Page 76 of Never and Always
He hadn’t said a word since he’d bundled me into this vehicle.
My arm was stitched up, bandaged, and numb from the shot Dr. Roberts had given me. Afterward, Everett had shoved some of his clothes and mine into a duffel bag and ordered me into Tessa’s boots and a puffy, warm, mauve jacket in my size. I didn’t ask who he’d borrowed the jacket from.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Somewhere where no one knows where you are. Somewhere you’ll be safe.”
I’d watched him pack a box of food in the back of the UTV before we’d headed off. I assumed we were going to the hotel’s cabin up on the mountain. It was popular with honeymooners.
When we crested a hill and I saw the cabin. I’d guessed right.
“This cabin is solidly booked all winter.”
“Lucky for you, it was free tonight.” He pulled up under an overhang at the back of the cabin. I knew this was where the cleaners and catering staff parked when they came to clean and stock the place. The lights were on inside, and even my city-loving heart had to admit that it was gorgeous.
It looked like something out of a story book, made of rough-hewn logs, with a sturdy, stone chimney.
Everett sliced out of the UTV, then opened my door. “Come on, babe.”
His hand enfolded mine and he led me inside. A wave of warmth hit me when we stepped into the main area of the cabin, thanks to the roaring fire in the fireplace.
Okay, it was truly gorgeous and romantic. We’d done a few upgrades to the cabin since it had become a Langston Hotel. Mostly because a crazed stalker of Ro’s had attacked Tessa and dragged her here.
As I shrugged out of my coat, my gaze drifted from the stone fireplace, to the comfy, cream couch that invited you to laze for a while, to the gleaming wood, to the pretty view outside. It was dark now, so all I could see were the twinkling lights of Windward nestled in the valley below. Then my gaze sliced back to the bed.
It was a romantic four-poster bed made from a warm wood, and draped in white, gauzy hangings.
“You didn’t have to bring me up here, Everett. I would have been safe in my suite.”
He grunted and set the bag down. Then he carried the box to the small kitchenette. When he dumped his coat on the back of the couch, I could see the tension in his shoulders.
I walked toward him, grabbed the lapels of his red flannel shirt and pulled him to face me. “I’m okay.”
“You got stitches.”
I snorted. “Five.”
He heaved out a breath. “I wasn’t there.”
I straightened. “Everett?—”
“I promised to keep you safe. I thought you would be in the hotel, then your brother, and not one buttwobad guys attacked you. You got hurt?—”
I pressed my palms to his chest. “None of that is on you, and I’m okay.”
He made a sound.
“I’m standing right here, with you,” I murmured.
He lowered his head. His kiss was hard, with none of Everett’s usual laid-back edge. With a moan, I slid my hands in his hair, kissing him back.
When his mouth left mine, he rubbed his nose along mine. “When I saw you, covered in blood?—”
“Enough. We’re going to hang out and relax, until you get that I’m all right.” I toyed with the soft fabric of the white T-shirt he wore under his flannel. “You know, I feel bad.”
“What? Why?”
“Chance is my brother. This is all so much trouble for everyone. You, Caden, Ro?—”
