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Great waves of intense fury mingled with fear pulsed through her bloodstream. The fury won. “You think you’re man enough to do it?”
He reached out and swiped her wrist again, but this time, his hold wasn’t as tight. Just as strong, but not as tight. “I’m plenty man enough, you grow up some and I’ll show you.” His eyes glared into hers, then dropped to her lips. His nostrils flared. “That’s a promise, Miss Ruiz.”
He released her from his hold and pressed a button to unlock the doors.
She didn’t wait even a second before jerking the door open and jumping down. Just before she slammed it in his face, his dark voice hit her with one last demand.
“Elaina, do not run out of gas again, understand me?”
She gave him a go-to-hell look, slammed the truck door, and ran up the steps to the house.
****
At ten the next morning, Elaina sat on the side of the unpaved county road in almost the exa
ct same spot where she had run out of gas the day before. Today, her car was safely in the driveway, but she was shaken and bruised. Her morning run had started out fine, but the surface of the road was not what she was used to. It was her own fault she’d tripped and fallen. She’d more than fallen, she had a couple of strawberries on her knees like she hadn’t had since she was a kid. They dripped blood down both shins. The palms of her hands were rough and abraded, and one of her ankles was twisted so badly she couldn’t even stand. Shit. And that wasn’t the worst of it.
She’d been carrying her phone, listening to music and had landed on it, crushing the screen and pretty much disabling it completely.
She was stuck until a vehicle came by. Her aunt and uncle were still in San Antonio. Unease trickled through her. The good news was it was only ten in the morning, she could sit here all day before it got dark, and the weather was unseasonably mild. Another reason she had strawberries on her bare knees. She was wearing shorts again.
She hung her head between her legs and waited.
At one o’clock, not a single car had come by and she was getting more than a little worried. She was ferociously hungry, her face was burning from the sun, and she had to pee. Badly.
****
Raul was cutting down county road on his way to the north pasture when he saw her and braked. Jesus Christ, what the hell was she up to now?
Letting the truck idle, he jumped down and was squatting beside her in seconds.
Her head was hanging between her legs and he gently lifted her chin until he could see her face. Her cheeks were streaked with tears and dust, and he took in the skinned knees and dried blood.
“Christ, little girl, what happened to you?”
“I fell.” The answer was short and all she could manage.
“That’s it? You fell? What the hell are you doing this far from the house?”
“I was running.”
“Running?”
“Yeah, you know, running. Jogging, exercising. Whatever.”
Raul was acquainted with the concept. He just never had to do it. He got so much damn exercise around the ranch, he needed extra calories and protein. He damn sure didn’t want to expend any of them uselessly.
She looked at him with dark eyes swimming in tears. “I wanted somebody else,” she whispered quietly.
“What?” he questioned.
“I didn’t want you to find me. I don’t want your help again. I don’t want to be yelled at right now and I was praying you wouldn’t find me like this.”
Damn. That cut him deep. He had been rough on her yesterday.
“Sorry, baby. You’re stuck with me.”
He reached down and as gently as he could, scooped her up with one arm under her back and the other under her knees. “Put your arms around my neck.”
