Page 81 of Strike Fast

She cleared her throat and hopped off the stool. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow. Hope you get a good night’s sleep.” Although how would he, when the most dangerous cartel in the western hemisphere had his freaking address? She wasn’t going to sleep either.

He followed her to the door. When she started to twist the knob, he set a hand on the door to hold it closed. Abby froze, a rush of warmth licking along her skin. He was standing mere inches behind her, so close she could feel his body heat against her back.

“Can I get a hug goodbye?” he asked softly.

You could get anything you wanted from me. “Oh. Sure.” Steeling herself, banishing her wayward thoughts, she turned around to face him, a pang hitting her at the loneliness she read in his eyes.

He reached for her, those huge arms coming around her back as he drew her to his chest. His crazy-hard, sculpted chest she’d imagined seeing naked—along with the rest of him—far more times than she cared to admit.

Slipping her arms around his ribs, Abby tried to get a grip on her body’s reaction to the embrace, but it was no use. The feel of that big, hard frame pressed along her front sent tingles shooting to every nerve ending. Her nipples tightened and her stomach muscles pulled tight.

And he didn’t just squeeze her and let go in the quick, neighborly hug she’d expected. No, he pressed his cheek to the top of her head and…cradled her.

It took a second for her to realize he was seeking comfort, rather than offering it. Her heart squeezed tight.

“Gonna miss you, short stuff,” he said gruffly.

Her heart twisted. She leaned more fully into him, spreading her palms across the broad expanse of his back. His words sounded awfully final.

But she wasn’t ready to say goodbye to him forever.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Reid’s arm had fallen asleep at least thirty minutes ago, but he was afraid to move it in case it woke Autumn. So he lay there on the hotel bed with his daughter’s back spooned up against his front, still drinking in the miracle of having her back safe.

“Man, she’s a hot sleeper. The front of me’s soaked through but I can’t bring myself to let go,” Sarah whispered from Autumn’s other side. They’d forged a fragile truce between them, the reunion with their daughter helping to smooth their ragged edges.

“I know,” he whispered back, smiling down at their daughter. She’d fallen asleep sandwiched between them after cheeseburgers and root beer floats from room service. They’d talked for hours about what had happened, and Reid had done his best to explain why the man had found her, and that none of them would be in danger anymore.

Or at least, not after he cleared out his apartment and found another place. The guys were splitting into two teams tomorrow morning to get it done, half helping Maka, and the others helping him.

“Isn’t she beautiful?” Sarah’s voice was rough with emotion.

“The most beautiful thing in the world.”

His ex-wife looked up at him over the top of Autumn’s head and her smile faded. Regret shadowed her eyes. “I’m…sorry for what I said the other day. About it being your fault. I know you’d never do anything to put her at risk. And I’m sorry for lashing out like that. Truly.”

Reid held her stare. “Thank you. And for the record, even though things aren’t great between us, I’d never do anything to put you at risk, either.”

She lowered her gaze. “I know that.” She stroked gentle fingers over Autumn’s dark hair. “She’s really out cold.”

“Not surprising.” Every time he thought of her frightened and alone, tied up and locked in darkness, the helpless rage came back. He wasn’t sure if it would ever go away.

“That reporter you found that night. Miss Gomez. Is she going to be all right?”

“I don’t know.” Though in all honestly, Reid wasn’t sure how she could be, after all she’d endured at the hands of those animals.

“And what about Tess?”

Reid met her gaze. “What about her?”

“Is she going to be all right?”

“Yeah.”

“You sound pretty certain of that.”

He was certain. “She’s strong.”

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