Chapter 5

“Too long. But I plan to end all that soon.”

A sudden vision of this stranger laying limp on the ground, the life-blood draining out of a bullet hole into the parched soil, overtook her, making her jerk. She blinked, trying to clear her head, not noticing the real blood on his cheek until he swore under his breath.

“Oh! Oh, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”

He touched his finger to his face before studying the red tip. “I should be fine. Just pay attention to what you’re doing.”

Eliza nodded, returning to her task. She worked as quickly as she could, eager to finish and escape the ever-shrinking room. He remained perfectly still, but she did catch a quick movement out of the corner of her eye; her blush deepened until she thought her skin would actually sizzle when she realized she could truly see every bit of him and he was fully aroused.