Page 15 of Hooking a Firefly
Chapter 7
Harrison cursed as he picked Ashlyn up into his arms.What the hell had happened?He carried her to a nearby room and laid her down on the sofa inside.It was a gathering room that the players used for meetings if they didn’t want to use the locker room.He didn’t know what to do with her.Should he call for help?Was this what happened to her if she had a vision, and if so, how the hell did she ever leave home and not worry this exact outcome would befall her?
After a few moments where indecision plagued him, he breathed a sigh of relief.She moaned and her eyelids fluttered open.Her gaze appeared a bit hazy as she blinked several times.“Harrison?”she said his name in a confused tone.“Where am I?”
Ashlyn attempted to sit up, but he pressed his palm to her shoulder before saying, “No, stay there.I don’t need you passing out on me again.”
She glared at him.“I feel fine.Let me up.”
He shook his head.“Please stay there for a little while longer.”Harrison hated seeing her this way.“Do it for me.I lost years off my life when you blacked out.”
Ashlyn studied him for a few moments, then nodded slowly.“I’m not staying here long.I want to go home.”She gestured toward the room.“And you haven’t explained where I currently am.”
“Do you recall the game?”He wasn’t certain how much her unconsciousness affected her memory.“And waiting with Faith after?”
She frowned, then met his gaze.“She was going out with one of your teammates.”Her lips tilted downward.“I don’t remember which one…Alek or Ivan?Both?”
Harrison chuckled.“She would be a brave woman to try to handle one of them, let alone both.”
“Faith can handle anything,” she said in a firm tone.“And if they hurt her, I’ll hurt them.”
He fought a smile.This was a side of Ashlyn he hadn’t been privy to before.Harrison didn’t realize that she had a protective streak.She had always seemed so distant with everyone.A part of him had known she cared deeply, though.Ashlyn kept her feelings bottled up, and if she didn’t let them out at some point, they might overwhelm her.“I don’t think you need to worry about your sister.You’re right.She can handle anyone.”He’d witnessed Faith holding her own multiple times.“Now tell me what happened to you?”Why had she lost consciousness?
“A vision,” she said bluntly.“A bad one.They rarely incapacitate me on this level.”Ashlyn sat up.“I need to make a call.”
She pulled out her phone and flipped through her contacts.Pressed on one and put the phone to her ear.“Charles,” she said.“I need to see you.I have some information.”Ashlyn was silent as she listened on the other end.Who the hell was Charles?Jealousy spread through him like hot spikes in his chest.“I’ll be home in thirty minutes.Can you meet me there?”She waited another moment.“I’ll see you then.”After clicking end on the call, she met his gaze.“Can you give me a lift?I don’t want to deal with a rideshare unless I have to.Faith drove us here, but I didn’t want to be a third wheel on her date so I told her I would find my own way home.”
“Of course.”Then he could meet this Charles.She didn’t know it yet, but he wasn’t leaving her alone once they reached her place.“Do you feel all right to walk?”
“If I don’t, are you going to carry me?”She shot back.
“If need be.”He grinned.Harrison would love to carry her, but there wasn’t a chance in hell she’d allow it.
She glared at him.“I can walk.”
That was the answer he expected her to give.“Then your chariot awaits.”He gestured toward the door.“The arena should be close to clearing out now.It’s a good time to leave.”
“How long was I out?”she asked.Worry etched around her eyes as she stared at him.
“Not too long,” he reassured her.“Maybe five or ten minutes tops.”
She nodded absentmindedly as she came to her feet.“That’s acceptable.”Ashlyn walked to the door and held it open.“Lead the way.I don’t know where you parked.”
Bossy thing… He liked that about her, though.Harrison liked everything about her.Even when she was driving him bat shit crazy.There was just something about Ashlyn Penn that called to him and always would.“Right.”He nodded.“Why don’t you walk beside me so I can catch you if you fall again.”
She narrowed her gaze.“That is unlikely to happen twice.”
“I don’t know,” he said in a teasing tone.“Ladies have been known to fall at my feet.”
Ashlyn rolled her eyes.“That had nothing to do with you.Do not let it go to your head.”She sighed.“But if it will make you feel better, then I have no issue with walking by your side.I, however, draw the line at any touching.I will not hold your hand and you will not put your hand around my waist.We are not a couple.I’m using you for your car.”
He chuckled.“Awe,” he said in a charming tone.“I knew you liked me.”He walked out of the room and she fell into step beside him.“It’s a good thing I don’t drive a car.Too small for me.”
She tilted her head to the side.“You still drive a trunk then?You didn’t go buy a fancy expensive sports car when you started making big money?”
Harrison shook his head.“I like trucks.Why waste money on something I’d rarely drive?”
“Good point.”She smiled.“I like that you’re practical.”
