Page 40 of The Prey
Engulfing the bed and sheets themselves.
Fire bulleted straight toward where Gia sat.
The shorts Gia wore were burning right before his eyes.
Hudson cursed and covered the flames with his hand, ignoring the burn. Smothering flames against her thigh. She screamed again. His damned pillows had just ignited.
He acted, grabbed her and rolled her off the bed, away from the flames. He pulled her up and nudged her toward the door. “Go! Get out!”
Glass shards sliced through the bottoms of his feet.Glass.Hell, those toes had been barefoot on his rug. She was going to slice her damned feet to hell.
He scooped her up and got them both to the door. He put her in the hallway.
“Get outside!” He had a fire extinguisher. He grabbed it from the master bathroom and used it on the bed until the canister was empty. He pulled the door closed, hoping it would be enough to save his entire damned house. To slow the flames enough…
But they’d already engulfed the rug.
He could see the flicker of flames beneath the door.
“Come on, Hudson, hurry!” Gia yelled.
Gia.Gia was in the house and the damned house was on fire.
That was all that mattered to him right now. It was time to get her away from the flames. Screw the house. Hudson could rebuild.
He was getting her out of there right now.
He pulled her toward the back door, as he heard the damned squeal of tires. He grabbed his cell, wallet, and keys from where he’d dropped them on the island and pulled her behind him into the night. He put his body between hers and the damned road.
He almost dragged her toward his truck, unlocked the door as quickly as he could, then lifted her in—protecting her as best he could. And dialed 911.
Hoping he’d still have a house left when this was done.
Then he pulled Gia close and just held her, right there in the open door of his truck. As what he could have lost sank in forever.
The woman in his arms mattered far more to him than the house. Let it all burn, as long as he had her safe.
Whoever had done this, though…he was living on borrowed time.
Hudson…was going hunting now.
He just pulled her closer, as they waited.
30
Gia stayed rightwhere she was, pressed against his naked chest. She was shivering—so was he. It wasn’tthatcold—adrenaline. That was what it was.
Cars and trucks were coming from everywhere. Volunteer, she thought. There was a Barratt County Fire department, but it operated out of the much more populated Barrattville. Value’s was volunteer. Including…she usually had at least two brothers on the volunteer department.
People she knew were going to be there, to put out thefire.Hudson’s arm hooked behind her waist as more vehicles and the large water truck from the W-Deane Ranch pulled in next. The W-Deane Ranch was closest—big enough to have a water truck.
The water truck from her own ranch was pulling down Hudson’s drive now, the distinctive Hiller brand visible even in the middle of the night. Not every ranch had a water truck, buttheydid. They used it to fill troughs that were too far away. Ian, the ranch foreman—he would be driving that truck now. He loved it, took care of it—he wouldn’t even let Grady or Gene or Gunn drive it now. Ian would be coming.
Her brothers would be coming.
They were going to be okay.
Fire. Why did fires make people socold?
