Eight
Asia
I don’t know how long we stood there after.
Twenty seconds?
Twenty minutes?
Long enough to feel the weight of Jackson’s arms around my waist, the weight of his palm at the center of my back, holding me like he was staking a claim.
Long enough to hate how much I liked it.
Hate how much it comforted me.
If the cum on my thighs didn’t prove how stupid I was, that thought did.
Comfort?
Jack was a complete stranger .
He murdered a man—a friend—less than half a hour ago.
The hands that held me now were a killer’s hands.
I tried to hold onto that thought.
Tried to wrap myself in my horror at what he’d done.
But my body still craved him, the little aftershocks rocketing through me to settle in my pussy, a throbbing need that was only more acute now that he touched me.
Shame, so intense that it dried my tears and made me break his hold, gripped me.
I adjusted my clothes and then stepped into the bathroom to clean the evidence of my weakness, proof of how easily I’d come undone.
When I came out, embarrassment cloaked me like a shroud, but I forced myself to meet his eyes.
Ready to see his disgust, or God forbid, pity.
All I saw was casual indifference.
I would have been happier if he were angry.
But the way he looked at me now…like nothing happened.
Like I didn’t matter…
It fucking hurt.
I tried to cover that pathetic pain. “Don’t worry. I’m done falling apart.”
He shrugged, reminding me that my pride, my shame, meant nothing. “You’ve held up better than most.”
A half-assed compliment as a reward for a fuck.
That stung.
Jackson stepped away, and even though I was mad, I missed his presence so close to me, though I’d eat glass before I’d admit it.
“If you say so. Also, that didn’t happen. You mention it again, and I swear…” I said.
He gave me a quick smile that transformed his face.
But it was gone as soon as it came.
“Whatever you say, Counselor,” he said.
“That’s the correct response.”
Anger receding for the moment, I smiled and took Jack in.
Unbothered was the only word I could think to capture how at ease he looked. I was impressed, though I wouldn’t admit that, either.
“You seem to be okay,” I remarked, still struggling for some semblance of pride and equilibrium.
He shrugged, his nonchalance making me smile again. “So at least one of us has their head on straight.”
I laughed, though there wasn’t a single thing funny.
That stopped him in his tracks, and he looked at me, his eyes narrowed, clearly serious. “If yours isn’t, get it there and make sure it stays that way. It’s the only chance you have to survive.”
This was the Jackson I was coming to know. His expression was harsh and unyielding. But I couldn’t even be mad at him, let alone disagree.
Because he was right.
I needed to get and keep my shit together, and I would do just that.
Right now.
I looked around the room again, and I felt Jack following my gaze.
“Do many people know about this place?” he asked.
“Other than facilities and the bailiffs, almost no one comes down here. Most of the bailiffs are at the jail, and Jorge was the only custodian in today…”
I trailed off, my words dying as I remembered what Jack did.
Remembered that a good man was gone.
Wondered how many others were gone now, too.
Jackson studied me, again taking my measure, but as much as I wanted to give in to tears again, I didn’t.
I couldn’t.
“So,” I cleared my throat, “if there’s anyone else in the building, they probably won’t come here.”
Jackson looked toward the monitors. “What’s the plan, Counselor?”
It almost sounded like teasing, but his eyes were dead serious. Strangely, that made me smile. “That’s my line.”
That got the tiniest smile out of him before he said, “Maybe, but I’m at a disadvantage here. This is home field for you, so I’ll follow your lead.”
“But no pressure, right?” I said, trying to keep my voice light.
Jack’s arched brow was his only response .
“Well,” I whispered, my mind racing as I tried to come up with what to do next.
My smile brightened when I focused on the filing cabinets again. The guys basically had a makeshift kitchenette here, and that was something.
I approached the cabinet and looked through the drawers. The coffee canister was empty and there were no ramen noodles, either. Jorge’s wife, Camila, usually kept him supplied, but she’d been out of town with their daughter after she had their newest grandbaby.
I sighed. I guessed that didn’t matter anymore.
I grabbed two bottles of water and two packs of peanut butter crackers.
I smiled, searching for the levity I desperately wished I felt. “First things first. We dine like kings.”
He didn’t laugh, but he took the offering.
We ate in silence, both watching the grainy monitors as the crowd of shuffling bodies outside grew.
Then his voice cut through the quiet, so abrupt and unexpected, I almost screamed. “I’ll try the radio. ”
He grabbed the weather radio haphazardly shoved on a bookshelf that held paper towels and bath tissue.
Cell reception was shit down here, something that was confirmed when I looked down at my phone, which still had zero bars.
But maybe…
A quiet click was followed by static filling the room as Jackson turned through the stations.
This is not a test.
Repeat.
This is not a test.
Shelter in place.
Martial law is in effect…
I locked eyes with Jackson as he continued to scan through the channels.
The takeaway from them all was the same.
We were fucked.
Jackson turned the radio off, the rough way he twisted the knob the only hint of what he thought.
“This won’t be over soon, will it?” I asked even though I already knew the answer.
His jaw flexed. “No. It won’t be over soon. ”
His words sank into my mind, and I searched for a way to deny them.
Didn’t find one.
My voice was barely a whisper when I finally spoke. “Why do you say that?”
“What we saw out there, what we can see on those cameras…it merits an overwhelming response. We’ve seen no response. That tells me resources are stretched thin. And my gut says this isn’t just local,” he said.
“Which means?” I whispered.
“Which means we’re fucked,” he said, perfectly mirroring my earlier thoughts.
“And?” I said, sensing there was more.
Jackson met my eyes again.
“And things are only going to get worse.”
Jack
I hadn’t even considered lying to her, but as I watched her process my words, I wondered if that was a mistake .
A hysterical woman was the last thing I needed on my hands.
Of course, what I’d seen of her so far didn’t suggest she was one who would easily lose her shit. But I knew from hard experience that you couldn’t tell a person’s mettle from looks alone.
They had to prove it in battle.
So far, Asia had held her own.
And fucking wrecked me in the process.
The taste of her lips lingered on my tongue, and I had to force myself to keep from touching her again.
Taking her again.
Even in the face of the world falling apart, I wanted her.
Felt an unwelcome need to comfort her when I saw the way her face fell at my response.
She’d seen what I’d seen; that should have been enough for her.
I braced myself, ready to prove the point if she wanted to argue, trying to convince me that this was something that was going to be fixed.
To my surprise, she just shook her head and smiled .
“That’s literally the least surprising thing I’ve heard all day. Still, hearing it like that kinda sucks,” she said.
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 like we’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.
But I couldn’t deny it.
Asia broke eye contact, and I knew she felt something in that moment, too. She smiled again, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “I doubt I could sleep, anyway,” she said, her words trailing off into a yawn.
She giggled, the sound sweet and shy, and I felt like I was seeing a side of her that didn’t come out often.
“Guess that just made a liar out of me,” she said.
“Go to sleep,” I said firmly.
Asia nodded, and then lay on the couch. She shifted, trying to get as comfortable as one could on that mass-produced industrial furniture. Her gaze kept drifting to the door, and the third time I saw it, I caught her eye.
“I’ve got you covered, Counselor. Now go to sleep.”
She smiled, her eyes still locked on mine. “I’ll try, Jackson,” she said sleepily, and at the sound of her drowsy-sounding voice, my heart did a little flip that I simultaneously despised and craved more of.
Asia drifted off, and I was left alone with my thoughts.
I kept an eye on the video monitors, feeling hopeful when the crowd of those things thinned.
I knew it was cold comfort, though.
We might make it to the garage…
We .
Asia and I were not a “we. ”
But I rejected the thought almost as soon as I formed it.
I had to get back to Evan.
He needed me.
But I wouldn’t leave Asia to some gruesome fate.
Couldn’t do that.
So the matter was settled.
I’d see that Asia got somewhere safe, and then go to Evan with conscience clean.
But how?
Martial law was bad, but that wasn’t what worried me.
I’d seen no evidence of any response, and before I came to the city, I hadn’t heard anything, either.
I was connected enough that I would have heard about trouble as big as this. This damn virus was probably fucking things up. It was the only reason I was here instead of with Evan in the first place.
But my regrets didn’t matter right now. What mattered was what came next.
Weapons.
Transportation.
Water .
Food.
Those were my priorities.
Problem was, I had to figure out where to look.
I mulled that question until I heard Asia stirring.
She looked clear-eyed.
Refreshed.
The sleep had done her good.
“How long was I out for?” she asked before sitting up and taking another sip of water.
“Not quite two hours,” I responded, not watching her stand and stretch just because of how much I wanted to.
“Well at least it wasn’t long enough for me to think this was all a dream,” she said with that little giggle again.
“Anything happen while I was out?”
She studied the monitors, but she gave no reaction to what she saw.
“Not much. Everything’s been quiet, but the radio went out. It’s only static now. I expect electricity will go next,” I said.
She flinched but then looked at me, her face impassive. “Too bad, but not unexpected.”
“No, I guess not,” I responded .
“So…” she said, turning to face me, her intelligence clear in her gaze.
“So what?” I asked, fully at attention.
She kept her eyes locked on mine, her brow arched.
“I have an idea.”