soap and shampoo, I turned on the shower, stripping off my clothes. The moment I stood under the spray, I closed my eyes.

Barely seconds later, everything came flooding back into my mind. The abduction. The fear. The brutality.

And the man who’d saved me.

I tipped my head, allowing the water to cascade down my body, my concerns about the man’s identity completely shot down by the strange warmth pooling between my legs. My God. I’d just been rescued, although we weren’t out of the woods yet, and Iwas thinking about him as some sexual being. Well, his body was built for rough sex.

What are you thinking?

Maybe it was good that I could fantasize about the man. That meant I hadn’t remained in a state of shock. The thoughts remained, filling my fractured mind with dirty images as I scrubbed dirt from my body and washed my hair. Not once, but twice. And still, I had the creepy-crawlies, envisioning the horrific insects I’d encountered.

Once I was clean, my skin tingled. I reached my arm past the shower curtain, easily grabbing a towel. As I wrapped it around my chest, my thoughts returned to sinfulness, but there was no shame. Not this time.

Kage was the definition of all male.

Tall? Check.

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