Page 14 of Shattered World

“As I said, I’ve been scouting the city for months. And yet, either the people I send come up empty-handed or never return. I’m sure that’s no coincidence.”

“You want me to try to find the bunker? I’ve never even been to this city.” I knew the excuse was lame, but I struggled to come up with another. Even if this was something I wanted to do, andin this moment it wasn’t, I knew Aiden and Murphy would never let me venture into a situation this dangerous on my own.

“That is what the maps are for.” Reaching forward, she gripped my hand in hers, refusing to release it. “I can see the indecision in your eyes. But you need to understand, you don’t have a choice.”

Releasing my hand, she leaned back in her chair. Even if I wanted to speak, her words had my voice frozen, my entire body unable to move. There was no other way to take her words than the threat they clearly were.

“Everyone who enters this hotel, who is given safety at the top of my hotel, must do their job. Bring the others down with you this afternoon.”

Without another glance or word, she dismissed me. Moving woodenly, I stood from the chair, exiting the room with an extra weight on my chest. The ride up the elevator seemed too short. I didn’t know how to tell the others about this new situation. Didn’t know how to tell them that some crazy lady downstairs wanted to put our lives on the line once again for the sake of saving others.

The communal area was full when I stepped off the elevator. Immediately, five sets of eyes fell onto me, Murphy jumping up from his seat and striding toward me.

Bending until our eyes met, he whispered, “What’s wrong?”

I was still frozen, unable to form words. Plus, this wasn’t the place. There were too many prying eyes and listening ears.

When Murphy realized I wasn’t going to say anything, he gripped my hand, leading me down the hallway and into our room. The others hadn’t followed and for that, I was thankful. This would be much easier to explain to one person right now.

Settling us on the bed, he held both my hands, his eyes begging for an explanation. As quickly as I could, I reiterated my conversation with Caroline to Murphy. When I was finished, he slumped back against the pillows, pulling me with him.

“You won’t go alone. If she wants all of us to do something, I’ll make sure I’m with you.”

Before I even finished, I always knew that was going to be his response. These men I had found through the turmoil didn’t know hownotto protect. But I had learned the same about myself through all this.

“You won’t,” I told him, no room for disagreement in my tone.

Murphy whipped his head toward me, a frown pulling his lips down. “I won’t agree to that.”

Shaking my head, I told him, “Yes, you will.” Placing my hand over his mouth, I didn’t let him respond before I continued. “I’ve lost my family. Lost the people I love. But you still have someone out there, someone who could be here any day.”

His eyes shuttered with emotion, and I knew he was thinking of his mom. He didn’t speak about her much anymore, there was too much going on, but I knew he still held out hope that she heard his message.

“You still have Aiden,” Murphy mumbled around my palm, and I dropped my hand.

“And that’s why we’ll go together. I won’t let you miss out on the chance to see someone you love because of me.”

“But -”, I cut his words off by pressing my mouth against his before he could finish the statement.

The words he wanted to say had been reflected in his eyes. The words we hadn’t said aloud, but both so deeply felt. But I wasn’t ready for them yet. Not when everything was still so uncertain.

Murphy immediately melted into my kiss, his lips molding against mine. The anxiety of the morning faded away as hishands smoothed up my sides, pulling my body until I was straddling him.

Breaking away from the kiss, I whispered, “I want this moment with you.”

Murphy pressed his forehead against mine, closing his eyes. “We have time.”

And then, without another word, our lips found each other’s again. My hands pressed against his chest as our tongues tangled, one of Murphy’s hand reaching to my hair, pulling the tie that held it together.

The long locks immediately fell down my back, Murphy’s fingers tangling in the mass of dark curls. His mouth left mine, skating across my cheek and down my neck. He sucked the sensitive flesh there, my hips grinding against his hardness as a breathy sigh escaped my lips.

Moving his other hand to my waist, he pulled the fabric of my shirt up, pulling his mouth away to tear the shirt off my head. Before I could move to do the same, his own shirt was gone, our bare chests meeting as our lips collided.

Unlike the last time we had been together, there was no rush. No fear that this would be the last time we touched. Instead, we took our time exploring each other’s bodies.

His hands slid up and down my sides, memorizing each curve of my body as I touched each plane of his chest and stomach. His abdomen clenched as my nails lightly scratched his skin, dipping below the waist of his pants.

Unbuttoning the pants, he lifted his hips, allowing me to slide the material down his legs. Once they were near his ankles, he kicked them the rest of the way off, his briefs soon joining them on the floor.

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