by Iris Morland
She wished Seth could see her. She smiled, thinking about how he’d react when she told him how she’d gotten free.
She didn’t move toward the window just yet. Listening, she could hear Johnny talking to somebody further inside the cabin, and she heard booted footsteps.
If she waited too long, he would find her and she’d never escape.
The window, to her relief, was easily pushed open. She had to rip through the screen, which took longer than she would’ve anticipated. Her palms became sweaty when she finally had a hole big enough to climb through.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Johnny grabbed her hair and dragged her back into the room.
Rose screamed, twisting in his grip. She freed herself, only to have him grab her wrists and whirl her around so her back was against his front.
“Bad girls who try to escape get punished,” he hissed into her ear. He wrenched her arms back until she cried out in pain.
“Fuck you, Johnny. You’ll pay for this. My brother and Seth will save me—”
He yanked her arms back until Rose was afraid he’d dislocate her shoulder. She panted, trying to keep the panic at bay, but when Johnny began to creep a hand up her bare back, she couldn’t stop herself from trying to get away.
She was like a cat, all limbs and claws, and she pushed and struggled against Johnny. When she was able to stomp on his instep, he swore and let her go.
“Don’t touch me!” She fought him, not caring where she clawed and hit him. She wouldn’t let him hurt her again: she’d die trying to escape from him.
“Stop this! Goddammit, Rosie, you’re pissing me off—”
At this point, they’d moved nearer to the abandoned chair, and before Johnny could react, she’d grabbed the chair and bashed him over the head with it. He groaned and collapsed at her feet.
Panting, she wondered if she’d killed him. Bending down, she heard him make a noise, and he was still breathing. She grimaced. She was considering finishing the job when she heard footsteps. She needed to get out of here.
Climbing out of the window, Rose sprinted into the woods, running parallel to the path that had taken her to the cabin. She ran for she didn’t know how long, but her lungs ached and her breath sawed from her throat.
When she saw a figure emerge from behind a tree, she was about to scream when a hand clapped over her mouth.
“It’s Seth,” the voice said as she continued to struggle. “Hummingbird, it’s me. You’re safe.”
It took her a moment to understand what he was saying, to believe that this wasn’t some trick. Then all of the fight went out of her, and she collapsed against him.
“Rose,” Seth said, and she turned in his arms and hugged him so hard he laughed a little. “Are you okay? Did that bastard hurt you? Talk to me. Jesus Christ, Rose.”
She looked up, and she saw his face darken when he noticed the bruise on her cheek.
“That piece of shit. I’ll kill him.” His eyes roved over her, drinking her in. “Did he hurt you?” He swallowed, stricken.
She shook her head. “I got away. I hit him with a chair.” She breathed in his scent and allowed herself a moment to feel safe.
“We need to get out of here,” she said. “Johnny will be coming for me. He has men, too. I don’t know how many.” Then, remembering, she clutched his shirt: “Jubilee! Do you know where she is?”
Seth frowned. “Jubi? She was with me until Heath came to tell me you were missing.”
That made Rose sag with relief, and she almost started sobbing. Gathering her composure, she whispered, “He lied. Thank God.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He kissed her forehead and smoothed her hair back from her face. “You need to keep running. Caleb and his guys are on their way, and you’ll meet up with them. I’ll catch up with you.”
“No, Seth, I’m not leaving you again.” Her voice trembled as she saw the determination in his face.
“I’m not going to let Johnny get away again.” He cupped her cheek. “I love you, Rose. I’m sorry I was too much of a coward to tell you earlier.”
A sob escaped before she kissed him. He responded with a groan and then pushed her away.
“Go, Rose. Now.”
“Isn’t this lovely?” Johnny’s voice echoed through the woods. He and four other guys emerged and quickly encircled Rose and Seth.
Johnny had a huge bruise forming on his temple, which made Rose inordinately proud. She stood next to Seth and tipped up her chin.
“Have a nice nap, Johnny?” she called.
His face turned red, and she laughed at him. When he wanted to lunge at her, one of Johnny’s guys stopped him. Seth moved her so she stood behind him, although they had two guys with their guns pointed at their back, and two guys with their guns pointed at their fronts.
In a word, they were trapped. And Johnny smiled when they realized that.
Seth took in the situation, keeping Rose close to his side. He cursed himself for not making her run the second he’d found her, but he’d been so relieved at seeing her that he couldn’t think like a soldier. He could only react like a man who’d been reunited with the love of his life.
Seth knew what he had to do, and it could very well get him killed. If it would save Rose, it would be worth it. Leaning down, he whispered in her ear, “I’m going to distract Johnny. Run the second the guys behind us aren’t looking.”
She nodded. She didn’t tell him not to do it, although he saw it in her eyes.
“I love you,” she whispered back. “Don’t be an idiot.”
That made his lips quirk. He moved his arm away from Rose’s waist and then put enough space between them that if Johnny’s guys shot at him, he wasn’t close enough to endanger Rose. Hopefully, at least.
Seth had his own gun, but even he couldn’t take out five men at once without endangering Rose in the process. If he could just get her out of here…
“How does it make you feel that Rose doesn’t want you?” Seth taunted. “She hates you so much that she left you for dead and escaped to find me.”
Johnny’s face creased with anger, and Seth couldn’t help but enjoy himself.
“You’re a bastard, the worst kind of man. You force yourself on women and abuse them because you have no honor.” Seth sneered as he moved further away from Rose. “Is this how you get a woman to be with you? You’re pathetic. The most pathetic piece of shit I’ve ever met, and I’ve met a lot of people.”
Johnny’s face darkened until it was bright red, and Seth could make out a vein pulsing in his forehead. One of Johnny’s men barked, “Shut up already. Unless you want to be shot.”
Seth put up his hands. “Just pointing out the obvious. That your guy is a coward. What does it feel like, taking commands from a guy who’s so pathetic that women literally run away from him? I’m not sure that’s the guy I’d be taking orders from.”
“Shut the fuck up!” Johnny yelled, advancing on Seth. “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”
When Johnny launched himself at Seth, Seth yelled, “Run!”
He heard someone running into the brush, and when he saw that Rose was gone, he exulted. Johnny grabbed ahold of Seth’s shirt and was about to slam his head into the ground when Seth pushed Johnny over, punching him in the face.
Johnny swore. Seth heard Johnny’s guys move closer, but they couldn’t get a shot at him without potentially killing Johnny.
He and Johnny rolled, punching where they could. Johnny got a fist to Seth’s gut, knocking the wind from him. Seth got Johnny into a headlock, pressing on his throat.
When one of Johnny’s guys was about to pull the trigger, Seth said, “Try that and I’ll break his neck.”
The man hesitated, and then he motioned for them all to put down their guns. Seth was halfway tempted to break Johnny’s neck anyway; he deserved worse.
But Johnny wasn’t about to give up yet. He somehow managed to reach near his knee and pull out a
knife. He swiped it at Seth’s face, forcing Seth to let him go.
Johnny got to his feet. “Shoot him!” he screamed.
Seth saw one of the men lift his gun again, and so he launched himself straight at Johnny. The sound of a gunshot exploded around him, momentarily deafening him. But all he could think of was getting that knife away from Johnny. They rolled in the dirt, grappling and punching. Johnny sliced at Seth and cut him across his left bicep.
Seth hissed in pain. He felt blood dripping down his arm, but it only gave him more of a reason to keep fighting.
But Johnny was a dirty fighter: he kneed Seth in the groin and then had the knife pressed to Seth’s throat.
He looked down at Seth with sheer glee. “Now I get to kill you. I’ll do it slowly, though, because you’ve made me so angry.” He pressed the knife into Seth’s skin, creating a thin line of blood. “And Rose will be mine.”
Over my dead body. Seth grabbed the knife by its blade, yelling at the pain at his hand, but Johnny was so surprised that Seth was able to wrench it away from him and toss it far into the woods.
“Goddamn you!” Johnny screamed.
He was about to launch himself at Seth again when they heard, “Police! Put your weapons down and your hands up!”
Everyone froze, and then, like something out of a dream, Caleb and six other police officers surrounded them.
“Put your weapons down!” Caleb yelled. His gun was leveled at Johnny. “Otherwise we have orders to shoot to kill.”
Johnny’s men dropped their guns without another word, while Johnny just smiled. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his gun, dropping it at his feet.
“I surrender,” he said, his tone disgusted.
The police converged on the group, putting Johnny and his guys in handcuffs. Seth clutched his hand to his chest as he rose from the ground.
“Seth, let’s get you out of here.” Caleb helped him up. He winced when he saw Seth’s injuries. “Can you walk? The ambulance isn’t far from here.”
Seth nodded. “I’m fine. It’s just my hand.” He noticed the red stain on his sleeve and added, “And my arm, I guess.”
“Jesus Christ, Seth, you crazy asshole.” Caleb pulled him into a bear hug, which Seth tried to reciprocate despite all the bleeding.
“Where’s Rose? Did she find you?”
“I’m right here.”
Seth looked over Caleb’s shoulder, and then Rose was running into his arms. He pulled her into an embrace, spinning her around. He kissed her so hard that she yelped, but she didn’t protest. God, he loved her. How could he have ever thought he’d leave her?
“Are you okay? God, Rose, it was so close—”
“Shh, I’m fine. Better than you.” She ripped at her t-shirt and made a makeshift bandage for his hand. Tying it, she said, “You idiot. What were you thinking?”
He dropped his forehead to rest against hers. “I was thinking that as long as you were safe, I didn’t care what happened.”
“Well, I care what happens to you. And you’re never doing something so moronic ever again.”
That made him smile. “Of course, princess,” he said, unable to help himself from using his original nickname for her.
She sniffed. “And don’t you forget it.”
20
It was nearly dawn by the time Rose and Seth returned to Seth’s apartment. He had to get stitches in his hand, his bicep and throat were bandaged , and after long interviews with the cops, they were allowed to go home. Johnny and his gang would remain in jail for the time being.
Heath had taken Callie for the day, and when they’d all met up at the hospital, he’d returned her with a shake of his head.
“She wouldn’t calm down all day,” he’d reported as Callie cavorted around Rose in excitement. “I think she missed you.”
Rose had almost cried at seeing Callie again. Burying her face in the dog’s fur, she’d had to gather her composure to thank her brother for everything.
Now in Seth’s apartment, they both collapsed onto Seth’s bed, Callie lying at the foot of the bed. Seth winced when he rolled onto his side.
“How’s your hand?” Rose asked as she curled next to him.
“Fine. I think they gave me enough painkillers to sedate an elephant.”
“Good. Then if you annoy me, I’ll put some into your food as revenge.”
He laughed. “I guess I’d deserve it.” His expression sobered; he touched her cheek that was now black and blue. “I’ve thought about what you said, before this happened.”
“No, you don’t have to—”
He interrupted her. “No, I want to. You said I was being a coward, and you were right. I was going to take Sergeant Loyd’s offer because I thought there was nothing else for me here. Except I was wrong.” He stroked her hair, his touch so gentle it made Rose want to cry all over again. “I have you. You’re my everything, Rose.”
Her heart expanded; she struggled to find the right words. “You’re not going, then?” she whispered.
“No. If the Marines had something else for me, that’d be one thing. But I’m not going on another tour.”
Rose hadn’t cried all day—not really—but for some reason, this unleashed a flood of tears. Sobbing, she covered her face with her hands. She heard Seth saying something in soothing tones. He kissed her forehead.
“Jesus, don’t cry, I can’t stand it. Now you’re making me wonder if you’re sad I’m not going.”
That made her cry harder. “You’re so stupid. I thought everything was over between us, and then today you could’ve died—”
He moved her hands away from her face, but she could barely see through the tears.
“You could’ve died, too. Realizing you were missing, that Johnny had you… I was never so afraid as I was in that moment.”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve told you.” She wiped her eyes, sniffling. “I thought I could end it myself. I wanted to prove to myself that I could. Or that I just didn’t care anymore. I don’t know.”
“Promise me one thing. That you’ll never put yourself in that kind of danger again.”
“As long as you promise me the same thing.”
He didn’t even hesitate, “Deal.”
Despite their exhaustion and injuries, Rose knew that they both needed each other right at that moment. When she kissed him, he tangled his uninjured hand into her hair and kissed her like she was the only thing that could save him.
She moaned and opened her mouth wider. Soon, she was under him, his body arching over hers so as not to crush her. Her heart pounded as he pushed her torn shirt up, and she helped him strip it off her, only breaking the kiss for a second.
“God, I love you,” he said as he gazed into her eyes. “I love you more than I can ever say.”
“I love you, too.” She caressed his jaw, and he nuzzled against her fingers. “You’ve saved me, Seth. Over and over again.”
He kissed her again as they continued to strip out of their clothes. When they were finally, blessedly naked, Rose ran her hands down his body. She felt the bumps of his vertebrae, moving downward until she could grip his muscled ass. His cock jumped between them, and she moved so her legs were parted and he could settle between them.
Seth winced, his forehead creasing, and Rose pushed him to roll onto his back.
“Don’t make your arm worse,” she chided as she climbed on top of him. “Besides, this lets me have some fun first.”
Seth groaned, and then he swore when she licked down his torso, swirling her tongue around his belly button. His cock was like an iron brand against her skin. She smiled as he swore again when she nipped the tender skin near his pelvis.
He was so beautiful—all warm skin and sleek muscles. His hands were large, his feet equally so, his arms and legs seemingly never-ending. She loved the way his thighs flexed when her hair brushed against them as she moved downward. She loved how his eyes turned glassy with desire as he gazed at her.
She took
his cock in her hand, feeling its heat and its weight, and she licked it from the base to the tip. He grew larger in her hand, and she licked a bead of moisture from the tip.
His throat contracted as she dipped down to take him further into her mouth. His hands fisted in the sheets as she loved him that way, almost taking him to the hilt.
Muttering nonsense, he panted, and she could feel him growing close to release. With one last twist of her hand around him, she kissed his belly, his pounding heart.
“You’re amazing,” he said. “I can’t believe you’re mine.”
“Believe it.”
He hefted her breast in his uninjured hand, thumbing her swollen nipple. She tilted her head back as he took one breast into his mouth and then the other. His arm encircled her waist to keep her in place. She squirmed, needing him deep inside of her.
Rose pushed his hand away and took his cock in her hand. Lodging him at her entrance, she slowly sank down on him. They both groaned aloud at the sensation. Shivering, she stayed still, never wanting this to end.
Seth let her go slowly, although she could tell it was killing him. She rode him like she had when they’d first made love, but this time, there was nothing between them.
Rose didn’t care. She wanted nothing between them, and if she got pregnant, she would only be the happiest woman in existence.
“I’m close.” Seth closed his eyes.
“Not yet.” Lifting off him, she told him to sit up. He raised an imperious eyebrow, which just made her laugh.
“When did you get so bossy?” He swore when she faced away from him and sank down onto his cock again in one swift stroke. Seth snaked an arm around her waist, holding her flush against his torso, and he took over the rhythm.
His cock plunged into her as he kissed and licked her neck, her shoulder. Pushing her hair away from her throat, he bit down on the tendon there, making her cry out to the ceiling.
He filled her with endless strokes. Rose could feel her orgasm gathering, and when she began to rub her clit, it descended upon her like a lightning strike. With one last plunge of his cock, Seth brought her to her peak. She screamed, arching and writhing, and it was only his arm around her waist that kept her from collapsing onto the bed.
