“Hey, Sierra,” Reid says. “We left you at your bedroom door, and then Security saw you run off. What happened?”
She hiccups and turns her face away. She grabs my hand, squeezing it tightly.
I stare at her in surprise. A silent request for protection.
Yes. I will protect you.
She trusts me. I will not fail her.
Every protective and possessive instinct I have rises like a dog with its hackles raised.
I step in front of her as the other two approach, stopping them with a glare. Reid’s eyebrows lift, and Luke looks equally surprised.
They exchange a glance before looking back at us. Luke says, “Talon, buddy? Everything okay?”
I shake my head and jerk my chin, signaling for them to keep their distance. I can deal with them later.
Reid addresses her again. “Sierra?”
“Leave me alone,” she snaps.
“You should not have run off. There are bears in this forest.”
“Right now, I would rather deal with a bear than you.”
Reid flinches. “Fair enough, but I do not want to report a bear attack on our property. There would be endless paperwork. Come on. Let me take you back to your room.”
“I do not want to go there.”
“You have to.”
“You said I was not a prisoner here.”
He sighs in exasperation and steps forward. “Sierra, be reasonable. I just meant that?—”
I growl, and Reid stops mid-sentence.
He meets my eyes with confusion, studying my face.
“What is your problem, Talon?” Luke asks.
“I am not letting her go with him,” I say.
“What? Why?”
I stare at Reid, then back at Luke. “He knows why.”
“I do not,” Reid says, completely calm.
“You hit her.”
“You did?” Luke snaps at Reid, fury rising.
Reid looks stunned. “I have never hit her.”
“That is not what she says.”
“No, he has never hit me,” Sierra says, looking at me. “I did not say that, and I did not mean to imply it.”