His to Protect: Book 1 in the Bound to Him Series by Sandra Antoni (the reading list TXT) 📗

my leg, and I knew that was going to hurt on my way back to the car, but it was not bleeding too badly.

Other than that, my arms and legs felt fine. The jeans had pretty much protected my legs, although, my ribs felt a little bruised. I hugged myself with my arms and took a deep breath.

I knew none of my ribs were cracked or broken because I could breathe normally, and I sighed deeply in relief. Then I reached for my backpack, grabbing out my second bottle of water. Taking a few sips, I put it back and tried to stand. Pain. I fell back against the rocks. My ankle was on fire. No, no, no! I did not need this right now.

Grunting in pain as I worked my boot off and then my sock, I could see my ankle already starting to swell. Great. There was no way that I would be able to walk on that. I hurriedly put my sock and boot back on before my ankle swelled too much. After grunting as I laced it as tightly as I could handle, I laid back down on the rocks. I needed to think.

Sitting up quickly, I reached for my backpack and pulled out my cellphone. I sighed in frustration when I realized there was no signal. Perfect. Things just seemed to be getting better and better. Just my luck. I rubbed my temples, feeling the start of a headache and wondering if I had hit my head when I fell.

I took a few deep breaths and then looked around, studying my surroundings carefully. There were some trees a few yards away, and I really wanted to get off these rocks. They were digging into my ass and the back of my legs. However, I knew it was going to be a lot more painful before this was over.

Flipping onto my hands and knees, I began a slow and tedious crawl off the rocks and towards the trees. Sharp edges dug into my already aching palms, and I grimaced at the pain in my knees, but I kept moving with my swollen foot dragging behind me.

By the time I reached the trees, tears were pouring down my face. My ankle throbbed and my hands and knees burned. I collapsed against the cold ground and allowed myself a good cry. Might as well get it out now because I had a feeling that things were going to get a lot worse before they got better.

When I had no more tears left, I sat up and leaned my back against a tree. I knew that I could not just stay here and hope someone found me. It was highly unlikely that anyone would travel this far off the trail like I had. Somehow, I had to keep moving, pain or no pain.

I knew that my ankle would not support any weight, and I glanced at my watch. It was already after 2:00 in the afternoon. I just needed to get down this mountain. Hopefully, then I could flag someone down who would help me, or if I got cell signal, I could call for help.

Slipping my backpack off, I pulled out the extra t-shirt that I had packed. I worked at the sleeve until I heard a rip, and finally, I managed to rip it all the way down the side. I split the other side in the same way. Once I had it in two pieces, I wrapped them around my hands.

My jeans would at least provide some protection for my knees, but I grimaced at the thought of crawling down the mountain. I had a feeling that I was not going to make it in time for that massage. Moving back to my hands and knees, I began my slow journey back down the mountain.

Chapter 3

Ezekiel

I had been feeling so restless recently. Brady and I had finally managed to get my bathroom finished, and I had been relieved. The shower was amazing, and I was impressed with how it all turned out. Brady was a bit jealous, and I had to laugh when he left in my Porsche once again.

It had been the least I could do for his help. It had been quite a project, and it took us weeks to complete since we had extended the bathroom off the side of the house. But taking a look at our handiwork, I knew it was perfect. It was everything that I had envisioned.

Making my way to the kitchen, I pulled the stuff out of the fridge that I would need for a sandwich. It was just me in this huge house, so there was really no point in cooking a big meal. My housekeeper came twice a week, and she always cooked dinner for me before she left.

Cooking dinner had not been part of our original arrangement, but I was glad now that she did it. Otherwise, I would be eating frozen meals and sandwiches every day. I always gave her a rather large tip for the extra trouble, but she seemed to enjoy cooking and I was fine with that.

Tabitha was part of our pack. I would not have hired her otherwise. She and three other women from our pack owned their own housekeeping service, and I appreciated the help. This house was huge, and it was a lot to maintain. It was also nice to know that I could be myself when she was around.

Taking my plate to the dining room, I sat down at the table and opened my laptop. The financial side of our security company was not my favorite, but it had to be done. We had just finished offering private security for Patricia Finkle, a well-known pop artist who had been staying at a local resort.

Patricia had come to Tucson to do a benefit concert, and we had supplied armed security every time she left the resort. It had been a few busy days following her to