Page 28 of Line of Resistance

She sucked in a breath as the back hatch swung open. Nate’s eyes swept her from head to toe. “Are you okay?”

She swallowed hard at the sight of him, large and intimidating in his white tactical gear. Her eyes dragged to the rifle hooked over one shoulder. “Did you shoot the moose?”

Nate was quiet for a minute, studying her face. “I don’t think you want me to answer that.”

Of course he didn’t think she would want him to answer that. Nate looked at her the way everyone else did, and it was her own fault. It was by design, technically. He assumed she was nothing more than a pile of empathetic positivity. A sweetheart of a girl who wore dresses and high heels and liked things pretty and feminine.

And technically those things were all true. She was an eternal optimist. She did love cheering people on and all things girly.

But she was more than that. Lots more. But most people found thelots morepart strange. Weird.

And bitchy.

So she kept that part to herself. It was easier that way.

And also meant she had friends.

Nate’s eyes fell to the giant bag she still clutched tight before sweeping across her scattered blankets. “What’s all this?”

“My supplies so I can stay warm and alive.” She scowled at the large opening allowing every bit of heat she’d managed to retain to escape out into the cold Alaskan night. “But now it’s freezing in here, thank you very much.” A tiny bit of the less than sugarcoated attitude she’d inherited from her father leaked free and she was too over everything to stop it.

One of Nate’s eyebrows slowly lifted as he took in the back of her SUV, eyes lingering on the sleeping bag and blankets piled up. “My apologies.”

He took a step back and the hatch lowered. For a second she thought he was going to close her back in. Leave her alone.

The thought wasn’t completely unappealing. Maybe then she would be able to take a full breath again. Maybe then she wouldn’t feel so suddenly aggravated. She wasn’t half this bothered before he showed up. Sure, she was irritated at being stranded, but because of her upbringing, this wasn’t a scenario she’d never considered before or was unprepared to handle.

Nate, on the other hand, she was completely unprepared to handle.

Her hopes of a full breath were dashed when she realized he’d only taken a step back so he could swing the rifle over his shoulder free. Once it was loose, he stepped closer, lining it up against the edge of the cargo area before bringing his giant body into the tiny space.

It got even smaller when he pulled the hatch down, closing them in together.

Eloise held her bag tighter, clinging to the only barrier between them. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to save you.” He glared out at the large carcass freezing on the other side of her vehicle. “Guess our friend had other ideas.”

Eloise snorted. “He’s not my friend. The jerkwad’s the reason I’m stuck on the side of the road.”

Nate’s brows lifted. “Seriously?” He shook his head, chuckling. “I can’t believe the bastard took both of us out.”

Eloise leaned to peek out the window at the animal. “It seems like you took him out.”

Nate’s eyes dropped hers as he carefully angled his legs, situating his snowy, booted feet in the farthest corner. “Moose are violent. There’s no telling how long he would have kept attacking your car and I wasn’t willing to risk your safety.”

Normally she would be just so grateful. Appreciative and sweet. She would stick to the act that had served her so well. The one that maintained friendships and secured her position in the world. But after sitting in the back of her car and facing down a homicidal moose, she was tired. Too tired to keep up the facade.

And honestly, what Nate thought of her didn’t matter anyway. Not anymore.

“It’s fine.” She frowned at the giant animal. “I do feel a little bad we can’t butcher it. It’s a shame to have all that meat go to waste.”

Nate slowly turned her way, and for a second she thought he was going to question her. Ask why she was worried about meat salvaging. But he didn’t. He simply went back to staring at his boots. “It’s cold enough it should be okay overnight. Hopefully someone comes by soon and we can make sure it gets handled and sent to someone who could use it.”

Nate seemed to know more than she expected about the process, and she couldn’t stop herself from asking, “Have you shot a moose before?”

Nate winced, one eye squinting with the movement. “We’ve been called by the local authorities to help out in situations where they had to be taken out. They’re kind of a hassle up here and, unfortunately, if they end up in neighborhoods, there’s no safe way to get them back where they’re supposed to be.”

Interesting. She was definitely curious about what exactly Alaskan Security did, but getting any answers from Naomi was all but impossible. Based on her friend’s non-answers and partial explanations, she was suspicious that at least a little of it was highly illegal. It always made her wonder how such a large company was able to get away with questionable activities.