Chapter 48

Amanda could almost forget everything when she flew through the air like that. Almost. She’d been running for a good half hour when she realized that something was off. Her inner compass had been pointing her to the thugs for years and had led her to the small little town where she’d found their little clubhouse. It had been right all that time.

A town surely could not suddenly shift directions. That was physically impossible. Amanda came to a halt and frowned as she turned to her right and began walking toward the road. Sara and Daniel would be upon her in a matter of minutes, but she ignored them.

She ducked behind some trees as she came within eyesight of the road. A white extended cab pickup truck was pulled to the side of the road. Two people climbed out of the passenger side of the truck. They were a man and woman that Amanda had never seen before. Another man hopped out of the back of the truck and then finally the driver climbed out of the cab.

She heard Sara and Daniel come to a stop behind her just as the driver turned and began striding right toward her with that overconfident stride of his. He walked like he owned the earth and everything on it and Amanda’s insides melted the sight of him.

She wasn’t sure which angered her more, him showing up or her physical reaction to him showing up. She stepped out from her hiding position and fixed a glare onto him. “What the hell are YOU doing here?” And why the hell was her inner compass pointing directly toward him and not toward the little town?

Sara’s soft voice broke through the cloud of rage in her mind. For a moment her anger eased and Amanda let loose a growl of annoyance. “No!” She lifted a hand and held one finger up toward Sara. “You two do not get to speak to me. I trusted you both and you tried to trick me. So no, you don’t get to speak to me.”

She kept her eyes locked on Cole as he continued to walk in her direction, that confidant stride eating up the distance between them. She lifted her chin and couldn’t quite help herself, she breathed in deeply through her nose and the smell of him almost overpowered everything else. It was as if his scent wrapped around her like a blanket, blocking everything else out. It was a nice scent, masculine and woody with a hint of smoke like that of an old wood-burning stove and there was something else to it as well. Something that smelled primal and natural, the way a dog’s fur smells after he’s been sleeping under the sun; or a wolf’s fur.

She narrowed her eyes and stared at him suspiciously. Something in her look must have startled him because he drew to a halt. The people behind him came to a halt, flanking him on either side. Amanda tilted her head, then looked at the woman and sniffed. She smelled of lavender and nature, but nothing more although there were hints of other scents on her as well, flour, pepper, other spices, chicken and grease. There was also another scent on her, masculine and woodsy as well as smoke but it smelled different from Cole. The scent was indescribable, but it was wrong and it didn’t belong to the woman. Amanda’s nose wrinkled slightly and she turned her head to look at the balding man beside the woman.