But what if he needed her tracking abilities? If he did, then her failure would ultimately bring about his own. And if anything happened to her in the forest, he didn’t know if he could forgive himself. Already he had the deaths of too many people on his shoulders.
Dammit. Was he putting Jia in danger just to avoid a severe case of lust? After teleporting to his cave, he’d taken a cold shower, and it hadn’t helped. His groin reacted every time he recalled the way she’d cuddled up against him and nuzzled his neck. She was so damned sweet and soft. And so alone out there in the dark forest.
“Ow.” He winced as his foot rammed into a table leg. Normally, he could see well in the dark, but he wasn’t paying enough attention. Already she was distracting him.
He turned on his sat phone to see how much time had passed. Fifty minutes. She had ten minutes to go. He strained his ears but couldn’t hear the alarm. She hadn’t given up early.
A sense of respect filled his chest with warmth. His Jia was brave. Clever and resourceful.
His Jia? What the hell—
A noise interrupted his thoughts. He stiffened, listening closely. Someone or something was moving through the woods and not being quiet about it. Was it Jia, purposefully making noise to ward off predators?
He quickly turned off the phone. The ceiling above his kitchen and table area was very thin and porous—nothing more than a thin layer of tangled roots. Any light in the bat cave might shine through a bit, so he was being careful to keep the cave dark. She had to find him by scent alone.
He paced some more. Checked his phone. Eight minutes to go. His nerves tensed. What if she found him? What if he got to see her pretty smile every night? And he would be able to hold her and talk to her. Maybe even . . .
He shook his head. She was engaged to someone else. You can’t have her. The warning message flared from his brain but fizzled out before it reached his heart. To hell with it all. He wanted her to find him.
The thrashing sounds outside grew closer. Please be Jia.
He teleported aboveground, then levitated high into a tree so he could see who or what was approaching.
His phone buzzed. Even though it was set at its lowest volume, he grabbed it quickly so the sound wouldn’t be heard. “What?” he whispered.
“About time,” J.L. grumbled. “I’ve been trying to call you for twenty minutes.”
Russell glanced down at his secret hideout. “I was out of range.”
“Yeah, I figured that. Here’s the deal. We’ve been searching for Jia for over forty minutes. It looks like she’s run away. Have you seen her?”
“Why would she be out here?” He scanned the land below as the noise grew louder.
There! His heart lurched in his chest.
She emerged from a copse of slender young trees, headed quickly for the massive oak tree that grew close to the top of his cave. He winced. The ceiling was too thin to support—
Her foot broke through the tangled roots, accompanied by a feminine squeal. Her leg slid into the cave up to her midcalf.
“What was that?” J.L. demanded. “Did I hear a scream?”
“It’s nothing. The mating call of a . . . water buffalo. Later.” Russell hung up and jammed the phone into his pants pocket. Then he teleported to solid ground close to Jia.
Her back was to him, and she was squatting on her left foot, her hands on the ground to keep her balance as she struggled to pull her right foot free.
He caught the scent of fresh blood. “You’re injured.”
“Russell?” She twisted toward him, her face brightening with a big smile. “I did it! I found you!”
“Is your leg hurt?”
“It’s no big deal. I’ll still be able to work.”
“The ground is too thin there. Don’t move.”
“I know.” Her voice lowered to an embarrassed mumble. “I’m stuck, and I can’t get up.”
His mouth twitched. “Stay put. I’ll get you.”
“Like I’m going anywhere,” she muttered.
He levitated, stretching out horizontally so he could reach her. “Grab on to me.”
“I surprised you, didn’t I?” With a grin, she looped her arms around his neck. “You didn’t think I could do it.”
He rose higher till her leg pulled free. His body swung back into a vertical position, bumping gently against her. Once again she was in his arms, and it felt so good. This partnership was going to kill him.
She hugged his neck. “I did it! We’re a team now.”
“Yes.” He winced as his groin tightened.
When she leaned back to look at him, her smile withered away. “I was afraid of that. You’re disappointed.”
“I’ll manage.” Don’t get hard. Don’t get hard. Unfortunately, the more he admonished his perverse manhood, the more it defied him.
“I can tell you’re angry. You’re scowling at me. To be honest, I’m a bit angry with you, too.”
“What for?” Could she feel the bulge?
She gave him a wry look. “It’s blatantly obvious.”
Damn. He glanced down.
“You left me more than three miles away. You wanted me to fail.”
“Oh, that.” He exhaled with relief. “Yeah. I did.”
She snorted. “Well, at least you’re honest about it. You made it very hard for me.”
Hard. For her. He gritted his teeth. “You’re welcome to slap me if you want.” Maybe then he would come to his senses.