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I hear something I don’t recognize, seconds before Earl cries out. The lone remaining flashlight falls to the ground, and from the sounds, I wonder if Earl has fallen into his companion. I dart out, grabbing the light in shaking fingers, and turn it off so I’m not drawing attention to myself.

Whatever the case, their dogs are going crazy, and no one’s attention is on me anymore.

“Touch her again and I’ll break your other hand as well.” I don’t recognize the voice at first. I don’t recognize the cruel, dark undertones or the pure vitriol that accompanies it into the frigid air. “Take one step towards her and I’ll break your fucking legs. The rangers are on their way.” I hear what sounds like the sound of a safety being clicked off, and I freeze.

Someone has a gun.

“Don’t touch your fucking rifles.” Another light flicks on, this one less bright and sharp than the ones the two men had. It reminds me of my own, and I flick it back on, turning the bright light towards the dirty, greasy looking men with rifles on their shoulders.

They look…pathetic. Dirty, cruel, and filthy come to mind as they blink in the sudden light. One of them cradles a hand that looks mangled, and as I watch, he hugs it to his chest, shifting away from the other person in the woods.

“Get shot and get arrested, or get the fuck out. It makes no difference to me.” I’m sure I’ve never heard anyone sound so terrifying in my life. Their anger freezes the air around us, and I fight not to turn the flashlight on my rescuer just to see who it is. I don’t want to blind him.

And I’m starting to think I knowexactlywho else is in the clearing with me.

The quieter man, not-Earl, spits on the ground before baring his teeth at Jed. “We’re goin’,” he snarls at last, a low whistle on his tongue at the end of his words. He calls the dogs to him, though they snarl and snap at Jed as they pass. “Fuckin’ shitbird.”

Jed doesn’t hesitate. The gun goes off, and in the dim light, I see the dirt explode near the man’s foot, spraying him with dirtand debris. One of the dogs yelps, terrified, and shoots off in the direction I think the two men came from.

Earl curses, still holding his broken hand close.

“One more word,” Jed invites coolly. “And you can crawl back to your truck. If I see you again, I’ll take it as an invitation. Do you understand?”

Earl is quick to mutter his agreement. His companion holds out for a few seconds, fingers itching for the rifle he won’t have time to reach. Finally he nods as well, and the two of them scramble from the clearing, back toward wherever they’d came from.

“I mean it,” Jed drawls, his voice just loud enough so they can hear him. “Come back here, and you won’t get to walk away so easily.” He doesn’t move, and I can’t move either. Not until the men’s footsteps and their figures in our lights are long, long gone, as are the sounds of the dogs.

“Oh, my God,” I mutter, edging closer to him as my legs shake. “Oh, my God, I thought I was dead. I thought I was going to getmurdered.” There’s a tremor in my tone, and I stumble the last couple of steps to reach Jed, who still hasn’t said anything. “I’m so fucking sorry. I didn’t mean to be out here so long,” I ramble, more and more afraid that he’s upset with me the longer he doesn’t say anything.

But even that doesn’t get a response. I can somewhat see him in the near-dark, and from the edge of my flashlight I see him slip the gun into his waistband at the back of his jeans, carefully and slowly.

“Are you…mad?” I ask, heart still pounding in my ears. I feel jumpy and jittery. The adrenaline in my veins needs an outlet, but I can’t help myself as I stand there, needing to know if he’s upset with me. “Jed, I’m?—”

He whirls on me, faster than what should be possible, and knocks the flashlight from my hand as he grabs me to jerk metoward him, my feet scrabbling in the debris. I feel like I’m going to fall, until one of his hands grabs my hip, balling in the material of the borrowed shirt as he drags me the rest of the way against his chest, his other arm tangling in my hair.

“Fuck,Saylor,” he snarls against my lips. “I thought you were fuckingdead.” He doesn’t give me the chance to reply, though. His lips slam against mine, cutting off my words, and for the first time, I feel myself drown in it, my head reeling. Instead of running or pulling away or looking for an excuse, I kiss him back with the same amount of ferocity that he gives me, fueled on by the growl that travels from his body into mine.

“I need you,” he hisses, his words sharp and direct as his hands tighten on my hair and hip. “I fucking need you right now, Saylor, or I’m going to go kill them for touching you. Do you understand me?”

Chapter

Sixteen

Atremor of fear tingles deliciously up my spine, and I whine against his lips as the full weight of his words slams into my chest. I should be terrified of him.Of what he’ll do now that he’s this worked up. I’ve never seen him like this. I’ve never seen him so frantic or aggressive.

I’ve never seen him look like a killer or a predator. Not even that first night in the swamp when Iwatchedhim kill someone pretty thoroughly with a fucking chainsaw. That should’ve been more intimidating than this. Yet somehow, this version of Jed is just so much…more.

Fuck.

“I’m sorry,” I say again, my fingers tangling in his hair as I drag him down to me. The flashlight in my hand hits the ground with a thump, and I can barely see anything at all. But I don’t need to. I’m too busy letting him devour my mouth and looking for an opening to do the same with him.

This is so fucked up that I can’t even wrap my brain around all the ways this is wrong. I definitely shouldn’t be kissing him, or wanting to rip his clothes off of him out here in the middle of the woods.

“We should go home,” he purrs against my lips. “It’s cold.You’recold.” He sounds like he’s trying to convince himself, instead of me, and another low growl echoes between my lips.

“Is it cold?” I mutter, fingers tightening in his hair that’s way softer than it looks. “Doesn’t feel that cold to me.” I’d been freezing less than five minutes ago. Hell, I’d had to remind myself it’s not cold enough to freeze to death. But the temperature is the least of my concerns. Besides, his mouth sears mine so thoroughly that it feels like he’s heating me up from the inside.

“Oh, Saylor…” He chuckles softly, the sound low and grating. “You’re not doing a very good job of convincing me we should go back home. It really iscoldout here,” he reminds me, reluctantly pulling away. “I don’t want you to freeze.” Even without being able to see him, I can feel the disappointment radiating off of him as he lets out a huff of air that brushes my jaw. “Come on.” He turns on his heel, pivoting as I scoop up my flashlight from the ground. “Let’s just?—”