Page 53 of Hidden But Not Safe

Her name did the opposite of soothing her. She shifted in her seat as if restless before looking away.

“We should get back. Julio will be pissed.”

Naz had forgotten to open the garage. He took care of it, hating that much space between them, though he fully expected there to be even more once they reached the warehouse.

Chapter 17

By the time they ditched the van and got back to the motorcycle, the ride had Meg shivering and pressed tight against him like a second skin. It was well into the night, and Meg’s eyes darted around the yard as he helped her with her helmet.

His hands buffed her shaking ones, and her eyes locked onto his. The tension loosened in her shoulders.

“I wish—” She broke off, but she didn’t pull away.

Naz wanted her to finish the thought.He had lots of wishes of his own when it came to Meg.

“I should find Julio,” she said.

He released her before she could tug free of him, then watched as she walked to the trailer.

The inside wall of the warehouse chilled his back, but he was able to doze for the first time in days.

When his eyes next dragged opened, it was to watch her approach him, a hitch in her steps that hadn’t been there when she’d walked away from him before.

The wall at Naz’s back felt even colder as he watched her hesitate, close enough to touch.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, the words catching in her throat. She stared down at her cloth shoes, shifting as she avoided looking at him. “I’m so fucking selfish. You should send me back to Julio.”

Naz’s hand snaked out, closing over the top of her right foot. He gave it a light squeeze, and her eyes finally met his, the tension in them seeping away.

He held his arms open, and she scrambled into his lap, shifting with a wince until she found a comfortable spot and melted against him.

She placed a small kiss to his throat. “Tomorrow. Let’s sleep in the other trailer again tomorrow.” Her hair tickled his cheek. “I’ve missed you,” she mumbled.

Her words echoed his own thoughts, creating an ache inside.

Another shipment arrived, this one double what it had been before, and with it came Carlos, a replacement for José, who hadn’t died but also wouldn’t be coming back any time soon.

Carlos was quickly up Julio’s ass like he’d been there all along. The man had a buzzed haircut and a crooked nose he liked to rub a finger over repeatedly.

Meg sat on the table between Julio and Naz, but a bit closer to Naz. She’d taken his phone again, typing out her newest game of twenty questions. Since his hands were busy sorting, she gave him two options for answers, and he paused occasionally to tap on one or the other.

Each time she leaned forward, Carlos stared at her ass from the opposite side of the table with a smirk that Naz wanted to wipe off his face.

Julio noticed but didn’t say a damn thing, just as he hadn’t said anything about Meg spending more time with Naz again.

Meg leaned in, drawing his gaze to her excited smile. He glanced down at the ridiculous question she was so giddy about, lifting an eyebrow.

‘What’s more likely to exist: ghosts or aliens?’

If ghosts were real, they’d already be haunting the shit out of Naz. He tapped on aliens.

She let out a surprised giggle, the one that made Naz want to drag her against him so he could feel it instead of just hearing it. Maybe then the itch in his chest would go away.

Julio froze, staring at her from the other side.

Meg didn’t notice, too busy staring down at his phone. “You’re joking. Aliens?”

Julio’s brow creased. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

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