TEN
Harry,as Asher had instructed, had stayed in the car while he went in to speak to the motel office about a room.
The motel was rough, but it was off the highway, at the back of a small town an hour out of Ghardaïa.
There were two other cars in the lot, no cameras, no streetlights. Certainly no room service or hot spa.
Asher had said it would be better if he went in for the room because he spoke Arabic, but also because Harry, being a six-foot-three white man was someone who would be remembered in these parts. Asher could be boring and blend in. Harry, not so much.
Asher came out of the office with a key and walked to the end room. He unlocked the door and Harry followed him in with their two bags.
“There’s only one bed,” Harry grumbled.
“You complain about the bed and not the smell?”
The bed, the smell, the stained walls, it was all bad. God, the floor... “You got the bed last time, so tonight you take the floor.”
Asher looked at the floor and grimaced. “Or we could share the bed.”
“I thought you hated me.”
“I do.”
“But you expect me to share a bed with you?”
“Would it be the first time you ever fucked someone that didn’t like you?”
Harry raised a brow at him. “We went from sharing a bed to fucking. That was quick.”
Asher began to smile. “But you agree now?”
“I never said I agreed.”
“You never said you didn’t.”
Harry put the bags down, made sure the door was locked, and Asher cocked his head, hopeful.
“I’m taking a shower,” Harry said. “You’re not invited.” He heard Asher sigh as he closed the bathroom door.
The showerhead resembled an outside garden tap and the water ran brown for a good minute before it became clear, but it was warm and wet, the soap washing away the last few days of grime and sweat.
He’d definitely had worse.
He pulled his jeans back on and picked up his socks and boots, his shirt. He found Asher eating some bread and hummus. He stopped, mid-chew, and stared. “You’re like a cruel butcher.”
Harry blinked. “A what?”
“A cruel butcher shop.” Asher waved his hand up and down at Harry’s whole body. “You have the best goods on display but don’t let me purchase.”
God.
“Shut up and eat your bread.”
“This hummus is good, by the way. Homemade.”
Harry smiled and pulled on his socks. “It’s colder here. The shower’s not great, but better than nothing. We’ll need to keep some bottled water to brush our teeth, so don’t drink it all.”
Asher stood up, his eyes still very much on Harry’s naked torso. “Keep the shirt off. It’s not that cold.” He walked closer to Harry than he had to on his way to the bathroom. “And don’t eat all the bread.”