Untamed Vol. 1 (Untamed #1) (3 page)

CHAPTER
FOUR

Waking up the
next morning was luxurious, like rising from the depths of a warm ocean and
floating to the dancing lights above. When I broke the surface, I opened my
eyes and realized I was alone in the middle of nowhere.

But as I stretched
my arms and legs, a smile spread on my face at the remembered image of the man
with the wild hair and the incredible body. My core clenched at the thought of
what he’d done to me last night, the way he’d lorded over me with aggression
and need. He had lacked finesse and experience, but made up for it with
intensity and raw passion.

For his first
time, it definitely was not bad. It had been so
good,
in fact, I’d actually tried to convince myself that it had been a dream. I’m
Chloe Randall, waspy only child of a Wall Street mogul. I wasn’t raised to have
unprotected, mind-blowing sex with strangers.

But the soreness
in my limbs and the pleasant ache between my legs said otherwise.

Still, I wanted
him again, wanted to feel him covering my body with his own. Nearly overheating
from arousal, I flipped over to my stomach and slipped my fingers between my
legs, mimicking the way he’d hesitantly slid his fingers inside me before
quickly learning how to make me come.

I screamed into
the pillow as I climaxed to the image of him looming over me, calling me
Beauty. But it wasn’t enough; I needed more. I needed him.

But he’d said I’d
never see him again.

Well, Mr. Beautiful and Savage,
I
thought as I threw aside the covers and stomped over to the bathroom.
Here’s the second thing Ethan disliked about
me: That I’m stubborn.

And I
will
find you.

After a shower, I
changed into a sweater and leggings and straightened around the cabin. When
everything was in its rightful place, I called Anna and recounted last night’s
events.

Anna, as
expected, gave voice to my conscience. “You
what
?”
she shrieked. “What the hell possessed you to have sex with a strange man who
broke into your cabin? Were you high?”

“I don’t know,
Anna!” I said, throwing my hands up. I sighed and sat down at the table. “He
stood up and our eyes met and something in me just… shifted.”

“But Chloe…
unprotected sex? Really?”

I worried at my
lower lip. “I know. But I was just too caught up in the moment.” I smiled,
remembering Alaric’s vulnerability. “He was a virgin.”

“No way. There’s
no way.”

“I think he was
telling the truth.”

“Please tell me you’re
still on the birth control shot?”

“Yes.”

Anna blew out a
breath. “Chloe,” she said on a sigh. “You get that it’s not normal to sleep
with the strange guy who breaks into your place, right?”

“Yes.”

“Are you trying
to prove a point to Ethan? Is that it?” she asked. “Because if you are, there
are other, less destructive ways than this.”

“Than what?
Losing all my inhibitions and having mind-blowing sex?” I said with a touch of
anger in my voice. “But no, this isn’t about Ethan.”

“Then what? What is
this about?”

“I don’t know
yet, Anna,” I said, not knowing how to convey that I felt like I was on the
precipice of something grand, something that could change my life if I was just
brave enough to take that step. “But I’m trying to find out.”

“Just do me a
favor, okay?” Anna said with resignation in her voice.

“What?”

“Just don’t do
anything stupid.”

“I won’t.” I
laughed softly. “Well, any more than I already have.”

My original idea
was to hike into the forest to look for Alaric on foot, but I realized that
trudging alone in a forest without any GPS equipment or even a small firearm
fell firmly under the “Stupid” category. I would become bear brunch within the
hour.

So I paid a visit
to the town instead, eating lunch at the local diner then going directly to the
man who seemed to have all the answers.

“How goes it?”
Tim Wells asked the moment I stepped through the door of Bryson City Cabins. He
put down the newspaper and walked out from the behind the tall counter.
“Please, take a seat,” he said, holding out a bar stool. After I sat, he went
back to his perch behind the counter.

I studied the
place, only now noticing it was set up more like a fast food restaurant than a
rental office. “Good morning,” I said. “Was this a McDonald’s before?”

Tim laughed. “No.
It used to be a hot dog stand before I took it over. I didn’t see the point in
tearing the fixtures down,” he said, patting the Formica counter. “I make do.
Once a week I hold a storytelling time here. The kids in town come by and I
make hot dogs and tell them stories about the history of this area.”

“That sounds
lovely.”

“Yeah, they seem
to enjoy it.” He eyed me quietly. “So what can I help you with? Is there a
problem with the cabin?”

“Oh no,
everything’s fine,” I said then flashed him a sheepish grin. “I hope you don’t
mind but I made a few changes, bought some extra things.”

“Of course not.”
He threaded his fingers together and waited for me to speak.

I took a deep
breath, my stomach trembling from memories of last night. “I wanted to ask you
more about the man living in the forest.”

Tim’s eyes
brightened. “Oh? What would you like to know?”

“Do people
actually believe he exists?”

“Strange things
have been happening for a while. Things disappear without a trace. It’s even
rumored that he—” Tim stopped and cleared his throat. “Yes, everyone
believes he exists, even if we’ve never seen him.”

“No sighting at
all in fifteen years? Nobody knows where he lives?”

Tim’s eyebrows
shot up. “I’m not sure it’s been that long, but yes, the park rangers have
scoured the mountains and have seen no sign of him.” He began to tell me about
the grid search system that the rangers set up when the phone rang. “Be right
back,” he said before reaching for the phone on the wall. He spoke softly,
then
glanced at me with wide eyes before turning his back.
“Are you sure?” he asked. “Okay, I’ll be right there.”

When he hung up,
Tim’s face was rumpled with concern. “I’m sorry, Chloe, but I need to go.”

A frisson of fear
went down my spine that the news had something to do with Alaric. “What’s
wrong?”

Tim hurried
around the counter with keys in hand. “Oh, just a little police business.”

I stood up and
followed him out of the store.

“You should stay
in town, look around,” he said at the sidewalk. “There are several antique
stores in on Main that you might enjoy.”

I looked down street.
“I think I’ll just go back to the cabin, actually. Take a nap.”

Tim’s eyes
widened then he quickly schooled his features. “Oh, but there’s so much to do
around here. So much history to discover.”

“I’ll stick
around here then. Thank you for answering my questions,” I said and waved
goodbye as he got in his car and drove away. I gave him a five-minute head
start before climbing in my own car and driving in the exact direction he was
headed—back to the mountains and, if my suspicion was correct, the cabin.

On the way, a
police car passed me heading back towards town, and half a minute later, an
ambulance. Neither vehicle had their sirens on but there was still a feeling of
dread tightening around my chest, a gut instinct that something was very, very
wrong.

When I made the
turn into the cabin’s gravel driveway, I found Tim and an imposing man in
police uniform standing several yards away at the edge of the trees. They
glanced at me then bent their heads together, speaking in hushed tones. The
conversation came to an abrupt stop when I walked over.

“What’s going
on?” I asked.

The officer held
out his hand. “Ma’am, I’m Officer
Morcillo
,” he said,
his grip almost painful. He was a few inches shy of six feet but the stately way
he carried his wide, beefy body made him appear formidable, intimidating. “We
were just investigating an attack in the area.”

I would have
bought his explanation had I not caught Tim shooting an anxious look his way.
“Oh? What happened?” I asked.

“Oh nothing too
serious. A few hikers were just attacked by a wildcat,” Tim said, waving a hand
dismissively. “Anyway, do you mind if I take a look around the cabin? Make sure
all the locks are okay?”

We went inside
and Tim pointed out the locks that he’d just installed last month, supposedly
so good even a cold draft couldn’t sneak its way in. I knew firsthand that was
not the case.

“I like what
you’ve done,” Tim said, looking around the cabin’s interior. In the bedroom, he
expressed a similar sentiment while he checked the locks on the sliding door.
“If you’d like to leave the decorations, I would be more than happy to
reimburse you,” he said.

“Oh, sure,” I
said, distracted by the news of the attack. And to think I’d almost gone hiking
that morning. It could have been me on the way to the hospital.

“I see you’ve had
a chance to look at the local flora.”

“I’m sorry, what
did you say?” I turned to Tim then followed his gaze towards the bed. I gasped.

On the nightstand
was a bouquet of wild flowers set inside a glass of water. The beautiful,
unruly mess of colors set my heart racing, sapping my tongue of moisture.

“Miss Randall?”
Officer
Morcillo
asked. “Is everything okay?”

I blinked up at
him, sure that my thoughts were written all over my face. Could he tell from my
expression that I’d left for town that morning with an empty nightstand, the glass
still in the drainer by the sink? “I’m fine,” I said, trying hard not to look
at the flowers again. “Just thinking about something back in Atlanta.”

Officer
Morcillo
nodded then handed me a business card. “Here’s my
number and the number to the station. Call if you hear or see anything. I’ll be
back later to check on the area.”

“Okay, thank
you,” I said, palming the card.

Both men headed
to the front door.

“Please be wary
of opening the door to strangers,”
Morcillo
said.

The hair on the
back of my neck rose. “Why would I have to worry about people? Aren’t we
talking about wild animals here?”

Tim jammed his
hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor.

Officer
Morcillo
put on his sunglasses. “Just be careful, ma’am,”
he said and walked out, followed by Tim.

I watched them
from the window as they continued their conversation outside between their cars,
Tim motioning to the cabin as he spoke. Finally,
Morcillo
nodded and said something that appeased Tim.

I stared down at
the card in my hand as the cold fingers of dread crept up my spine, telling me
that something was very wrong and that it somehow involved me.

CHAPTER
FIVE

I stayed in the
cabin the rest of the day in a state of disarray. But no matter what I
did—hand washing the dishes, reorganizing the contents of my luggage,
moving furniture around—I couldn’t untangle the jumbled thoughts in my
head of wildflowers, wild animals, and even wilder men.

By the time the
sun went down in a blaze of oranges and pinks, I finally gave up hope that
anything would make sense. This trip to the mountains was proving more
stressful than relaxing, but it had been successful in making me forget about
Ethan. There was that at least.

At around six
thirty I got up from the couch and peered into the fridge, wondering what to make
with the groceries I’d bought yesterday. After deciding on a sandwich, I
grabbed the bread and package of honey ham and kicked shut the fridge door.

I froze when a
hand clamped over my mouth, effectively smothering my scream. Food tumbled down
to my feet.

“Beauty,” said a
raspy voice by my ear.

The air escaped
my lungs, my body sagging in relief. I tried to open my mouth but his hand prevented
me from saying his name. His other hand snaked around my waist, slipping under
my sweater, seeking out bare skin. He bent his head to my neck and nuzzled my
sensitive skin with his nose, taking in deep breaths as his calloused hand
massaged my breast.

“Your smell,” he
whispered, then traced a wet line along my shoulder with his tongue. “Your
taste.”

I backed into
him, molding my back to his front. A hiss escaped from between his lips when I
ground my backside into his rock hard erection. He jerked his hips forward,
moving around until his length was nestled in the crevice of my ass.

His hand moved
away from my mouth and slid down to my neck, caressing my shoulders with his
rough palms. “I want you so bad,” he said on a groan as he rocked his hips.
“Why?”

His question took
me by surprise. I craned my head around and found a mystified expression on his
face. “Why what?”

His dark eyebrows
drew together. “Why do I want you? You are just one woman.”

I stiffened. The
fog of desire dissipated in my head and I was finally able to see clearly. “And
you are just a typical man,” I said, stepping away from him and turning around.
“You’re just horny and deprived. Nothing more. The only reason you want me is
because I have a vagina.”

His eyes widened
at my brazen use of the word, but it lasted only a second and then the dark,
hungry expression returned. He shook his head, locks of wavy hair falling over
his eyes. “There’s more.”

I gulped when he
took a step forward, forcing me back into the door of the fridge.

He took hold of
my hand and lifted it up to his bare chest, his eyes burning into mine. “There’s
something in here that… that hurts when I’m away from you.”

The breath stuck
in my throat. How was it that a man with such a simple vocabulary could say the
most exquisite things?

I tangled my
fingers through the short hair on his chest, feeling the strong, steady
heartbeat against my palm.

“Is that normal?”
he asked, eyes flying across my face.

I shook my head,
still unable to say a word. It was impossible to form coherent sentences when
this man was opening himself up to me, admitting something most people would
take months, sometimes years, to confess.

He set his hands
on my waist, his thumbs rubbing circles on my stomach. “I came before but you
weren’t here. I thought you left.” Deep lines formed between his eyebrows as his
chest rose and fell.

I lifted my chin.
“What if I had? You said I’d never see you again.”

“I tried to stay
away.” A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I failed.”

Then I heard the
faint sound of gravel crunching and a car door slamming. A few seconds later, someone
rapped on the door. “Miss Randall. It’s Officer
Morcillo
.”

“Crap,” I said,
pushing away from the fridge and grabbing Alaric’s hand. “You have to get out
of here.”

Alaric straightened
and glared at the door, refusing to move.

“That’s the
police.” I tugged harder until he finally relented. I pulled him to the
bedroom, straight into the bathroom. “Stay in here, please,” I said.

“I’m not afraid
of the police,” he said in a rough voice, setting his hands on the doorjamb.

I pushed against
his chest. “Yeah, well, you should be. You’ll go to jail if they catch you.” I
closed the bathroom door and hurried to the front of the cabin. “Good evening,
Officer. What can I do for you?” I asked, a little out of breath.

“Miss Randall,”
Officer
Morcillo
said without preamble. “I’m afraid we
weren’t entirely truthful with you earlier. There was no wildcat attack.” He
let out a sigh, the first break in his imposing façade. “A body was found at a
campground today. The victim was murdered and all of his belongings taken.”

My hand flew up
to my mouth. “Oh my God.”

Morcillo
gave a curt nod. “This is the third murder of its
kind this year. It appears we have a serial killer on the loose.”

“That’s awful.” I
paused, worrying my lower lip. “It happened nearby, didn’t it?”

He nodded. “And there
was a report a man was seen lurking around this cabin earlier in the day. We
believe him to be the hermit who lives in the forest.”

I gasped. “You
mean… the Smoky Mountain Savage?”

Morcillo’s
lips thinned. “Whatever title he is given, we
believe him to be involved in the murders.”

“But…” I fought
the urge to look over my shoulder, towards the bathroom. “How can you be sure
it was him?”

“A body was
discovered the same day this hermit was sighted in the area. What more do you
need?”

 
“What if it’s just a coincidence?”

“I don’t believe
in coincidences.” He gnashed his jaws. “Miss Randall, whatever romanticized
story Tim has fed you, I assure you that this Smoky Mountain
Whatever
is unpredictable and dangerous.”

I sucked in a
breath and instantly my mind flew to the man in my bathroom. Still, I was loath
to believe the man that I knew—that I’d allowed inside me without
protection—was a stone cold murderer. “How can you be so sure? Nobody’s
had any contact with him in a long time.”

“That’s precisely
why. The man has been stuck inside his own head, with only his voice and his
thoughts for company. He is, at best, mentally ill. At worst, homicidal,” he
said. “It’s not safe for you to be out here on your own, so I need you to get
your things and I will escort you back to town, where Tim has taken the liberty
of getting a room for you at the B&B.”

I nodded, struck
dumb by the news, still trying to make sense of it all.

Finally, the
pragmatic Chloe kicked back to life, reminding me that this was no fantasy
novel, that I could be putting myself in real danger if I didn’t listen to
reason. “Okay,” I said, gulping. “All right. Let me just gather my things.”

“I’ll give you a
few minutes. I’ll be in the car if you need me,” he said and closed the door
behind him. I flipped the lock, staring blankly at the door’s rough wood
surface. Was it true? Was Alaric a psychotic serial killer?
 

I jumped when a
deep voice rasped by my ear, “Is he gone?”

I spun around, my
heart thudding painfully in my chest. Before he could corner and trap me again,
I stepped out from around him. “Officer
Morcillo
… he’s,
uh…”

Alaric’s dark
eyebrows drew together as he glared down at me. “What?” I took a step back, a
move that didn’t escape his notice. “Why are you scared?”

I tried to act
nonchalant, even as I worried the sleeves of my sweater with my trembling
fingers. “I’m not scared.”

He took a step
toward me and placed a hand on my shoulder. “Then why are you shaking?”

I didn’t know
what to say, didn’t know how to act. I wanted to ask if it was true, if he was
indeed a serial killer, but the coherent part of my brain said it would be a
mistake to inform him I knew about the murders. “I’m not shaking,” I said,
taking another step back. “I just remembered… I need to go into town.”

“Right now?”

I swallowed.
“Yes.”

He watched me for
a long moment, his dark, intelligent eyes flying over my face. I stood in front
of him, feeling vulnerable and nervous and, despite it all, still aroused. God,
two days in the mountains and my insides were already a scrambled, irrational
mess.

His lips thinned.
“You’re not coming back.”

The little flicker
of uncertainty in his eyes had me shaking my head truthfully.

His breathing
sped up as his hand fisted at his sides, but he said nothing. He didn’t ask me
to stay, nor did he try to force my hand. It didn’t make sense, but then again,
nothing did anymore.

“I have to go.” I
turned away before I could lose my resolve but, as I walked off, my foot caught
on the curled edge of the rug and I stumbled. The last thing I remember were my
hands reaching out to catch my fall and that blasted cheap coffee table rushing
toward my face.

~

I opened my eyes
with some difficulty, my head feeling sandwiched between two cement blocks. I
blinked until my eyes adjusted to the dark, searching for the wood beams of my
cabin but finding instead grey stone walls all around.
 

I sucked in deep
breaths, trying to stave off a panic attack, and sat up. I was on a bed nestled
inside various mismatched blankets and quilts, in what appeared to be a room
carved out of stone. The walls were jagged, the ceilings high and curved. If I hadn’t
known better, I’d have thought I was inside a cave.

“You’re awake.”

My gaze swung
around to the room’s arched entrance as Alaric strode in, barefoot and
shirtless as always, carrying a large mug. He came to a stop at the side of the
bed and offered me the drink.

I peered inside
the chipped mug, wondering if poison had a distinct taste.

“Tea,” he said.

I sniffed the
drink before taking a careful sip.
Black tea with a bit of
honey.
“Thank you.”

He reached out
but stopped short of touching me. “How’s your head?”

I rubbed the
throbbing spot on my forehead and winced. “Like I got hit with a sledgehammer.”

He reached into
his pocket and held out a blue-green gel pill. I accepted it with some
trepidation, taking note of the brand name imprinted on its side. I held it up
to my mouth and pretended to swallow it. “What happened?” I asked, spitting the
pill into the mug when he wasn’t looking.

His brown eyes flicked
warmly over my face. “You hit your head. I couldn’t wake you, so I carried you
here to take care of you.”

I glanced around
again, my eyes finally adjusting to our dim surroundings. “Where is
here
exactly?”

He held out his
arms. “This is my home.”