New Species 03 Valiant (14 page)

sound, but it motivated her to keep moving. She jerked

her wrists but the leather still refused to give. Frustration

and fear battled as she stumbled forward. She wanted to

put distance between the bullets and her.

She walked and prayed her vision would adjust to the

darkness. It sounded as though a war was being waged

behind her with guns going off and all the yelling that

shattered the night. Tammy could finally make out dim

shapes and her pace increased to a fast walk. She didn’t

make it far until something suddenly shifted into her

path. The shape moved in from the side—something big,

whatever it was, and it came right at her.

She opened her mouth to scream as she attempted to

twist away to run in a new direction but it moved faster.

Large hands grabbed her waist.

“Tammy,” Valiant rasped.

She froze. The hands pulled her against a cloth-

covered chest. She inhaled the masculine scent she hadn’t

forgotten. In that moment she admitted she’d missed it

and him. His big body felt warm and large with his arms

secured around her waist in a hug. Her knees gave out

but she didn’t fall. He kept her firmly against him.

“I’ve got you.”

Tammy’s fingers itched to grab hold of him but she

couldn’t. She sniffed and fought her tears of relief that

he’d found and saved her. She’d been terrified. Those

men had hurt her but she knew safety in Valiant’s arms.

Her nightmare had ended. He’d make sure they didn’t get

a chance to take her again. She had absolute faith in that.

“I’m going to sit you down and give you my shirt,”

he softly rasped. “Your skin is cold. Do you understand

me?”

She nodded against his chest and Valiant softly

growled as helped her down to a patch of chilly grass.

She stared up at his dark shape when he crouched in

front of her. He wasn’t more than a big, comforting

shadow in the darkness with a raspy voice. Cloth brushed

her leg.

“Raise your arms for me.”

“I can’t. My hands are bound behind my back.”

He cursed. “I forgot. I’m so enraged it’s hard for me

to think straight.”

Valiant wrapped his arms around her once again.

Tammy appreciated and felt comforted by his warmth

and the security of being inside his arms. He worked the

leather belt with gentle fingers and yanked it open to free

her wrists. She moved her arms forward and whimpered

at the pain that shot up both of them. Even her shoulders

ached from being secured in the same position for too

long.

“I’m going to kill them,” he growled. “Every one.” He

leaned back until some space opened between their

bodies and he gripped her wrists gently to brush his

thumbs over her injured skin. “I smell blood on you.”

Valiant lifted her hands to his face and inhaled. He

did the last thing she expected. She jumped but didn’t

yank away as his tongue gently licked the painful,

burning area of her wrist. It actually made the

excruciating sensation fade. He turned to her other wrist

and used his tongue on it.

“What are you doing, Valiant?”

“Does it hurt less?”

She nodded but remembered he probably couldn’t

see well in the dark either. “Yes.”

She noticed when it suddenly grew unusually quiet.

The sounds of the forest completely died along with the

gunshots. Only the soft breeze in the tree branches above

sounded in the eerie moment.

“They will come soon and I need to get you clothed,”

Valiant urged softly. “I’m going to put my sweater on

you.” He released her hands.

“Who’s coming?” Fear gripped her, hoping he didn’t

mean the men who’d kidnapped her.

“My people will search for us and it won’t take them

long. Don’t worry. Those men who stole you are taken

care of one way or another. Lift your arms for me.”

Between the two of them they managed to put his

sweater over her head and damaged wrists. The thick,

soft material was still warm from his body and it smelled

of Valiant. He helped her to her feet and she realized his

sweater hung down to her mid thighs, more of a

minidress on her shorter frame. He rolled the sleeves to

her elbows.

“I don’t want the material to rub your injured wrists,”

he explained.

“Thank you.” It touched her that he’d be so

thoughtful.

Tammy saw his form shift in the darkness as Valiant

stepped back and his arms rose. The little moonlight

straining through the treetops reflected something white.

Material ripped. “Hold still for me, Tammy. I’m going to

carry you and I’m using my tank top to protect your

modesty. I’ll use it to fashion you some shorts.”

He dropped down to his knees in front of her. His

head was level with her chest even on his knees. He is

freakishly tall, she remembered. He pushed his sweater

up to just under her breasts. She wasn’t even

embarrassed to be naked with him. He softly urged her

to hold it in place.

From the feel, he slid part of his shirt between her

legs and tied each side at her hips to cover her panties. It

reminded her of what a Sumo Wrestler would wear. He

stood and she let the sweater drop. Valiant stepped

closer.

“I’m going to lift you. You’re barefoot and injured.

You’re safe now and no one will hurt you.”

“I know,” she said softly. “Thank you.”

He remained silent for a long moment. “You never

thank me for protecting you, Tammy. You’re mine. It’s

my duty and my honor.”

His words stunned her into silence. She’d never had a

man say that to her before, never expected one to either,

but everything about Valiant was special. She couldn’t see

any of her past boyfriends charging into the woods at

night to try to save her life. Tears filled her eyes and she

rapidly blinked them back. She feared he’d get more

upset if she totally lost it and crumbled into sobs at his

big feet.

He leaned in and very gently wrapped one arm

behind her back and hooked his other arm behind her

knees to cradle her in his arms. He did it easily, as

though she didn’t weigh a thing. Without hesitation,

Tammy wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged

him tightly.

His bare skin comforted her. She rested her head on

his hot skin near the curve of his shoulder when Valiant

walked with her. Exhaustion and pain had drained her

both physically and mentally. The sway of Valiant’s

careful stride soothed her.

Noise roused Tammy. She realized she’d either

passed out or fallen asleep. Valiant still carried her. She

inhaled his wonderful scent and his warmth surrounded

her as firmly as his arms did. He softly growled.

“Humans are ahead of us. We’ll walk out of the

woods soon but I’ll warn you now, I go where you do.

They will want their doctor to examine you and I would

insist on that, Tammy. Just tell them to allow me to stay

at your side. I’ll fight anyone who tries to take you from

my sight.”

“Just don’t roar or growl at anyone, please.” She

lifted her head. “You’re scary enough without that.”

He stopped walking for a moment. She could barely

make out his face in the dim moonlight but he nodded.

“Just don’t think I’m going to let you go. I did that before

and look what happened. You might have been killed

tonight. Those men wouldn’t have been able to take you

if you’d stayed with me. No one would have gotten that

close to you without dying first.”

Guilt ate at her. “A bout that lamp…”

His face snapped in her direction and he growled

low, his chest vibrated and he sucked in air. “I don’t want

to speak of it.”

“I didn’t want you to get hurt.” She said the words

quickly.

He turned his head away, sniffed the air, and

proceeded to walk. “We’ll speak later. You’re safer with

me. I will protect you, and don’t try to flee me again. It

would be foolish.”

She couldn’t argue with his statements. She didn’t

want to admit it but she didn’t want Valiant to go far

from her either. She’d spent the last five weeks missing

and thinking about him. It could be the trauma she’d

survived and the fact that he’d saved her life, had come

for her even though he had to be angry at her for hitting

him with the lamp, but being in his arms felt right.

“I’m sorry.”

Valiant stared into her pretty eyes. The day she’d fled

from his home she’d gotten the drop on him, sneaked

right up behind him, and he’d never sensed her coming.

He’d underestimated her and it had been a costly mistake

that had allowed her to leave him. Regret was an easy

emotion to read on her face and he liked that he could

identify her emotions.

“I was distracted by the males coming for you.”

“I know. I totally used that to my advantage. Did I

hurt you?”

His head wound had quickly healed but inside he

hadn’t. He’d wanted to keep her but she’d abandoned

him. He remembered the rare times females had been

brought to his cell when he’d been a prisoner. A lifetime

of rejection filtered through his memories.

Most of the Species females had been too terrified of

him to allow his touch. A primate female had shrieked

and cried until one of the techs had returned to take her

away. He’d known none of them had wanted him to

breed with them but some had taken pity on the lonely

male he’d been.

Seeing his kind had been rare and engaging in sex

with them had been even rarer. Tammy had rejected him

at first but she’d responded to his touch as no other

female ever had. He didn’t have the breeding skills that

most of the males had learned but he hadn’t felt

inadequate with Tammy in his arms and on his bed. He’d

been very motivated to use every sexual bit of advice the

females had given him during those rare times they had

allowed him to mount them.

Tammy mattered to him and it worried him deeply

that she’d want to leave him again. He’d known

confinement and didn’t want to do that to her. Making

her a prisoner inside his home might make her hate him.

To threaten was one thing but in reality, he never wanted

to hurt her in any way. He’d have to convince her to stay

of her own free will.

He wasn’t sure how to do that and needed to figure it

out quickly. The humans would want to take her away

from him. Many of them feared Species, believed they

would harm humans, and he knew his appearance didn’t

help. He looked less human than the other males of his

kind. Not that they would fit in with a group of humans

but they weren’t as intimidating. There wasn’t anything

he could do about his looks but he could try very hard to

act more civilized.

He held back a growl. Playing nice with humans and

acting docile wasn’t something he would ever have

believed he’d do for anyone. Staring into Tammy’s eyes

changed everything though. It was all a matter of what

he wanted to keep most. Her or his pride. It was a

difficult thing to swallow but he made a decision.

“I’ll try to speak nice to the humans for you, Tammy.

I wish to stop this talk. It isn’t a good discussion.”

Point made and taken. Valiant didn’t want to talk

about the day she’d escaped his house. “Just let me do

the talking, okay?”

He shrugged. “Fine, but just remember, I go where

you do. I’m going to become very scary if someone tries

to take you away from me, sexy.”

“Deal.” She relaxed in his arms.

She got a warm feeling when he called her sexy.

Yeah, right. I need a shower in the worst way. She’d

been pinned on a ground and didn’t have to touch her

hair to know it had become a ratted mess with dirt and

God only knew what else stuck inside it. She’d been

crying, her body was bruised, and she knew she had

dried blood on her face. She was the anti-sexy if there

ever was one but it was sweet that he’d lie that boldly to

make her feel good.

Cars were parked along both sides of the road when

they walked out of the woods. The sheriff, some deputy