All Tied Up

Far too soon, they’d have to face the hell of running for their lives again. So, for a short window of time, at least, he wanted to pretend his world wasn’t one big hole of darkness. And somehow, Nicole made that possible.

Chapter Fourteen

ON THE THIRD DAY of basically living in the same hotel room from sunup to sundown, Nicole blinked awake, giving the bedside clock a blurry-eyed glance. Eight in the morning. Only ten more days until they headed back to Austin for the postponed trial. Only. Right.

Weeks of her life would be lost before this ordeal was over. Not that she minded being with Constantine. He’d become quite a delicious distraction.

And speaking of her distraction…beside her, Constantine stirred, pulling her into his arms. They rested, side by side, facing each other, heads on pillows. Feigning sleep, he kept his eyes shut, as if he had reached for her in slumber. But she knew better. She could feel his attentiveness.

Having spent every waking moment with him for these few days had taught her a lot about him. You could learn a lot about a person in those circumstances. Hours of doing nothing but making love and talking. Even watching the entire first season of 24 had unveiled little pieces of his life, telling her more than he probably even realized.

Thunder rumbled outside, reminding her of the hurricane, drawing her back into the present. She started to move, intending to find the remote and turn on the television, but she was stopped by Constantine, who shackled her legs and held her in place.

“Where are you going?” he asked, his voice rough from sleep, but his reflexes alert, telling her she was right about his feigning sleep. He was wide-awake and had been for a while. Of course, he was always on edge, ready for trouble. She took comfort in that. Then again, she hated it for him, and was coming to realize he had less peace in his life than she did, and she didn’t have much.

Recognizing this sent a wave of tenderness through her, and Nicole placed a quick kiss on Constantine’s forehead. “I’m trying to find the remote. There should be a solid storm path now.” He hesitated and then released her legs. Nicole smiled and climbed over him to reach for the remote on the bedside table, the covers falling away from her naked backside. As he caressed her ass with his palm, she laughed and eyed him over her shoulder. “You are such as ass man, I swear.”

“I worship all parts equally. I think I’ve proven that.”

“Nope,” she said, scratching the remote and then sitting back down. She cast him a teasing sideways look. “You’re an ass man and I challenge you to prove otherwise.” Scooting up against the headboard, she took the sheet with her and pulled it to her neck. Her teeth chattered as she flipped through the channels. “You turned the heat down again.”

“You weren’t complaining last night,” he pointed out, sitting up on the side of the bed. He was referring to the marathon sex they’d shared mere hours ago.

True enough. She wasn’t complaining one bit. Well, except for the honey. It had been great until after the orgasm—okay, two orgasms. Then, it had been sticky.

“Will you turn it up now?” she asked, a little plea in her voice.

He stood up, displaying all his taut muscle and naked glory. Would she ever be tired of seeing that man without clothes? “You didn’t have to ask,” he commented. “I was headed there now.”

Inwardly, she smiled at that. “Thank you.”

He winked at her and a thrill raced up her spine. Such a minor thing. It would have zero impact coming from someone else, but it set her on fire coming from Constantine. She couldn’t seem to sate the desire. Somehow, it simply burned hotter.

She watched him cross the room, feeling surprised at how caring he could be, despite the darkness he carried inside him. No male in her life had ever given her a secure feeling. That Constantine could do so under such extreme circumstances said something. She wasn’t sure what. Maybe she’d been hungry for a human connection, maybe they both had, and the situation had made it possible.

She refocused on the television and flipped through the stations, stopping on the weather and turning up the volume.

“There is no dodging this bullet for the Texas coast, as had been hoped. The good news is the storm has weakened to a category two with winds of one hundred and twenty miles per hour, expected landfall late tomorrow afternoon. Evacuation—”

Nicole muted the sound, more interested in what Constantine had to say at that point. The threat of the storm had left them in limbo or they’d already be at his boat.

“You said anything over a category one would put us on the road again,” she reminded him. “So this means we’re leaving, right?” He’d told her he wanted to make just one final stop, claiming the more they moved around, the more chance of making a critical mistake that gave away their location.