Page 10 of Hunted By the Mountain Man
I run, crashing through underbrush with abandon as gunfire erupts behind me. Cole's rifle cracks with measured precision, and I hear shouts of confusion and pain from our pursuers. But there are too many of them, and he's just one man.
The bunker appears ahead—a cleverly concealed entrance built into a rock outcropping. I punch in the access code Cole gave me, and reinforced doors slide open to reveal another of his hidden sanctuaries.
Cole arrives thirty seconds later, moving fast with blood on his jacket sleeve.
"You're hit!" I grab for him as the doors seal behind us.
"Graze. I'm fine." But he lets me help him strip off the damaged jacket, revealing a shallow furrow across his left bicep. "They're better shots than I gave them credit for."
The bunker is smaller than his other positions but better fortified. Computer screens show thermal images of our pursuers spreading out around the perimeter, trying to find the entrance.
"Can they get in?" I ask, cleaning Cole's wound with supplies from his medical kit.
"Not easily. This place was designed to withstand military assault." He hisses as I apply antiseptic. "But they can wait us out."
"For how long?"
"Week, maybe two. Depends how patient they are and how much Costa's paying them."
I finish bandaging his arm, hyperaware of the way his muscles flex under my touch. Even injured, even with killers surrounding us, I want him. The adrenaline of our escape has transmuted into something else entirely—a desperate need to feel alive, to claim this connection before we might lose it forever.
"Anna." Cole's voice is rough, and when I look up, his eyes are dark with the same hunger coursing through me. "Come here."
I move between his legs where he sits on the edge of the equipment console, and his hands immediately find my waist, pulling me closer. The height difference puts us at perfect eye level.
"I could have lost you back there," he says, forehead resting against mine. "When I heard them shooting..."
"But you didn't lose me." My hands frame his face, thumbs tracing his cheekbones. "I'm right here."
"I know. But the thought of them getting their hands on you..." His grip tightens possessively. "I would have burned these entire mountains down to get you back."
The fierce declaration sends heat straight to my core. This is Cole unleashed—not the careful protector but the predator, the soldier, the man who takes what's his and keeps it safe.
"Show me," I breathe against his lips. "Show me I'm yours."
Something snaps in his expression. In one fluid motion, he lifts me onto the console, positioning himself between mythighs. His mouth crashes into mine with desperate hunger, all restraint abandoned in the wake of nearly losing each other.
"These clothes need to come off," he growls against my throat, his hands already working at the fastenings of my thermal gear. "Now."
I help him strip away the layers between us, desperate to feel his skin against mine. When his calloused palms close over my bare breasts, I arch into his touch with a gasp of pleasure.
"Perfect," he murmurs, lowering his head to capture one peaked nipple with his mouth. "So fucking perfect."
The crude words combined with his reverent touch make me moan, my hands fisting in his hair to hold him closer. He worships my breasts with lips and tongue and gentle teeth until I'm writhing against him, completely lost to sensation.
"Cole, please," I gasp, needing more, needing everything.
"Tell me what you want," he commands, lifting his head to meet my eyes. "Tell me exactly what you need."
"You," I breathe, my hands working frantically at his clothing. "Inside me. Now."
He helps me strip away his shirt and jeans, and when he's finally naked before me, I can't hold back a sound of pure appreciation. Cole Manning is magnificent—all lean muscle and controlled power, scars mapping a warrior's body.
"Like what you see?" he asks, noting my hungry stare.
"Love what I see." I reach for him, wrapping my hand around his impressive length. He's hard and hot and ready, and the way he groans at my touch makes me feel powerful despite our circumstances.
"Anna," he warns, his control visibly fraying. "If you keep doing that..."
