Page 13 of The Way Back Home
His brows pulled together. “Now, you rest.”
“What about the sheriff?”
“Mona’s keeping him busy. She’ll call when he’s gone.”
“But—”
“No more questions. Rest. I’ll be in the next room in case you need anything.”
Noah rose and began to walk toward the door.
“Why are you doing this?” she asked quietly.
He paused but didn’t turn around. “Because Mona asked me to.”
His straightforward, no-bullshit answer soothed her.
Teagan settled back into the pillows and reassessed her situation. The sheriff was looking for her. She was injured and in a stranger’s bed. Her head ached, her body hurt, and she was one blink away from passing out.
But despite all that, she felt oddly safe. Which was a good thing, since she was in no shape to go anywhere.
She yawned and closed her eyes as exhaustion pulled her under. A few hours of sleep were all she needed. And maybe some ibuprofen. Tomorrow, she’d come up with a new plan.
CHAPTER SEVEN
NOAH
Noah waited until she fell into a deep sleep, then quietly slipped into the bedroom to put another log on the fire and grab an extra blanket from the closet.
It had been a hell of a night.
He stretched out on the couch and closed his eyes, resting but not sleeping. He wanted to hear her if she called out. Wanted to know if she tried to sneak off in the middle of the night.
Because she’d thought about it. It was right there in those sky-blue eyes of hers, behind the mask, behind the defiance. Fear. Desperation. Determination. He’d seen it enough times to recognize it for what it was.
She was running. Running from something bad enough to override pain that would have most people down for the count. Her? She’d kept going and climbed a tree despite a dislocated shoulder, a gash in her back, and cracked ribs. Even after all that andpassing out, she’d still managed to knock the wind out of him and put him on his ass with a solid kick to the solar plexus. Sure, she’d caught him off guard, but still.
The thought made him smile. She was feisty. Resilient. And scared.
He hadn’t missed the way she’d clocked every detail, taking in the window, the door, the layout of the room. She’d started planning her escape before she even opened her eyes.
At least she’d seemed to realize he was not an immediate threat. That he’d been trying to help her, not harm her. Something told him that put him on a very short list.
For the next several hours, she was under his care. Safe. Asleep in his bed. Wearing his shirt. Not exactly standard treatment protocol, but it was what it was.
Surprisingly, he didn’t mind all that much.
A loud, persistent knocking broke the silence. Instantly alert, Noah’s eyes popped open, and he sat up. Sun was streaming in around the edges of the shades he’d closed the night before.
Shit. He must have fallen asleep.
“Doc, open up. It’s Bill Jackson.”
Noah was on his feet, gathering the blanket he’d used and making a beeline for the bedroom. Teagan was sitting up in bed, covers gripped tightly in her hands, her eyes wide as saucers.
Putting a finger to his lips, Noah tossed his blanketto the side of the room and said, “Don’t worry; I’ll take care of this. Stay here and keep quiet, okay?”
Without waiting for an answer, he closed the door behind him and returned to the living room.
