Chapter Eight
Jag
I noticed the door to the spare room was ajar before I’d even fully stepped into our apartment.
My pulse quickened. That door was always closed, always locked.
Only I had the key. I moved silently across the floor.
As I approached, I heard the soft rustle of movement inside.
I relaxed slightly when I caught Ada’s familiar sweet scent, but tension still rode my shoulders as I pushed the door open wider.
Ada stood in the center of the room, surrounded by my stash. Cases of water bottles stacked against the wall. Shelves lined with MREs and canned goods. A medical kit that would make a combat medic weep with joy. Ammo boxes. Weapons. Everything a man would need when the world went to shit.
She turned when she heard me, her eyes widening slightly but her face remaining calm. Always calm, my Ada. That steadiness was what had drawn me to her from the start.
“So,” she said, gesturing at the walls of supplies. “Were you planning on telling me about your apocalypse bunker, or was I supposed to stumble on it when the zombies attacked?”
Heat crawled up my neck. I wasn’t embarrassed about the supplies. I was embarrassed she’d caught me keeping secrets. “Didn’t think it was worth mentioning.”
She picked up one of the med kits and unzipped it, revealing surgical equipment, antibiotics, and enough bandages to wrap a small army. “What are you preparing for?” She didn’t look like she was condemning me for this, rather she looked genuinely curious.
I stepped fully into the room, closing the door behind me. I didn’t like open doors at my back. “I just like being prepared,” I said, with a shrug. “Never know what you might need.”
Ada set down the med kit and moved toward me. “I think this is about more than being prepared.” She held my gaze. “This feels like fear. Like you expect to have to hole up here a while.”
I turned away. “I’ve got a feeling things aren’t over with Rat Man,” I admitted, the words tasting bitter on my tongue.
“No shit.” She wasn’t mocking me. If anything, her tone held relief at my admission. “Have you talked to the others?”
I shrugged. “It’s just paranoia. Think we’ve had this discussion.”
Ada stepped closer, her eyes not leaving my face.
She had a way of seeing right through me that made me feel naked, exposed in a way that had nothing to do with clothes.
“I trust your instincts more than any logical assessment, Jag. If you’re preparing like this, if you’re afraid we shouldn’t leave the compound, there’s a reason. ”
My shoulders sagged a little. “I count exit routes,” I confessed. “Everywhere we go. First thing I do.” I met her eyes. “I check the locks. Three times, sometimes four.”
Her expression softened. “I’ve noticed.”
“You have?” I hadn’t been subtle, but I thought I’d hidden the worst of it from her.
She nodded. “You sleep facing the door. You position yourself between me and pretty much everyone.” She reached for my hand. “I thought it was really sweet. But not if you’re seriously worried. Have you talked to any of the others?”
My jaw clenched. She was right. The past three weeks had been too quiet. I had no doubt Rat Man had been hurt when he’d laid his bike over, but there hadn’t been a body found, no one with injuries consistent with a bike wreck. But I knew he was out there. Waiting.
“Something’s coming,” I said quietly. “I feel it. In here.” I tapped my chest. “Same way I felt it before an attack in the yard.”
Ada’s fingers tightened around my hand. “I believe you.”
“You’re not freaked out?” I asked, gesturing at the stockpile with my free hand. “Most women would be running for the hills if they found out their man was prepping for World War Three.”
She smiled, the corner of her mouth lifting in that way that always made my chest tight. “I’m not most women. And you’re not crazy.” She stepped closer, pressing herself against my chest. “The only thing that concerns me is that you didn’t tell me. We could’ve been preparing together.”
I wrapped my arms around her, inhaling the scent of her hair. “I didn’t want to scare you,” I admitted. “Didn’t want you to think you’d hooked up with some paranoid ex-con.”
“I know exactly who I’ve hooked up with,” she said against my chest. “A man whose instincts have kept him alive in places most people wouldn’t survive a day.
” She pulled back to look at me. “If you think Rat Man is planning something, then he is. Simple as that.” I sighed, the tension I’d been carrying for weeks easing slightly.
Ada stepped back, surveying the room with new eyes. Not judging but assessing. “You should tell Knight. And Knuckles.”
“They know,” I said. “They’re watching too. I think maybe they have the same feeling but can’t find a reason to justify it either.”
Something fierce and protective surged in my chest as I looked at her. For the first time in my life, I had someone worth fighting for. Worth dying for. Worth killing for.
“Come on,” she said, tugging me toward the door. “You need to relax. I’ve got an idea.”
Taking my hand, Ada led me from the room. We left the apartment and headed down the hall.
“What’s your idea?” I asked.
“The pool,” she said, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. “I think we both could use a swim.”
The idea of being in the water -- vulnerable -- made me anxious, but I wanted the experience badly. Besides, Rat Man was likely out for a while after that wreck. As Ada laced her fingers through mine, I pushed the feeling down. I’d follow her anywhere she wanted to lead me.
The indoor pool was in one of the center warehouses.
Knuckles decided the club needed some luxury.
Steam rose from the water’s surface, creating a hazy film across the dim space.
Blue lights glowed beneath the surface, casting rippling patterns over the walls and making the whole place feel otherworldly.
“I told Hannah I wanted the pool this evening,” Ada said, dropping her towel on a plastic chair. “We’ve got it all to ourselves.”
She kicked off her shoes and peeled her T-shirt over her head in one fluid motion. The evening sunlight reflecting off the water played across her skin, turning her into something from a dream. She stood before me in just her bra and underwear, utterly unselfconscious.
“You coming in, or just gonna stand there all night?” She grinned, the teasing in her voice gentle.
“I’m not much of a swimmer,” I admitted, shifting my weight. “Been a while.”
She walked backward toward the pool’s edge, eyes locked on mine. “Good thing I am, then. It’s like riding a bike. Don’t worry. I’ll hold on to you and won’t let you go.”
She turned and dove in with barely a splash, her body cutting through the water like she belonged there. When she surfaced, she pushed her hair back from her face and floated on her back, the water lapping at her curves.
“The water’s perfect,” she called. “You can get me naked. But you have to come in here with me to do it.” She gave me a saucy grin.
I hesitated for another moment before stripping down to my boxers.
The humidity wrapped around my skin like a damp blanket, making the numerous scars that mapped my torso seem to stand out in stark relief.
Most men who’d done serious time had a story written on their skin in scar tissue. Mine looked like a Goddamn novel.
I sat at the edge first, dipping my feet in. The water was warm. It had been years since I’d been in a pool. As a kid, I’d played in the river, but that was a lifetime ago.
Ada swam over, resting her arms on the pool’s edge beside me. Water droplets clung to her eyelashes, making them look impossibly long. “You afraid of water, Jag?”
“Not afraid,” I corrected. “Just cautious.”
She laughed, the sound echoing off the high ceiling. “Same difference.” She reached up and ran a wet hand along my thigh. “I promise I won’t let you drown.”
Before I could respond, she pushed herself backward, sending a splash of water into my face. I sputtered, wiping my eyes, to find her floating a few feet away with a challenging grin.
“So, that’s how it’s gonna be?” I pushed off from the edge, sliding into the water. It enveloped me, warmer than expected, creating an odd sensation of both weightlessness and relaxation. I found the bottom. I could stand here, the water hitting just below my shoulders.
Ada’s laughter tinkled again as she swam just out of my reach. “Knew I could get you in.”
I lunged for her, my movements slowed by the water, but she darted away with a dolphin-like grace. “You think you’re clever,” I said, unable to keep the smile from my face.
“I know I am.” She circled me, just far enough away that my outstretched arms couldn’t quite catch her. “You’re too used to having control, Jag. Sometimes it’s good to let go.”
She was right. Control had kept me alive in prison. At least, controlling as much as I could. Which was probably the whole problem. I’d never had much control. What I did, I guarded with my life. But out here, with Ada, maybe I could afford to loosen my grip, just a little.
I relaxed with a sigh, letting myself float slightly. “Fine. You win.”
Ada’s eyes lit up at my surrender. She swam closer, and this time I didn’t reach for her. She circled me once more, her body occasionally brushing against mine underwater. Each contact sent a jolt through my system.
Then she was in front of me, close enough that I could see the individual droplets of water on her face. “See? Not so bad, being at the mercy of the elements.”
“It’s not the elements I want,” I murmured.
Her smile changed then, shifting from playful to something hungrier. She moved closer still, her legs brushing mine beneath the surface. “What do you want then?”
“You,” I admitted, my voice low. “I want you.”