Page 36 of Lone Spy

Ash's legs never seem to end. I hit the stairwell’s metal railing, and his calves are still propping the damn door open. The charcoal tempest delights in flooding the stairwell.

Tears blur my vision as I shuffle out from behind Ash's heavy body and lean him against the railing. My legs buckle, and I land hard on the cement. Fuck!

I grab at Ash's pants and get my hands under a knee, bending the leg closer to me. The door hits his other calf. Black dots spiral at the edges of my sight.

I crawl to Ash's other leg and clutch his thigh with both hands. I lean back, practically crawling into his lap lifting it. The door swooshes closed and clicks into place.

A sob escapes, quickly turning into a raging cough. I sit up and fold forward, ripping the napkin off my face, sucking in big lungfuls of the quickly clearing air.

We need to keep going, but how?

My gaze is drawn down the stairs. Harsh cement under bright lights with metal banisters—a fireproof space not designed for carrying giants down.

Twisting around, I face Ash fully, knees between his legs, our bodies as close as they've ever been. "Wake up." My voice comes out a croak. "Ash." His name is a plea. "Wake up! Please, Ash. I cannot drag you down these stairs." And I can't leave you here.

His face is so still. Blackened from the smoke, slick with sweat. His suit is filthy, dotted with burns from the floating embers.

My gaze falls to his mouth. His lips are soot-stained and slightly parted. I raise my hand to touch them…to check for breath. They are warm, firm. Smooth. Air pulls over them, pushes out.

He moves so quickly I don't realize what's happening until my wrist is trapped in Ash's bruising grip. His eyes, sharp and narrowed, find mine. There's no spark of recognition in his gaze.

Ash swallows, blinks. "Fuck, you're beautiful," he rasps.

ChapterFifteen

His fingers engulfmy wrist as his thumb slides down. And then back up. Petting me. The contact is gentle. Comforting. Drugging. Ash’s eyes roam over my features, his gaze as intoxicating as his thumb’s caress.

I need to focus.

"Ash." My voice is smoke-roughened—quiet and pained. "You have to get up. We have to go." He breaks eye contact to look around, his brow creasing. "I don't know exactly what happened, an explosion. We just need to go. There is a fire."

A fire makes it sound innocent. There is a spreading inferno on the other side of that door, and I can barely fucking breathe from the smoke and the fear and the way you’re fucking petting me.

He nods but doesn’t release me. His thumb pauses on my pulse point. My heart slams against my skin. I tug—not hard, not a protest. Do you see what you’re doing? Remember who you are?

His gaze falls to where he's holding me. Ash's fingers open, as if he’s just realized his grip had turned tender.

I lean back, having to use one of his knees to create space between us. Ash blinks hard. He reaches up to touch the back of his head. Winces. His fingers come back wet with blood.

Ash’s eyes track over my body. I follow his focus. My skirt and thighs are smeared with soot, grit, and blood. I didn't realize he was bleeding. "Let me see. Maybe I can…" There isn't anything I can do.

"I'll be fine," Ash says, his voice roughened from the smoke. "We need to go." He starts to shift.

Forcing my legs to work, to stand, I step back but stay close enough to help if he needs me.

Using the railing behind him Ash rises, towering over me.

"Can you walk?" I ask.

"Yes." But his big body wavers. I move close, wrapping my left arm around his waist, steadying him. The side of my chest bumps against a holstered weapon. His scent hits me hard. Still there under all the burning. He looks down at me.

"Ash? Do you know who I am?"

He frowns. "Of course." But he doesn't elaborate.

With one of his hands on the railing and his other arm hooked over my shoulders, we begin to descend, our steps echoing in the cavernous stairwell. Bright emergency lights illuminate every corner of the stark space.

A door clangs, the sound reverberating up to us. First responders? Or someone else? Visions of armed masked men storm my frazzled mind.

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