It was stupid to stop for even a brief moment to smell him when danger was at their door—literally—but for some odd reason, it calmed her down.
Maybe because it cemented the fact that she wasn’t in this alone. She didn’t know, but whatever the reason, she was grateful for it. She felt calmer and more in control.
Another soft knock came on the door and her heart knocked painfully against her ribs. Placing her hand on Colton’s warm shoulder, she ignored the tingles rushing through her at the contact, shaking him gently at first, and then a little harder.
“Co
lton,” she whispered quietly, afraid the men outside would hear her. “You need to wake up.”
His head moved on the pillow as he turned toward her voice, and then his sleepy hazel eyes slowly opened. She immediately put her finger over her mouth, warning him to be quiet. Frowning, he met her eyes, his gaze full of questions.
Leaning in, she put her mouth next to his ear as she whispered. “The Bad Guys are outside the door. Well, one of them is, at least. There are two out there, but only one of them is one I saw before. They’re knocking politely for some reason, but they’re not going away.”
Katia pulled back, watching as his eyes went from sleepy and confused to awake and alert in an instant. He got out of bed with a reassuring smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes, and they had a hard glint inside them.
She watched as they became greener with swirls of yellow, narrowing her own when it seemed like his pupil elongated for a moment. He looked away quickly and made his way silently to the door, and she frowned, wondering if that really happened or not.
Every time she saw it, it was in an intense, stressful situation, or they were having an emotional conversation. So, she had to be imagining it. Her mind was playing tricks on her, maybe trying to distract her from the reality of the situation.
Because there was no way it was really happening. It just wasn’t possible.
Right?
Colton turned away from the door, his face a thundercloud of emotions. Worry—for her, she thought—mixed with fury, and a poorly masked yearning to open the door and beat answers out of the bastards.
He stalked over to the window and her brow furrowed as he peeked out of the curtain, looking like he was contemplating the window as an exit route. Lord, she hoped not, because they were on the second floor, and she’d surely break her neck.
Walking back over, he grabbed their bags from the floor and set them on the beds. “Get all your stuff ready, just in case,” he said, so softly she had to strain to hear him.
Nodding uncertainly, she got her stuff together and slid her shoes on, her mouth drying as she watched him pull a shirt on and then quickly exchange his pajama bottoms for jeans. Sweet baby Jesus, he was so damned hot.
His thighs and legs were just as muscled as the rest of him, and his ass in those boxer briefs… It was taught and round, and she was dying to touch. Swallowing hard as her mouth suddenly flooded with moisture, she forced herself to look away.
She perched on the edge of the bed, watching as he put his shoes on and walked back to the door. He looked out and then turned with a small smile that finally reached his eyes, and the hard knot in her gut slowly unraveled as he walked back over.
“They left.”
Her spine slumped with relief for a moment, and she shook her head in bewilderment. “I don’t understand why they were knocking. Did they really think we’d just let them in?”
He shrugged as he sat on the opposite bed, facing her with their legs nearly touching. “Maybe they weren’t totally sure this was our room, or they thought we wouldn’t recognize them with the hats and glasses.”
“I don’t know how they even found us to begin with. I didn’t think anyone saw me leave with you.”
“They must have, though, and then they followed us here.”
She frowned unhappily. “I honestly wasn’t completely convinced they’d even come after me, but I guess this confirms it. I wonder how we’re gonna get free of them now that they know I’m with you and what you drive.”
He opened his mouth to reply but then he froze, his head jerking toward the door. Standing, he walked toward it, his nose wrinkling as he got closer. Pausing, he looked over at her before he even got there, and she cocked her head as she studied his expression. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out the emotions she found there, but she knew she didn’t like them.
“Don’t panic, okay? Try to stay calm.”
She shot to her feet, dread welling up inside her. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“I smell smoke, and it’s getting stronger. We need to get out of here, now.”
Colton was crazy if he thought she wasn’t going to flip out, and that was exactly what she did. “What? Why the hell are we still standing here? We need to get our stuff and get out!”
She snatched up her backpack and slung it on as she grabbed her bag. Starting to walk over to him, she stopped as he held out his hand and shook his head.