Down to Ash (#Dirtysexygeeks Book 2) Read Free

shrugged and then looked down as though touched by the single word. “Sometimes you're nice to me, and that leaves me feeling...charitable.”
    “When have I ever been nice to you?” he asked, the question sharp.
    “Usually there's this cold draft from hell right before.”
    He laughed, couldn't help it. “Exactly.”
    “My sophomore year in college.”
    She didn't have to say anymore for him to remember. He'd been on leave and had gone to Porter's, like always, to spend time with his friend. She'd been there, crying. After working six hours to finish her take-home mid-term, her laptop had died—blue screen of death. He'd spent the rest of the night and too much of his own money to retrieve the lost document. When they'd shipped him back to that godforsaken desert, he'd sometimes closed his eyes and remembered the hug she'd given him, the joyful squeal...her warmth.
    He shrugged and hoped the memory would fall away just as easily. “Yeah, I have my moments.”
    She was silent for a long second before she sighed. “Anyway, I figured you could use the work so I offered your name. Still don't know why you just don't go with a place like Goo—”
    “I'd rather work on my own.”
    Needed to be more specific. Large crowds still put him on edge. Much worse when he didn't get a full eight hours of rest. Sometimes he needed to work from home and set his own hours until the storm passed.
    “That doesn't make any sense,” she argued. Liquor had probably made Ash's brain swim, and still she looked at him with a sharp intensity. “You're smart, focused. You're a veteran. It makes you a hero. People love vets.”
    Victor didn't feel like one on his best days. He kept his mouth shut and fixed his gaze on the road until he pulled into her apartment complex.
    She lurched out of the truck after he h ad parked before he could offer to help her down. She bent and her head disappeared from the window's view. Cautious at what he might find, he climbed out of the car. By the time he rounded the vehicle, she had her heels in one hand.
    Ash blinked up at him when she'd straightened. “You move quietly. Are you sure you weren't a SEAL?”
    “Come on.” He gestured to her apartment when she didn't move. “I'm not leaving until I know you're safe.”
    She braced her hands on her hips. “You're scowling at me again. Is it because I asked about Iraq?”
    “I don't talk about it.” With you he added in the quiet.
    The way her face softened in understanding made him wonder if she had heard those two unspoken words. Maybe, because the heat, the light died out in her eyes. Victor almost stepped forward to cup her face, to caress her bottom lip until that light damn near burned him from the inside out.
    Her voice was soft, a little hurt when she said, “If it wasn't the question I asked, then that leaves being around me, in general, puts you in a shitty mood. Why did you pick me up if you hate me so much?”
    “I don't hate you and Porter asked me to.”
    “Right, Porter.” Her voice was still soft, vulnerable.
    Gut punch .
    He balled his hands, refusing for the millionth fucking time to give in and touch her. He deserved a medal. Facing down bombs that could end his life or rip off his limbs—piece of cake. Not cupping Ash's chin as she lifted it in defiance at his reticence—yeah, that was fortitude, bravery.
    He sighed, took her arm, and helped her to the door. Or maybe he was actually half-dragging Ash, given her muttering about being manhandled, and men, and brothers, and hot, sexy, guarded Korean men.
    His step only faltered once, at the last part, but since he figured it was a one-sided conversation, he didn't bother to reply. Didn't even let himself revel over the fact she thought he was sexy.
    “Where are your keys?” His voice was a little too rough, and from the way her gaze narrowed, the change in it hadn't escaped her.
    Raising a brow, almost in challenge after his brush-off, she reached down the front of her dress. Her