Chapter 632:
He edged backward a little, attempting to carve out space on the narrow cot. Yet the unyielding heat of his body brushed her waist, making her tense and shift away.
“Don’t move! Just don’t move…” Brad’s voice rasped, rough with strain, the words bitten out as if restraint alone held him together.
Rylie’s drowsiness vanished the moment she caught his sharp reaction and the strange edge in his voice.
She wasn’t some clueless girl—only half-asleep until now. His sudden response jolted her fully awake, and she quickly realized it wasn’t a weapon pressed against her.
No firearm carried that kind of heat or pulsing hardness.
She kept her lips sealed, though her skin burned with a rush of heat.
The weight of her earlier question struck her as foolish, especially with their closeness and the way every touch felt too revealing.
Quiet settled over the tent, broken only by the low hum of the heater and the pounding rhythm of their hearts, each beat magnified in the stillness. She felt the hard rhythm of his chest rising and falling, every muscle wound tight like stone.
After what seemed an eternity, Brad’s voice finally broke the silence, low and controlled above her head. “It only proves I’m human, with ordinary instincts. But I’d never take advantage of you. Just ignore my body and try to rest.”
He shifted back slightly, forcing a small space between them to steady himself. Rylie trusted the honesty in his words. She closed her eyes and whispered her assent.
After a while, her breathing became even, and her temperature warmed under his embrace. Her previously pale face now had a faint blush.
Sleep claimed her easily, while behind her, Brad lay caught between quiet bliss and aching restraint.
His forehead brushed lightly against her hair, and a quiet sigh slipped out of him. If nights like this repeated, he knew he’d lose his sanity.
gαℓησν𝒆𝓁s․çоm, where stories thrive
At seven the next morning, Rylie’s alarm chimed, pulling her from sleep. She sat up right away, the tent warm around her, and spotted an extra heated blanket tucked over her bedding. Brad was already gone.
She studied the blanket with faint surprise. She wasn’t careless by nature, yet somehow he had managed to leave without stirring her. Even more, she’d slept soundly under his watch, not waking until the alarm called her.
What on earth had gotten into her?
Rylie pressed her lips together before washing up and getting dressed. On the small table sat a thermos of warm milk and a sandwich, clearly left by Brad. She finished the meal in a few bites, then pushed her way out of the tent.
The moment she lifted the flap, a blast of icy wind and a heavy tension swept over her. The temporary command post nearby buzzed with activity, the canvas walls straining against the weight of so many people inside.
For a second she thought the briefing had already begun and she’d fallen behind, but her eyes quickly scanned the crowd. Neither Brad nor Brock was anywhere in sight.
Everyone’s focus was locked on the glowing screens at the center, data and images flashing in rapid sequence, so intent that no one even noticed her arrival.
Her chest dropped with a sudden heaviness. “Have you seen Brad?”
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