She focused back on the road in front of her, periodically checking the mirror to see if the white truck was gaining on them again. Zack growled.Stubborn woman!He grabbed the steering wheel and pulled it to the right toward the underground parking.
“Stop it,” she snapped.
He hung onto the steering wheel, ignoring her protest. Once inside, she slowed the SUV. Blinking, he tried to adjust his sight to the sudden change from brightness to semi-darkness.
“Over there.” He pointed. “Park there.”
“You’ve got to be kidding. That’s the first place the gunman will look.” She glared at him as she drove up another level.
This woman irritated him more than he could imagine. Of course, the pain in his arm wasn’t making him a pleasant person, either. “What’s wrong with you?” he asked accusingly.
She huffed. “If you can’t tell by now, I’m the driver. You’re the passenger. So, shut up and let me drive.”
“I don’t care if you’re the driver. You’re going to get us both killed.”
Ignoring him, she continued at a slower speed, looking for someplace to park. Up ahead was an empty spot in front of a cement column. As she pressed on the brake to turn, he yanked on the wheel again, moving the SUV away from the spot.
“Are you blind?” he snapped. “If you park there, we’ll be closed in.”
Agent Lawson’s expression tightened. “Listen to me,” she glared at him. “I’m an FBI agent. I know what I’m doing, so let me drive.”
He leaned closer to her. “And I know my way around parking garages. Park there, instead.” He pointed to an empty spot. “That way, you’ll have a better view of the truck if it comes this way. And...” He pointed to the road, “you won’t be blocked in like you’d be if you had parked in front of that cement column.”
She pulled in the empty stall he had indicated and turned off the engine. He sighed, knowing he wouldn’t have to argue with her about that any longer.
“We really need to make one thing clear,” she said angrily, turning to pierce him with her scowl, but as soon as she took a breath to continue, her gaze dropped to his arm. She gasped. “You’re bleeding.”
“Yeah. I was shot.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?” She pulled back her seat and reached underneath.
“Well, you were a little busy trying to get us away from that truck.”
She withdrew a first aid kit. She reached toward him, but then shook her head before climbing out of the SUV and hurrying to his side. He opened the door. Looking over his bloody arm made him cringe.
“Do you know where you were shot?” she asked.
“Just below my shoulder.”
She groaned. “Take off your shirt. We might need it to use as a tourniquet.”
She assisted him in removing his jacket. Then, with his left hand, he started to unbutton his shirt, but dizziness assailed him from the loss of blood, making him weak. Silently, he commanded himself to stay alert, but for some reason, his body didn’t want to listen.
“Here, let me do it.” Her voice came out higher than normal.
Agent Lawson practically ripped his shirt open. He wanted to chuckle but didn’t have the energy. That was the first time a woman had ripped off his shirt, and he wished he could actually enjoy it right now.
Staring at the FBI agent’s worried face, he realized that she was rather pretty in her own little way. She had her long, straight brown hair in a ponytail, and she didn’t wear a lot of make-up – if any at all – unlike most women he knew. But she had the cutest little nose, and her lips weren’t so bad, either. In fact, the kiss they’d shared earlier was still on his mind. She also had very pretty hazel eyes. Right now, they were more brown than they were green.
She must have ripped his shirt into pieces without him realizing it, but as she wrapped one of the strips around his upper arm, relief eased his mind. Agent Lawson knew what she was doing, and he wouldn’t die under her care. At least not this time.
Once the tourniquet was in place, she ripped open a bandage and some ointment packets. Using a wet-wipe, she tried to clean off the blood. After she was finished with that, she applied the bandages, wrapping the gauze around his arm tightly.
Her pretty hazel gaze lifted and met his stare. She offered a weak smile. He didn’t have the strength to return the gesture.
“How are you holding up?” she asked.
“Well, I’m still talking to you, right?”
