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“I think we may have scared her off.” Then he winced. “Naked.”
The idea of Silas seeing Bridget’s perfect body had me losing my shit.
“What the fuck?” I said again, this time a few decibels louder.
I stormed over to the window and caught sight of Bridget sprinting across the open field to a pocket of ponderosa pines. A white sheet was wrapped around her and flowed out behind her like the hem of a long dress.
“Jesus Christ, Si. Why didn’t you stop her?” I opened the door and ran after her. “Bridget!”
For a little thing, she was fucking fast and disappeared into the greenery.
I followed, grabbing one of her socks that she’d dropped on the way.
“Bridget,” I called again, weaving through the grove of trees. Branches were low to the ground so once surrounded by them, I could barely see the field or the house. I followed the rustling and found her with her shorts on and working her bra straps over her shoulders.
She wasn’t crying, but she was freaked. Bright spots of red were on her cheeks. Her skin was dotted with sweat and her eyes were angry and wild. For running so fast, she wasn’t breathing all too hard.
I was.
“Baby, stop.”
Ignoring me, she fought with her bra even more at my words, finally getting it to clasp.
Earlier, I’d barely had time to take in her long hair, but like this, it was wild and dark over her shoulders. Her chest rose with her ragged breaths.
“Where are your glasses?” I asked. While I was riled, I tried to keep my voice calm.
Her shoulders slumped and she ran a hand over her face. “They’re by the couch. Shit.”
I grabbed the t-shirt off the ground at her feet, turned it right-side out and handed it to her. I loved seeing her in that peekaboo bra, but now wasn’t the time. I wanted her covered and safe. Reassured because she’d been spooked enough to bolt. “Why did you run?”
“Why did I– Are you serious right now?” she shouted, staring at me as if I asked her if she thought the earth was round.
A bird squawked overhead. In the shade of the tall trees, it was cooler, but I was sweating.
“I want you to meet my brothers. They showed up unexpectedly.”
She shook her head. “No way. I’m going home.”
“I’ll take you home, but I want you to meet them first.”
“Why?” she snapped, but the hurt look in her eyes said she was more wounded than angry. “So they can laugh at me since they know my sex secrets? So they can do your assistant’s work and tell you to steer clear of a woman who sends a guy a sex quiz?”
Fuck. She’d overheard. Me talking with three men she didn’t know. While she was naked.
It had boys-will-be-boys overtones of Jimenez from the stupid meeting the day before, where she’d left the room and he’d talked about how fine her ass was. Laughing as he did so.
I clenched my molars together, angry that not only had Bradley read her quiz, but my brothers knew about it.
No, worse. Shit.
They’d said they read it and it was TMI. Too much information.
No wonder she’d run off. Shame wrapped around her more thoroughly than the sheet had. It was a repeat of the night before, but so much worse. I understood now, could see how cruel it was and how the words hurt her.
I was so fucking big and it hadn’t been my size that scared her off.
“Baby,” I whispered, taking a careful step toward her.
