Page 35 of His to Burn

She pursed her lips, and breathed out hard.

“I’d say sorry, but the truth is the truth,” I said.

“No need,” she said. “Sorry won’t help me, and neither will sugar coating. So please keep telling me the truth.”

“Always.”

My response came instantly, and I felt the weight of it.

It felt like a promise, and I realized then it was.

This woman was a stranger to me.

I didn’t owe her shit.

But that didn’t matter anymore.

Her smiled widened, and I swore it was the best impersonation of the sun I’d ever seen.

“Appreciate that, Jackson,” she said, her eyes twinkling with mischief that was simultaneously out of place and incredibly welcome.

I found myself smiling without thinking, but quickly shut that down. “It’s Jack,” I said with a harshness I didn’t quite feel.

I’d told her to keep her head on straight.

I needed to take my own advice.

And keep my hands—and my dick to myself.

Asia’s smile dropped.

I didn’t know if she sensed a change in my mood. Or, more likely, the world of shit we were both in probably came rushing back to the front of her mind.

“Drink more water,” I said, handing her another bottle.

She took it without protest, but her sips were anemic at best, and I knew she was only drinking to humor me.

“Thanks,” she said after a long moment. She was starting to fade, and I knew the day had finally gotten to her.

“You should sleep,” I said, gesturing toward the beat-up couch set off in one corner of the room. It was the same cheap industrial design as the other furniture in the room, but it would do.

“I couldn’t…” she countered, looking at the bank of video screens and then the door.

“You could, and you should. Looks likewe’re safe for the moment. And you’re starting to crash. Take advantage of it,” I said.

She stood up straighter, her offense clear. “I told you I wasn’t going to fall apart,” she said.

“And I didn’t say you were. I said you’re crashing. Your adrenaline’s been on ten, and you’re coming down.”

I shifted so that I faced her and again noticed how tall she was.

Couldn’t help but remember how it felt to touch her.

Could also see how determined she was to stay strong.

All of it together, the fierce determination in her eyes, the fear there, all of it made me want to protect her.

The instinct was so strong, it left me disoriented.