Read Online In the Arms of a Stranger (Entangled Ignite) by Virginia Kelly - Free Book Online

of necessity, but JP knew Wade had genuinely loved his family.
    With effort, JP swung his legs over the edge of the trough, clutching his side.
    “So…what? You thought it would be safe to wander around inside a bull’s pen?”
    He was half in, half out of the feed trough. Abby was fussing at him, the pressure of her fingers insistent on his elbow, her white sleeveless blouse bunched and dipped between her breasts. His throat went dry.
    “That bull weighs over two thousand pounds,” she went on, clueless.
    Determined to get out without any damn help, he pushed himself up. She reached out and placed an arm around his back in an effort to help him. It took everything he had not to lean into her. He’d spent an uncomfortable night flat on his back, unsure at first as to what type of creature was sharing the corral with him. Now Abby Price, with her lush woman’s body hovering over him, was a far too tempting contrast.
    Somehow, he managed to stand up. He was wobbly, but he tried not to let her see that.
    “Can you walk?”
    Okay, maybe his legs weren’t working so great. But other parts—
    He glanced down at himself in chagrin. Damn . He wouldn’t have thought this would even be possible, given his blood loss and the way his head was swimming. Hell, it was swimming because all his blood had rushed south. No wonder his legs felt like rubber.
    A flash of stabbing pain stopped him from straightening fully. Clutching his side, he bent over. Convenient. She wouldn’t be able to see his body’s response to her touch.
    She frowned at him. “The county’s large-animal vet keeps emergency medical supplies here. I’ll take a look at your wound. Do you need stitches?”
    She was amazingly practical, amazingly unfazed by what was happening to him. But she was just concerned about his wound, he reminded himself. Not him.
    She’d lost her husband. The husband she’d loved .
    She wasn’t looking at JP as a man. She simply wanted something from him. Answers.
    Answers he couldn’t give her .
    Hell, he didn’t even know what questions to ask—not with Wade dead. And if Wade had never told her what he did for a living, JP’d be damned if he would.
    He shook his head. “No stitches,” he said, forcing his thoughts away from her as a woman. He didn’t want to think of her like that. “I just need to get out of here.”
    “Your car’s been towed away.”
    He straightened enough to meet her gaze. “I’ll manage.”
    “The deputy asked if I’d seen it before. They searched the creek bed, thinking the driver might have drowned, but they believe he— you —walked away. They’ll be looking for you. How do you plan to get away?”
    He’d known the car was useless. There’d been no way to drive it out of the creek bed. He knew where he had to go now. She’d told him. Or rather, Wade had told her to tell him. The Springs . Whether that was a trap or something else, he wouldn’t know until he got there. He’d decided he could steal a car, but he was out in the middle of nowhere and the only car around was hers. Stealing from her wasn’t an option.
    “Come on.” She caught his arm and led him into the darkened barn.
    “Is he still a secret?” a small voice asked.
    JP looked up to see Abby’s son climb down from stacked bales of hay.
    “Yes,” she replied. “He’s still a secret.”
    The child stared at him for a moment before saying, “Our secret.”
    JP smiled at him, hoping a boy that age really knew how to keep his mouth shut.
    “I’ll get the basic supplies we’ll need,” she said. “The vet keeps human antibiotics. Are you allergic to anything? Penicillin maybe?”
    He shook his head.
    “I’ll be back. Come on, Cole.”
    “I want to play with Muffin’s kittens,” he protested.
    “We’ll come right back.”
    Cole still resisted, his whole body in rebellion. “But Mr. John—”
    “ Now , young man.”
    JP watched the interaction. She didn’t trust him with her child. She’d taken some huge