Page 24 of Point of Contact

"Understandable." He should let go of her hand. Let her move away and give them both some space. But he wasn't going to. He had a whole team of men who were required to have his back. Hired to do the same job he was and all their lives depended on each of them looking out for the other one. But this was different. Courtney didn't have to have his back. She didn't have to look out for him. Hell, she probably shouldn't have. He probably deserved to be left as alligator food. The fact that she didn't, had him looking at her a little differently.

"I don’t want you to die today either." His thumb accidentally moved across her skin. "Tomorrow might be a different story though."

Courtney huffed out a laugh, rolling her eyes as she yanked her hand away. "I'll remember that when you want me to help you bandage your head again." Her eyes fixed on his forehead. "How's it feeling? You hit it pretty hard."

"It feels like I knocked the shit out of myself." He fisted the hand that just held hers. "But I'll survive."

"That's good, because I'm pretty sure Pierce would charge me extra if you died." Her shoulders slumped a little. "Not that I actually have any way of paying him at this point."

She looked a little lost. A little unsure, which was nothing like the brash, confident Courtney he'd come to know.

"Are you sure you really want to do this?" He thumbed over his shoulder, even though he had no clue which direction Miami was. "We can always find a way to get you back to your dad."

Courtney seemed to wilt even more. "For what? He doesn’t even care that I'm dead." She reached up to swipe at her messy hair. "I hid in the neighbor’s bushes, watching as people showed up, and he never came."

Her sadness was palpable, and it made him do something he would have never thought might happen. He snagged her hand again, using it to reel her in, pulling her close, tucking her against his chest. "He's a fucking idiot, Princess." He'd interacted with Courtney's father a couple of times over the years, and each one left a bad taste in his mouth. "He's an even bigger asshole than I am."

Courtney leaned back, her eyes coming to meet his. "You're not really an asshole. You just act like one."

He smiled, the expression still feeling odd on his lips. "I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Courtney's lower lip pushed out on a pout that could almost be considered cute. "I can be nice."

He held her gaze, caught up in a moment that didn't entirely make sense. He shouldn't be comforting Courtney. He sure as shit shouldn't still be holding her so close. She annoyed the shit out of him. Drove him absolutely fucking crazy.

"You're a pain in my ass, you know that?" He needed the reminder. To refocus on the situation and the woman at hand.

Courtney slowly smiled. "I know." She tapped one finger in the center of his chest. "And you piss me all the way off." Her eyes held his as the seconds stretched out between them.

And then they collided.

It was impossible to tell who moved first. Whose bad idea what happened next was.

Odds were good it was his.

However it happened, the next thing he knew, Courtney was pulled against him, her soft mouth opening under his.

CHAPTER NINE

COURTNEY

THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY.

Somehow Reed had gone from hating her guts to acting like he wanted to rearrange them in the span of five minutes. And honestly, she was here for it.

It had been forever since someone touched her like this. And even then they’d done it with some sort of ulterior motive. Usually one involving money or power. Everything in her life always came with a price. But she had nothing to give anymore, and Reed knew it. So the second he leaned in, dark eyes focused on her lips, she was already meeting him halfway. Mouth hitting his so hard her teeth dug into her lips. It wasn’t so much a kiss, but a clash. A new way to fight and attack each other.

It was fucking amazing and absolutely intoxicating.

She channeled every bit of her frustration and aggravation into the moment, tangling her fingers in his dark hair and pulling tight as their kiss intensified, his tongue slicking along hers without hesitation or caution. His hands gripped her hips, hefting her up before dropping her ass on the edge of the wall-mounted sink. She locked her legs around his waist, pulling his body flush against hers and letting out a little gasp when the hard line of his dick met her pussy, providing a blessed amount of friction.

Reed's hand worked into her drooping ponytail, gripping tight at the back of her skull as his mouth devoured hers. There was nothing hesitant or exploratory about his kiss. This was complete possession and ownership. Control and demand. Every breath was a struggle as his tongue flicked against hers, his large body crowding her closer to the chipped mirror mounted on the block wall.

She grabbed at the men’s T-shirt she'd managed to sneak out of Walmart, yanking it up so she could get her hands on the hard plane of his abs. Her palm skimmed over warm skin and solid muscle. There wasn't an inch of fat on this man, and she wanted to explore every bit of him. With her hands.

Hopefully with her tongue.

But, just in case this turned out to be the only opportunity she had, she was going to make the most of it.

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