Stripped Defenseless by Lia Slater Page B

before he saw firsthand how much he had hurt her.
    From
the corner of his eye, he noticed the shade from his bedroom window move.
    Here
it goes.
    He
swung the ax down one more time, lodging it deep into the stump.
    * * * * *
    Ava
looked around the room bewildered and groggy. She combed her fingers through
her tangled hair and rubbed at her throbbing temples. Where was she? Better
yet, how had she gotten here?
    The
room was mostly filled with the large log bed covered with white sheets and a
brown down comforter. A small fireplace took up part of one wall. In the corner
was a wooden nightstand and a matching dresser stood a few feet from that.
Everything was rustic and homemade.
    As
well as the walls that contained them. Logs. A log cabin.
    Noise
from outside the window had her running to it. She peeked through the side of
the shade and saw Kade cutting wood.
    This
was his home. His bed?
    And
she was naked. How could this be? Flustered, she let the window-covering drop
and searched for her clothes.
    The
night before, she was in the hotel with Kade.
    The
painkillers. They
had knocked her out.
    “Ava,”
he called, and she heard a door shut in the other room.
    Panic
rose in her throat and flushed her skin. What the hell was going on?
    “Your
clothes are on the side of the bed. Come out when you’re dressed. Please.”
    Her
mouth was parched and her tongue stuck to the roof, but she didn’t want to
answer him anyway. She didn’t want to give him an excuse to see her standing
there dumbfounded and helpless.
    She
grabbed her clothes and shoved them on piece by piece. They were the same
articles she’d left in her hotel room. A pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Her
backpack was lying up against the wall.
    How
could she not remember anything? It was almost as if she...if she were...
    Did
he drug her and bring her here?
    There
had to be a puzzle piece missing. Kade wasn’t dangerous. He wouldn’t hurt her.
No, she hadn’t known him more than a few days, but she had sensed it.
    You
should’ve listened to your intuition, Ava. She remembered the words he’d said to her. At the time
she thought he was just being a noncommittal jerk-off. Not a psychopathic
kidnapper. How could she possibly have known? She’d been wrong about the
intentions of a man before.
    Her
shoes were nowhere to be found. Shit. How would she run without those? There
was at least two feet of snow out there.
    She
didn’t have a choice other than to face him and find out what the hell was
going on. Her legs wobbled and her stomach rumbled as she took the steps needed
to walk into the next room.
    A
brown leather sofa sat in front of a burning fireplace. A small wooden table
with two chairs sat behind it. A bookshelf against the wall. An enormous
rolling desk. The front door. Farther, in a separate area, bordered off by a
half wall was the kitchen. It was tiny, especially with Kade’s width and height
taking up most of it.
    He
wore a blue and beige flannel shirt and jeans. His face drained of color as he
walked toward her with a plastic cup in his hand.
    “I
thought you could use some water.” He handed her the cup but didn’t meet her
eyes.
    Guilty
as sin. Bastard.
    Ava
took a desperately needed sip and scanned the room for something sharp or
blunt. Nothing. It was sparsely decorated with only the essential furniture.
    “This
is my home,” he said with a shaky voice.
    “No
shit.” She tightened her grip on the cup. “Did you drug me?”
     His
Adam’s apple rose and fell. Still no eye contact.
    “Did
you?” she repeated as her heart sank.
    “I
had to.”
    It
was true then. Suddenly sadness transformed to rage. He’d betrayed her. Lied to
her. Without further thought, she threw the cup of water at him.
    He
caught it, but not before the liquid soaked his shirt.
    “Why?”
she yelled at him but wasn’t sure she wanted the answer.
    “I’m
sorry. I didn’t have a choice.”
    “Why?”
she asked again as her heart began to break, remembering how