GRAY PACED THE hallway, stopping on occasion to listen for any sounds in the bathroom. Stormy had been inside for a long thirty minutes and his protective side kicked in. What if she’d passed out? Fallen and hit her head? He was an idiot to suggest she take a bath. If she got overheated, combined with the head injury and she was in the water…
“Shit!”
He could find the dangers in something as harmless as taking a bath. Drowning. The hard edges of the counter. He wasn’t sure when he’d been elected as her protector, but he was taking it seriously
Standing in front of the door, he knocked softly. “Are you okay?” He’d risk overstepping all the invisible boundaries to make sure she was safe. “Stormy?”
No answer.
No sounds.
Rubbing his forehead, he calculated all the things that could have happened.
His stomach dropped to his toes.
He tried the door and the knob turned. “Stormy? I’m coming in. If you’re okay, now’s the time to holler,” he yelled loud enough so she could hear. She didn’t answer.
Opening the door slowly, he peered through the crack. He barely had time to register that her head was under water before he sent the door flying and striking the wall in a loud pop. In two strides he was across the floor and he dragged her up by her shoulders. Her eyes came open and shock spread her expression. Water poured down from her hair into her mouth and she sputtered, “What are you doing?”
“You were under water. Are you okay?” He investigated her eyes, her body.
“I’m fine. What’s wrong with you? Are you out of your mind?”
“You were drowning. You must have passed out. You didn’t answer me.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No. I was rinsing my hair.” Her eyes were blue gems and her cheeks were flushed. Her full bottom lip trembled.
Realizing he was still holding her, he removed his hands from her shoulders. “Is there a reason why you didn’t respond when I called?”
She sat up straight, covering her bare breasts. “Is there a reason why you stormed in here? Do you make it a habit to interrupt a woman’s bath?”
“I thought…” Fuck! He’d wanted to protect her, not come off as a pervert. He’d screwed up royally.
“How did you get in? The door was locked,” she said.
“No, it wasn’t. I didn’t hear any sounds.”
“Were you outside the door listening?” She blinked.
“No…at least not for very long. I started allowing my thoughts to get to me. Thinking that you could be in danger.”
“Danger?”
“Yeah. I’m a lawman. You wouldn’t believe the dangers I can create. From sharp edged countertops. Drowning. I’m digging my hole.” He stood and ran a hand through his hair. “You’re fine though. Very fine. I’m okay too. So, I’ll just let you get back to rubbing…I mean, rinsing.” He walked backwards to the door and closed it behind him as he stepped out, resisting the urge to bang his head against the wall.
What was happening to him? He was out of control. This woman, who he barely knew, was under his skin, making him do crazy things. He’d always been a cool-headed man, and this wasn’t his usual behavior.
He was still attempting to prove himself to her, which he usually didn’t find necessary. The people he cared about, and those he met along the way, knew he was an ex-Navy SEAL and a member of the elite force Ghost Hawks. For goodness sake, that made him trustworthy. He was one of the good guys, a man who caught the bad guys and got them off the street so innocent people didn’t have to worry. But he saw the question in her wide-eyed gaze and the apprehension. Yet, he could have sworn he saw something else—less fear and more interest, maybe?
Why does it matter so much if she has trust in me?
He scrubbed his jaw. The facts were, although she’d ran way from the groom, that didn’t make her “free”. She still wore the engagement ring, which meant, technically, they were still engaged. So, he needed to keep his thoughts clear. No matter how beautiful or tempting she was to Gray. There was something bigger here…he was on the mountain to catch a terrorist, not a lover. In his line of work, getting caught up made him weaker. He needed to remember he was here to catch Phantom, a terrorist who needed thrown into the slammer.
The entire plan had gone topsy-turvy when he’d almost hit her on the road. He’d been prepared to catch Phantom—single handedly. He might be stuck here, in a tiny cabin, but beyond the walls was a criminal that preyed upon the innocent.
Turning on the radio, he fiddled with the tuner until he managed to find a station that had reasonable reception. It was an oldies station and he listened to a favorite and when the song ended, a set a of chimes announced a weather alert.
“Cuddle up and stay put, listeners. We’re in line for another downfall of three to four inches with icy road conditions. All of Whispering Mountain and the outer perimeter is still a Level 3 which means no vehicles are allowed on the roads unless it’s an emergency vehicle. Stay tuned for updates right here on your favorite station.”
He blew out a long breath. So, there it was. He and Stormy would be stuck here for who knows how long.
Stepping into the living room, he stoked the fire. Paced the floor. Stared through the fogged window. Needing to keep busy, he found himself looking through the drawers on the small desk. Stationary. Pens. Stapler. He searched through the kitchen cabinets, all three of them. He even resituated the cans and utensils. Still full of restless energy, he decided they needed more firewood.
Pulling on his shirt, jacket, and boots, he stepped out onto the porch, lifting his collar to help keep some of the wind off his neck. He could only hope there was a pile of chopped wood somewhere outside, close enough that he didn’t have to tread through snow up to his knees. He normally didn’t mind the snow, or the cold, but after his walk yesterday, much of it on incline, he’d had enough to last for a long time. Luckily, someone was anticipating the bad weather. He found a stack of wood behind the shed and carried an armful back into the cabin, pounding his boots on the rug, then toeing them off.
He didn’t see her at first. She was sitting on the couch, tucked in the corner and she looked so tiny. Gray felt a quake all the way into his toes. Her hair hung in damp waves surrounding her flushed cheeks. She had traded in the blanket for a towel. She could have been wearing a potato sack and he’d still think she was most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes upon. “You must think I’m the biggest asshole.” He dropped the wood into the fireside basket.
“I haven’t made my mind up yet.”
Gray looked back at her and there wasn’t a sliver of humor in her expression. “You don’t know me and you only have my word, but I truly did think you’d passed out. You can trust me.”
“I hope that’s so because as of right now you and I are stuck together on this mountain. And I have a little problem.”
“Problem?”
“I don’t have my medicine.”