The fireplace was made of red stone, the floor beneath her polished redwood, the ceiling crisscrossed by large timber beams. Photos of wildflower landscapes—probably Jake’s—hung on all the walls, making the cabin look homey and well loved, an atmosphere she had missed almost as soon as she had left Silver Town.
She felt bad all over again that she had missed Tom’s calls. She had thought he might have given up on her because of the way she left. Yet she still knew she had been justified. Things had just gotten too complicated. When she couldn’t get hold of North, she could only think that her uncle was going to come after her again. She hadn’t wanted the Silver pack to get involved in fighting her battles.
But if her uncle had anything to do with her abduction, then the Silver wolf pack was destined to get involved. Nothing that she could do about it now.
“I went to call my editor and realized the phone was off. I saw you had attempted to get hold of me. I tried to reach you then,” she said finally, having settled on just telling him the straight truth.
Tom watched her closely, judging her.
“You didn’t answer,” she said.
He took in a breath. “I was probably in the woods. That’s why I tried to get in touch with you before I left. Darien was out with the search parties, too, if you attempted to call him. Lelandi was busy with patients.”
“I only tried calling you.” She couldn’t read his expression. Was he glad she had wanted to talk to him?
“You shouldn’t have left without saying good-bye.” His gaze was fixed on hers, alpha-like, challenging her to agree.
She wouldn’t look away this time. But she didn’t say anything.
“You don’t think you deserve to be loved? Is that it?” When she didn’t respond, Tom said, “Well, you do, Elizabeth.” He paused and took a deep breath.
He was still upset about her leaving him that way. She sighed.
She took a whiff of the smells in the cabin—the venison chili made her stomach grumble, and she realized it had been a long time since she’d eaten. The smell of several gray wolves and—she lifted her nose and smelled again—one red wolf, Lelandi, also filled the air.
The wind whistled around the cabin, reminding her just how chillingly cold it was outside, although she was beginning to feel a bit of warmth penetrating the marrow of her bones. The fire crackled in the large stone hearth, while she heard a teakettle whistling and then the water poured into a mug. She vaguely wondered if the cabin was part of a resort or isolated. How far was it from civilization?
“Are we close to Silver Town?”
“Yes and no. In this blizzard? With you feeling the way you do? No. If we had snowmobiles or you could run as a wolf, not too far out.”
Even though they couldn’t reach town easily right now, she was comforted by the fact it was nearby. That was a first for her. The town wasn’t what made the nearness so consoling. The wolf pack that ran it bolstered her.
If she didn’t hurt all over so much, she’d get up and watch him prepare the meal. Even offer to help him. That brought on another wishful thought of bumping against him as they worked in the kitchen making a meal together, sharing the moment.
She noticed Tom’s scent in the room most of all—musky male, gray wolf, delectable. Why was he here all alone?
Then she thought about the first time she was in Silver Town and her luggage was stolen. So was her ID. She swore under her breath.
“What’s wrong?” Tom asked.
“I don’t have any ID again, and I don’t even have any money to buy a plane ticket!” This was getting to be a recurring nightmare.
“Don’t worry about it. We’ll take care of it when the time comes.”
She got the distinct impression that he had no intention of letting her out of his sight again, not like the last time.
Another thought occurred to her, one more worrisome. “Were any of the men who had taken me hostage still alive?”
“No.”
On the one hand, she didn’t want them coming to the door, armed to the teeth and ready to take her hostage again, because she knew Tom would protect her with his life. Still, freezing to death was a fate she wouldn’t wish upon anyone, even criminals.
She shouldn’t have fretted about them, not when she could have come to real harm—and would have, if not for Tom. Would whoever had paid her kidnappers send others to search for her once they learned the plane wasn’t coming? Maybe they’d think everyone had died in the plane crash. Including her.
If Tom did get her on a flight back home, what if whoever had her taken hostage did it all over again?
***
“Elizabeth, don’t go to sleep on me. All right?” Tom walked around the room, bolting the door and the wolf door. He returned to the kitchen and finished heating up the chili, unable to quit worrying that she might have more extensive injuries that could cause her real trouble.