Apocalypse Cowboy: Futuristic Romance with Zombies by Eve Langlais Read Free Book Online

do the last winter since we’d stocked up before everything happened. When we exhausted it in the spring, I started raiding other homes for firewood and furniture,” she admitted. “But I had to stop because our gas supply was getting low.”
    “Then cords of wood you shall have. I promise to keep you warm while I’m here.” He grinned, the stretch of his lips going well with the mischievous glint in his eyes.
    Hannah felt her blush deepen at his words, the sexual innuendo clear and, to her annoyance, titillating. I see I’ll be burning through some batteries tonight.
    Not feeling in control, Hannah excused herself and went to check on her uncle, but she couldn’t stop thinking very naughty thoughts of Brody. How could she lust after the man when she still hated him for what he’d done?
    Or did she hate him? Was she letting stubborn pride make her foolish?
    Probably. But recognizing it didn’t mean she could stop it.
    She also couldn’t hide forever, not when a determined Brody came looking for her.
    “Why don’t you show me the chainsaw that’s been giving you problems?”
    Hannah led him to the bane of her existence, a brand-new, gas-powered Ryobi she’d taken from the local hardware store. It was actually the third one; the first two hadn’t survived her frustration.
    Cowboy hat on his head, which should have looked dumb but, instead, managed to give him a rakish appearance, Brody turned the stupid thing over in his hands. He twisted off the gas compartment and sniffed.
    “I thought we were past the age we sniffed things to get high,” she couldn’t help but tease.
    He laughed. “Man, I’d forgotten we used to do that. And we thought we were such cool shits. But in this case, I was checking something. It’s a two stroke.”
    He said it like it meant something. Hannah pursed her lips. “Which means?”
    “You forgot to mix the gas with oil.”
    With deft fingers, he dumped the contents of the gas reservoir into an empty oil container and then mixed up what he called a ratio fuel mixture. He spoke words like “priming the carb” and “setting the choke,” jargon Hannah couldn’t quite follow. He, however, seemed to know exactly what to do because, when he’d done his prepping and gave the cord a few pulls, the chainsaw growled to life and the chain whirred.
    It irked that he so easily managed to start it, but at least he seemed intent on helping out. As he went to work, she tackled her own chores, but she didn’t lose herself in them as she usually did. Much like the planets that circled the sun, she kept revolving back into his vicinity, unable to stop herself.
    He couldn’t help but notice, flashing a smile at her each time, and she’d pretend to not see it, ducking her head or bending over to yank at a weed whose only crime was giving her hands an innocuous task.
    By late morning she finally admitted something to herself—she still wanted him. Who in their right mind wouldn’t?
    The day turned warm as the sun crept higher in the sky. Brody worked hard during that time. Tackling the copse of trees she’d point out, taking the towering trunks down one by one, then slicing them into more manageable logs. He lost his shirt at one point, leaving him clad only in low-hanging jeans, rugged boots, and that ridiculous hat, which didn’t look so ridiculous the more she got used to it.
    It could have had a lot to do with how his tanned and corded muscles rippled as he handled the chainsaw. His hard abs glistened enticingly, slick with sweat. The sight was enough to make Hannah practically go cross-eyed with desire. The way his pants hung low on his lean hips drew attention to the vee of hair that arrowed down his chest and disappeared beneath the waistband. She knew all too well what hid down there. A shudder of remembered delight rippled through her.
    Too many times, Hannah licked her lips as temptation hovered for the taking. She chugged way too many glasses of water trying to ease the slow fire