Page 61 of Run

Like that ever worked.

There was no getting around it: there was definitely room in her bed for David too. Mentally slapping herself for being so soft, she rolled back over and poked his shoulder.

“You can share my bed,” she hissed at him, sounding completely begrudging.

“I’m okay here.”

“I feel guilty and won’t be able to sleep. This isn’t about you. It’s about me. I need to sleep. So, get your backside in this bed right now.”

Rolling over to flatten herself against the wall, Elle told herself she was making space for David. She wasn’t attempting to distance herself from him in the tiny bed. Because that would be pathetic. She was an adult. Mature. Totally sensible. And completely capable of sharing a bed with someone who needed one.

She was totally going to hell for all the lies she told.

The bed dipped as David lay down beside her—on top of the blankets. It was a tight fit, but he somehow managed to keep a sliver of space between them. Elle lay there, stiff as a board, hyperaware of the man lying close to her. Was he on his back? Was he facing her? And why was the room so eerily silent when there were four huge men in it?

“I’m an asshole.” The whisper was a barely-there breath of air over her ear.

Elle stilled, her heart racing as she tried to process what she’d heard.

“Yes,” she whispered back, not being bitchy, just giving him the truth. “You are.”

“I don’t know what to do with you.” He sounded lost and bewildered, with an undertone of longing that she could be imagining.

Elle had to bite her bottom lip to stop from listing all the things he could do with her. There was a long list. She’d spent a lot of time thinking about it.

“My instincts tell me the only way to protect you is to walk away,” David continued to whisper. “But logic tells me that you’re in trouble anyway and could use someone like me in your corner.”

Hope surged within her. Stupid emotion. It would be the death of her.

“What does your heart tell you?” she asked, against her better judgment.

“It’s telling me to hold on to you and never let go.”

Her breath hitched as her stomach clenched. “What are you going to listen to?”

“I figured the loudest voice should win.”

Was he deliberately trying to drive her insane? Wriggling around to face him, she hissed, “Give me a straight answer, or you can get back on the floor.”

It was just possible to make out his smile in the darkness. “You couldn’t cope with me on the floor. Your heart’s too soft to allow it.”

“My temper is happy to overrule any misguided feelings of guilt I might have.”

David’s smile widened before he sobered. “You’ve been on my mind since the first day MI6 gave me your file. Can’t get you out of there. Not sure I want to.” His hand came up slowly and brushed her hair from her face. “Blue’s my favorite color,” he whispered.

Elle didn’t dare move or speak as she willed him to keep talking.

“I’m screwed up,” he said. “Right to the core.”

“So am I.” She gave him the truth.

“I don’t know what the future will bring.” He continued to play with her hair, as if fascinated. “I’m not sure I’m worth anybody’s time, and I’ve no idea what this thing between us is or where it’s going. But if you want me, I’m in.”

“You’re in?” The air had been sucked out of the room, making it impossible to breathe.

“All the way.” It sounded like a promise. “For however long it lasts.”

“No more being a coward and telling me you’re bad for me?”