Stolen

Gemma drunkenly wakes up to Ty pushing his way into her room. He waits for her to sober up and fixes her breakfast on the veranda. She wonders if anyone is still looking for her. He reveals the reason behind the poisonous creatures in the outbuilding: He’s making antivenom. He’ll milk their venom, inject it into the camel, and collect her immune reaction. He offers to help Gemma build up her own immunity by injecting little bits of venom into herself. She resists the idea.

Ty starts being really nice, fussing over her, and Gemma tests his boundaries. She claims he must hate her if he won’t let her go. He tries to argue that she just needs to give it six months, and she’ll learn to appreciate life with him. He promises to take her to a town if she still hates it after six months. She calls him disgusting, a killer, and a dog. He tells her he loves her. Instead of getting angry, he feels wounded and sad. She feels both empowered and strangely guilty. Over dishes, he insists he’s serious about the six-month arrangement. She barters it down to four months.