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Thirty-eight

TIME EVAPORATED until Greyson finally managed to pull back and avert his gaze. If he looked into her eyes, he’d be lost. He’d acted on feelings, not logic. He knew where feelings could take things, and he’d vowed to always want the best and always do the best for Riley. And the best wasn’t him. He had to stop. They had to stop.

Her lashes fluttered as her beautiful blue eyes opened, her lips rosy pink. She smiled, then studying his face, she stilled. “What’s wrong?”

“We shouldn’t—”

“It’s a little late for that,” she said, stepping back and resting her hands on her hips.

He nearly laughed. Leave it to Riley to be as blunt as a butter knife. “I’m sorry,” he said, regaining composure and a brain. “I—”

“You can’t tell me you didn’t feel something. Not with kisses like that.”

“Of course I felt something.” She had no idea how much. “But I let my feelings take control, and that’s dangerous.”

She narrowed her eyes. “ Dangerous is a bit extreme.”

Feelings could be extreme. That was the crux of the problem. “You deserve someone...”

“Someone?”

“Other than me.” She deserved the world.

She swallowed and wrapped her arms about her, taking a pronounced step back.

His stomach bottomed out. He hated hurting her, but if they continued, he’d likely only hurt her far worse. He knew the shadows that lurked deep within him and feared with his entire being that one day they’d overtake him as they had David and his sweet mom. He couldn’t risk burdening Riley with that. He was doing the right thing, as excruciating as it was. “I need to explain.”

“That would be nice.”

He had moved to sit on the bed when boot steps echoed outside.

Reaching for his gun, he stepped to the window. Easing back the curtain the smallest bit, he spotted Kevin in the exterior lights, headed straight for their door.

“It’s Kevin. We need to go.” He raced to the dresser and grabbed his backpack.

“He’s here?”

Grey nodded. “Get in the other room, quick.”

Riley didn’t argue, just went through the connecting doors, grabbing her backpack as she ran by the bed. He followed. The main door handle jiggled as he slipped through the opening and pulled the connecting doors shut, locking the one on their side.

“Out the window,” he said. “Hurry.”

She did as instructed. They were halfway to the truck when Kevin jumped down from the adjacent room’s bathroom window.

Near-silent shots whizzed by their heads, their windshield shattering into a spiderweb of cracks.

“Get in.” Greyson held the driver’s door open while he covered her. She jumped in and slid across the bench seat as another shot pinged off the hood. “Stay down,” he hollered, firing back at Kevin, who bobbed and moved in a zigzag pattern.

Grey shot again, and this time, Kevin dove behind his car.

“Stay down,” he said to Riley, climbing in, but she didn’t listen. Instead, she took the SIG from him and rolled down her window as he reversed. She fired. Once. Twice. She hit Kevin’s front right tire, dodging his bullets in doing so. She fired again and hit the rear tire. He wasn’t going anywhere for a while unless he had two spares. She’d bought them time.

“Nice shots,” he said, swinging the wheel around and turning onto a curvy back road. The tires screeched, and the burning odor of rubber wafted up.

He clutched the wheel around the sharp turn, the angle of the road switching incline directions fast.

He slowed around another turn as the guardrail became the only barrier between them and the steep drop-off. His headlights bounced off an icy patch, and he pumped the brakes, then stiffened. Something was very wrong. Brakes shouldn’t feel that way.

“Is everything okay?” Riley asked, studying him in the dim dash light.

He took a deep breath. “The brakes don’t feel right.” In fact, they felt incredibly wrong. He tested them one more time, and all warmth drained from his face. He pumped a third time and nothing. He took his foot off the gas on the steep decline, but the truck only flew faster.

“Hold on,” he said.

Eyes wide, Riley grabbed hold of the bar over the door. “What’s happening?” Fear clung to her voice.

“No brakes.”