Page 16 of Semi-Reckless

She looked up at him.

D’oh!

So many emotions. Anger. Pain. Guilt. And while she hated to see those things on his face…holy hell he looked good by firelight.

“I can keep you warm,” he grumbled.

Fuck yeah, you could.

This created a bit of a pickle for her, though. Roan was a demon whose body temperature usually ran a nice, sultry 107 degrees. Snuggling up with him would keep her warmer than any portable space heater on the market. But being that close to him, touching him, after what he’d said to her earlier? That couldn’t possibly be good for her heart.

After a long internal battle, she decided the only way her heart would live to fight another day was if she didn’t freeze to death against this spruce tree. So, she swallowed hard and gave Roan a little nod.

He bent down, unzipped her sleeping bag, and lifted her into his arms like she was weightless (she so wasn’t). Then he sat down, putting his back against the tree, and held her against his chest. Across his lap.

She immediately tucked her cold nose into the spot where his neck met his shoulder. The sharp breath he let out ruffled her hair, sending a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold down her spine.

Roan reached around her and grabbed the sleeping bag, tucking it around them like a cocoon. “Better?” he murmured.

It was the warmest she’d felt in a long, long time. The safest. And frankly, it pissed her off a little.

This is how it should always be for them. Not the cold, and not the camping. But the closeness. The sharing. He was mad at her for accepting the date with Levi, but was still unwilling to let her be uncomfortable. There was a name for that.

Love.

And even though he loved her, he was going to leave her when the case was closed. Abandon her, again, taking all his heat and love and security with him.

“Sometimes I really want to hate you,” she whispered.

One heartbeat. Two. Three.

Then: “Sometimes I really want to hate you, too, sweetheart.”

CHAPTER 9

It was late morning the next day when they reached the mine. Roan felt fortunate he’d made it this far on zero caffeine and zero sleep.

Who knew that holding the woman of your dreams all night, fighting off a hard-on while she slept trustingly in your arms, could be so utterly exhausting?

But as Roan followed Haven’s gaze to the mineshaft entrance, he knew his day was going to be even longer than his night had been. Because this place was…not impressive.

Honestly, it looked like the original workplace that made OSHA necessary. The only thing that kept it from looking like a natural cave were the three rickety-looking beams that were holding the entrance open. Their crookedness—and the multitude of rocks that had fallen on the top beam—didn’t really add much to the place’s appeal. Neither did the rusty train tracks that seemed drunkenly placed through the center. Well, center-ish.

He glanced over at Haven, knowing there was only one thing that could stop her from wanting to go in there, and sadly, it wasn’t the potential of running into a cattle-melting demon. “Bet there’s lots of bugs in there. Bats too, probably.”

She swallowed hard. “You think?”

“Definitely. It’s probably like that scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in there.”

He watched as the color drained from her face. He knew he should feel bad about using her only fear against her, but he didn’t. Hell, in the game of keeping her safe, he’d use every advantage he had. It was just his misfortune that he only had this one advantage.

But sadly, true to form, Haven Hall rallied like a boss. She straightened her shoulders, lifted her stubborn little chin in the air, and started marching into the center of her greatest fear.

This was why he loved her…and sometimes hated her just a little. She was wild and brave and free. He wished he was like her. And still, watching her put herself in danger so often and so willfully tore at his heart every time. She had so many people who adored and depended on her. Why the hell didn’t she realize how all of them would be destroyed by losing her?

This world was dark enough. Without Haven’s spirit to light it? It’d be unbearable.

So, he followed her into a mine that looked like it could collapse on them at any moment. Just like he’d always followed her into every dangerous situation she put herself in.

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