Chapter Six

Dusti found herself staring at Drantos. It irritated her that she was so attracted to him. Since he had stripped out of his jacket, she could see the thick muscles in his arms flexing as he worked on his project. She’d never met anyone like him. He looked so utterly masculine building a raft.

He wasn’t like men she knew in Los Angeles. They would be lost in the woods, helpless and probably as freaked-out as she felt. He reached up and shoved his unruly hair back. The thick, dark tresses were a bit out of control. He could use a trim in the worst way but she doubted he ever went into one of the fancy barbershops most men used to cut their hair. She figured he probably used a knife to hack at the strands or something equally as barbaric if he wanted it shorter. She bit her lip as he leaned forward, his ass in the air as he weaved his belt around two branches. He had a muscular ass that his pants molded to.

Damn it, stop ogling him. She forced her gaze to shift to the river. He wanted her to cross that. It was an insanely dangerous concept. A large log floated near the center, moving at a rapid pace. She mentally pictured it slamming into the raft Drantos built and sending her into that bubbling water. She cringed and focused on him again.

He had blatantly admitted he planned to have sex with her. What happened between them the night before resurfaced in her thoughts. It was probably going to haunt her forever. The way he’d touched her and made her feel had been downright animalistic. He’d growled and bitten her with his teeth. Worse, she’d really enjoyed it.

Her abdominal muscles clenched and her nipples throbbed at the vivid memories, desire resurfacing.

Drantos scared her. She had to concede that fact. He could make her forget everything around them except him. She’d have let him fuck her on the ground, in front of anyone present, if his brother hadn’t pulled him away. He caused her to lose all common sense and willpower.

He suddenly leaned back and rolled his shoulders. She bit her lip, the urge to go massage them rising. It frightened her more and also pissed her off. She turned her back so she didn’t have to see him any longer.

I need to get away from him so I can regain my sanity. I’ve lost my mind. He’s no good for you, Dusti. Don’t make this mistake again.

She flashed back to the one and only time she’d fallen in love. Reed had been handsome in his business suits. She’d met him right after she’d started working for a mortgage company as their receptionist. He was one of the loan officers.

They’d dated for two months before they’d taken a trip to Las Vegas. Reed had talked her into a quickie marriage after they’d arrived. He’d had big dreams and she’d been on board with all of them. He thought he’d make a bunch of money and she could quit her job. He’d wanted the picket fence and children. So had Dusti. Bat had flipped her lid when she’d found out her baby sister had gotten married, but Dusti hadn’t cared.

Within six months, their marriage turned into a nightmare. The housing market started to fall and Reed turned really moody. He’d start arguments with her and storm out of their apartment, disappearing for hours. That’s when he’d decided to switch careers. Dusti had been supportive. He was her husband and she wanted him to be happy. She’d taken a second job to help him pay for night school. It had been difficult on them both. They barely saw each other but she’d sworn to stick with the marriage for better or worse.

Drantos drew her attention once more as he kept working on the raft. Her ex-husband never would have done something like that. He hadn’t even been able to fix their leaking sink. She’d had to do it. Her ex-husband wouldn’t have wanted to mess up his manicure. Drantos was nothing like Reed.

She bit her lip, rehashing the past. Her taste in men couldn’t be trusted. It’s why she’d avoided dating after her divorce. There had been the occasional boyfriend over the years but she’d safeguarded her heart. She left at the first sign of trouble. Drantos was exactly that. It was a really bad idea to get involved with him. He made her feel too much and she never wanted to hurt again like she had while suffering through her divorce. It was painful to admit she’d given her heart to someone who’d smashed it to bits.

Just lie down and try to get some sleep while he finishes building that thing.

It sounded like a good plan to her. She slid off the rock she sat on and put her back to it, closing her eyes. She tried to blank her mind.

“Tired?”

She startled, opening her eyes. Drantos had stopped working on the raft and was crouched by the still burning fire in front of her. She hadn’t heard him walk over. “A bit. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” She didn’t mention he’d been the reason. The night before she’d slept poorly because her body had ached for his, and she hadn’t slept while dangling over his back.

Knowledge flared in his eyes and a smile hinted at his lips. “Let’s go to the river. You can splash some water on your face.” He glanced at the sky as he shoved dirt over the fire to put it out. “We have about half an hour before we must leave. I want to cross the river about the same time Kraven should be. It’s imperative to keep moving for as long as we can while we have daylight left, and stick close to them.”

“Plus the smell of cooked fish will have bears and additional predators heading this way,” Dusti guessed. “We don’t want to still be here when they arrive for the bones, right?”

Drantos stood, brushing dirt off his fingers. “Good guess. Come on.” He held out his hand.

She put hers in his, allowing him to help her up. “We have nature shows on cable.”

He grinned, releasing her hand. “Do you watch them often?”

“No.”

Dusti followed him and she crouched near the water’s edge. She cupped icy water in her hands and splashed her face, then leaned farther over the edge to avoid dripping water onto her clothes. The shock of how cold it was had her gasping and she felt her knees slide a little on the grass. Her eyes flew open to see the water coming at her. She’d bent over too far and was about to fall in.

Drantos’s big hands gripped her hips and jerked her back. She ended up leaning against his wide chest. His arms slid from her hips and around her rib cage. He bent forward enough to press his lips next to her ear.

“Be careful. As much as I fantasize about making you wet, it’s not in that way.”