Page 48 of Second Chance Savior

I asked about sending word to my office or the governor, but River said we’d stuck our necks out far enough. If my family wished, they could tell the governor that I’d contactedthem and was safe. But we couldn’t risk leaving any remnants for someone to track.

While River worked more on the laptop, I kept eying the kitchen bench, which would convert into a sleeping area. But these cushions were hard. It wasn’t enough space either. River wasn’t huge like Hodge, but he was tall.

Ugh, was I really going to do this?

I had to. The man had saved my life more than once. And for a long time before that, we’d been…something. Far from strangers.

I sighed and said, “The couch out here will be really uncomfortable to sleep on. We can share the bed.”

“I’ll be fine out here, Charlie.”

“It’s not a big deal. It’s just me. We’ve known each other most of our lives.” I forced a laugh. “You’re the one who insists on calling me that childhood nickname.”

“It’s not a good idea.”

His voice had started to betray an edge of tension. Which got on my nerves even more.

“You can save my life, but you can’t sleep in a bed with me?”

He finally met my eyes. No smile. No trace of humor. “No. I can’t.”

This shouldn’t have infuriated me so much. But I had thought we’d made progress toward repairing our friendship. We were stuck together for the next few days, if not longer. Why was he being so weird about this?

“So, you can pretend to be enamored with me at the fundraiser, almost kiss me to throw off bad guys, and be overprotective as hell, but you balk at simply sharing a space? That’s too close for you? Too much likeactuallybeing friends?”

He rubbed his eyes. Then stood. River seemed to take upmost of the RV’s living area, not so much his size but his presence.

“What makes you think I was pretending?”

“I—Hold on. What?”

“Go to bed, Charlie,” he said roughly. “We’ll need to leave before dawn. I’ll wake you when it’s time to go.”

“River.”

He started to walk past me, heading for the tiny bathroom, and I caught his hand. When his gaze met mine, it was alive with something I couldn’t understand. But what I saw made my heart speed and my breath stall in my chest.

The only light in the room came from his laptop screen, but River’s eyesburned.

Intensity and frustration. Heat and longing. Aimed directly at me. But we didn’t have an audience. No bad guys to deflect by pretending he wanted me.

Could he mean…No. That couldn’t be…was it?

My fingers slid against his palm. River’s tongue licked his lower lip, and his pinky finger curved to hook around mine. And Iwhimpered. Of all the ways we had touched since the night began, this was somehow the most intimate.

I flinched and pulled my hand away from his, unable to bear it another second.

What was that?

River coughed and turned away. “Goodnight Charlie,” he said again, and disappeared into the bathroom.

I stared at my open palm, wondering if I’d just imagined all of that.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Charlotte

Eighteen Years Ago

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