AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thank goodness,” she said and shivered. “But I think we have a problem.”
He crinkled his brow. “What?”
She gestured toward the fire. “It’s dying, and we’re out of wood.”
Chapter13
Becca looked at the dying flames and her stomach dropped. “What are we going to do?”
“Stay here for the night and hope when the sun comes up tomorrow morning, he’ll be gone.”
“And once the fire dies, will he want to come home to sleep?” She looked around the cave. “Because there’s only one way out and there’s not enough room for all three of us.”
Cameron pulled out his Glock. “We’re not without options.”
She scowled. “We can’t shoot a bear in his own home. That’s just wrong.”
“Would you rather he killed you for intruding in his abode?”
She bit her lip. “Not necessarily.”
He grinned.
She scowled. “What?”
“You have a soft heart, don’t you?” He looked like that was the funniest idea he ever had.
“Why are you so surprised?” she snapped.
He shook his head. “I don’t know, maybe because you try so hard to hide it. Do you want me to call Kyle? He can land in that meadow we saw, and we can go back to Anchorage and check with the others to see if they’ve discovered anything new.”
“And climb down into the river with the bear? No, I don’t think so. Besides, we need to keep going. If Genie learned anything new, she would have called us.” Becca moved closer to the edge and peered down to see if the bear was still in the river. He was, and worse, the sun had already dropped in the sky, and the cave was getting darker by the moment.
Cameron came to stand behind her. She had to stop herself from leaning back into him. When he’d held her earlier, she’d never felt more safe, more comforted. She wanted that feeling now. More than that, she needed it. She turned to face him. He was only a breath away and before she realized what she was doing, she was leaning into him, her gaze on his lips.
The night was still and the air hung thick with anticipation. His eyes burned into hers, and she felt like she was falling. Before she knew what was happening, their lips were locked in a passionate kiss. The moment their lips touched, she melted.
Without forethought, she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned against his warmth. His arms encircled her waist, and his tongue swept into her mouth. A soft murmur escaped her lips as she deepened the kiss. At that moment, she felt something shift inside her, a spark of electricity that surged through her body. She knew, without a doubt, that this was the beginning of something incredible.
And yet, they had to stop. She knew it, and what’s more, he knew it too. She could feel the hesitation, the reluctance coming off him in waves, but neither one of them pulled away. The kiss eventually ended, and they parted. She stared into his eyes and felt a connection so powerful it was unlike anything she’d felt before. She knew instantly she was right where she belonged. Without saying a word, he took her hand and led her to the fire, wrapped his arms around her, and held her in front of him as they stared into the dying flames.
A feeling of joy and contentment filled her heart for a long moment until she realized this was only a blip, a precious second taken out of time and context that could never happen again. If it did, if she let him get too close, it could get them both killed. They had to stay focused, not on each other, but on Emerich.
But not right now. Right now, she wanted to enjoy this moment for as long as she could. Relaxed and warm, she closed her eyes and drifted to sleep with a smile hovering on her lips.
Not a trickle of light penetrated the darkness. Her body shivered with cold, and her head ached. Becca! Where are you?
Becca’s eyes sprung open. The fire was dead, and a scratching sounded on the rocks outside the cave. She looked at her watch. She’d been asleep for four hours. Not enough. But she was operating off adrenaline now. She slipped out of Cameron’s arms and crept to the front of the cave. In the light from the moon, she could see the bear was still there.
He looked up at her and groaned and started to climb up the rock face.
She whirled toward Cameron. “Wake up!” She ran over and shook his shoulder, then slipped into her almost dry jeans and jacket, then pulled on her pack. “The bear is coming.”
In a flash, he was up and dressed, his gun out, his pack on. “Okay, let’s go.”
They hurried toward the front of the cave.
“How are we going to get past him?”
