Page 138 of His to Burn

“I didn’t fall asleep, Jack,” I said, though I didn’t open my eyes.

“You usually snore when you’re awake?” he said.

My eyes—or just the one I that wasn’t the size of a golf ball—popped open.

I found Jack where he’d been for the last three days, at the back corner of the bedroom where he could see both the door and the window.

Watching over me.

I ignored the warmth that spread in my chest and tilted my head in indignation. “I do not snore, Jackson.”

“Sure you don’t, Counselor,” he said drolly.

I couldn’t help but laugh as I sank back against the bed.

An actual bed.

Once my head and jaw stopped pounding, I was able to enjoy it. We’d been here for three days, though I spent most of it in and out of sleep.

All I really remembered were the vicious headaches, Lourdes’s pinched, worried expression, and Jack.

I don’t think he left my side.

Every time I opened my eyes, he was there, alert and at the ready, making sure I knew I was safe.

His beard had gotten full, and his eyes were slightly red. “Have you been getting enough sleep?”

He waved me off. “I’m fine, Counselor. How’s the head?”

I should have been used to it now. Jack never seemed uncomfortable, but I picked up how much he disliked it when I checked on him.

It was stronger now. Jack was always direct,but there was something different now, and I couldn’t put my finger on what.

Not like it should have mattered.

All that should’ve mattered was staying alive, but that weird whatever that lingered beneath the surface bothered me.

God I hoped not.

Sure, I’d seen and knew how lethal Jack was, and while I could admit I was stunned by how quickly and brutally he acted, I appreciated it.

I hoped he knew that.

I glanced over at him, but then looked away, needing to gather my thoughts.

I got out of bed and went to the bathroom to freshen up.

When I walked out, I almost ran face-first into the hard wall of Jack’s chest.

I glanced up, taking in the sparks of green in his eyes, and was overcome.

Aching jaw and all, I kissed him as hard as I dared.

He broke the kiss. “Asia, I?—”

I met his eyes again, speaking, uncaring of how desperate and needy I sounded. “Please. I need you.”

And I did. Seeing what he’d done, knowing he did it for me, filled me with equal parts shame and reverence. Filled me with so many emotions, there was no way I could untangle them all.