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Chapter 13

“Are you freaking kidding me?” Mari wanted to cry. It was late afternoon, with sunset coming up faster than she wanted to think about.

They were still ten miles from the B&B they were sloooowly trekking toward.

A few raindrops had splattered against their faces over the last mile. She’d been hoping the storm would hold off, but as thunder rumbled overhead, the ground shaking with it, she knew that rain was coming.

“Here, help me with this.” Colin crouched in front of his backpack and pulled out a dark green square.

“Is that a tarp?” Oh, please let it be one. She’d packed protein essentials, water, the flare gun, and extra clothes, like she always did for day trips. Clearly she needed to add more to her pack.

“Yep.” He started to unfold it, so she grabbed the other end and worked with him until it was completely stretched out. “It’s about eight by twelve feet.”

“This thing is awesome. Did you get this in the military?”

He snorted as he pulled out paracord. “I actually found this at a home goods store when buying umbrellas for my back patio and snagged it. It’s supposed to be used to keep out rain or snow on patios, and it’s insulated and thick. I thought it would be perfect for camping.”

“And it already has the holes for hanging. I might get one of these, though I hope to never need it again.”

“Right,” he muttered as they started stringing it up between two trees.

As if on cue, the sky decided to open up with a clap of thunder. Rain soaked them as they continued working, but it didn’t take more than a couple minutes to finish securing the four corners of the tarp.

Drenched through to her bones, she huddled under the tarp next to Colin, glad her pack wasn’t totally soaked. Aaand, also glad that she was with Colin, for more reasons than she wanted to admit even to herself.

He wrapped an arm around her and held her close. Even though it wasn’t that cold, the rain and wind added to the chill already permeating her thanks to all her clothes being wet.

“At least an ALNOT should have been issued by now.” Once the alert notice went out that she hadn’t closed out her flight plan or arrived at her destination, things would start moving. Hopefully they already had. She curled up against him, trying to get warmer. Her teeth chattered as rain pounded down around their makeshift cover. Colin was so big and solid. She pressed closer, grateful for the heat of his body, wondered if it would be inappropriate to ask him to take off his shirt so she could get extra warmth.

Hmm, yep, it would, but the thought was tempting.

So far the tarp was holding under the onslaught of rain. But the forested hillside they were on was quickly gathering little streams of water—and mud.

So that was going to be fun to trek through later.

For now she chose to ignore it because there was nothing either one of them could do about it. They had ten more miles to go before they reached shelter, something she had to keep repeating to herself .

“Yeah, I’m hoping that chopper we heard earlier was search and rescue,” Colin said.

“Hopefully it’ll scare off the drones too. What a mess.” Her teeth still chattered, though that was partially from her growing anger at the whole situation.

At Ackerman , if he was indeed behind this. And she couldn’t see how he wasn’t at this point. The conversation she’d overheard in the hangar hadn’t even been that bad. Not great, but now someone had tried to kill her.

Twice .

“I’m sorry you got dragged into this with me,” she continued. For that alone she wanted to take down Ackerman.

“I’m not.”

She looked up at him, and his blue eyes darkened slightly. “Seriously?”

He shrugged, that little grin pulling at the corners of his full lips. Seriously, why did a guy get a mouth like that? And ridiculously long eyelashes? Ugh. Not fair.

“So you like having to perform an emergency landing, then being stuck in the middle of the woods in a rainstorm while being chased by drones?”

“Sounds like a good time to me. Just another adventure.” That tug was now a full grin, and sweet flying raptors, she wanted to kiss him.

At that thought, she stilled.

Apparently he read her mind, or maybe she was reading his, because he leaned down, taking her by complete surprise as he slanted his mouth over hers. And he moved slowly enough that she could pull back if she wanted. Could easily tell him to stop.

But the cold had clearly gone straight to her head because she met him halfway, sliding her hand over his chest, clutching onto his shoulder as he teased his tongue against hers in slow, sensual strokes.

Enjoying the playful way he kissed, she settled against him, feeling more relaxed than she had in years around him. Maybe it was because they were in the middle of nowhere, dependent on each other, but she wanted him more than she could remember ever wanting anyone. So she embraced this.

When he nipped her bottom lip, she moaned into his mouth and felt his entire body tense.

All his muscles tightened, and oh, she liked that. Liked that her simple moan had him reacting. Even though the alarm in her head that reminded her how stupid this was kept going off because she couldn’t run out on him after their kiss, couldn’t pretend it hadn’t happened, she didn’t pull back.

He tasted like the chocolate bar they’d shared earlier, sweet, and oh god, she loved the feel of his muscular chest under her fingertips. It had been ages since she’d been with anyone and right about now she was feeling touch starved. It was taking all her restraint not to climb on top of him, straddle him— They both pulled back at the same time at a crashing sound.

Alarm punching through her, she started to get up but stilled when Colin placed a warning hand on her thigh.

“Look.”

She followed his gaze and saw two giant boars snorting and racing through the rain, slipping and sliding down a nearby hill.

She wasn’t even sure why, but she laughed. “They look like big dogs having a good time.”

He snickered next to her as one dove in a muddy pool about twenty yards away before it continued into the thick of trees. “Living their best life for sure.”

Sighing, she laid her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes. “I say we just chalk this up to being stuck in the middle of nowhere.” Because she didn’t want to talk about the kiss. To hear him apologize or…whatever.

He tucked her close, his protective hold making her heart squeeze. “As soon as the rain clears, we’ll head out. Or even if it just thins, I say we pack up and try to make it to that B&B before dark.”

He hadn’t responded to what she’d said, and she was happy to let it drop. “Works for me, because I do not want to camp out here overnight.” Hell. No. That was when animals and other murder-y things came out.

Though… she didn’t hate the idea of being cuddled up with him all night.