Page 28 of Never Enough

He sped up, holding her tight to his back, pinching her thigh in response to her squeezing. “If you’re gonna squeeze me, use those thighs. Do a good job, and you can even suffocate me with them later when I don’t have to run, and I’ll promise to enjoy it.”

“Are you mental?” she hissed. “What is wrong with you?”

“I’m sure you’ll let me know later, but honestly? I haven’t had many complaints.”

Just over an hour later, they hit the forest edge of Valencia. Both of them finally felt safe to remove their balaclavas. The fresh night air felt good on her face, and the ocean breeze gave some relief to the sweat that had formed along her scalp under her curls.

He was breathing heavily but not winded. She couldn’t help but be slightly impressed. His pace had been steady, and he’d only had to hitch her up higher on his back once. Then again, she’d been clinging to him tightly. He’d held onto her thighs during the run, but his grip had been more about keeping her steady than it had been about holding her.

“Where to, tiny?”

“Blue building, white shutters.”

“Got it.”

He took off again, sticking to the shadows whenever possible. The building in question was at the southern end of a string of quaint apartment buildings painted in bold colors facing the marina. This early, the streets were silent. No cars, no pedestrians, and while there were streetlights along the ocean road, they were soft enough to not allow anyone to see much detail.

When they reached the side door that led to her apartment, she began to try and wriggle her way down off his back, but hisgrip tightened. “There’s no way you’re climbing those stairs, and we both need to lay low for a bit.”

She sighed. Of course, he wanted to come up. And, of course, he was right. The stairs were going to be near impossible with her ankle in this condition, but allowing him into her space was not a good idea.

“Just for a little while,” she groused. “And no funny business.”

He chuckled, opening the outer door as quietly as possible. “I only need a little while, tiny.” He climbed the stairs to her door.

“Well, isn’t that sad? Hard to understand why you’ve got time to run around free to steal shite.”

“It’d definitely be fun, though. Key?”

“On the top of the doorframe.”

“That’s secure,” he snarked.

“I didn’t exactly want to run the risk of dropping my key while crawling through the ventilation system or running around in the woods. Besides, no one bothers me, and no one comes to my door. I don’t have anything anyone would want.”

Once inside the single-bedroom apartment and the door was closed, Haskell attempted for a second time to slide off his back, but he still wasn’t having it. He reached backward and gave her a smack on her ass. “Settle down.” Glancing around, he strode over in front of the futon, dumped her backward onto it, then immediately strode toward the bathroom.

After a ladylike squeak of surprise, Haskell attempted to right herself. “What the hell?!”

“You don’t need to be hobbling around on that ankle and making it worse.”

She could hear him opening drawers and cupboards. “What are you looking for?” she called out.

“Ice pack?”

“Don’t have one.”

She heard muttering in what didn’t sound like English.

“Don’t suppose you have a wrap bandage?”

“No. Never needed one. Never hurt myself before you barged in tonight.”

More muttering.

He stalked back out to the kitchenette and began opening drawers. Finally, he found some hand towels in one drawer and scissors in another. From a cupboard, he pulled out a bowl and from under the sink, a plastic bag, then threw everything he’d collected into the bowl. His last stop was the freezer, from which he grabbed the entire ice cube reservoir.

“What are you doing?”

---