Amber Eyes (Amber Eyes #1)(8)

He let go of her hand long enough to rummage in the drawer of a nearby chest, and then he yanked out a pair of black sweats.

He eyed her critically as he held the pants up next to her bare legs.

“I guess you can roll up the waist some.”

She took them from him. “I’ll manage.”

“Okay. I’ll wait right outside. You can use the bathroom through there if you need it.”He pointed to the doorway leading off the bedroom.

She gave a short nod and stood gripping the pants while she waited for him to disappear. After one last look in her direction, he backed out and closed the door behind him.

Needing to feel like she had added privacy, she ducked into the small bathroom and shut the door. Before she pulled her pants on, she turned on the faucet and watched in wonder as the water slid seamlessly into the sink.

Her fingers flicked out to play with the stream, and she winced at the chill. She ducked her head, cupped her hand and pulled the water into her mouth.

Running water was a luxury she hadn’t enjoyed in well over a year. She frowned as she remembered her last trip into civilization. No money, no plan. Just a desire to embrace her humanity again.

She glanced at the shower and wondered if they had a hot water heater for the water piped in from one of the nearby streams. The cabin was surprisingly modern despite its remote location.

Now that the idea was planted in her mind, she couldn’t resist the lure of having hot water rain down over her body. She reached into the cubicle and turned on the water. After a few moments, she sent her fingers seeking into the stream.

A sound of absolute delight escaped her lips before she could call it back. Eager not to waste a drop, she stripped out of the shirt and stepped under the spray.

She closed her eyes and turned her face upward as water rolled over her cheeks and down her neck. This was almost as good as the promise of a hot meal.

Chapter Five

Jericho stood outside the bedroom door listening as the shower came on and then to her sounds of pleasure. She sounded almost carefree in that one moment, as though she’d been denied the simplest of comforts and rediscovered them.

What was the fool woman doing running around the mountains naked? She didn’t seem crazy, just…unusual in a way that he couldn’t put his finger on.

“Is she staying?”Hunter called from the kitchen.

“Yes, she’s staying,”he said with mild exasperation. “Where the hell is she going to go?”

“And that stopped her before?”

Jericho didn’t bother with a response. Hunter usually had to have the last word anyway.

He stood there several more minutes and was about to go in to make sure she hadn’t taken a dive out the window when the door cracked open and she peered cautiously out.

Those amber eyes flashed against her small face, and unbidden images of the cougar came to his mind.

“Breakfast is about done. You coming out?”he asked when she made no move to walk out of the bedroom.

She hesitated for another brief second before opening the door wider. She slipped by him with barely a whisper, and she seemed to draw in her entire body to refrain from making incidental contact. Hell, he couldn’t be that scary.

But then again, in her place, he’d probably be a little worried. Being hauled out of a cave—no matter how weird that might be—by two strange men and taken to a remote cabin. No, that still wasn’t more bizarre than her running naked through the Rockies in the dead of winter.

He followed her into the kitchen and nearly ran over her when she came to an abrupt halt. Hunter was standing next to the small stove eyeballing her with that piercing stare of his.

She trembled against Jericho, and despite his resolve to exercise extreme caution when it came to handling her, he reached out and folded his hands over her slight shoulders.

“He won’t hurt you. He always looks like a bear with a sore tooth.”

She nodded solemnly. “Bears can be very cranky creatures. I try to avoid them at all costs.”

Hunter lifted one brow. “Good policy.”

“Go on and sit down,”Jericho coaxed. He nudged her toward the small table in the corner and gave Hunter a reprimanding glare as they walked by.

Hunter rolled his eyes as he slapped ham on a plate.

Jericho took the seat across from their guest and realized he had no clue what her name was. She sat there almost primly, ill at ease, as if with the slightest provocation she’d bolt like a deer.

“What’s your name?”

“I am Kaya.”

He puzzled over her stilted speech, trying to place the accent. He’d been a damn lot of places, but he couldn’t remember hearing someone who sounded like her.

“You are Jericho.”

His eyes widened. “How the hell did you know that?”

She paled and her eyes flashed with panic for a moment. “You told me.”

“No, I didn’t. We haven’t exchanged names yet, sweetheart. Hard to do that when you’re out cold.”

“I must have heard you and Hunter talking,”she mumbled.

Hunter plopped the food on the table between them and gave Jericho a look that clearly said I told you so before he settled into the seat next to Kaya.

She picked up both the fork and the knife and held them in tightly curled fists as she surveyed the plate in front of her. It was as if she didn’t know where to start.