Page 6 of Blaze

“It’s going to take me a while to get back to the spot that’s not so steep so I can climb out of this ravine without injuring you further.”

“Okay.”She leans into me, relaxing, trusting me.“I’m sorry,” she whispers.

My chest tightens.She’s apologizing for causing trouble.I pat her bottom.“You’re safe now, Vicky.You’re going to be okay.”

She’s wearing almost nothing.My girl took off alone to hike in the late afternoon, wearing tiny nylon shorts, a white sports bra, a thin white tank top, and tennis shoes.I know her body well already because it’s not hidden.

I wasn’t kidding about her size.She’s probably five-four, but she’s small.Her breasts are tiny.Her bra is thin, and I can see her little nipples poking through the material.

If she weren’t so injured, I’d have a hard-on for this woman.Who am I kidding?Her injuries are not keeping me from feeling a connection to her.It was almost instantaneous.The moment she moved her arm to look up into my eyes, I knew.Deep brown orbs looked up at me with so much trust.

She’s not wrong to trust me.I’ll never let anything happen to her again.It may be something in the fucking air or water at the mansion, but I’ve fallen hard for this woman like Cupid nailed me in the chest with an arrow.

She’ll never fall into a ravine again because I’ll never let her be in a situation where it could happen.I’m not likely to let this little daredevil out of my sight.I wonder if she’s always this reckless or if it was a one-off.When she’s feeling better, I’ll grill her and find out.

I’m touching a lot of her bare skin since she’s wearing so little.She must have been chilled from exposure in the night.No wonder she’d been burrowed under leaves and branches.She’d done that to keep warm.Not that it was cold last night.The temperature hovered near eighty even in the middle of the night, but without a shirt and such tiny shorts, she would have been shivering.Especially if she had a fever.She feels warm to me.I suspect she has a slightly elevated temperature.

Her hair is a mess of brown ringlets that probably extend halfway down her back when pulled straight, but it’s so curly that it bounces up to her shoulders.It’s also filled with leaves and small twigs.

She’s fucking adorable.And she’s holding on to me like I’m her world.

Which I am.

“Did you not even have a phone out here with you, Vicky?”

She shakes her head, not giving me words.

“Is it in your car?”

After a brief moment of hesitation, she shakes her head again.

Who doesn’t have a phone with them?She doesn’t strike me as someone homeless or destitute.She has a decent vehicle, and she had a reservation at the bed and breakfast.

“Where are you visiting from?”I ask.

She inhales deeply.“I’m originally from Portland.”Her wording is odd.

“Is anyone worried about you?”

She sighs.“Not altruistically, no.”

I lean her back in my arms and look at her face.Her responses make the hairs stand up on my arms.I need better answers, but I’ll get them later.We’ve reached a spot where I can climb up to the trail without setting her down.

I grip her bottom with one hand.“Hold on tight.”

She obeys me.Vicky may be a daredevil, but she’s not being disagreeable about me rescuing her.Her small arms are wrapped tightly around me, gripping for dear life.

I need one free hand to steady myself as I ascend the steep embankment.Thank goodness I didn’t have to hoist her up the short cliff where she fell.That might have taken equipment I didn’t have on me or perhaps a helicopter.

When we reach the main path at the top of the slope, Reagan and her group are waiting for us.Reagan rushes over.“Are you okay?”she asks, her attention on Vicky.

“Yes.I’m so grateful you happened to walk this path, though.”She doesn’t release me.Not that I would let her.She can’t possibly walk.Even if she hadn’t been pinned by a tree, any step would have been excruciating and caused her leg to bleed.Besides, from her vantage point, she was at the bottom of a short cliff.She couldn’t have known if she would encounter a place to climb back up or not.

I turn to Reagan.“I’ll take Vicky to the clinic.You should continue your hike.”I nod past her toward the women, who are waiting a polite distance away.

Reagan nods.“I’ve already let Tiago know.He’s sending Ryder to catch up with us.We’ll be fine.”

I’m certain Reagan is perfectly capable of guiding a hiking group without a babysitter and did so for many years before she met Tiago.But I’m equally aware of how protective her husband is.Not just him.All the men in that mansion.They feed off each other.Hell, I’ve picked up on their overbearing ways, too.