Page 45 of Promises in the Dark

Red clung to me, her fingers twisting in my hair, her whole body trembling against mine.

Fuck, she looked so bloody vulnerable.

It reminded me ofme—that scared little kid, getting beat down by a piece of shit who called himself my father. Made me think of all the times I wished someone would’ve held me like this, kept me safe when I was alone in the dark.

But here she was—a soft, innocent woman, completely out of her depth in this warfare or violence.

She didn’t have to say it. I could see it in her eyes—she trusted me. She fucking needed me.

I wasn’t letting her go. Not until she told me to. I’d take on the goddamn apocalypse if that’s what it took to keep her safe.

Damn the fucking consequences.

As we approached the base, my gut was a tangled ball of nerves. My whole body was tight with rage and anger, feeling the red-hot flush of heat rise up my neck and fill my face.

Being close to Red made me feel like a mess, weak and vulnerable in ways I hadn’t felt since my teenage years, when my old man used to beat the shit out of me. I couldn’t go back tothat place. I couldn’t let anyone have that kind of power over me again.

It was fucking ironic, really. In my line of work, I faced danger head-on, stared death in the face without flinching. But when it came to opening up, to showing my true self, I was fucking terrified. I couldn’t bear the thought of being seen as weak, as that same pathetic little boy my father deemed me to be.

I didn’t like what I was turning into. The way I was spiraling.

So, I made a vow to stop giving a fuck, to stop caring about anyone or anything.

But Red… she made me feel something I couldn’t explain. I didn’t have the words for it, and I damn sure didn’t know how the hell I was gonna explain her to my commander.

I shook my head, trying to shake off the desire to protect her, to keep her close. I couldn’t let her in. I couldn’t let her see what I really was—the twisted wreck of a man behind the tough guy act. Because if she saw that, if she saw the monster, I knew she’d run.

And I couldn’t handle that.

She couldn’t see the boy I’d been, and I wasn’t about to let her know that shit.

I was doing her a favor.

I felt Red’s eyes boring into the side of my skull, like she was drilling for answers I had no intention of giving. But I couldn’t dodge her questions forever.

“We’re almost there,” I announced brusquely, trying to sound calm, like I had my shit together.

She raised an eyebrow, her eyes searching mine for answers. “What’s our strategy?” she demanded, a look of suspicion on her face.

I let out a frustrated sigh, my hand running through my hair as I struggled not to lose it. “I don’t have one because I didn’t expect you to be here,” I grunted, my jaw clenched. “You followed me against my will.”

Red crossed her arms in front of her chest, a green, liquid fire burning in her eyes. “You conveniently forgot that you ran away from the hospital against my consent,” she said, not letting me off the hook. “As your doctor, I could easily report you to your commander.”

She was pushing me to my limit, and I was dangerously close to losing it. I took a step closer, our bodies almost touching, the tension between us thick as concrete. She had me by the fucking balls, and she knew it.

“Oh, so you’re blackmailing me now, Doc?”

My temper was short, my patience practically non-existent. I wanted to snap her back, to make her see how stupid she was being. To remind her who she was talking to. To make her remember that I was not someone you tried to piss off.

“Blackmailing you?” she asked, throwing up her hands. “Hardly. I’m stating facts, just like you did.”

My teeth were clenched so tight that my jaw hurt. “I don’t recall kidnapping you or forcing you to come with me, so you’re just as guilty as me,” I argued, my voice growing sharper.

I was so close that I could feel her breath, see every little detail of her face, and hear her heart pounding in her chest. No matter how close I got to her, she didn’t back away from me.

Red looked me dead in the eyes, never faltering or letting her gaze stray away from mine. She didn’t flinch, or cower. She wasn’t intimidated.

“We both broke the rules, okay?” she said, a small snarl appearing in his voice. “You can’t just twist every situation to suit your needs.”

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