She changed position to see him better. Next to her, he shifted again, this time toward her. “I wish?—”
They both moved suddenly. His face came close, too close. She stilled as his warm breath washed over her cheek, her lips. If she moved an inch, their lips would connect.
The sudden longing shocked her to her soul, and she forgot what she’d planned to say.
Danger alarms went off in her brain. She pulled her head away from his, bumping it in the process. A little pain seemed a small price to pay for avoiding the temptation she’d almost given in to.
She should be reeling with relief that she’d escaped a mistake that could have changed the tentative friendship growing between them.
Instead, a sense of loss flooded her.
Eleven
Jackson’s head ached, and his ribs were on fire from his injury. When they returned to civilization, he’d have it looked at. It was possible he’d broken a rib.
He shifted, and pain shot through him. He clenched his jaw and squeezed his eyes shut, willing the agony to pass.
Mia had fallen asleep, her head on his shoulder, somewhere around three in the morning. The sun would be rising soon, and the bats would return to roost. He and Mia probably didn’t want to be inside the cave when they did.
Earlier, he’d wanted to kiss her more than he wanted his next breath. He still didn’t know how that had happened. She’d moved away fast though, so clearly, she didn’t share the growing attraction.
He sighed. He didn’t have time for romance in his life anyway. Especially not with someone who didn’t share his faith. Maybe if she did?—
Thinking of what-ifs did no good. But there was no way he’d forget the heat of her lips so close to his.
After she’d stayed awake so late, he didn’t want to rouse her, but they needed to move. He’d sat thinking for a long time about what she’d told him. Her ex-fiancé was a jerk. No doubt about that. And what she’d hinted at with her family told him there weren’t many warm, fuzzy moments in her home life either.
He hadn’t known her as well as he’d thought. Glancing down at the dark braid trailing down his chest, little tendrils escaping, he fought the urge to lean closer. To inhale and see if she still used the same shampoo. To touch his lips to her head to see if her hair still felt silky.
He forced himself to move away. Mia Turner was a temptation he couldn’t afford.
“Hey. Mia.” Gently, he nudged her awake.
She stirred. “Go away.”
He chuckled. “I can’t. Listen, it’ll be sunrise soon. Unless you want to have a bat roost in your hair…” He let that thought dangle.
Mia shoved herself upright. “No bats.”
“I thought you’d see it my way.” Heaving himself to his feet, he stretched. His bones cracked, and the noise sounded loud in the silence. “Rain stopped around three.”
“That’s good. I’m going to grab a protein bar. Want one?”
“Absolutely.”
It didn’t take long to gather their gear together and head out. They started east, in the direction of the car. “We’ll still have to find a way to the top again.”
Mia strode beside him. She frowned. “We’ll have to use hooks.”
He nodded. Their anchors had been left behind. He didn’t know if they’d be able to retrieve them. “We can try and find the anchors once we get the police out here to search the scene.”
If they got the police out here.
He couldn’t help but think they weren’t out of danger yet. But he wouldn’t let fear stop him. His brother, and Reggie, needed him. Did Dylan know he’d search for him? Jackson hoped he did. People needed something to believe in. He wanted to trust that Dylan believed in his big brother—only Jackson hadn’t been there for the kid the way he should have been. Some of it wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t shift all the blame onto others.
He shook his head.
He was letting his past mistakes cloud his mind. He needed to concentrate on what could be done here and now to get them out of this situation, keep Mia from getting hurt or killed, and rescue Dylan and Reggie.