Page 60 of Bound By Torment
Declan went rigid in front of her. She went to rest her hands and forehead against his back but didn’t dare touch him. He vibrated an energy she couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was almost as frightening in its malevolence as knowing that at any second, the people hunting them would enter the attic.
Unable to resist anymore, she rested her fingers on the small of his back. She almost wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him, but she was afraid she might hit something and make a noise if she did.
Instead, she settled for keeping her hands on his back and resting her cheek against him. To her amazement, he relaxed beneath her. Inhaling his scent of earth and pine, she relaxed too.
Declan tensed when a board creaked. He couldn’t tell exactly where they were in the attic as muffled words drifted through the plywood. Whoever it was stopped speaking, and footsteps sounded again.
Closing his eyes, he inhaled Willow’s enticing floral aroma. Her touch soothed him, yet he’d never felt more volatile in his life. If someone pulled that plywood down, human or not, he’d tear their throats out.
The footsteps drew closer, boxes shifted, and someone spoke again, but the words still sounded like the adults on Charlie Brown. Then they came close enough for him to understand them.
“I don’t think anyone’s here,” some guy said.
“Onto the next house,” another man said.
Declan listened as their steps faded, and the hinges squeaked as the attic door closed. Still, he didn’t move. He had to make sure they were out of the house before he dared to pull the plywood away from the beams.
When Willow’s arms encircled his waist, he rested one of his hands over hers and squeezed them. He listened to her steady breaths as time ticked past.
After enough time passed, he released her hand, grasped the edges of the plywood, and carefully pulled it free of the beams. He set it down and pushed the boxes out of the way before stepping into the shadowed attic.
He took her hand and helped her out of the cramped space. When she started to turn away, he gave her hand a small tug and pulled her into his arms. Crushing her against his chest, he kissed her with a desperation that bordered on madness. He’d just found her; he wouldnotlose her.
Stunned by the ferocity of his kiss, it took her a minute to react. And then she rested her hands against his chest as he maneuvered her until her back was against the wall. His hands slid up her hips as his fingers lifted her shirt. When his erection pressed between her thighs, she was swept up by the intoxicating, wild air surrounding him.
But before it could go any further, he tore his mouth away with a ragged exhalation and rested his forehead against hers. Willow struggled to catch her breath as her body screamed for release from the firestorm of passion he’d evoked.
When his fingers slid away from her flesh, she groaned. Even as her body was protesting the release denied it, common sense was returning to remind her now wasn’t exactly the best time for this. They had to make sure those men were out of the house.
Declan took a minute to calm himself as his erection would make walking difficult. They were still standing behind the boxes when the hinges creaked, and the attic door opened. Gus’s scent and light wafted into the cramped space, but Declan’s fangs still descended as he crept toward the attic door with Willow on his heels.
He poked his head over the opening to discover Gus standing there with an astounded look on his face. Declan had given him instructions to open the attic door, but Gus didn’t know why he was doing it, and he certainly hadn’t expected to see anyone there. Gus opened his mouth to shout, but before he could make a sound, Declan cut him off.
“It’s okay; we’re not going to hurt you.” Gus closed his mouth, but his hands fidgeted at his sides. “Calm down. You’re safe with us.”
Gus’s shoulders sagged, and his fingers stopped twitching, but uncertainty lingered in his eyes.
“Are those men gone?” Declan asked.
“Yes.”
He descended the stairs to stand in front of Gus. “I’m sorry about this,” he said honestly. “Did those men say why they were here?”
“They’re looking for two terrorists, and until they find them, they’re going to keep searching. We can’t leave town until then.”
“Maybe they’ll give up and decide we escaped once the search is over,” Willow said. She doubted it would happen, but she was trying to be hopeful.
Declan glanced across the hall and through the open door of Gus and Cheryl’s bedroom. He couldn’t see the street from here, but the hum of a lawnmower drifted on the air, and tires rolled over the pavement as a car inched past. He imagined that on normal days the laughter and shouts of children also filled the air, but not today.
“Are you the terrorists?” Gus asked.
“No,” Declan assured him. “We’re your friends.”
Though with friends like them, who needed enemies?
“Did you tell them you weren’t feeling well?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Gus muttered. “I’m sure it’s some twenty-four-hour bug or something.”
