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The owl called out a second time, and her overactive imagination made her think the creature was laughing at her. She tried to pick up her pace to make it back to her cabin, but when she turned her ankle instead, she slowed down. A muffled laugh to her right caught her attention, and she paused to see who it was, hoping the person hadn’t heard her arguing in fear with the owl.
Several cabins and one four-unit lodge lay between her cabin and the main lodge housing the dining area. Nestled at the side of this lodge was a hot tub. When Keena remembered that fact from her previous study of the map, she rolled her eyes. Of course there would be those couples sneaking about at night for a little midnight play, maybe even a dip in the pool.
Keena had thought mid-fifties and no sun was too cool to get wet, but others didn’t agree. She turned away to continue her trek back to her cabin when a high-pitched, giggling voice became recognizable. “Don’t tease me, Ryan. We’re out here this time of night for one thing, and you know it.”
“Jade,” Keena spat in disgust.
She pivoted to get away from the sound of her laughter and from the images of what they must be up to invading her mind, only to turn her ankle and fall hard on her ass. Keena grunted in pain, and the laughter stopped right away.
“Someone’s peeping at us,” Jade whispered loud enough for Keena to hear. She suspected it was on purpose. The woman probably got off on the thought of being watched.
Keena shot to her feet and bit off the cry of pain from her ankle. She hobbled the best she could away from them, but after a few minutes, with the area growing increasingly darker, she realized that she’d lost the correct direction to go. Worse, she could not see a thing. She stretched her hands out ahead of her, searched the sky for the bright stars she’d been amazed to see her first night, but found they were no help with the clouds thick and the moon hidden.
“Crap!” Keena grumbled. She took one step forward and winced. Her ankle hurt more. She bent over and rubbed it, tears filling her eyes. “Can’t even initiate an affair right. Maybe I’m hopeless.”
“Who are you trying to have an affair with?”
The voice behind her made her shriek and almost fall over again, this time on her face. Ryan’s arms came around her to catch her. To her embarrassment and simultaneous pleasure, she found that her ass was pressed into his thigh, inches below his groin. If the man bent his knees or leaned forward, they’d spoon.
Keena jerked away and faced him. “No one. Uh, I don’t suppose you know which direction my cabin is in?”
He blended with the shadows, but she knew he was there even if she couldn’t hear him, not even his breathing. “Yes, I know. What are you doing out here this time of night?”
“I could ask you the same thing.” She pulled at her damp T-shirt, which was clinging to her ass from his touch. “Oh, never mind. I can tell by the fact that you’re wet and . . . Can you point me in the right direction or not?”
Ryan stepped closer. She felt the heat of his body, and this time, the warmth of his breath on her cheek. She wanted to move away but feared she’d fall over, and he’d be forced to help her again. This time, with her facing him, things would be a lot worse, especially since she hadn’t noticed until now that she had no bra on under the shirt she wore. He couldn’t see that, but he would feel it if his wet skin rubbed against hers and dampened her clothes.
Keena tugged at a braid and then crossed her arms over her chest. Why was she even thinking about that? He’d made his decision about the woman he wanted, and it was for damn sure she wasn’t going to share a man, even if he meant nothing more than a good bump and grind.
When he didn’t answer right away, she started past him just to cry out at putting pressure on her left foot. Without hesitation, he scooped her up in his arms. She gasped. “What are you doing?”
“You’ve hurt yourself, and I’m helping you. Now stop struggling, and I’ll take you to your cabin and then send for the doctor.”
“Are you nuts, Ryan? Put me down. It’s pitch black out here. We’ll fall or, worse, crash into the side of a building.” She shoved at his chest but couldn’t get his thick skull to see reason. What she feared most happened with him holding her too close to his chest. In the chill night air, her nipples hardened, and he couldn’t help but notice with her lining his upper body.
He did not even give her the courtesy of an answer but kept right on trudging through the darkness. Expecting a collision at any moment, Keena stayed stiff in his arms. Yet, she thought that Ryan must have cat eyes because he had no trouble, and soon they passed through the doorway to her cabin. He paused just inside and glanced down at her with raised eyebrows. She’d left a lamp on when she left earlier.
When he didn’t move farther into the cabin, and his gaze lowered to her breasts she’d forgotten to keep covered with her arms, Keena began to struggle in his hold again. “Thanks. You can put me down now.”
Ryan tightened his grip and started for her bedroom. He didn’t release her until he had placed her gently on the bed. Keena scrambled to cover her damp T-shirt with the edge of the blanket beneath her, and Ryan strolled to the foot of the bed with a pillow to prop beneath her foot. His care only served to make her angrier since he’d just finished doing whatever to Jade—or attempting to when Keena interrupted them.
“I’ll be fine. There’s no need for a doctor,” she assured him while looking in the opposite direction from where he stood.
Ryan bent down until his face was level with hers. He turned her head to face him, and although she tried pulling away, it was no use. Their eyes met. Keena drew in a sharp breath, thinking the man could look into her soul with those eyes. And yet . . . she wouldn’t allow herself to believe the pain she also caught a glimpse of in their depths. Men didn’t feel as deeply as women, did they?
What Mirabelle had told her of Ryan’s past came back to mind. She tried to imagine the hurt he must have suffered when his wife rejected him for whatever reason she found to do it. Could that experience have made him withdraw behind this cool, calm exterior, or had he always been like he was now? Maybe that’s why she left him, because of his icy personality. Women were known for thinking they could change a man. Mirabelle must have romanticized how hurt Ryan was. Her theory made more sense.
“You’re angry with me,” Ryan announced.
She jerked her chin from between his firm fingers. “I’d have to give a crap about you to feel that at this point.” She yawned, covering her lips. “I’m tired. I think I’ll be fine in the morning.”
Ryan straightened, but didn’t move. He watched her ankle, which made Keena fidget and wince every time she did so. She glanced down at her ankle as well to find that it had swollen to twice its normal size. Crap. The thing was no doubt sprained. With it like that, she couldn’t make Ryan leave he
r alone and forget the doctor.
He turned on his heel and headed for the door. “I’ll be back. Don’t move.”
Like she had anywhere she needed to go. She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes, but then opened them again when Ryan spoke from the doorway.
