Page 57 of Point of Contact

Reed turned to where his jeans were tossed on the counter, digging in the pocket to pull out a five. He passed it off. "Keep the change."

The woman looked him up and down. “Don't get jizz on the shower curtain." Then she turned and walked away, leaving him staring after her, heart still pounding, adrenaline still dumping into his system.

He never reacted like this. Always kept his cool in any circumstance. It was part of the reason Pierce chose him over everyone else in his graduating class. Not only did he know most of Alaska like the back of his hand, but he stayed calm in any situation.

Almost any situation.

He closed the door, re-locking it before turning to find Courtney still standing with the chunk of wood in her hand. She wiggled it back and forth, shooting him a grin. "Want me to go stab her anyway?"

Fuck if he didn't laugh. There was no way not to. The whole situation was goddamn ridiculous. "Put that down and get dressed."

Courtney pushed out her lower lip in the way he was becoming familiar with and partial to. "Are you serious?"

"As a fucking heart attack." He grabbed his own fresh clothes and started putting them on. "You want to sleep on nice sheets, don't you?"

Her pout held. "Well yeah, but I also wanted to suck your dick."

She sounded disappointed, which had his temporarily relaxed cock perking backup. But right now he wanted to get out of this windowless room more than he wanted to see her on her knees again. This place was a fucking trap. And the thought of leaving Courtney in here a second longer made his skin crawl. She needed to be somewhere he could keep her safe. Somewhere they could make a break for it if they had to.

He crossed the small room, stopping in front of her to cradle her face in his hands. "I fucking love how eager you are, but now isn't the time and this clearly isn't the place."

Courtney huffed out a breath, rolling her eyes toward the ceiling. "Fine."

As usual, he couldn't help but smile at her pouty, bratty reaction. He leaned in and pressed a chaste kiss to her lips. "You'll thank me when you're curled up on your nice comfortable sheets."

Courtney groaned, but didn't argue, making it evident the lure of nice sheets was greater than he expected.

They finished dressing, collected their things—along with the destroyed stool—and hustled out of the bathroom. He took her straight back to the RV, getting Courtney safely inside and making sure she locked the door, before he went back to retrieve their sheets and blankets. He’d planned to run the towels through the laundry also, but those would have to wait for another day. Right now he wanted her locked up tight and right next to him.

He got back to the camper, giving the door a quick knock. Courtney opened it without checking to make sure it was him. He scowled at her smiling face. "I could have been anybody. You've got to be careful."

It wasn't like him to act like this. To be so wound up when he knew rationally there was no reason for it. They were a thousand miles away from Miami. Far enough that the chances of anyone finding them were practically none. But when that old woman knocked on the bathroom door, he was ready to kill anyone who tried to get Courtney. Thinking of all the ways he would do it with his bare hands. What else he could do to make sure she had the chance to get away.

"Who else would it be?” She huffed out a breath. “Maybe the old lady again, but that’s it." She took a slow breath, like she was trying to calm herself down. "Heidi said we were fine. That's why I didn't have to fly to Alaska. She said they knew I wasn't dead, but had no clue where I'd gone."

Reed studied her. Took in the uncertainty in her expression. "Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?"

She let out a shaky breath, her lips shifting into an awkward smile. "A little of both."

He dropped the sheets and blankets onto the sofa before snagging her and dragging her close, pinning Courtney against his chest as he tucked his face into the wet drape of her hair.

She linked her hands around his middle, pressing her face into the crook of his neck. "I thought I was gonna have to stab somebody with a hunk of wood. It was about to be prison rules in that bathroom."

He smoothed one hand through her damp hair, working a few tangles free. "You weren't going to stab anybody." He needed her to understand the way things had to be. "If anything happens, your only job is to get as far away as you can, understand?"

Courtney leaned back, her dark eyes meeting his. "No."

He didn't expect her to immediately agree, but he also wasn't expecting her to refuse so adamantly. "Did you just say no?"

Courtney's chin lifted. "I'm not going to just leave you."

"Yes, you fucking are." He gripped her chin with his fingers as he leaned closer, hoping she understood how serious this was. "You are to run. Get your sweet little ass out."

She held his gaze, full of defiance. "No."

"Yes." Why was she even arguing this? He knew how to handle himself, she didn't. Sure she knew how to steal some shit, but when it came to actual hand-to-hand combat? No way was Courtney capable of holding her own. Especially not against armed men.

She jerked her chin from his grip and stepped back, but her gaze didn't leave his. "No." Then she turned and walked away, going straight for the bedroom.

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