Before I could even open my mouth to say don’t bother, a rather large pair of feet appeared on either side of me, then hands
grabbed me under the armpits and he unceremoniously hauled me upright.
Only his touch had my senses exploding, and suddenly, dizzyingly, I was hyperaware of everything about him—the warm lean strength of his body, his spicy scent, his aura of confidence and sheer masculinity. It all swirled around me, filling every breath, caressing every pore, setting my skin afire, and making my blood burn.
I didn’t even know this man. Hadn’t even turned around to look at him. And yet my body was reacting to him in a way it had never reacted to Egan.
Maybe I’d hit my head on the road, as well, and just didn’t realize it.
He dumped me on my feet, then quickly stepped back, making me wonder if he’d had a reaction similar to mine.
“You okay?” he asked, voice gruff and still as sexy as hell.
“No thanks to you,” I muttered, picking out the larger stones from my hands before turning around. A gaze as blue as the summer sky met mine, and something deep inside quivered.
Partly because no matter how pretty those eyes were, there was only cold calculation beyond the surface depths. These were the eyes of a man who knew what he wanted and exactly how to get it. But more than that, there was a wildness in them that was both familiar and yet alien. A wildness that spoke of sun and sky and air, and had absolutely nothing to do with humanity.
Egan had that look, I thought. Now, if I could just remember what Egan actually was, that would be handy.
But recognizing a similar wildness didn’t actually mean I could trust this man. After all, many of our hunters had shared that same untamed look.
Of course, that thought came and went with no further clarification.
“Why the hell didn’t you slow down when you first saw me?”
He waved a hand in the general direction of the stillidling car, his voice incredulous as he said, “I was doing sixty. Why in the hell would you just stand there? That’s insane.”
Yep, it was. But this day had gone to hell anyway, so what did one more act of madness matter? Besides, he did stop, so at least I’d achieved part of my aim.
“I needed a lift, and no one was stopping.”
“Considering the less than appealing way you look, I’m not entirely surprised.”
“That’s no damn reason to try and run me over,” I muttered, tucking thick strands of matted hair behind my ear.
A smile tugged at his lips, and it transformed his face, lending his aristocratic features a brief moment of warmth and compassion.
Then the warmth faded and he considered me, his gaze lingering on the bruise marring my forehead before moving down. It was deliberate, that gaze, designed to tease, to arouse. To scare, even. Like he was testing me. Testing my seriousness. Only it stopped abruptly when his gaze reached my hands. “Nice ring.”
The sexiness had fled his voice, replaced by a flatness that made my toes itch with the need to run. I resisted the urge to tuck my hand behind my back, and said, “It’s a friend’s.”
His gaze went past me, searching the trees. “And where is the friend?”
I hesitated. “Elsewhere.”
The baying of a hound ran across the brief silence, and I glanced over my shoulder. I couldn’t see any movement, but those barks—and obviously my hunters—were getting closer.
His gaze came back to mine. “Then why don’t we go find him?”
Wariness swirled through me. Don’t trust, don’t trust. The mantra ran through my brain, words from a past I had yet to remember. “And why would you want to do that?”
“Because if you’re willing to risk your life standing in front of a speeding car to get help, your friend obviously needs a lot of it.”
I studied him, not entirely sure what to do. True, I needed help, but did I need it badly enough to trust a stranger who suddenly seemed overly eager to help out two people he didn’t even know?
Of course, Egan was beyond anyone’s help—and I might just suffer the same fate if I wasn’t careful. They were out there, and they were hunting me.
And this stranger could be one of them, for all I knew.