A honey-blond eyebrow cocked, and Euan blinked himself out of his stupor. He grasped the offered olive branch and gripped it tight. Sparks, fire, the jolt of electricity they once shared zapped between them. While Euan was still lost in the sensation, Nick hauled his body from the portal in one, effortless jerk and stepped back.
‘You need to eat more,’ was all he said.
Euan didn’t notice the thump of his heart at Nick’s concern. For the first time in six weeks, he was out of the bunker.
Above ground.
Alive.
He took a deep breath but couldn’t hold in the wince.
Both Nick and Kira stepped forward automatically. But it was no surprise when Nick’s face turned dark the moment he realised his instinctual reaction.
It was Kira who spoke to break the tension. ‘Lily told me that if you’re careful, don’t push yourself, you can start to stretch your muscles, go for short walks around the house.’
Euan rubbed the heel of his hand into the pinch in his ribs. They were less of a consideration, the pain inconsequential to the ache in his shoulder, the burn in his feet. The weeping wound in his heart. The bandages were thick under his jumper, but even then, the fabric that had once been tight was now loose across his chest.
His flexed his fingers, created fists. ‘And train?’
It was Nick who spoke. ‘No time. We’re leaving.’
It was the second time in two minutes that Euan’s body had been jarred from shock. In a daze, his focus sliced to Kira who cringed at Nick’s lack of subtlety. When she mouthed the word sorry, he transitioned his assessment to the man who spoke. ‘Say again?’
‘We are leaving.’ Nick’s voice was strong when he repeated himself. ‘It’s not safe here. The house can’t be defended, the locking mechanism on the hatch door was destroyed. We can’t use the house, we can’t use the bunker. We’re sitting ducks here. Waiting for Parker and his men to walk through that forest and find us. We can’t wait any longer.’
His strength left him and Euan sat down on the bed. He stretched his legs out and leaned into the mattress. Kira took a step towards him, her knee brushed his, and he lamented the barrier of cloth that was between them.
‘When?’ Euan asked.
Nick’s muscles bulged where his arms were folded. His mouth was tight. ‘Soon.’
Euan scrubbed his face with his hand. He stopped when his fingers hit the bandage. ‘Then we have time.’
‘Not enough,’ Nick said. ‘We’ve stretched this shit out for as long as we can. You’re lucky I didn’t haul your ass outta that hole a week ago. They’re coming. We need to get to the camp.’
Euan snorted. ‘The eco-hotel Mickey-O has fortified?’
‘Sneer all you want. It will keep us safe.’
Unlike you. The words were there, unspoken. But Euan heard them as loud as any foghorn.
He was on his feet again. His eye met Nick’s and it was then he understood.
They had planned this. Kira’s gentle encouragement to see him on the surface was more to do with the imminent danger than the progress of his mental health.
He didn’t keep the growl from his voice. ‘You’ve kept this from me.’
A jerk of Nick’s head confirmed it. His hair waved over his shoulders, curled around his ears. Green eyes held his. ‘What were we meant to do? Trust a man that wouldn’t trust us?’
‘Nick.’ Kira’s voice was stern, but it wasn’t enough to dissuade him.
Euan swallowed the anger and the hurt. He crossed his own arms over his chest and ignored the pinch in his shoulder, the creak of his ribs. ‘So, we lock up and go?’
Nick’s sneer was potent. ‘Can’t lock up, remember?’
Euan closed his eye. He deserved it. But Christ, it was agony. How could they come back from this? He turned to Kira and hoped that she would pull him from the darkness that despondency created. She did, but not for the right reason. The crystal blue flinted. Her cheeks were white, her lips bloodless. His girl blinked back the angry tears as he watched.
Euan reached out as the ire inside him dissolved. His palm faced upwards towards her. His voice was soft. ‘Sweetheart.’
She moved to him and pressed herself close. Curves moulded to his. She was no longer soft. She was a woman of her time. Hard muscle and warm skin met his fingertips as he wrapped his hand around her nape. He bent over her, encased her in his body, his warmth, his strength, limited as it was. His muscles protested, but he endured. For her, he’d endure anything.
The origin of his pain was testament to that.
His nose was in her hair. He breathed her in, her scent. Lavender and woman. Sweetness and spice. Beauty and perfection. The ache in his chest bloomed, but it wasn’t from the pain.
The words were there, in his throat. The apologies and regrets, the doubt and confessions. It was thick with them. But he didn’t have the courage to set them free. He had given all his power to the men who tore them from his body with fists and steel. He had left it all with Ben on that bloodstained wooden floor.
He swallowed. It was all he could do.
Kira’s hands were on his hips. They pulled the fabric of his jumper up and untucked the thermal shirt underneath. Her fingers touched his skin and goosebumps formed in their wake. He shuddered at her touch.
‘We won’t leave for a few days,’ she whispered into his chest. ‘Mickey-O’s men arrived this morning. They are going to pack all of our equipment to take it with them. It will take time.’
‘How many?’ he asked. His arms wrapped around her slim waist. He wanted to absorb her, draw her inside himself and never let her go. Take her strength, her fortitude, her courage and stamina. If he understood what they were saying, they were all going to need it.
It was Nick who answered. ‘Enough.’
Euan nodded, took
