Riding Steele: Untamed (5 page)

His gaze caught hers. “I’m not most people.” Then he turned away and walked toward the door.

“Get dressed and come down. Breakfast is almost ready.”

*

When Laurie went down to sit at the table, she found that everyone was present. At least, everyone she knew about, including Dom and Magic. Afterward, she helped to clear away the dishes and offered to help clean up. Shock assigned her to do the dishes.

Over the meal, the others had talked about going out for a ride. As she placed a plate in the dish drainer, Steele came into the kitchen.

“We’re all going out except Dom and Magic. They’re staying here to watch you.”

She nodded and placed another clean plate in the drainer. She watched from the kitchen window as the men mounted their bikes. Raven climbed on behind Rip and the bikes roared to life, then they drove off down the long gravel driveway and disappeared beyond the trees. Magic and Dom sat on the deck outside.

Since Steele hadn’t chained her to the kitchen sink, it seemed he trusted she wouldn’t just run off. Of course, with Magic and Dom sitting right there, it’s not like she could slip away without them seeing her. And what would she do if she did get away?

Ten minutes later, she finished the dishes and dried her hands, then glanced out the window again. Dom and Magic were gone. She headed back to the living room and peered into the room.

She saw Dom dealing some cards while Magic took a swig from a beer bottle, a thorny tattoo around his right wrist. Words in script, like an incantation of some kind, spiraled up his arm. His dark brown hair, cropped short on the sides and longer on the top, was tousled today, rather than combed back like he’d worn it yesterday.

Dom picked up his cards. Sunlight glinted from a steel skull ring on his finger. He glanced at his cards and stroked his hand over his scalp, which was covered with short bristly hair. A one-inch scar slashed across his chin, partially covered by the fringe of hair that formed a line along the edge of his chin from temple to temple.

Laurie kept out of view, wondering how long they would play cards before they grew concerned about her whereabouts.

This was her golden opportunity. They were busy and totally heedless of her, assuming she was working on that pile of dishes in the kitchen. She was sure it wouldn’t be too long before they came to check on her, so she had to make her move now.

She tiptoed silently along the hall toward the kitchen, then quietly opened the back door and slipped outside.

She dodged to the left and peered around the house. All but two of the bikes were gone and she didn’t see anyone around. Dom and Magic had a view of the beach, but they wouldn’t see her out here. Still, she moved quickly and headed for cover, straight to the path that led to where Raven had gone swimming yesterday. She raced past the clearing where she had watched Raven with the other men, remembering Steele’s big body pressed to her back, then watching him fucking Raven in the water, right alongside the other two men.

She sucked in air and kept on moving, well aware that there were other paths leading to this place. Dom and Magic had approached the small beach from a different direction than she had. Rather than following one of the worn side paths she saw, once she put a little more distance between her and the cabin, she turned into the woods and headed for the water’s edge, then followed it as best she could.

They’d be less likely to find her here, and if she heard them coming, there were many places for her to duck and hide. And the water should eventually lead her to a road, or another cabin, or something. But her biggest concern right now was to get away from the men who held her captive. Walking along a road would make it far too easy for them to spot her.

She could wait to find a safe haven.

But the going was hard, and several hours later, when she was exhausted from hiking through brush, and hungry, she started to worry.

Then it started to rain. And not just a little. It came down in buckets, soaking her to the skin. The grass was slippery to walk on. She wiped water from her eyes, her aching muscles protesting as she plodded along.

She spotted a clearing ahead. She turned toward it, stepping faster, and found a small parking area, devoid of cars. She’d seen a few of these along the way, but had avoided them. This time, she followed the gravel path leading to the parking area, knowing it would take her to the road.

She approached the road, and heard a car go by, and then another. Oh, God, would the bikers be out looking for her in this heavy rain? She stepped toward the trees lining the roadside and peered through them.

Her heart leaped as she saw the most beautiful sight she’d ever seen.

A police car!

It had been stopped on the side of the road several yards ahead, but now it started to pull away.
Oh, God, no.

She raced to the roadside and began to wave her arms, but the rain was so heavy, and maybe the driver just wasn’t checking his rearview mirror, because he started driving forward.

She dashed onto the narrow road and ran after him, but water was flooding from the paved surface with the onslaught of rain from the heavens, and her foot slipped on the slick surface, sending her tumbling to the ground. At the same time, the car did a U-turn, and headed in her direction.

Oh, God, if the driver didn’t see her
… She tried to scramble to her feet as the headlights approached, then sucked in a breath. But the car stopped.

A tall officer in a slick raincoat stepped toward her.

“Are you all right, ma’am?” he asked, staring down at her with concern in his dark eyes.

“No, officer. I’m not.” Tears welled in her eyes.

Also by Opal Carew

Bliss

Forbidden Heat

Secret Ties

Six

Blush

Swing

Twin Fantasies

Pleasure Bound

Total Abandon

Secret Weapon

Insatiable

Illicit

His to Command

His to Possess

His to Claim

Opal Carew is the
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling author of fifteen previous erotic romances for St. Martin’s Press. To learn more, visit her on the Web at
www.opalcarew.com
.

RIDING STEELE
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