Chapter 4
Kenzie
“Then just kiss me. Or are you afraid?” I folded my arms, cocking one hip as I stared him down, daring him to take some action for a change.
“Kenzie. Give me a break. You know I’m not afraid of anything.”
“Then prove it.”
When his gaze fell to my waist then down further, I yawned on purpose, patting my glossy lips. He glanced over his shoulder, acting as if he was going to ignore me. “You shouldn’t go around dressed like that.”
“Like what? This?” I brushed my hand down my side while bending my knee and shoving my pointed toe into the ground. As I shifted my leg back and forth, I dragged the tip of my tongue across my bottom lip. “I thought this is what you prefer. Slutty girls.”
“Damn it, Palomino Girl. You’re not a slutty girl so stop that shit.”
“Just like I thought. You’re all bark and no action. What a pity.” I pushed him away, taking long strides away from him.
“Come back here.”
“I don’t follow your orders, rodeo boy.” I waved him off, stomping away.
Then he snagged my arm, yanking me backward and against the tree.
With a frustrated look on his face, he yanked one arm over my head then the other, pinning both against the rough bark with one muscular hand.
“You are not going to run away from me. You are so infuriating. Gah.” His entire face was pinched, his chest rising and falling.
With his jaw clenched and since he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days, I thought he was the most handsome boy I’d ever seen. But to him, I was nothing but a little girl. That’s all I’d ever be.
“Let go of me,” I demanded. I certainly wasn’t going to cry. Not around him.
He shook his head several times, shoving my arms against the tree again as I jutted out my breasts. His entire body stiffened as he dropped his gaze. So did I.
Excitement tore through me from seeing the thick bulge between his legs.
“Jesus, Kenzie.”
“Let go!”
“That’s not going to happen, doll face, and you know why?”
“Why?” I threw out, keeping my tone as haughty as possible all while butterflies swarmed my tummy.
“Because I’m a man who takes what he wants.”
As he crushed his lips down on mine, the world around us faded away. This was everything I’d wanted. He was everything I’d ever craved.
Something tickling my skin. Soft. Velvety.
Comforting.
The vision was… No, wait. It was fading. No. No…
I licked my lips, still tasting the kiss. Why were my lips so dry when his had been so soft and wet?
“Oh,” I moaned.
Every muscle ached. What was that sound?
A rush of something. Wind? Or water?
What was I feeling?
Cold. So cold. What was that sound?
Maybe I could just sleep.
Water.
Wait. What? Where was I?
Why couldn’t I see? I tried to open my eyes. They were heavy, so damn heavy, but after trying again, I finally managed. Unable to focus, I didn’t move while I tried to figure out where I was. A rush of images crashed into my mind. Water. The river.
My throat was tight, so dry. I darted my tongue across my bottom lip. What had happened? Why couldn’t I remember?
I shifted, realizing I was unable to control my body at all. When I was pitched forward, something rushed in front of me. A huge blur of darkness.
“Whoa. Don’t move. Shit. I shouldn’t have put you there. Just lean back. Okay?”
The voice was soft yet husky, deeper than I’d heard in a very long time. Sexy. Wait. Hold on. A man’s voice? “What…”
“Just try and take it easy. You went through something… well, pretty bad. At least it could have been.”
I could swear I recognized his voice. But from where?
I tried to remember something. Anything.
Driving. That’s right. I’d been driving to my parents’ house.
Blinking several times, finally some things started to come into focus.
Rain. I’d been caught in a rainstorm. “Where am I?” My voice was little more than a whisper, hoarse as if strained. From what?
“Don’t worry. You’re at my house. My cabin. You’re safe. Let me just stop the water in the tub. Okay? Hold on.” He backed away and I blinked again. My God, the voice was so familiar.
So was his muscular body.
“How…” I shifted again, finally realizing I was sitting on a bathroom counter. And whoever the man, he was running bathwater. I’d never been so confused in my life. Then it hit me. “A rainstorm. The road was washed out.”
“Yep,” he said in an almost cocky drawl. “You tried to drive through a lake and your truck was swept away.”
A flash of lightning coming in through a window startled me enough I yelped, gripping the edge of the counter.
“You’re safe. It’s just a wicked storm. The damn thing came up out of nowhere.”
I glanced toward the window. Frosted glass. My vision slowly began to clear.
Something about his tone irritated me. As if he was blaming me. The storm. I remembered. He was right. The storm just appeared, completely out of the blue. Where were my clothes? Why was I wearing a funky looking plaid robe? “I didn’t think it was that bad.”
“Yeah, well, you shouldn’t have gone through the water. You could have died out there.”
I remembered the truck being shoved against a tree. I’d climbed out, trying to get to safety. Then I’d slipped and… He’d come along. He’d… Oh, Jesus. I vaguely remembered him pulling me from the water. Was I remembering correctly?
“Next time something like that happens, you turn around. You were damn lucky I came along. Damn lucky.”
That was going too far.
Maybe I was simply reacting from the ordeal and he was right, but the water hadn’t been that deep, or so I’d thought and the last thing I needed was to be chastised.
I was aching all over, freezing to death and I was fucking hungry.
So I lashed out. “Look, buddy. I don’t know who you are, but you can’t talk to me that way.
But don’t worry. I’ll get out of your hair. ”
As soon as I slipped off the counter onto my feet, my body betrayed me, slowly melting, soon to be a puddle on the floor.
“What does it take for you to listen, Kenzie?” He didn’t give me time to react, immediately untying the sash on the robe.
Only when he peeled away the sides did my mind finally began to slide back into my body, allowing me to realize what he was doing.
Yet I couldn’t function properly or quickly enough before I was in his arms. No. No. Hold on. I was naked in his arms. With a stranger.
But not a stranger. Not entirely.
Yet I didn’t recognize him. As he crouched down, easing me into a bathtub, I lowered my eyes from his, trying to put the pieces together.
Whoever he was, the man was absolutely gorgeous in a rugged, almost savage kind of way.
He had at least a week’s worth of a scruffy beard that was completely out of control, much like his long hair, the color of deep rich chocolate.
I had to be in a state of shock since all I could think about doing was running my fingers through the wet strands.
Wet. His hair was wet.
That’s right. He’d jumped into the water. Wasn’t there a rope of some kind? He had strong features and even through the scruff covering his cheeks and neck, I could tell his jaw was chiseled. His forearms were so muscular. The cords on both sides of his neck were thick and…
And I was completely naked in front of him.
I jerked away, doing everything I could to cover my breast and pussy.
“What in the hell are you doing?” The shock of everything was finally wearing off, enough to remember I’d heard him use my name.
Wait a minute. He couldn’t be…
“Who are you? Why am I here? What are you doing? Why do you know my name? And why in God’s name am I not wearing my clothes?”
He reared back from my volley of harsh words, but a slow and steady smile crossed his face.
“You’re here because I saved you. I had to remove your wet clothes so you wouldn’t catch pneumonia, and a hot bath will help you regain some lost body heat.
” He stood, immediately averting his eyes and turning around to face the door.
“What about the rest?” I slipped further into the water, fighting embarrassment while my mind processed the nearly six-and-a-half-foot handsome giant. A nagging sense of knowing continued.
His exhale brought me back to the moment. “I know your name, Kenzie. I also know your family very well, even though I’m not a fan of all of them.” When he tipped his head over his shoulder, his profile provided me with the answer even before he blurted out the words.
The breath I’d been holding was sucked out of my lungs, my stomach dropping to my feet with the most unsettling sensation.
“You should remember me, doll face. I’m Stephen Beckett, your brother’s best friend or maybe ex best friend, but don’t worry, I won’t bite.
I’ll be in the living room when you’re finished.
If you’re too weak to get out of the tub, just let me know.
Since you don’t have any clothes with you, I put out a couple of my things.
Just take your time. There’s a bottle of water and a drink on the back of the tub.
I thought you might be thirsty. Your choice. ”
He had to be kidding me. No, karma had to be fucking with me.
He scratched his head, studying me for a few seconds before averting his eyes. “Just so you know. I don’t go by Stephen any longer. It’s Axe.”
Axe. Why? I had no idea and at this moment, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to ask questions. Doll face. Palomino Girl. The vision I’d had. It had been a dream, but the event had really happened.
I was still in shock. The accident. The water. Almost losing my life. Being saved by the last man I’d wanted to run into when returning to Missoula. A part of me had hoped he’d moved out of town, although I knew how close he was to his family.
When I didn’t say anything, he shook his head and walked out, closing the door behind him.
I was still stunned by the news a full two minutes later.
Stephen Beckett, the first man I’d crushed on. The first man I’d ever kissed.
And the one who shattered my heart into a million little pieces.