Free Hard to Hold on To by Laura Kaye

run.
    Jenna needed him.
    Fierce protectiveness and a deep masculine satisfaction roared through him. She’d sought him out for comfort, for strength, for protection.
    Not only that, she was wearing his shirt. And she’d been staring at his body like she was fucking hungry.
    Needless to say, the past few minutes had tripped all kinds of switches in Easy’s brain where Jenna Dean was concerned. But he had to dial himself down. She was scared. And hurt. And clearly traumatized by everything that’d happened.
    He leaned down to look her in the eye, trying not to focus on the bruises—he didn’t want to make her feel self-conscious, and he sure as hell didn’t want to get any more enraged on her behalf than he already was. “You ever need me, for any reason, I am here for you. No questions asked. Got that?” He brushed his knuckles down her uninjured cheek.
    “Yes,” she said, giving him a quick nod and leaning into his touch. And damn if that didn’t make him feel ten feet tall—a notable feat for a guy who’d felt beaten down for most of the past year.
    He gently rubbed his hands over her arms. “What do you need right now?”
    “I don’t even know.” Pretty blue eyes searched his. “I’ve been fighting nausea off and on, but I can’t sleep because I get scared when I’m alone. I’m hungry, but I’m afraid to eat anything. And I don’t want Sara to know any of this because I don’t want to upset her.” Her gaze flickered off to her right, and Easy looked that way to find Marz and Charlie sitting at the desk in the corner, working but occasionally glancing their way.
    “That’s Marz and Charlie. Would you like to meet them?”
    She ducked her face, and with that one gesture Easy knew she wasn’t ready for people to see her like this. Bruised and shaken and scared. And he found himself wishing he’d been the one to kill Bruno all over again.
    “How ’bout we wait for the intros ’til you’re feeling a little better?” he asked. The relief that filled her expression reached into his chest and squeezed his heart.
    “Yeah. Thanks.”
    He focused on what she’d said, and wondered which of her concerns he might be able to address. She needed sleep, food, security. Hell, he could handle all of that, if she’d let him. And, damn, feeling not only needed but useful? It was like hitting the damn jackpot.
    “Do you think you could sleep if you weren’t alone?” he asked.
    Her eyes went wide, and he saw the answer on her face before she even replied. And it filled his gut with all kinds of Hell, yes.
    “Maybe,” she finally said.
    Maybe, his ass. But he played it cool even though his mind was truly trippin’ over how good it felt to be needed.
    “Come on, then.” He folded her little hand inside his much bigger one and guided her toward the door. Walking next to her emphasized how small she was compared to him. Her head just reached his shoulder. The disparity made him feel that much more protective of her.
    They took the steps slowly, and Easy couldn’t help but draw satisfaction from the fact that her trembles had almost completely died away. But he didn’t let that fool him into thinking she was okay. She’d had two panic attacks within a few hours’ time. It seemed he wasn’t the only one very likely rockin’ some PTSD.
    Of all the things to find in common with this woman, he really wished that weren’t among them.
    And here they were stuck in the middle of a situation in which it would be hard to get her the help she needed. Wasn’t like they could just run all over Baltimore. Not with Church very likely looking for Sara and Jenna, not to mention their rescuers. Rock, meet hard place. Fuck you very much.
    Inside the apartment, Easy led Jenna to his bedroom, where the little lamp on the floor was still lit. “Would you be okay if I took a quick shower? I won’t if you’d rather—”
    “No, of course it’s okay,” she rushed out, her gaze dragging down his chest again. Just like