A bad sign considering he’d kept tabs on her consumption while she’d nursed her aches and pains. Gray looked around, and the vast wilderness inched closer. About to suggest they head in reverse and get back in the warm vehicle, her brain shut her down when he took her hand.
This time, she didn’t try to take it back.
Right now, he was the only thing between her, the assholes who wanted her, and oblivion. As much as it killed her to admit it, she needed him.
“Ready?” Beneath the brim of his ball cap, his eyes were two black smudges, impossible to see and impossible to read.
Despite her reservations, she firmed her grip in his, and ignoring the relief his warm palm provided, she waved him ahead with her free hand. “Lead on, soldier boy.”
Chase liked havingGray’s hand in his. A lot. Maybe too much. He liked the woman too. More than liked. A combination of fire and ice, she was hot and cold. Friendly and aloof. Easygoing and difficult.
The juxtaposition made him want to get to know her better, but so far, she hadn’t answered any of his questions. Not the ones that mattered. Like who she was, where she came from, and why she was here.
More importantly, he wanted to know what made her green eyes light up? What made her smile until her cheeks ached? What made her laugh out loud or her heart skip a beat? She was a mystery he wanted to unravel.
Wouldn’t be easy. She’d already made that perfectly clear. But he’d never been someone who preferred easy. The harder the road and the tougher the challenge, the bigger the reward, in his opinion.
And he’d be willing to bet the real Gray was worth the effort.
Yeah. Holding her hand was nice, but he wanted more. He needed a strategy. A game plan for getting past her defenses.
“Getting a little wet here.” Chin tilted up, rain kissed her face, and she blinked hard to clear the water from her eyes.
“We’re about to get a whole lot wetter before we get to where we’re going.” He pulled the Bruins cap off his head and settled it low on hers. Then using both thumbs, he cleared the moisture from beneath her eyes. “You okay to walk for a couple of hours?”
She shuddered. “Hours?”
“Yep.”
“As in two?”
He retook her hand, and a hint of satisfaction curled in his chest when she closed her fingers tightly around his. “More or less.”
“Well, which is it?”
“Probably more in your condition.”
She snorted. “Pregnant women have a condition. I have a couple of bruises.” She took a few steps in the wrong direction, and he reeled her back in with an easy tug.
“I’m serious, Gray. It’s dark. It’s raining. And the terrain is rough. We need to cross the border undetected, and this is the best way, but I need to know if you’re up to the challenge.”
“And if I’m not?”
He shrugged. “Then I’ll find another way.” Another way would take longer and increase the chances of Bodak’s men finding them. But if he had to—for her sake—he’d take the risk and deal with the consequences.
“I’m fine.” She looked at her feet, and he knew she was lying.
With his free hand, he curled a finger under her chin and lifted her head until her gaze met his. “And your ankle?” He hadn’t noticed a limp earlier, but the slight hitch in her step as she’d come around the truck worried him now.
“It’s fine.
“Gray…”
“Chase…”
He waited.
She waited.
