Page 15 of Trapped

I would look after the brown-haired banshee with the soft heart and the surprising mettle, whatever transpired; with my life if I had to.

Biting the end of the energy bar, I considered the differences between us.She, with her green eyes, quiet stoicism, and unexpected defiant streak, and me, with my killer instinct and years of established experience.How had we ended up together, and had any two people ever been more different?

I had no idea what her day job was, but based on her limited skillset with the elements, she wasn’t especially at home in the great outdoors.Likely, she had an office job somewhere and her proficiency on a computer would blow my own aptitude out of the water, but in the wild, she was out of her depth.

That’s why she has me.

I suppressed the grin that threatened to surface, knowing that, even after the glorious sex, she would likely counter the point, but shedidhave me—whether she liked it or not.

Two virtual strangers, snowbound in one of the most isolated parts of the country.We knew very little about the other, and even the little we had shared had been intentionally vague.She’d asked about my past, but I’d stopped short of divulging the details of my previous employment.What had the quiet woman with such a strong sense of right and wrong made of what I had admitted?She’d seemed intrigued, but I couldn’t help but think that if she discovered more, her curiosity would morph into fear and disgust.

Her moods always seemed balanced on a knife edge.Either she appreciated what I’d done for her, or she was outraged by it; she longed for me, or she didn’t want me to be near her.With Erin, there was no middle ground.

I doubted she’d be able to reconcile that the man she was fucking with such apparent vigor was actually a killer—someone who’d snuffed out more lives than he could even remember.Unpredictable she might have been, but I struggled to conceive a reality where Erin would be okay with that.

My smile faltered at the thought of her disapproval, her hypothetical reaction more troubling than it had any right to be.I shouldn’t care what she thought, yet in the short time we’d been together in the cabin, it was clear that wasn’t true.

I’d never met anyone like Erin before.Women I’d known with smoking-hot bodies were usually vacant in the brains department, while those with sharp intellects tended to lack elsewhere.She walked the line between the two flawlessly, seemingly able to entice me without even trying, which made her pendulum-style approach even more difficult to manage.

“What?”Looking back at me, she tugged her lower lip between her teeth, and all at once, I realized I was smiling.Sitting there, thinking about her had induced the response in me unconsciously.“What’s so funny, sir?”

Sir.

Caressing my ears, the word resounded in my head.At least she was using it without a fight.

“Nothing.”I swallowed down the remaining sweet nuts and seeds.“I just like watching you eat.”

“That’s strange.”She flushed as though I’d just suggested debauchery, but after all the things we’d done, I couldn’t believe she was really disturbed by my confession.

I still remembered how she looked tied up in my rope—the remnants of which were still scattered idly across the same bed we were sitting on—how she’d responded when she’d been sprawled over my lap, and best of all, how she felt when I’d slammed into her wet warmth.Erin had demonstrated a myriad of wonderful responses, but rarely had I known the coy version of her.

“I guess I find you quite attractive, little girl.”That was an understatement.“Including the way you eat.”

“Yeah, well…” She fidgeted inside the cover I’d enveloped her in.“That’s mutual, sir.It’s the only reason I’m playing along.”

“You’replaying along?”I smirked at her inconspicuous description.

Her account belied how little choice she’d had in most of the decisions thus far.She hadn’t had a say over James’ silly actions, hadn’t chosen for Chelle to walk away, and she sure as hell hadn’t decided the weather should turn as rapidly icy as it had—and all that had been before we’d stepped foot in the cabin.Almost everything that had happened since then had taken place at my direction, leaving Erin in charge of little more than herself.The idea that she was ‘playing along’ was laughable.

“I suppose it’s better than considering yourself ensnared with a monster, eh?”Chuckling, I took the wrapper from her fingers and rose to deposit it in my bag.Months of living and working in and around the cabins meant I was keen to see the environment kept clean and tidy.

“That’s right.”She huddled inside the blanket, though I noticed how she made no move to put her clothes back on.“I do usually appreciate your approach… but I wouldn’t like you so much if you were a monster.”

If you only knew.

I smiled, despite the nagging monologue.Erin would never know the truth.Nothing good would come from that level of honesty.I hoped there could be a future beyond those four wooden walls and the trek back to the tourist’s base, but the reality was, aside from the cabin, there was nothing keeping us together.Even if we somehow attempted to sustain something longer term, the chances of two such different people finding satisfaction were disconcertingly slim.

Unless Imakeher stay.

My attention flitted back to the ropes strewn around the bed, falling to the place my gun had fallen.I had ways and means of ensuring her good behavior, but we’d only just started to move past the old hostility and get along.Coercion of any sort would only amplify the angst between us.

“So, youdolike me, then?”Striding past the place she was sitting, I lowered to collect my gun.However I chose to play the next day or two, I’d rest easier knowing where it was, and while I didn’t think Erin was the sort to wield the weapon against me, she was right—we didn’t really know each other.

“Yes, I like you, but...”Her breaths were labored as she noted what I was doing.“Wh-where are you putting that, sir?”

“Away.”Flashing her what I hoped was a reassuring smile, I checked the safety was on before I slid it into the side pocket of my bag and carried the pack to the side of the bed.I wanted to be able to keep an eye on it from wherever I was in the cabin but know it was stashed out of sight.“I’m hoping we don’t need it.”

“Same.”Her stare lingered on my bag.“But what Idostill need is to pee.”She rose from her place.“I’ve put it off as long as I can.”

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