No matter how much she wanted him right now, it wouldn’t last. She might find him amusing for now, but the novelty would wear off. And when it did? She’d be gone. She would find a man who could stand for more than an hour at a time. One who wasn’t as scarred on the inside as he was outside. And she’d be smart to do so.
Plus, there was that whole jail thing…
Feeling sick, he gripped her legs and unwrapped himself from her body slowly. When she stood on the floor, her knees wobbled slightly, as if she couldn’t stand on her own. Once he was certain she wasn’t going to fall, he leaned against the wall and put all of his weight on his good leg.
Well, shit. That fucking hurt. He’d be limping all day now, thanks to his impulsive actions. He should have known his injury wouldn’t stand up to wall sex.
But fuck his injury.
He was sick of being the guy he’d been lately. He wanted to be different. Wanted…shit if he knew. He just knew he wanted. Dropping his head back, he took a deep breath. After removing the condom and disposing of it in the trash can by the door, he tucked himself back into his pants.
If he looked at her, she might see too much. “Is your skirt back down?”
“Yeah. I think we’re good.”
He took a deep breath and opened the door. She straightened and smoothed the soft material over her thighs, then nodded at him once. Around her, he felt more alive than…hell, he didn’t know.
Since before the war.
Before he’d witnessed half of his buddies get blown to puzzle pieces, and survived to relive every single fucking detail at night when he slept. The light from the hallway illuminated her profile, and he focused on her again. Her swollen lips and flushed cheeks reminded him how amazing she felt, and her tousled hair teased him. He’d done that to her. Given her that I got fucked look.
And everyone would know it.
Swallowing hard, he latched gazes with her. She watched him with such trust, such openness, that it killed him. He had to do whatever it took to keep her safe, and he had a feeling he had the perfect plan. The problem was, it would make her hate him. She’d never forgive him, but she’d be out of jail.
That was all that mattered…or so he kept telling himself.
He cupped the nape of her neck and urged her close. “I’m sorry I had to blackmail you into helping me. And I’m even more sorry I might have to send you to jail. I wish—”
“I know,” she said, her flushed cheeks going pale. “I know.”
Unable to put the rest of his thoughts into words, he stepped out into the hallway, and they headed for the door. It was time for him to save her…
And pay the consequences.
Chapter Ten
Tara took a deep breath and pushed some random numbers on the safe lock. She tried her best to make her incompetence convincing, but she knew she was a complete and utter fail in that department. And judging from Jake’s narrow stare…he agreed with her own rating of her mediocre acting skills.
She’d been pretending to be an idiot for an hour and a half, emitting moans and a few curses here and there, but she was running out of ways to act stupid. She didn’t do stupid.
The glow of his phone illuminated his perfect face, since the dim overhead light didn’t do much in that area. They were in Soltese’s safe, which was easily the size of Jake’s guest room, and dark gray walls surrounded them. It smelled like money and potpourri.
She sighed loudly. He was probably playing Candy Crush or something equally innocuous while she killed herself over here trying to look stumped. When he didn’t look up from his phone, she sighed even louder. Slowly, he glanced up. “Is there a problem?”
“Yeah. I want out of here. Take me to jail now. I surrender.”
His mouth tightened. “It’s been almost two hours. You’re telling me you can’t remember how you cracked the code?”
She stood and swiped her palms on her skirt. “Can we go home now?”
“No.”
“Maybe we can try tomorrow?” she asked hopefully. “Fresh minds and all that?”
“We need a solution by today, or tomorrow morning you’ll go to jail.” He strode to the door. “I know you don’t have signal, but I do. Maybe you need a little more persuasion.”
She tensed, watching him cautiously. “What are you doing?”
“Persuading you.” He tossed his iPhone through the door of the safe. “And hoping like hell that you can get us out of here.”
She stumbled after him. “No, you can’t do—” He closed their only exit with a bam. She clamped her mouth shut and scowled at him. “Seriously?”
“Seriously.” He leaned against the wall as if he didn’t have a care in the world. As if he hadn’t locked them in together, with no hope of escape. “Now get us out.”