NINE
Harry slept soundlyfor about two hours. He woke up with a start, disturbed by just how deeply he’d slept.
He’d not heard a thing.
Harry had slept with one eye open for a decade. But not now. Not with a warm body pressed against him, snuggled into him. Harry’s arms had been wrapped around Asher. His sleeping-body had betrayed his mind.
And Asher hadn’t moved. Not a muscle. Unless wriggling closer counted.
Harry had slept as though he’d been drugged. Albeit only for two hours, but still... someone could have picked the lock and crept into their room and shot them both, and he’d have not heard a thing.
At least you would have shielded Asher...
Christ.
That was the type of complication he didn’t need.
He looked so peaceful asleep in Harry’s arms. He fit so perfectly. God, it had been so long since Harry had had any kind of intimacy with a man.
It felt so unbelievably good. And so much more right with Asher than it should have been.
He peeled his arm out from under Asher and sat on the edge of the bed. He scrubbed his hand over his face, trying to get his head in the game.
“What time is it?” Asher’s voice croaked.
“Almost four. We’ve got three hours until it starts getting dark. Maybe we should look at some maps and begin working out a plan.”
“I can think of something I’d much rather be doing for three hours.” Asher stretched and ran his hand down to his dick. “Want me to roll onto my stomach, pull my jeans down?”
Harry stood up and stepped into the next room. He put his hands on the edge of the sink and said nothing.
Asher seemed far too pleased with this. “I’ve seen how big your cock is. Don’t think I’ll stop until you give it to me properly.”
Harry hung his head. His patience—and self-control—were getting mighty thin. He ran the water and splashed his face.
“I can be persistent.”
Harry peeled his too-tight linen shirt off and wiped his face with it. He wasn’t fond of it anyway.
Asher moaned. “Are you teasing me? Look at your fucking body.”
“You’re not persistent. You’re a pain in my ass.” Harry threw his shirt at Asher’s face. “And I’m not teasing you.”
Asher laughed with a sigh. “You know, I thought if we took the edge off, if I had a taste of you, I wouldn’t want you anymore. But now I just want more.”
“Asher, we need to focus. We need a plan. Several plans, contingencies, back-ups, rendezvous points if we get separated, that kind of shit.”
Asher sat up on the bed. “Rendezvous? So if we got split up, you’d miss me?”
Harry sighed. “Shut. The fuck. Up.”
Asher got up off the bed, fluidly, smoothly. Like his bones didn’t hurt like Harry’s did. Like he wasn’t feeling every ounce of tired. He washed his face too and dried it with the linen shirt. “I have a plan,” he said casually.
“You do?”
“Of course I do. And you don’t?”
“Well, yeah. For starters, we go to Ghardaïa, speak to the wife.”