AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She pressed her back against the wall, knowing she had mere seconds before she lost her footing and went down. What now? She searched the rafters, wishing she could haul herself above the brawling crowd.
“Cora!”
She whipped her head toward the cage.
Finn was staring at her in shocked disbelief.
Cora felt as if time slowed. A tangle of emotions flashed across Finn’s handsome face. She could count them in heartbeats.
Ba-boom.Confusion.
Ba-boom.Fear.
Ba-boom.Determination.
Time snapped back, and Cora swallowed hard.
The Jackrabbit was coming straight for her, his flinty gaze locked on hers. The muscles on his arms and chest bunched and flexed as he forcefully shoved his way through the brawling crowd. “Don’t move!” he yelled.
But it was too late. Someone slammed into her, the crate underneath her tipped and down she went.
The floor was a forest of stampeding boots and legs and kicking feet. Cora tried to protect her head and push herself up, but she couldn’t gain purchase.
Suddenly, she was hauled up and flung over a broad, muscular shoulder. She knew it was Finn because she caught a glimpse of his tattoo. He gripped her legs with one arm, fighting through the crowd with a speed and efficiency that would’ve surprised her before tonight. He didn’t stop when they cleared the barn door, and she felt the cooler night breeze on her heated face.
“Let me go,” she demanded. Hanging upside down was not only humiliating, it was disconcerting to be in close contact with his bare skin.
He ignored her, swiftly walking from the barn in long, ground-eating strides and making his way toward a lineup of cars. Low whistles and male laughter followed them.
“Give her a good one for me, Jack,” someone cackled. Cora cringed when she caught sight of the leering old man with a face like a dried apple. He was leaning against the barn with a near-empty bottle of whiskey.
“Finn,” Cora warned. The heat emanating from his rock-solid back was nothing compared to the anger simmering inside her. “Put me downright now.”
He stopped, and she heard a metal jerk and a squeal, then he set her gently on the open tailgate of a truck. Deep brown eyes searched her face. His chest rose and fell, either from the exertion of carrying her out, or a strong emotion he was battling. “Are you hurt?”
“No.” Cora angrily slapped dirt off her jeans, reluctant to meet his eyes. Instead, she took in the rusted truck with pale blue chipped paint. “Whose truck is this?”
“Mine. You sure you’re not hurt?” He studied her face, shoulders and limbs as if he didn’t believe her.
“I’mfine.” She bristled, shoving the mass of curls away from her face. She wasn’t hurt; she was embarrassed. She’d come there to be his backup, and she’d ended up being the one who needed rescuing.
Finn’s gaze skimmed the people milling around outside the barn. “Did you come alone?”
“Yes.” Thank God. Liam would’ve been impossible to live with if he witnessed her in that cage-fighting scene. At least she could be grateful she’d had the foresight to leave him at home.
Finn swore under his breath and spun away, running both hands through his hair in frustration. When he faced her again, his expression was grim. “You shouldn’t have come here, Cora. This scene is dangerous.”
She gave him a sardonic look. “Says the man who just climbed out of a fight cage.”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” he said in dismissal. “I was doing Eli a favor.”
“No, a favor is feeding someone’s cat for them while they’re on vacation. Or picking up someone’s dry cleaning on the way home. Favors don’t involve jumping into a cage fight with a guy known as thebone crusher.” Her voice rose in accusation, but she couldn’t help it. She wouldn’t let him brush it off like it was nothing. She’d actually been scared for Finn’s life in there, and she hated being afraid. He’d made her feel that way. This was all his fault.
“How did you find out about all this?” he asked suddenly.
Cora shifted uncomfortably on the cold metal tailgate. As mad as she was at this stunt he’d pulled tonight, there was no denying the underhanded method she’d used to get here. For years she’d thought of Finn as a stuffy guy who spent his evenings playing chess in a library, sipping cognac and discussing stock market fluctuations. Though he’d been nothing but kind, his impeccable manners and unshakeable composure always made her feel just a little bit unsophisticated. Old habits must die hard, because right now she felt like a kid about to be reprimanded, and it just ticked her off even more.
“You listened in on my conversation with Eli,” he said. It wasn’t a question. It was one of those statements he made with no tone inflection, like he was analyzing the situation and searching for facts to build a case.
