Chapter 3
Sadie
Fear has my adrenaline racing. I know the danger I was in.
All that fear turns to frustration and anger which I am more than happy to direct at Kane.
We were childhood friends. We grew up together.
And I always had a soft spot for Kane. His parents weren't great and made it obvious they preferred his golden child of an older brother better than him.
No matter what Kane did, he could never be good enough for his parents.
I sort of understood that. My parents were fine, great really, but with two older brothers, I was always trying to be one of the boys.
I grew up trying to compete with my brothers and the Wilson boys.
And I could see the pain Kane went through, the need for love he never received.
And I understood why that led to some wild behaviour.
Of all the boys, Kane was my favorite. And as we got older those feelings turned into quite the crush. I could see the man he could be.
So what the heck was he doing here with a bunch of criminals?
I had often wondered what happened to him.
I knew he went off to the army. I had hoped he had found someone special and settled down, had a family.
I did not expect to see him dressed in denim and leather, looking dirty and beaten down.
I'm grateful he saved me. But he is not off the hook.
I want an explanation. And no way am I going to wait patiently here for it while he goes up on the roof.
It's raining hard. And I know only too well how unsafe it is.
So I follow him up the ladder. Feeling that if I can just keep an eye on him then I can keep him safe.
Also, I'm finding he is very nice to look at.
He and his brother were handsome boys. But the man now climbing the ladder above me has broad shoulders, toned arms, a swimmers body that moves with ease.
All this with a hard, chiselled jawline, those stormy gray eyes that make my heart race.
And despite his looks, when he pulled me close I could pick up his masculine scent.
Soap and a warm, manly spice that made me want to move in closer.
Up on the roof, he turns to see me climbing up off the ladder. It is really pouring now and he has to shout. "Sadie! I told you to stay!"
"I'm not a dog!" I yell back. When we were kids the boys always thought they could tell me what to do. I din’t accept it as a kid and I sure as hell won’t be told what to do now. But he can't hear me. He waits while I make my way closer to him. He shakes his head, but takes my hand.
"There's my bag." I point over to the spot where the roof gave way.
"Stay right here." We are both soaked through.
I give a little nod, with no intention of following his orders.
But I watch as he picks his way towards my stuff.
Maybe this was crazy. My camera and things can be replaced.
I shouldn't have made such a big deal about it.
I will feel really bad if Kane gets hurt.
With that thought, I move towards him. Careful on the slippery tin of the roof. I just have a feeling that if I am with Kane then we will both be okay.
He turns again. "Sadie!"
He sounds really angry. I try to give him my best smile as I take another step.
Creak. Crash.
The tin breaks under us and for the second time today I'm falling. Landing with a loud ooffh as I hit the hay bales. A second ooffh as Kane lands on top of me.
It's not far. We've landed in the hay loft.
And this time it seems to be holding. It takes a second to realise that Kane and I are clinging onto each other.
Our clothes soaked through. Heaving chests.
His body warm. And still that spicy scent.
Damn, he smells so good. His weight on me feels pretty nice too.
Our eyes meet. His stormy, angry and oh so serious.
His gaze drops to my lips. Time stops. Is he thinking about kissing me?
His body on mine. Our faces close. Mouths close.
It would be so easy for him to drop his mouth to mine.
Good God, the times I imagined Kane kissing me.
The hours spent dreaming about it. He looks like he is thinking about it. Wanting it. And damn, I want it too.
And that feeling in my chest. Now I’m in all sorts of a different kind of trouble.