Page 113

The scream startled us both, and poor Faith, who had just stitched me up, spun around and pulled the fire alarm beside the door she had just walked through.

Perfect.

Aaron bolted to me, and I grabbed his arm and yanked him out the other door so we were together on the path outside the infirmary.

“I cannot believe you just completely lost it like that,” I barked, tugging him after me. “What were you thinking?”

“I want you to come home with me!” he returned, agitated and annoyed.

“We’re going home right after this,” I volleyed, irritated at him for ruining everything. “I can’t believe you just fucked the whole op by⁠—”

“Who cares? I don’t care! Fuck them! Fuck all of this!” he bellowed. “You got hurt!”

“You can’t just say fuck the op when you feel like it! This is the Federal Bureau of⁠—”

“They can send me a fuckin’ bill! I will not have you hurt!”

“I always get hurt!”

“Not anymore!”

I shook my head as I led him at a brisk clip back toward the security tower.

“Don’t treat me like I’m naive,” he warned crossly. “I want you in one piece, and I want you living with me, where I can keep an eye on you, the second we get home!”

“Oh?” I huffed out, a bit sorer than I’d thought I was, moving us along faster and faster. “I thought you didn’t move people in anymore.”

His eyes were blazing, which was good, because it meant he was focused on me and not on us getting shot or God knew what else. We still had a chance to salvage everything if we could just get to the security room.

“I changed my mind,” he fumed as he increased his speed, now jogging along beside me.

“And when did you do that, Mr. Sutter?” I asked, hearing people yelling behind us as we turned the corner and charged down another path.

“Back there,” he shouted. “When I walked in and saw you hurt. Everything changed.”

“How come?” I prodded, keeping him diverted, seeing the tower far to the left.

“I decided I want you in my bed and in my house and on my couch—I just fucking want you!”

It was really very sweet. It was too bad his timing was for total shit.

“Did you hear me?”

“It was impossible not to hear you,” I assured him, pointing. “We’re going there.”

We ran together, and the gravel we pounded over flew up in the air, plaster from the side of the buildings exploded, and then a light fixture burst close enough that we had to swerve around it as we picked up speed.

“Faster!” I roared.

“Wait.” Aaron was trying to make sense of things, even as he kept up with me. “What’s happening right now?”

“People are shooting at you,” I snapped, reaching the tower door a second ahead of him, slamming the key card flat against the faceplate, and hearing the buzz as the door opened.

We scrambled inside, shoved the door closed behind us, and stood there, leaning against it. I was panting, winded from the fight and the anesthetic, but Aaron was fine, just stunned.

“What?”

“People can’t shoot at me. I’m Aaron Sutter!” He was so indignant, and it would have been funny if, on the other side of the solid steel door, there weren’t bullets ringing off as they hit.