Page 68 of Merciless

I have to pee so badly that I haven’t been able to sit still. Elijah cut a considerable amount of time by driving like a madman, but it’s not fast enough for me.

He uses the turn signal and takes the next exit.

I sit up straight in my seat. “Where are you going? This isn’t the exit to go home.”

“You’re right.” He peeks at me over his shoulder and turns in at a gas station. “I can’t listen to another minute of you shifting in your seat and whimpering.”

“I wasn’t whimpering.”

He scoffs and parks the car next to a pump. “Yes, you were. It was the most pathetic sound I’ve ever heard.”

I open my mouth, an argument on the tip of my tongue when he flashes me a boyish grin and gets out.

Oh. He was teasing me.

I’m so used to men like Elijah putting me down and meaning what they say. That I’m pathetic and a freak. It’s become a knee-jerk reaction to argue.

Elijah folds the seat in front of Asher and waves for me to get out. “Come on, birdie. I don’t want you ruining the leather.”

“How is he sleeping through all of this?” I say.

Elijah shrugs. “He’s always been a deep sleeper. Especially because of his medicines.”

I sigh and shift closer to Asher. Our legs bump against each other, and I check his reaction. He’s still fast asleep, his chest rising and falling with deep, even breaths.

“Come on, birdie.” Elijah holds out his hand.

I ignore his offer and bend over to squeeze through the tight space between Asher’s legs and the folded seat in front of him. Right when I think I’m in the clear, my other foot bumps against Asher’s leg, and I fall backward into him. I suck in a breath as I land on his lap and sit up straight.

The world around me freezes.

I wait for Asher to toss me off his lap and growl about how I woke him up, but only Elijah’s soft laughter breaks through my panic.

Of course he’d laugh at a time like this.

Slowly, I turn my head to check if Asher’s eyes are open.

“He’s out cold,” Elijah says with a snicker. “I told you. You have nothing to worry about.”

I lean forward and squeeze through the space between the door and the back seat. My hand finds Elijah’s, and he helps me out the rest of the way. His other hand settles on my lower back, steadying me on my feet.

“There we go,” he says. “See? Not so bad.”

I drop his hand and rush toward the doors to find a bathroom. Elijah keeps pace, but I lose him when I disappear into the single restroom.

After relieving myself, I wash my hands and fix my hair before opening the door. My heart leaps into my throat at the sight of Elijah leaning against the wall across from me, his arms folded over his chest as he looks every bit like a model.

Just the sight of him brings back memories of what we did in the bathroom.

Elijah raises a dark eyebrow. “You’re a jumpy little thing, you know that?”

“I’m not. I wasn’t expecting you to stand outside the door.”

A grin curves his lips. It has to be the first genuine smile I’ve seen directed toward me. “I’m not your enemy, birdie. You don’t need to be so defensive with me.”

“It’s kind of hard not to be on the defensive. I don’t really know you.” I chew on my bottom lip for a second. “Why didn’t you do anything to help me before?”

“What do you mean?”