Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 104185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
“This?” My voice rose with every word. “This is keeping me safe?”
Frey had known where I was at every turn, even when they moved me.
Jason stood with one hand resting on his hip, his posture awkward. Uncomfortable. Was his back hurting him? Or had my question caused his discomfort?
“We’ve had a breach in security,” Bill explained quietly. “We’re looking into it.”
The admission sparked life into Jason. “Frey’s team was organized with the right equipment and the right staging. Nobody pulls off that kind of extraction without planning.” His tone was dark and angry. “They knew we would be here, and we hadn’t made that call until after the gas station attack, which means someone leaked the contingency plan. Who built it?”
“It’s a rolling assignment. As I said, we’re looking into it.” The older man glanced at his phone and then back to me. “They’ve authorized a helicopter, and it’ll be here soon. I can’t make you get on it, but I’m asking you to. Politely.”
I angled my head toward Jason. “What about him?”
“He’ll be out of a job if he gets on it.” Bill gave his marshal a pointed look. “I’ll be out front with the car in nine and a half minutes.”
He went, pulling the door shut behind him loudly.
Oh, my God.
Jason was going to have to choose between staying with me or keeping his job, and I didn’t want to know which one was going to come out on top. Part of me already knew, but I didn’t want to deal with it. Instead, I went to the duffle bag of clothes and lugged it into the bathroom, leaving the door open.
My whole body ached. My feet were filthy black.
I started the water in the shower, turned, and startled at the sight of Jason hovering just outside the doorway.
“You need any help?” He sounded business-like.
“No, thanks. I’ll just be a minute.” I was scared to ask it. “You’ll still be here when I’m done?”
“Yeah.”
He tried to close the door, but I stopped him.
“Can we . . . ? I’d like to leave it open a little. Just in case.”
In case Frey came back with his team of men. In case I wanted to know Jason was right outside. And I wasn’t entirely ready to be trapped inside a bathroom that looked identical to the one where I thought I was going to die.
He nodded in understanding and left the door cracked.
In the base of the shower, I watched dirt and red-brown blood swirl down the drain. The heat of the water and my exhaustion were temporarily distracting, until—
“Jason?” I said it loud enough so he’d hear me over the running water, but not loud enough to cause worry. “Where’s Derrick?”
There was no answer.
Had he not heard me?
Shit, had he left the room? Then a new, horrible thought sliced through my mind, turning my blood to slush. “Is he dead?”
“Yes.”
I sank down to sit in the tub, accidentally knocking the small bottle of shampoo over and sending it crashing to the floor. Everything was numb.
“Are you okay?” his flat voice asked, like he meant it in the strictest sense only.
I didn’t answer.
Even though I had no time, I let the water beat down on me for a long minute. I didn’t hurry as I pulled a paper-thin towel down off the rack and wrapped it around my body. I forced myself to focus elsewhere.
“Is that why you’ve been relieved?”
“No.”
I grabbed the clothes at the top of the bag and dressed in a simple sweater and dark jeans. A red mark had developed in the center of my forehead, a reminder of the moment my attacker had slammed my head to the ground. My hair was wet, the ends dripping on my sweater, but I no longer cared about how I looked.
I stepped out of the bathroom and found him sitting on the bed, one hand massaging the back of his neck.
“Is it because of whatever happened that put you in handcuffs?”
“No.”
Was he purposefully being vague? “Then why?”
“Because Bill knows I kissed you. There was a security camera in the restaurant.”
I leaned against the dresser to keep from collapsing. “I’m sorry. This is all my fault.”
His gaze snapped to me, and his expression was incredulous. “This is not your fault. You didn’t make me kiss you. I did that.”
He rose from the bed, moving slower than normal, obviously in pain. He advanced toward me until there was no more space left between us then dipped his head, so he was only inches away. The corner of his mouth lifted in a sad smile, and his voice dropped to a hush.
“You could have made it less difficult on me,” he said, “not to kiss you, though.”
He leaned in and set his lips on mine, and when his arms wrapped around me, I wanted to melt into him. There was a safety in his embrace which the logical side of my brain didn’t understand. It half expected him to pull away at any moment.