Page 31 of August

Gigi tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’m going to borrow some things from Ivy. Give me a few minutes.”

August gave a nod, struggling with the effort it took not to kiss her perfectly plump lips. Hiding out in the safe house for the next couple of days—or hell, who knew how long?—would be a challenge.

Which was why he needed to do some digging on Val Alvarez and see what the motherfucker wanted. Or, more importantly, if he could be bought. Because as of right now, they didn’t stand much chance fighting the cartel.

Gigi disappeared into the bedroom with Ivy and came out five minutes later with a purple backpack over her shoulder. “All set.”

August took the bag from her and went to the door. Gigi slipped on a pair of Ivy’s white running shoes and then gave her sister a long hug.

“Babe, she won’t be far this time,” Rami assured her. “And you can talk on the burner phones. Within reason.”

Ivy scoffed. “We haven’t talked in months. There’s no such thing as reason.”

Gigi chuckled and squeezed Ivy again. “I’ll be fine. Call you tomorrow.”

August led her outside and to the Tahoe. “Got everything you need?” he asked, as they got into their seats and buckled up.

“Yeah, I should be good for a few days.”

He pulled out of the driveway and headed downtown. The floral scent of Gigi’s shampoo filled the car, making it hard for August not to think about getting closer to her.

He had to stop. Maybe one day he could explore the idea of getting with Gigi again, but not right now.

The brushing sound of denim on denim made him drag his gaze to her bouncing knee. If she hadn’t pointed out his compulsive need to touch her, he’d have placed his hand on her thigh to still her. Instead, he wound his fingers around the steering wheel then unwound them, over and over.

Now he had to be even more careful. Because he wouldn’t be able to answer her if she outright asked why he kept touching her.

Because he couldn’t fucking help it.

A quick glance at her face showed a channel of worry engraved on her forehead. She hadn’t spoken in several minutes, and either she was feeling the tension between them or she wanted to be anywhere but next to him.

He couldn’t stand the thought of the latter. “What are you thinking?” he asked.

He stopped at a red light and watched as she rubbed her hands up and down the sleeves of her shirt. “Uh, nothing. Just tired.”

“Mmm. You can rest when we get to the apartment. I don’t think there’s much food there for breakfast, but I don’t want to risk making any unnecessary stops. I’ll get groceries delivered tomorrow.”

She said nothing. Which irked him more.

Fifteen minutes later, he pulled into the underground parking garage of the building in the downtown core and weaved slowly through the tight space.

The flickering yellow light and impossibly low ceiling might have made a normal person uneasy. But not him. He’d seen the inside of too many caves. Had endured uncomfortable situations and pushed his physical limits on a daily basis. Years of war and then death-defying black-ops missions had made him almost robotic. Not that he couldn’t feel the pinpricks of warning, but they didn’t quite penetrate the same way.

It was as if they couldn’t quite touch him.

Only they had. War had touched too many of his men. Grief constricted his windpipe as he whipped the car into a narrow parking spot.

The months spent in South America two years ago had been some of the darkest days of his life. The only thing that had kept him going, the only image he’d played over and over in his mind, was Gigi’s beautiful face. Her shining smile, her silky hair, her petite frame that fit him like a lost fucking puzzle piece.

He’d trekked in the jungle for three days and had gone twenty-four hours without water, nearly dying in the humid conditions. They’d gotten the hidden warlord the government had wanted, dropping an IED and flattening his secret compound. But August and his team had suffered the consequences. If it hadn’t been for the hope of returning to Gigi, he’d surely have died.

Maybe that was why it hurt so fucking much that she’d moved on.

Maybe that was why he couldn’t get over her. Because how do you just forget the woman who kept you breathing when every element surrounding you was trying to steal your life? She’d been his real-life guardian angel, and while being half dragged onto the helicopter that’d flown them out of that godforsaken rainforest, he’d sworn to himself that he’d find Gigi again and never let her go.

He’d gone back on his word. But now she was here. Within reach. And that’s why he couldn’t stop touching her—because she’d once been his salvation. He needed to remind himself that she was here. That he wasn’t in the jungle hallucinating her.

Gigi leaned forward in her seat, her hand on the door handle. “Ready?”

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