Taking Passion by Storm (4 page)

It
smelled the same as she remembered, and it was cool and crisp, as it would have
normally been this time of year. She glanced up at the sky. A thin layer of
clouds covered the sun, and they moved and shifted with lightning speed as she
watched.

“
There’s no way to predict them any longer,” said Gina,
pulling a laptop out of her backpack. “Yes, I know I told you not to carry one,
but I’m used to it.” She clicked a few times, then smiled. “Satellites are
accessible today. We’re in luck. They’re hit and miss, and sometimes we lose
the radar images completely. Then we simply go on instinct and use our common
sense.”

Nadine
couldn’t wrap her head around this yet, so instead she turned in a slow circle
to survey the landscape around her. Nothing was familiar, and yet it was. The
mountain ranges that used to ring the city were still there, but the glacier
cap on Mt. Rainier was gone, and the entire ranges on both sides had a
flattened look to them, as if someone had come along and simply sliced the tops
off the mountains.

“
There are thousands of caves in the mountains now,”
said Addison. “They were found after the massive flooding in this area about
five years ago finally receded. We’ve all talked about this at length, and our
guess is that Dixon is holed up in one of them. It’s unlikely the storm carried
him away from this general area.”

She
swallowed hard at the image of that. “How do you know that?”

“
It wasn’t a very large tornado.”

Nadine
nodded. “So the other Storm Trooper team is searching for him in the same
area?”

Addison
pointed toward the east. “They’re searching what’s left of the North Cascades.”
Addison turned around and swept his hand toward the west. “We’re braving the
new coastline for the Pacific Ocean and searching the Olympic Mountains.”

She
swallowed hard again. “How close is the coast now?”

“
Right on the edge of them.” He scanned the group.
“Let’s get to the bunker.” Addison fixed her with a serious gaze. “Remember
rule number one. If we tell you to run, you run. Don’t hesitate, don’t ask
questions, and keep your eyes on us at all times. Okay?”

What the fuck am I doing here?
“Okay.”

Chapter
Four

They
had been walking about forty-five minutes when the clouds built once more time.
It had happened so often during their short time up here that Nadine paid no
attention until Gina stopped and swore under her breath as she glanced at her
laptop. “This one’s for real, gang.” She had her backpack off and was shoving
her computer inside it before Nadine could process what she’d just said.

Nadine
watched the others scan the horizon, and then Alesia pointed toward an
outcropping of rocks. “There’s a cave in there!” she shouted. “It’s our best
chance!”

Addison
grabbed her hand. “
Run
.”

She
clung to his hand, her own growing so damp she was afraid she’d lose her grip
as her lungs burned and her legs turned to jelly. The sky grew so dark it
looked like twilight instead of morning. She didn’t dare glance up. She knew if
she did she’d never be able to keep going.

Addison
squeezed her hand tighter, and she fought to hang on. She could hear the wind,
louder now, and tried not to whimper out loud but was certain she had. Was this
what her father had been doing when he’d been caught up in the storm? Why had
the others made it inside a shelter that day but not him? What had really
happened? Would she ever find out?

The
rocks were directly in front of them, but Nadine had trouble processing that
because she was too busy swallowing as the air pressure dropped. She felt the
pull from the updraft behind them, and knew a funnel was on the ground and
close. She didn’t need Gina’s radar to tell her that.

Suzanne
slipped inside an opening in the rocks that at first Nadine didn’t even see.
Lee and moved behind her and Addison. “Do you see it?” he shouted. She could
barely hear Lee’s voice over the wind.

“
Got it!” answered Addison.

She
didn’t say anything. She merely followed Addison. Lee was right behind them as
they slipped into near-darkness, and Nadine almost fell as Addison pulled her
to the ground and scooted against a wall of rock with her. “You’re okay.”

Suzanne
lit a lantern, and only then did Nadine dare to glance around. They were
sitting in a circle, in a cave with a low ceiling and a dirt-covered floor. No
one moved or spoke. They listened to the wind howling outside, and she
desperately wanted to cover her ears and close her eyes, but she didn’t want to
look foolish or afraid.

None
of them looked that way. They were calm and cool, waiting for the storm to
subside. Then they’d go back outside again and continue their journey. They did
this all the time.
How?
How did they
do it? What if this cave hadn’t been so close? What if there was no shelter around?
This was insanity. Why did they do this?

She
glanced up at Addison as the wind began to fade outside. “How much further to
the bunker?”

He
put his arm around her, and instead of filling her head with memories of four
years ago, the gesture was comforting and … dare she think it?
Arousing.
Yes, it was arousing. She
wanted to give herself permission to feel that way and not have the emotion
bring along bad memories.

“
About an hour.”

She
stared at his profile, dim in the light but no less gorgeous. “What about these
caves? Shouldn’t we explore them?”

“
This is the only one here,” said Suzanne. “The rest of
this is solid rock.”

“
We know this area well,” said Lee, sweeping his hand
in an arc. “You’re looking at the extent of this cave.”

She
suddenly realized what their words meant. “So, we were lucky then. I mean, I
didn’t see any shelters the entire time we were walking.”

“
There are none,” said Addison. “You’re right. We got
lucky.” He gazed into her eyes with the most amazing expression of
protectiveness she’d ever seen. She was safe with him. She was safe with all of
them. All she had to do was let go and trust them to do what they did all the
time.

“
What do you all do if there is no shelter?”

“
We get as low as possible and hang on to anything we
can find,” said Lee. “Including each other.”

Nadine
stared at him but said nothing.

“
Stop trying to scare her.” Gina’s tone was angry, and
that surprised Nadine. “The wind has stopped.” Gina rose. “Let’s get moving.”

The
others rose and filed out, but Nadine stayed where she was. The lantern was
still on the floor. She started to move, but Addison’s voice, soft and tender,
stopped her. “It’s all right, Nadine. Just trust us.”

Was
he a mind reader? “I do trust you.”

He
gazed into her eyes for long moments, and she was certain he was about to kiss
her, but Merrill poked his head back into the cave and the spell was broken.
“We need to get moving, Addison.”

They
rose, Addison picked up the lantern, turned it off, and then they joined the
others.

****

Addison
was grateful he’d worn heavy clothing, not because it was chilly up here, but
because his dick was rock hard now and it would be difficult to hide it in
jeans and a t-shirt. Nadine hadn’t let go of his hand since they’d emerged from
the cave, and that didn’t help matters any, but he also didn’t mind
too
much. He didn’t mind at all,
actually. And he also didn’t give a shit that the others were giving him
curious glances.

Addison
didn’t discuss his personal life with his procurement team members. He didn’t
have to. They usually read about it online, but they had never read about him
and Dixon’s daughter. This was exactly what he’d told himself he would not do,
especially now. But then she’d looked at him that way. So vulnerable and
afraid. What was a man supposed to do? He was only human.

Still,
they were on a mission to find her father who in all likelihood was dead. Even
if Dixon had found a cave to hide in, why hadn’t he emerged and contacted one
of them by now? No one had heard a thing from him since Thursday. If his laptop
battery had worn down, he’d have made his way to shelter by now and recharged
it.

Unless
he was hurt. That was the other possibility that had been running through
Addison’s mind since hearing about Dixon’s disappearance. He might be in a cave
but not able to move. In which case, he might die of thirst or starvation
before they could find him.

Either
way, Nadine would have a traumatic event in her life to face within a few days,
and although Addison would be there with her when they found her father, it
wouldn’t be right to use that discovery for his own needs. He’d be the worst
shit in the world to do that. No. He had to keep his damn hormones under
control for now. She made that nearly impossible, but he’d have to step up and
do it anyway.

****

Nadine
wasn’t sure she could handle it when, an hour later, the clouds built quickly
again. This time, there was a shelter close by, but just as they all reached
it, the clouds dissipated.

“
False alarm,” said Gina.

The
group laughed nervously as they all watched the sun emerge from behind the
clouds, just as if it had been there all morning. Nadine shook her head.
“That’s insane.”

“
This is how it is up here all the time now,” said
Addison, giving her hand a squeeze.

“
How do you stand it? It’s like walking on edge every
second.”

He
grinned and nodded. “Yes. Exactly.”

She
couldn’t imagine doing this all the time, for days or weeks on end. This was
what her father had been doing for seven years now. This horrible wind noise,
the odd feel to the air, and the clouds that looked like something out of a
horror movie, then disappeared as if someone had simply flipped a switch.

Every
single day, all day long. How did anyone stay sane up here?

She
watched Addison walk along, his head held high and his entire demeanor radiating
confidence. He didn’t look the least bit afraid. None of them did. As they made
their way toward the bunker, they talked about the items they’d found over the
years, and occasionally Gina would stop to show them something on the radar.

It
took another fifteen minutes to reach the bunker, and Nadine’s entire body
ached by then. The Storm Troopers, with the exception of George, were at the
bunker waiting for them. Merrill gave Nadine a big hug, and she was thrilled to
see him again. He had a smile that crinkled up the skin around his eyes and
made it appear that he was squinting into the sun. That’s what she had always
remembered about him.

“
Your dad talks about you all the time, you know. He is
so proud of everything you’ve accomplished.”

Nadine
didn’t think she’d accomplished much of anything compared to her father, or to
anyone in this group, but she smiled and thanked Merrill anyway. Alesia
Gonzales couldn’t have been much older than she was, but her eyes held a
maturity and confidence that Nadine wished she felt inside.

“
I met your father once,” she said, “and we talked for
hours about tropical storm formation. It’s still his passion, isn’t it?”

“
Yes. It always has been, from as far back as I can
remember.”

Alesia
gave her a serious look. “We’re going to find him, Nadine. He’s the most
resourceful person anyone in this group has never met. He didn’t let that storm
take him.”

She
had to swallow against the sudden lump in her throat. “Thank you. I hope you’re
right.”

The
bunker was far larger than she’d been picturing, and it had plenty of
bathrooms, which was like finding nirvana right now. After the group who had
arrived took care of their more immediate needs, Gina showed Nadine where they
had computers in case any of them wanted to check email or do research.

The
Wi-Fi signal in the bunker was too weak to access her email on her phone, and
she could have used a cable to plug it into the modem, but instead she logged
into her email on one of the computers, only to see if her mother had written
her back. She had not.

While
the group caught up with one another and went into the kitchen area to make a
meal they could share, Addison took her aside into one of the bedrooms. It
looked like she’d always pictured a convent bedroom. Drab walls, single
mattress on a metal frame, table, chair, and mirror hanging on the wall. No
windows, of course.

The
bathroom was barely large enough to turn around in. She was surprised to find
the rooms even had private baths. The bedrooms were all in a row, and she
didn’t imagine the walls were very thick. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to
sleep here, and almost regretted asking to come on this mission.

“
How are you holding up?” he asked gently.

She
hadn’t been alone with him for any length of time since Saturday morning in her
apartment, and an overwhelming nostalgia for her home and job washed over her.
She had to keep it together for her father’s sake. She couldn’t simply sit
around and wait for someone to find him. “I’m fine.”

He
raised his brows. “That’s it? You’re fine? Nothing else to say?”

“
It’s a bit overwhelming.” She cut her gaze toward the
closed door. “Won’t they be looking for us?”

“
No.”

“
They’re making food.”

“
Cold sandwiches and warmed up soup. It can wait a few
moments. George won’t be here for a couple of days at least, and we promised
we’d wait for him, so we have plenty of time.” Addison sat down on the cot and
patted the space next to him. “Have a seat. Let’s talk for a while. I’m worried
about you.”

She
eyed the bed. There was no place else to sit, and if she didn’t do as he asked
and stay to talk he’d think it was odd. She wasn’t prepared to explain why she
was reluctant to be alone in a bedroom with a man. Not under these
circumstances.

Nadine
sat next to him. He’d worn jeans and a t-shirt under his ski gear, which most
of them had done, but on him it looked better than on any of the others. “Why
are you worried about me?”

“
Because you’re so quiet.”

“
Wishing you hadn’t agreed to let me come?”

He
shook his head. “No, not at all, but the others might wonder if my agreeing to
this was a wise move. Please tell me what’s going through your head. I want to
reassure you if I can, or answer any questions you have.”

“
That cave run was a bit disconcerting.”

“
Of course it was. We all feel the same way every time,
I assure you.”

“
You do?” That surprised her.

“
Yes. Absolutely. We know each time up here could be
our last. It might not show, but we’re not as foolhardy as you probably think.
We love the challenge of being up here, but we respect what the storms can do.
That’s why we seek shelter instead of trying to outrun them.”