Avenged (Altered #2)(52)

She was a novice, but his girl figured out what she was doing fast. So fast that in only a minute or so, he was warning her.

“You have to stop. Kitty, God. Fuck. I’m not going to be able to hold out…” He tried to pull away, but she pressed her fingers into the cheeks of his ass, pulling him closer, and he couldn’t hold on any longer.

He cried her name as he went over the edge with her, shaking.

When it was over and she gazed up at him, her eyes bright, he could barely speak around the words in his heart. He wanted to tell her, that he loved her, that he wanted to never be away from her. That he would do whatever he needed to do to keep her safe.

But he was tongue-tied.

When she glanced away, he wondered if she didn’t hear anyway.

“I’ll let you finish up,” she said softly, and stepped out onto a towel.

He stared after her, the shower infinitely larger and lonelier with her gone. But, he let her go.

Lathering up, he tried not to worry.

She needed time. He knew that. He’d always known that he was the one who would fall faster, harder. It was who he was.

She must feel something for him. After what they’d done…after what she’d done for him. It was unselfish, what had happened between them. She had to feel something.

She only needed more time. That was all.

…

Less than an hour later, they were standing in the parking lot, next to the stolen Hummer, waiting for their extraction.

The night was cool. Nick had told her it was November, and in the dark of near midnight, it felt like it.

When she’d been taken in San Antonio, it had been the heat of the summer. She’d changed so much that it felt like an entire life had gone by. In truth, she had missed only a change of seasons. It reminded her how much could happen in only a few months.

Kitty sat on the curb, her arms wrapped around her knees. Nick leaned against the Hummer. His pose suggested he was relaxed but the tightness in his shoulders told the real story.

Any minute. We’ll be out of here soon. They’d left the hotel room five minutes early, to make certain they were ready to go when the helicopter arrived. But he didn’t like being so exposed.

Scanning the parking lot again, he searched for anything out of place. Finding nothing, his gaze fell on her, but he quickly glanced away, even as anxiety laced his thoughts. Patience.

He’d been worrying since he got out of the shower. It had been too fast, too intense. He worried that he’d scared her. That she’d heard him and knew how he felt.

He was right. She had heard him. She just didn’t know what to do about it.

He loved her. Staring up at the gorgeous man in front of her, she still couldn’t get over that. She’d seen, in his memories and thoughts, how Nick loved. It was a humbling gift he gave her.

In the past few weeks, this man she’d believed bossy and arrogant had taught her so much. He made her feel like she could do anything. He believed in her. When he looked at her, he saw someone strong and beautiful and capable… A fighter.

That girl? She could see why he loved her. But she didn’t know if that was her. She didn’t trust his view. It had been a long time since she trusted herself.

What would happen if he found out she wasn’t that girl? What if she found out?

The beat of helicopter propellers called in the distance, and she stood, dusting off her leggings. They were coming. The Army. To get them.

This was it. They’d turn everything they knew over to the military. Fields, Ahmed, Goldstone…all of it.

They’d turn her over to the Army.

As the noise of the aircraft increased, she folded her arms around herself.

Nick had explained that Martins wanted to help, that he was as devoted to halting the spread of Solvimine as they were.

They would poke and prod. More testing, more study. More why-are-you-different. It wouldn’t be as bad as Fields. She was sure of that now. Nothing could be that bad.

Nick insisted it would be okay. She didn’t believe in Martins, but she did believe in Nick. If Nick said it would be different, that no one would hurt her, then that’s how it would be.

Of course this would be different. Nick would be there.

As the helicopter lowered, Nick clasped her hand, the grip almost painfully tight, and they tore across the field to greet it. The wind from the aircraft whipped her hair against her cheeks in the cold air. There were men hanging from the sides of the chopper, armed with assault rifles. They had the same no-nonsense look that Nick possessed—watchful, protective, and dangerous.

These men were her ticket away. Maybe these people would even help her find a cure for this “gift” of hers.

They were right there, in front of her.

Kitty wasn’t sure what made her look back. When she did, she saw them. Two black sedans sped around the hotel, barely decelerating as they turned the corner. Her stomach dropped, filling her with resignation.

She instantly knew three things.

One, these weren’t Fields’s men. The cars, the drivers—they belonged to “Mr. Ahmed.”

Two, Ahmed’s men were much different than Fields’s men. These men were not working for money, and they didn’t care if they died.

They were much more dangerous.

Three, and most importantly, she would leave this overgrown field with them. She would abandon Nick here, behind a crummy hotel filled with the memories of how much he cared for her.