“Fine.”
I looked at my two officers. “See if you can find any sign of him. SUV or truck, large grill.”
Williams winced. “That could be half the county.”
“The grill will have paint from Hadley’s bumper, so if you pull someone over, look for that.”
Young nodded, waving Williams back to the car. “We’ll let you know what we find.”
Hadley let out a shaky breath and leaned against the side of her truck. “Can one of you drive me to my place? I don’t think I’m quite ready to get back behind the wheel.”
Calder scowled in her direction. “You’re not staying at your place alone. He could be waiting there for all you know.”
“It was probably just someone with a severe case of road rage. They have no idea who I am or where I live.”
“Hads…” I began. “Calder’s right. You shouldn’t stay there tonight. Especially when you’re on edge.”
“You can stay at my place. Or your mom and dad’s,” Calder offered.
Hadley crossed her arms under her chest. “I’ll stay with Hayes.”
“I’m staying at Everly’s, remember?”
“Well, then I’ll stay there. I can sleep on the couch.”
I knew that tone. Stubbornness coming through. She’d never spend the night at Mom and Dad’s by choice, and Calder had stepped on her toes. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Come on. Let’s get you to Ev’s. I bet you could use a drink.”
“Try ten.”
I forced out a chuckle but didn’t feel it at all. Because all I could wonder was whether whoever had tried to run Hadley off the road was the same man who’d tried to take Everly. And I still had no idea who he was.
34
Everly
I closed the door to the guest room softly, my socked feet padding along the floor. Hayes looked up from his spot on the couch. “She okay?”
I eased down onto the couch next to him. I didn’t opt for the other end like I should’ve. I went for close—I wanted to feel Hayes’ warmth and safety. I wanted to hook into that phantom pull that always dared me to lean just a little bit closer. “She will be.”
He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into him. “She still pissed at me?”
The corners of my mouth tipped up. “She might have been talking about interfering, overprotective asses, but I think that was mostly about Calder.”
“At least, I can always count on her to be more annoyed with him than me.”
I traced an invisible design on Hayes’ chest. “We’ve given you a hard time today, haven’t we?”
“Nothing a beer or two won’t fix.”
I still felt guilty. Seeing how Hadley reacted to her brother’s overprotective ways had put things in perspective for me a bit. “I need to know I’m in charge of my life. That I’m the one who gets to make decisions about how things will go.”
Hayes set his beer on the side table next to the couch. “Who else would be?”
I arched a brow in his direction.
“All right. I know I tend to want to corral. To plan for all contingencies. I don’t think that will ever change. But I can try to remember that it’s important I don’t bulldoze.”
I curled my knees up to my chest, turning my body into his. “Thank you. And I’ll try to keep in mind that the bulldozing comes from a good place.”
Hayes brushed the hair away from my face. “I care about you, Ev. You came in like a flash flood with no warning, and now I can’t imagine my life without you.”
I swallowed, my throat sticking with the movement. Because I cared about him, too. More than cared. “It scares me.”
“That I care about you?”
I nodded. “And what I feel for you.”
“I’m not gonna lie; it’s a damn relief to hear those words from your mouth. That I’m not in this alone.”
My palm rested flat against his chest, his heart thumping against it. “You’re not in this alone. But I’m not sure how it will ever work. How me staying here will work. There’s this mountain to overcome, and I’m not sure if I’m strong enough to climb it.”
One hand came up to frame my face, that rough thumb sweeping across my cheekbone. “You are. A mountain always looks terrifying from the bottom, but you just have to take it one step at a time.”
“One step?” My heart rattled against my ribs. Not the quaint flutter of a crush but a violent battle cry.
“One step. Can you do that with me?”
I wanted to. So desperately. I wasn’t sure when I’d last done something reckless just because I wanted to. “I can do that.”
Hayes’ head dipped, moving so slowly it was almost painful, giving me every chance to pull away. But I didn’t. I waited with the violent beat against my ribs until those lips met mine. I sank into the kiss—the warmth and comfort and fire.
The slow pull of it turned hungry in a matter of breaths. Hayes’ hands went to my hips. Soon, I was straddling him, his tongue dueling with mine as his fingers dug into my flesh. I rocked against him, feeling the hardness beneath his jeans and letting out a little mewl.
The sound only seemed to stoke Hayes higher. The kiss took on a slightly feral edge, desperate and seeking. But I still wanted more. If I were going to jump, it might as well be from the highest cliff.
“Bedroom,” I said as I tore my mouth from his.
Hayes searched my face. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” I wasn’t certain this wouldn’t end in wreckage around us, but I was sure I wanted to feel what it was to wholly belong to this man, body and soul—even if only for one night. I wanted to give myself over to everything he could make me feel, even if I didn’t think it could last. “Make me yours.”
Hayes’ eyes flashed, and he lifted me in one swift move. My legs encircled his waist as I simply held on. We strode towards my bedroom on the other side of the small cabin. I thanked my lucky stars for walls made of thick lumber that insulated sound.
He closed the door behind us with a foot and continued to the bed, stopping just shy of it. Hayes never once looked away from me as he lowered me to the floor. Each millimeter of movement sent sparks of sensation dancing across my skin.
As soon as my feet touched the floor, my hands were in his tee, tugging and pulling until golden skin greeted my eyes. Planes of lean muscle I couldn’t resist exploring. My fingers traced a pec as his hands went to the button on his jeans. Hayes hissed out a breath as I circled a nipple. “Ev…”
I looked up at him with a wicked grin. “Yes?”
He pulled me flush against him as his jeans fell, and he stepped out of them. “You know, I’ve wanted those clever little fingers on me since the moment I saw you.”
The knowledge of that, the power, made something stir to life inside me. “Then let’s give you what you want.” My hands went to his boxer briefs, sending them to the floor. My fingers curled around his shaft, stroking.
The groan he let out made everything in me tighten. Hayes traced a hand over the center of my sleep shorts and then slipped under the hem. He pulled back a fraction. “No underwear?”