Tuesday Teaser 5/29/18 Gina’s Wolf Part 13

In only a week I leave for Lori Foster’s Annual Reader & Author Get Together in Ohio! I am so excited. This is the only conference I go to. That’s not because it’s closest. North Dakota isn’t really that close to Ohio. It’s because it is the most relaxed and laid back weekend that I can meet readers and other authors at, and just have a good time. Are you going to RAGT? I’d love to meet you. Come find me on Friday June 8 from 3 to 5. I’ll post again soon.

Now, on to Gina and Cole. This is shorter than I wanted it to be because there just isn’t a good stopping place. This isn’t edited. I haven’t even re-read it to fix basic mistakes. Please overlook the boo-boos.  🙂

His broad palm wrapped around hers seemed to warm her whole body. They didn’t speak much on their trek over the uneven ground, but she liked his hand tucked into her pocket. Holding hands with a man was another thing she hadn’t done before. It was strangely comfortable. She felt a connection between them, as if their joined hands were a bridge from her heart to his. No wonder lovers held hands.

It took them an hour and a half to get across the fields and onto a road. Gina paused to scrape as much mud off her shoes as possible. Strangely, Colby’s bare feet had almost no mud on them. “Aren’t you cold?’ she asked.

He shrugged. “No.”

“Are you sure? I mean, you don’t have any shoes or a coat.”

Cole laughed. “I’m fine. But if you’re worried, you could put your arms around me to keep me warm.”

“Hmph.” She marched down the road, leaving him laughing behind her.

He caught up quickly. “Are you cold? Aren’t you afraid you might trip? I should hold your hand.”

“I can walk just fine on the road,” she said primly. But she missed the warmth of his hand. “How much farther to Omaha?”

Cole glanced up at the sky. “Less than three hours. Maybe only two. The road is good.” He looked back at her with a faint frown. “You’re tired. I can hear you panting.” The tone of his voice took a commanding edge. “We’ll rest a little.”

Trudging through the mud had tired her, but her back stiffened at the order. “We can walk slowly for ten or fifteen minutes. I want to get to Omaha. My stepfather won’t be able to get me there, not without a lot of trouble.”

He touched her cheek, the lightest brush of warm fingers. “I want you safe, too.”

She turned away from his touch and walked down the road. As she walked she realized she liked him touching her. A small thrill tingled through her. It’s not love, she told herself. He’s handsome, but that is not love. She picked up her pace to leave those thoughts behind. He kept up with her easily.

He didn’t talk much. He walked alongside her but kept most of his attention on their surroundings. Gina was sure no one would be able to sneak up on them. But who would sneak up on them except her stepfather’s men? They saw no one on the road, although when the moon was clear, Gina could make out farm houses here and there. It must be a few hours after midnight. Everyone was sleeping. It was still and peaceful out here. Only twenty-four hours earlier she had been walking through the cold night, but this was different and much better. For instance, she was walking alongside a man, not behind a wolf, and she was dressed warmly. She wasn’t looking over her shoulder every other minute to check for pursuit, and she knew their destination. Compared to last night this was a pleasure stroll.

An hour later her feet were numb with cold, her nose stinging with the chill, and her head throbbed with every step. She would cheerfully have laid down on the hard, cold road to rest. She didn’t complain though. They had to be close to Omaha by now. Cole walked beside her, his stride was as lithe and untired as it would have been if he’d only been walking ten minutes. She watched him from the corner of her eye, wondering if his head hurt too. From the easy way he moved, it didn’t look like it.

Because she was watching him she saw the minute his posture changed. His head came up and cocked to the side, as if he were listening to something. The cold night air was completely still. She heard nothing but the sound of their footsteps on the road. No, nothing but her footsteps on the road. He was utterly silent. She opened her mouth to ask what he heard, but his hand came up. She listened harder. Nothing.

Cole grabbed her hand and sped up. She was nearly running to keep up.

“Cole,” she began in a whisper, but then she heard it, a buzzing sound behind them. Her heart stopped. “Oh, God,” she moaned. “Motorcycles.”

The only people who had motorcycles were her stepfather’s advance troops. Cole ran faster, dragging her behind him. “There,” he said quietly, not panting. “Do you see the glow ahead? That is Omaha. Not more than two miles away. Run, Gina.”

She ran. The glow that Cole said was Omaha didn’t get any closer. Her breath rasped in and out of her lungs in huge ragged pants. Her feet hit the hard pavement like sledgehammers. She ran as fast and as hard as she could, but a quick glance behind showed the glow of headlamps grow far brighter and closer than those of  Omaha.

“I can’t,” she cried.

Cole swept her up in his arms like a baby and ran faster than before. “Hold on,” he ordered, and for once she obeyed without complaint.

He was warm, but she barely noticed it. His speed was astounding. This was why her stepfather and the vicious major wanted to cut him open. They wanted to know how he could do things like this. She wanted to hide her face against his neck, but she couldn’t tear her eyes from the lights behind them.

“How many, Gina?” he asked, and now she could hear strain in his voice.

She counted the lights bobbing behind them. One, two, four…

“Six,” she shouted. “That’s at least six men, but maybe twelve, if they all have a sidecar.”  That wasn’t likely though, was it? The headlamps were growing, the motors louder. They couldn’t be more than a mile behind them. “They are getting closer.”

“I can take twelve,” he said. His breathing was heavier, a little bit ragged, but his pace stayed the same.

Not if you’re exhausted, she wanted to say. Not if they have guns. These men wouldn’t hurt her, but they would kill him. “Put me down. You can leave me and go ahead to Omaha for help.”

“Huh.” Derision rang in the grunt. “I’ll never leave you behind. Hang on.”

Somehow, he increased his speed. Being carried by a man running at full speed wasn’t comfortable. She’d rather be squeezed, bruised, and bounced around then be taken back to President Todd and the Allersons. She looked once more over his shoulder. The motorcyclists were close enough now for her to see the round outline of their helmets.

“Hurry, Cole,” she screamed. “They’re right behind us.”