Text (Take It Off #4)(21)
Author: Cambria Hebert

His fingers began stroking me again. My eyes slid closed. “We have maybe a mile or two before we hit a road. We will follow it until we find someone.”

“Should we call the police?”

“I’ll call them when we hit the road. I’m not sure how near he is, and I don’t want to make too much noise. Plus, it will be easier for them to find us.”

Every once in a while, a big fat rain drop would drip off the leaves above and hit me on the cheek. It would trail over my skin like I was crying, even though I wasn’t.

“I’m going to get a puppy,” I announced, not really sure why I was bringing this up again.

“Oh yeah?” he asked. His voice vibrated in his chest and tickled me.

I nodded against him. “Yeah. I’ve always wanted a dog.”

“What kind of dog do you want?”

“I have no idea.” I giggled. “I didn’t know I wanted one so bad until today.”

“Staring down death has a way of making things clear.”

“You say that like you understand.”

He didn’t reply.

“How long have you been a Marine?”

“Six years.”

“How old are you?” I asked.

“Twenty-four. I joined the Corps right out of high school.”

“I didn’t know there were Marines in this area.”

“I’m stationed in Allentown. It’s a very small reservist base.”

“You live out in this area?” I asked, curious.

“Mmmm,” he replied. “I like to get away at the end of the day.”

“Are you from the South?”

“You like my accent?” he asked, a smile in his voice.

“Maybe,” I said, smiling.

He chuckled. “Born and raised in North Carolina.”

“This your first time being stationed up North?”

“Yep.”

Without realizing it, I cuddled in a little closer and he tightened his hold on my body. I felt his chin rub the top of my head, and I took a deep breath. “You smell like a Christmas tree.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“My favorite holiday is Christmas,” I said shyly.

He started stroking my hair again.

“Not many people would have come looking for me,” I told him, wondering what he would say. Because of me, he’d been shot at, punched, stranded in the woods, and now forced to hike through the rain with an injured woman.

“The police were busy.”

“You could have left them all the information and gone home.”

“I don’t leave behind people in trouble.”

Again, I sensed more behind his words than he said, but I didn’t feel like it was my place to ask. “Well, whatever your reason… thank you.”

“You already thanked me.”

“Words are never enough.”

“Aren’t you a writer?” he asked, amusement in his tone.

I laughed. It hurt my ribs. “Yeah.”

“Bake me a pie.”

“What?” I asked, wondering how the topic turned to food.

“You can thank me by baking a pie.”

“You like pie?”

“Who doesn’t?”

He had a point. He was probably one of those bachelors who never cooked… Wait a minute… bachelor. “Are you married?”

“No.”

“Girlfriend?”

“No.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“You haven’t really seen my face yet,” he replied, amused.

I didn’t need to see his face. I knew he was beautiful.

“What kind of pie do you want?” I said, getting back on topic.

“Apple.”

“Apple pie it is.” Nearby, a branch snapped. Nathan’s entire body changed. He went from relaxed and playful to tensely gripping the gun. He moved swiftly, placing me between the trunk of the tree and his body as he scanned the area around us.

When no gunshots rang out and Lex didn’t appear, he reached around and took my hand. “We need to keep moving.”

As we walked, he felt in his back pocket and pulled out his cell phone. The cell phone that started it all, the cell phone that kept me alive.

He pressed the button at the bottom, but nothing happened. He did it again and again. Nothing. He stopped walking and we both stared down at the inoperative phone.

“Shit,” he swore. “It got too wet.”

“How much longer?” I worried.

He looked through the dark. Off in the distance was an obscure, hulking shape. Fear made my belly bottom out.

“Thank fucking God,” he said and took my hand, dragging me along behind him. His legs were much longer than mine, and I had to practically run to keep up.

“What is that?” I asked between gasping for breath. I kind of assumed it wasn’t something bad like I supposed before, judging from the way he used breakneck speed to get there.

I stared through the pounding rain again and realized what it was he was so anxious to get to.

A car.

A truck to be exact.

A black pickup truck sitting right there in the open.

For some reason, a memory of banging around in the bed of that truck washed over me. I tripped and stumbled. Nathan tried to haul me up, but I fell anyway, landing on my knees on the soaking ground.

“Honor?”

“It’s Lex’s,” I whispered, feeling sick. I barely remembered anything about the trip here.

Until I saw that truck.

Memories washed over me and I started to retch. The protein bar I’d eaten hours ago came up with violent force.

A string of cuss words came from above me, but I barely heard them. I was too busy barfing. Tears leaked down my face. I wasn’t crying, but the force of my heaving pushed them out of my eyes.

Nathan dropped to his knees beside me. It was like he didn’t care about what I was doing at all. His warm hands gathered the loose, wet strands of my hair and pulled them back while he murmured words that were meant to comfort me.

Finally, thankfully, I stopped.

I would have collapsed in the mess I just made, but he caught me and hauled me into his lap. I really liked sitting in his lap.

I hated being so vulnerable. Yet my body couldn’t take anymore. I was a strong person, but everyone had their limits.

He rocked me back and forth, holding me close while the rain fell in sheets around us. He didn’t tell me I was being a baby. He didn’t tell me we had to go. He acted as if we had all the time in the world and he would hold me as long as I wanted.