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“How’s that?”
“Ye,” she began, but had to stop to clear the sudden frog in her throat. Lord, he was so close. “Ye violated me.”
The rim of his hazel eyes turned red. “Like hell I did!”
His rising voice, full of such visible rage, had her taking another step back. “T-then why am I naked?”
“You fell in the river! If I hadn’t stripped you of your wet clothes, you’d freeze to death in this weather!”
She didn’t recall falling into the river. Could that be true? Was he lying? She stared up at his face, so full of anger and disgust and she knew. Drawing in her bottom lip, she felt the onslaught of an uncomfortable remorse wash over her.
He hadn’t assaulted her. He had saved her life.
He had saved her life?
Suspicion swiftly replaced her anger. “Why?”
“Why?” He shook his head, the disgust still dancing behind his eyes, but he did take a step away from her allowing Ivy to breathe easier.
“W-why did ye help me? I’d a thought ye’d prefer to see me dead.”
His face relaxed just briefly as if he was remembering something, then just as quickly it turned rock hard. Dropping his body back down on the ground, he reached for the dinner he was cooking. “You won’t be dying out here, lady. Not if I have anything to do with it.”
Ivy’s brows puckered in part confusion and part anger. “They must be paying ye an awful lot, Mr. Michalski. I’d hardly think I was worth the trouble.”
“I’ve endured worse situations,” he told her, then added, “But the fact is, Freckles, you’re worth more alive than you are dead.”
Chapter 6
Sam watched as her skin drained of color, returning to its usual gray complexion. When at first she stepped outside, he couldn’t help but notice she didn’t look as colorless as per her usual appearance. Actually, a slight pink had tinged her cheeks. No doubt from the outrage she was trying to keep in check. That made him frown with disgust. She had truly believed he had taken advantage of her while she lay unconscious. But to make matters worse, he had wanted to.
He looked at her ashen face and wondered what the devil was wrong now. Yeah, he was a little blunt. Perhaps a bit heartless, but it wasn’t as if she was the type of woman he needed to watch his tongue. He cared not an iota if he insulted her. Angrily, he stoked the fire. From his peripheral vision, he knew she had not yet moved.
“Your clothing should be dry by now,” he said, knowing his voice sounded harsher than he preferred. Being angry was allowing her to get to him. To his emotions. He would not get involved. Not again.
She did not move.
It was several seconds before she asked, “Who are ye?”
He glanced up, caught off guard by the sound of trepidation in her voice. Now she was beginning to grow fearful? He shot his eyes heavenward then pushed himself to his feet and stomped over to the low underbrush he used to spread her clothing out to dry. Snatching them, he turned and threw them angrily toward her.
“Get dressed. I’d like to have my coat back before nightfall.”
Though she snatched her clothes, she still refused to move. In that irritating, soft little accent of hers, she asked again, “Who are ye, Mr. Michalski? Ye told Mr. Radford you were in the acquisitions business.”
Sam looked over at her, noticing her skin color shift from gray to green. His brows dipped. Where was she going with this? “That’s right.”
Confusion and fear danced across her face. He watched in fascination as her bottom lip trembled. “Are ye—are ye one of those—those—“
“Bounty hunters?” he supplied as he broke off a leg of the dead rabbit. Then stepping over the fire pit, he walked toward her and found it oddly satisfying to see her take a stumbling step backwards. “Yes, ma’am.”
He heard her silent but swift intake of breath. “But—but, those men are—are—“
”Animals?” He chuckled and handed her the rabbit leg. “Most are. Hard to remain human when surrounded by cold-blooded killers.”
She did not take the offering. She simply stood there looking at him with big frightened eyes. Funny, while he stared back, he thought how the color of her eyes no longer reminded him of blue ice, but rather soft clouds drifting past a blue sky on a warm summer day.
Shrugging the thought aside, he reached out and grabbed her hand, dropping the cooked leg into it. “Eat. You need to gain your strength back. We’ve already wasted an entire day. I won’t have you holding me up any longer.”
