He frowns and shakes his head.
Then he takes my face in both his hands and leans in.
I slam back into my body as his lips brush against mine. He kisses me gently. Once. Twice. Barely there touches that sear my very soul.
Then he pulls back to stare at me. “Are you back with me now, butterfly?”
I answer him by grabbing the back of his neck and hauling him against me. He groans as we collide, his lips parting for his tongue to mingle with mine. It’s not tidy or polite. It’s messy. Uncontrolled. Teeth clashing and moans echoing.
It’s the best kiss I’ve ever had.
All the emotion I’ve been suppressing around him comes pouring out. The want. The need. The desperation. I let him feel them all. I letmyselffeel them.
He bites my lower lip, and I whimper. “Brad. Oh, fuck.”
He stills against me, and I realize my mistake. That’s right. He’s not Brad. I’ve got no fucking idea who he is, or why he’s gone along with this whole thing.
He pulls away and there’s an expression on his face I haven’t seen before. It’s guarded. Almost regretful?
“I think you have a deadline, butterfly,” he rasps, handing me my phone. “Take the picture, then we can talk about all the secrets you’ve been keeping from me.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I heard what he said. Now, take the picture and send it before the deadline passes. We need to buy ourselves some time.”
I take it from him with numb hands. Three of the five minutes have passed already. “I… No.”
He cocks his head. “What do you mean,no?”
“I can’t do it. There’s no point, anyway. You’re not Brad. I kidnapped the wrong person.”
“Just send the photo anyway, Ansel. Prove that you followed through…even if it went slightly wrong.”
Slightly.Like kidnapping the wrong person was akin to taking the wrong exit on the freeway.
“But then they’ll know who you are. You don’t want to be dragged into this life. Trust me on that.”
He gives me a thin smile. “Don’t worry about me. Right now, my priority is keeping you safe.”
I search his face. “How can you say that? I kidnapped you. If they had shown up, I would’ve just handed you over to them. So they could do fuck-knows-what to you. How the hell are you trying to protect me right now?”
His large hand cups my face. “Because, out of the two of us, you’re the one who needs protecting.”
“You’re insane,” I whisper. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with. What they’re capable of. They’re very bad men.”
He shrugs. “You’re not the only one who’s been keeping secrets.”
My breath catches. “Wait, what secrets are you keeping?”
He grins, but there’s no humor in it. “I’ll share my secrets when you share the rest of yours. Let’s just say that we’ve both woven a tangled web, and I think it’s time we start unraveling it. To do that, we need to get whoever those fuckers are off your back by sending a picture.”
Less than a minute left.“You can’t be serious. No. I’m not doing it. This is my mess, not yours. I’m not dragging you down with me.”
“Fucking stubborn,” he mutters, snatching my phone from my hands. He snaps a selfie. He’s not smiling, those dimples are nowhere to be found. Instead, he’s glaring at the camera like he can murder the person on the other end with that look alone. “Right, last number called…” Before I can process what he’s doing, he’s handing my phone back to me. “There. Done.”
I blink at him in disbelief. “Why would you do that?”
“I told you, to keep you safe.”
