Jackson (Wild Boys After Dark, #3)(19)

“If we hurry back maybe we can beat it,” she suggested. The worried look in Jackson’s eyes told her he didn’t think that was a possibility.

A raindrop landed on the tip of his nose. He swiped at it with his hand. “Come on. This one’s going to hit fast.” He grabbed her wrist and tugged her down the slope. Her feet slipped along the grass and dirt. He swept an arm around her waist and pressed her body to his, taking the weight of each step.

Thunder roared closer, and they moved as quickly as they could down the hill.

“Lightning will hit the tallest thing around. If we can get back down to the ravine, we can take shelter beneath the ledge.”

“I don’t see lightn—” As the word left her mouth, thunder roared, followed by the sharp snap and crack of lightning. She yelped and clung to Jackson. “Hurry!”

Sprinkles turned to a steady stream of rain. Jackson did his best to tuck her beneath his arm, but when the streaming rain turned to sheets, there was no escaping their fate. They were drenched in seconds.

“Where’s the ravine?” The rain was coming down so hard, and the slope was so steep, that she couldn’t get her bearings.

Jackson obviously had a plan, because he was guiding them across the meadow toward a gully, which looked more like a river of dirt because of the water rushing down the center. Jackson always has a plan. She clung to his drenched shirt, yelping as lightning split the sky again.

***

LANEY’S SHRIEK PULLED Jackson from his thoughts. He’d been so focused on what was waiting for Laney back home that he’d been on autopilot since the second they’d set out on the hike. He stopped walking and pulled her against his chest. She was shivering. Her skin was covered in goose bumps.

“Scared?” He couldn’t resist comforting her and kissed the top of her head, holding her just long enough for her to shake her head. Laney was the bravest woman he knew, but with all the shit going on in her life right now, he knew her defenses were weakened. With one arm tightly around her waist, so she could feel him against her and soak in his strength as her own as she had so often done, he tipped her chin up and gazed reassuringly into her eyes.

“I’ve got this. You’re fine, okay? I’ll make sure you’re safe.”

Her teeth chattered as she nodded, her fingernails still digging into his sides.

Without another word, he led them down the rocky slope, doing his best to keep them both from slipping on the mud and dirt. They were too far from the ravine to do them any good, but standing in the woods or at the top of the mountain would have been the kiss of death if lightning turned in their direction. They needed to get to lowlying land and become the lowest object. Lightning sliced through the sky in the distance, kicking him into high gear.

Some ungodly amount of time later, they followed the gully down the side of the mountain to the ridge he’d seen on their way up. He pulled his backpack off one shoulder and withdrew the rope he’d brought with the hopes of looping it over a branch and fashioning a swing over the water for Laney. Plans change.

Ain’t that the f*cking truth?

“Your camera.” Her eyes dropped to his expensive camera, which hung around his neck and dangled to his chest.

Unable to think past getting her to safety, he settled her on her butt on the wet grass. “Sit here.” They were a good distance from the woods and far enough down the mountain that if lightning struck, it had plenty of taller targets to hit. He set the backpack beside her and said, “Stay low,” as he pressed her head down to her knees.

He went farther down the mountain to the edge of the cliff and scoped out their options. A few feet from where he stood was an outcropping of large rocks, which would make a perfect shelter—if they could reach it safely. The ground was drenched, and the rope would be slippery. He began securing the rope around an enormous boulder, checking it several times for stability before heading back up to get Laney.

She watched him as he closed the distance between them. The fear in her eyes was blatant now. The last of her reserves must have fallen away when she realized they weren’t going to make it to the ravine.

He slung the backpack over one shoulder and pulled her up to her feet. “Hold on,” he yelled over the rain. She clung to him as they maneuvered slowly toward the edge of the mountain.

“We’re going down there?” She took a step backward. “I’m not going down there. That’s the side of a cliff.”

He grabbed her by the shoulders and spoke loudly, knowing adrenaline was probably hindering her ability to focus.

“It’s either down there, or you lie down on the grass and become the lowest point. I’m not taking a chance with you, Laney.”

She shifted her eyes to the ground, and he knew what was going through her mind.

“Your options are wet and cold and pummeled by rain, or take shelter and wait it out.”

She looked out over the edge again. “What if I fall?”

“Then you’ll land on me and I’ll break your fall.” He was already moving toward the rope. He wrapped it between her legs and up over her hips, then across the front, tying it securely.

“You love tying me up like that, don’t you?”

He smiled, glad she was still able to tease. “Fuck yeah.” He turned her around, her back to the cliff, and stepped behind her, then reached around her and showed her where to hold the rope. She grabbed it tightly.