Page 18 of No Escape
I’m free…
Slowly, I inched my way out from under his arm and slid from the bed. Standing in my bare feet on the dirty carpet, I looked down at him. He was dead to the world.
Looking over at the chair where he’d slung his jacket, I noted the holster and gun. Looking at the desk next to the television I could see my bag of money. The cuffs were on his side of the nightside table. I could easily cuff him, grab the gun, my money. Take the keys to the vehicle and get the fuck out of here.
Run again.
I’d run further. Hide better than the last time.
But I couldn’t seem to make my feet move. My feet were planted on the floor, my toes sinking into the worn carpet fibers—unmoving. He’d found me once, who’s to say that he couldn’t do it again? Or worse, the people who framed me to begin with? With Aaron’s arrest, a lot of people would be getting desperate. They’d want to tie up loose ends.
No doubt, in their minds I was one big loose end.
There was something more though. He seemed to have a strong sense of what was right. After last night; what he’d seen on television, what if he was the only one who could save my life?
It was at that moment that I realized that I trusted him.
My stomach growled. Looking into the brown paper bag that had the food he’d bought at the store in it, I crinkled up my nose. All junk. We needed nutrition, how he managed to look so damned good on his diet was beyond me.
After using the washroom, I threw on a pair of jogging pants and one of his oversized t-shirts over my otherwise naked body, slipped on my sneakers, grabbed a few bills from my duffel bag, and as quietly as I could exited the motel room and made my way to the supermarket.
Entering the supermarket by myself felt weird. It had been literally years since I’d gone by myself to a supermarket to buy groceries. It felt surprisingly nice to be normal again. We were on the outskirts of some random town so no one paid me any mind as I grabbed a basket and began to throw some items into it. To my surprise and delight, they made fresh smoothies in the deli. I grabbed a kale and blueberry smoothie for us both.
Satisfied with my selections, I went through the checkout. The clerk barely gave me a second look as I paid and exited making my way back across the street toward the motel.
Pulling the motel key out of the picket, I was about to unlock it when the door swung open and an infuriated Dayton came barreling out, barefoot and with his gun in hand.
I screamed as I stumbled backward. The only thing keeping me from falling flat on my ass and the tray of smoothies tumbling to the ground was his SUV behind me. “Dayton! What the hell!” I squealed.
Anger flashed in his dark eyes as they landed on me. “Where the hell were you? I thought you’d made a run for it!”
“And gone where?” Steadying myself, my eyes narrowed as I stared up at him. “You seriously think I would leave my money behind if I planned on running?” Rolling my eyes at him, I tried not to let his furious glare unsteady me as I strode past him and into the room.
“Where were you?” Closing the door, he trailed behind me into the room.
“The store. I’d have thought that was obvious considering the grocery bag.” Placing the bag and tray of smoothies on the desk, I decided that killing him with kindness was the answer to defuse this situation.
Grabbing his smoothie, I stuck a straw into the top, spun around, and smiled up at him brightly, as I passed him the drink I’d bought him. “It’s kale and blueberry with ground chia seeds. All the good stuff you need to get the day started right. We have a lot of work ahead of us if we want to get me off the hook for these charges.”
“I don’t want a smoothie, Elle.” Snatching the smoothie from me, he placed it back onto the desk and grabbed my upper arms. “Do you have any clue what might have happened to you if someone had seen you? Don’t you even think about the consequences of your actions?”
The happy façade I’d been trying so hard to keep up fell as I pulled myself from his grip. “Of course I do. It’s my life! I’m the one that’s either going to end up in prison or dead! Of course I do.” I turned away from him only to have him grab my wrist and spin me back to face him. As I spun, I lost my balance falling against him.
Placing my palms flat on his strong, sculpted chest, I looked up and into his angry eyes.
“You’re going to get us both killed,” he growled as the tension between us began to crackle.
“Dayton…” I gasped as my heart began beating so quickly that I could have sworn I could feel it thumping against my chest.
“How am I going to protect you?” he rasped as his lips came crashing down onto mine.
Emotions overwhelmed me as I slipped my hands up the front of his shirt to his strong shoulders. This shouldn’t be happening. I knew this, but the warmth of his body, the power in his arms as he pulled me tight and the smell of him—a combination of the ocean and freshly laundered linen drew me to him.
I sighed against his mouth, a small smile spreading across my lips as my body relaxed against him. My lips parted as I nipped at his lower lip, before inviting him in.
There was a deep grumble within him as he deepened the kiss, his tongue demanding, forcing mine into submission.
A jolt of desire shot through me as his hands slid down my back to my ass. Grabbing my thighs, he easily hoisted me up onto his hips and carried me over to the bed. We toppled onto the bed, his heavy body over mine.
