Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22227 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22227 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
I exhaled slowly and forced myself not to overthink. Trauma did strange things to people. I’d spent most of my life braced for impact, waiting for the moment kindness turned into obligation. Maybe my body was confusing safety with attraction. No one had ever protected me without asking for something in return, so my gratitude might just feel overwhelming.
Garner was ridiculously hot and protective of me. Anyone would feel affected by that after a year of surviving alone.
I reminded myself I didn’t need him. I’d learned how to take care of myself the hard way. Once the danger passed, I could leave.
The thought should have settled me. Instead, something in my chest tightened.
Even now, with a wall between us, I was painfully aware of his presence in the cabin. And worse, how empty it felt when he wasn’t right next to me.
I didn’t even know him, so it made no sense to feel like I’d lost something. It made no sense at all, yet somehow felt inevitable.
The feeling only intensified with every hour I spent with Garner. By the time night settled over the cabins again, the world outside had gone still, but my thoughts refused to follow.
Every creak of wood made my pulse jump as I lay on my back in the guest room and stared at the ceiling. Even a slight rustle outside my window had me holding my breath.
I rolled onto my side, hugging the pillow to my chest, when soft footsteps sounded in the hall. They stopped just outside my door. A quiet knock followed.
“Elodie?” Garner’s voice drifted toward me. “You okay?”
I slid out of bed and crossed the room. When I opened the door, he stood just outside the threshold.
The sight of him stole my breath. Barefoot and shirtless, wearing loose sleep pants that rode low on his hips. His skin was warm gold in the dim light and his muscles relaxed but still powerful.
I offered him a shy smile. “I’m fine. Just having a hard time falling asleep.”
He searched my expression but didn’t step closer.
“I couldn’t sleep either,” he admitted. “Thought I heard you moving and wanted to make sure you were all right.”
“Thanks.”
The air between us hummed with something unspoken. My awareness expanded until I was acutely aware of the space separating us.
His voice was rough when he murmured, “I guess I should say good night then.”
“Good night.”
He lingered a second longer, then turned and walked away, his footsteps fading back into the quiet.
I closed the door and leaned against it, pressing a hand to my chest.
I still didn’t understand what was happening between Garner and me. But as I lay back down, staring into the dark, one truth settled deep in my bones.
It wasn’t just in my head, and it wasn’t going away.
7
ELODIE
The next morning dawned too bright for how unsettled I felt. Still, when Garner asked if I wanted to come with him to the site again, I didn’t hesitate.
We didn’t talk much on the drive. He was focused in a way I’d come to recognize already, his eyes constantly scanning the road and tree line. When we arrived, the site looked calm. Fresh equipment sat near the cleared area.
“I just need to inspect the new delivery before the crew’s cleared to use it,” he explained as he parked the truck.
I stuck close to him as he moved toward the newly delivered equipment and began checking the chains and locks, a strange chill crawling up my spine. Watching him work while danger could be looming, I was impressed by his calm precision.
The quiet was pierced by the heavy clatter of a chain snapping loose. I took a step back, in exactly the wrong direction.
“Elodie!”
Garner moved faster than should’ve been possible. One second, he was several feet away, and the next, he was there—his hands slamming into my shoulders as he shoved me backward with enough force to knock the air from my lungs. I stumbled, barely keeping my footing as his body came down in front of mine like a wall.
The chain crashed to the ground where I’d been standing, metal slamming into dirt with a bone-rattling thud. For one terrifying second, I forgot how to breathe as I stared into Garner’s eyes. They weren’t just amber anymore. They burned with something wild and predatory.
His body was rigid, every muscle locked tight as if he was holding himself back through sheer will. A low sound vibrated in his chest—not quite a growl, but close enough that my skin prickled.
Then he blinked, and whatever I’d seen vanished, replaced by raw fear.
“Did it hit you?” His voice shook as his hands gripped my arms, checking me with frantic care. “Please tell me you’re okay.”
“I’m fine,” I breathed. “You got to me in time. Somehow.”
His shoulders sagged, and he pressed his forehead briefly against mine like he needed the contact to keep himself together. His hands were trembling when he pulled back just enough to look at me again, his expression haunted.