Page 102 of Reckless Skye
Skye flushed with embarrassment. ‘Thanks.’
She pushed to a stand and practically ran inside the trailer. But despite her mortification, despite the spark of anger beneath it, she couldn’t quite dislodge the need. It had settled deeply inside her, like a thorn only she could reach to yank out.
Frustrated, desperate, and needy, she hurriedly stripped her clothes and stepped into the shower. She closed and latched the door behind her, turned on the water, and hoped that the frigid water would wash away the lust.
It didn’t.
If anything, the jolt of cold sent her heart into overdrive and filled her with adrenaline.
With TJ on her mind and heat in her blood, Skye couldn’t resist raising her fingers to her core. She stroked through, unsurprised by the hot, slick lust that drenched her and slipped down her upper thighs.
As she touched herself, she closed her eyes and imagined that it was TJ. And even as she quickened her pace to catch the rise, even as the pleasure bloomed through her, she remembered his lust-filled eyes and the way he’d purposefully turned them from her. And even as she bit back a moan and let the orgasm wash over her, she felt unsatiated. Empty. Angry.
Chapter 31
Skye came out of the trailer in a mood. Perhaps sensing her anger, Bandit rose from his place against TJ’s thigh and slunk over to her, making his loyalty clear. Her dog’s behaviour didn’t make her feel good; it only angered her further.
She wanted to be cool and aloof, damn it. She wanted to be unfazed and detached when it came to TJ, not emotional and sensitive and – worse – confused. She deliberately cooled her tone when she said, ‘You need to move if we’re going to get going.’
TJ’s eyes scanned her face. ‘You okay?’
‘Peachy.’
‘Good. Because you’re gonna have to pull that stick out your butt for long enough to help me get up.’
All of Skye’s anger left her in one huge sweep. She approached slowly. She knew TJ, knew that he’d rather gnaw off his own hand than ask for her help with something as simple as standing up. ‘It’s bad?’ she asked.
TJ nodded, and for the first time, Skye noticed the things she’d missed in her anger. TJ’s face was pale, his hairline glistening with sweat.
‘Sitting through the drive flared everything up, and then changing the tyres pushed me over.’
Skye swallowed thickly. She knelt at his side, asked, ‘What do I do?’
‘I just need help getting my feet under me. If you could get Kai …’
Skye hurried to Kai and untied the gelding’s lead rope, then led him to where TJ sat, being careful not to get too close to his extended legs.
TJ groaned as he shifted. He bent his left leg and then used both hands to move his right into position. His skin was so pale that his green eyes looked black in comparison.
He clicked once, encouraging Kai to move closer, and the moment the horse did, TJ weakly raised his hands to grab either side of Kai’s halter. He backed up immediately, pulling TJ to his feet with only a few steps.
The moment he was standing, TJ collapsed his weight against the truck and, leaning over awkwardly, threw up.
Unsure of what to do, Skye left him there while she locked Smokey and Kai back in the trailer and Bandit in the live-in.
The folks parked next to their trailer were sitting in camping chairs, waiting for their event or coming down from the night. They were watching TJ, their faces set in that look of pity that told Skye they knew exactly who he was and what had happened to him.
‘Do you mind keeping an eye on my animals? I have to run him to the hospital, but I’ll come right back.’
‘Of course,’ one of the men said. ‘We’re done for the night, so we’ll be here shooting the breeze for a while. Go.’
Skye gave them her cell number in case they needed to reach her and then hurried back to TJ. ‘Get in the truck.’
‘We can’t leave the horses,’ he argued.
Skye’s stomach filled with dread. She looked back, noticed that the group of men had moved their chairs to a spot between her trailer and theirs. ‘Nobody will let anything happen to them.’
He sighed tiredly. ‘I just need to sleep.’
