“Emily?” She didn’t respond. He crept closer and touched her shoulder. “Emily?”
She turned in alarm, attempting to quell her sobbing.
“Jake?” She swiped at her tear-soaked cheeks. “I’m sorry if I woke you.”
“You didn’t wake me.” He sat on the edge of her bed facing her. “Come here.” He pulled her to a sitting position and into his arms.
She leaned into his embrace, pressing her head against his shoulder. Her slight frame melded against his body brought out every protective instinct Jake possessed.
“I keep having nightmares. I see them shoot Cameron again and again. And I keep... waiting for him to get up... willing him to be okay... to not be dead.” Her voice broke, and a tremor shook her body.
Jake’s arms tightened around her. “Oh Emily, I’m so sorry.”
“And then... then they’re... chasing me.”
Jake picked her up and moved her to the middle of the bed, making room for him beside her. He pulled her back into his arms and pressed his lips to her hair. Its faint strawberry scent acted as a balm to soothe his anxiety for Emily.
“You’re safe. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Thank you.” She took several shuddering breaths, and her sobs gradually subsided. “I do feel safe with you.” She was quiet for a few moments, and he wondered if she’d fallen asleep. Then she let out a moan, grabbing the front of his shirt in a tight fist, she curled deeper into his embrace. “I keep seeing it over and over.” She looked up at him with imploring eyes. “Please, help me forget. Help me think of something else.”
The tears clinging to her long lashes, glistening in the moonlight, twisted Jake’s heart. He’d do anything for her. At that moment, with her eyes so full of pain, Jake ached to take away her sorrow.
But he couldn’t. He couldn’t take away her pain any more than he could bring her brother or her father back. And he couldn’t make her unsee the horrible things she’d seen.
He could help her think of something else, though.
Wiping the tears from her cheeks with a gentle caress, he told himself he was doing it to distract her. Not because he’d been dying to kiss her again.
It was a bad idea, one she might misconstrue as him taking advantage of her, but he lowered his lips to hers anyway. He kept the kiss light, letting her know there was no expectation. After a moment, he lifted his head enough to gauge her reaction.
She let out a sigh as her eyes fluttered open. “That’s a nice distraction.” She strained upward until their lips met again.
Jake pressed his mouth to hers again and tightened his arms around her, being mindful of her ribs. Her right hand crept up his neck.
Warmth flowed from her body to his and back again as his heart raced. Her full lips moved with his, and Jake claimed more of her mouth when she offered. She didn’t taste like strawberries tonight, but she tasted so good—sweet and inviting and slightly salty. He could become addicted to the taste of her mouth.
This was why he shouldn’t have come into Emily’s room in the middle of the night. Kissing her was an even worse idea. But he didn’t regret it one bit.
Jake had always prided himself on his self-control. But he felt it slipping now.
Kissing Emily like this was dangerous. The electricity between them was explosive.
He didn’t want either of them to regret a kiss that somewhere along the line had ceased to be a means of distraction and become a source of temptation.
With monumental effort, he groaned and pulled his lips from hers, his chest heaving.
Emily’s breathing was as labored as his. Disappointment replaced the desire in her eyes.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he whispered with a ragged breath. “I’m a strong man, but I’m not that strong. At least not where you’re concerned.”
Emily sucked in a deep breath then let it out again. “If I want more than that it will have to be in my dreams, huh?”
“It gives you something else to think about.”
“Yes, it does.” She smiled and laid her head against his chest. “But will you stay with me a little longer, please?”
“For a few minutes.” He shifted to a more comfortable position, propping an extra pillow from the other side of the bed, behind his head.
