“Aw, shit,” Trey muttered under his breath. “Now, who’s stupid?”
“You know, I’ve had plenty of people offer their opinions of me lately. But yours just might be the worst.” I motioned for Jack to follow me. He did, but not before he looked longingly at Chase and wagged his tail as if begging him to tag along.
I glared at my supposedly loyal companion as I stomped off. “He said I was stupid,” I grumbled to Jack once we were in the kitchen.
He cocked his head as if to say,and weren’t you?
“And they say dogs are an excellent judge of people. You’re supposed to takemyside.”
Minutes later, the kitchen door swung open with a bang, and Chase stormed over to where I was sitting.
“What did you mean, people offered their opinions of you?” he asked, his voice tight.
“It’s nothing.”
“Don’t do that, Anna. Tell me the truth.”
“You mean likeyoudid when you called me stupid?”
He flinched, but didn’t back down. “Don’t turn this back on me. You were raised here. You know about the dangers of going into the woods out here without being prepared. You think I’m going to stand by and ignore that?”
“Why not?” I shot back. “I’m not yours to worry about.”
He glared at me, breathing hard. “That’s not true.”
“So you’d lecture any of your employees this way?”
“I wouldn’t need to,” he roared. “They know better.”
Jack rose beside me with a soft, uncertain whine. I laid a hand on his head, grounding myself.
Heat rushed to my cheeks. “Is this really about me taking a walk without bear spray? Or is this your way of finally getting mad at me for leaving you years ago?”
That stopped him cold. His shoulders lifted and fell with each breath. He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut. He closed his eyes and pinched the top of his nose.
Finally, he looked at me. “You’re right. Iammad at you,” he said in a low voice. “But not because you left. I’m mad because you think I stopped caring.”
My throat tightened. The air around us felt electric. It would only take one spark, and then…
He closed the gap between us in one swift step and cupped my face in his hands. He gave me a mere second to pull away. But I didn’t.
His mouth found mine—urgent and rough. Everything I remembered and everything I’d forgotten. My hands fisted his shirt, pulling him closer to feel the heat of his skin.
When he finally broke the kiss, his forehead pressed against mine, both of us breathless.
“That’s the truth,” he whispered. “That I still care. No matter how hard I’ve tried not to, I do.”
Chapter 14
Chase
Dark blue eyesstared back at me, but she didn’t pull away. But something changed. Her gaze flicked to the side, her posture still as if she was bracing for something. She might not have physically moved, but she was pulling away from me.
“Anna,” I said, willing her to look back at me, to pull her back, but she only grew more rigid.
“Anna, that wasn’t a mistake,” I said, stepping back into her space. “I’m not sorry for it.”
Her throat bobbed as she swallowed. “I didn’t say it was.”
