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the heat rolling off his body intensified.
    The face of the mountain grew closer and closer, yet he didn’t relent. “Evan. You need to slow down. We’re going to hit the mountain.” Her heart skipped a beat then raced so fast she thought it might explode from her chest. Tightening her arms around him, she burrowed her face against his neck and braced for impact.
    Being so close, and taking his warm, spicy scent into her lungs was sweet torture. It was like offering a child a view of their most desired toy and not allowing them to play with it even once.
    Evan’s chest vibrated against her. Had she not been so close, she would have missed it. Was she hurting him by holding on to him so tight? He had suffered so many injuries at the hands of the beasts. She hadn’t had time to examine him closely, but she would have had to been blind not to see the gaping wounds on his chest and sides. They had taken great pains to stab him through and through without killing him. She tried to pull away from him, to take the pressure off his injuries, but he held her close.
    “I don’t want to hurt you. Let me go. I can carry myself.” Not wanting to cause more pain, she made her body pliant against his.
    The soft vibration intensified. “You’re not hurting me.” Merriment laced his words.
    He was laughing at her. Pulling herself back a little, she looked up at him. Damn the man. His eyes sparkled and he was trying to keep from smiling. Here she was worrying about him and his injuries and he stood there laughing at her?
    Her anger quickly changed to shock, and then back again. He was standing. He had her so tied up in knots that he’d taken her to solid ground without her realizing. Careful not to push against injuries, she shoved at him, stepping back as she did.
    “You could have told me we’d descended.” She glanced around the small clearing. “So, what now? We sit here and freeze for a while?” She couldn’t keep the bite from her tone. He looked too damned good even with his injuries, making her yearn for things she had no business wanting. Things she had given up years ago and had no claim over anymore. Digging into her pocket, she pulled out two gridom stones.
    She couldn’t very well leave him up here in the cold mountains to fend for himself with the injuries he had, but she didn’t have to get too cozy either. “Put this on. It’ll cover your energy until we can figure out where to go from here.” She would help him heal and see him back to the relative safety of Avalore, then return to the pack. I can do this. Leaving him didn’t kill me the first time, and it won’t kill me now. Deep inside, her dragon’s derisive snort grated. Oh, shut up.
    “Thank you, but no. That stone is what kept me captive, and since you insist on stepping away from the heat I’m providing, we’ll go inside and get you out of the cold.” He turned, heading toward the rock face of the mountain.
    Maybe they had knocked his head while they’d kept him prisoner and he was confused. Rolling her shoulders, she started after him with a sigh. “There’s no inside to go to. Let me see to your injuries and we can figure out where to go from there.”
    He didn’t look back, just shook his head and stopped walking. “You can stay out in the cold, or you can come with me. I’m not up to quarrelling right now.” When she didn’t respond, his shoulders dropped a fraction before he stepped around a large boulder, hiding him from sight, but not before she noted his pronounced limp.
    She half expected him to come back out from behind the large rock, but he didn’t. She took a tentative step forward. Maybe his injuries were more severe than she’d thought. Maybe the blood loss was affecting his mind. Heart racing, she quickened her steps.
    “Evan…” Where in Goddess’ name had he gone? The large boulder sat against the rock face. He couldn’t have gone around the other side, and she would have seen him if he had taken to the air.