Forever Is Not Enough [Council Enforcers 2] (Siren Publishing Classic)

you’re hurt.” Jacqueline reached out to touch him but stopped herself, not wanting to hurt him further. The sight of blood running freely down his side scared her more than anything.
    “I’m okay.” He waved off her concern. “We need to move before any more guards come and see the bodies out there.”
    Jacqueline nodded, ran over, and shut the closet door. Hopefully it would buy them a little time before the guards figured out they had come into this room, but the way the man was bleeding, she doubted it. All they had to do was follow the blood trail. She closed the door to the fuse box as well. No need to make it easy for them. Once she was done she went back to the opening.
    The man looked as though he was barely on his feet and would pass out at any time. He was losing too much blood, and Jacqueline had no idea what to do. She wasn’t a doctor. She was a scientist. She was used to spending her time in a lab alone with her chemicals and computer. She took her bag off her shoulders and quickly pulled her jacket and shirt off.
    Pressing the shirt to the man’s side, she grabbed his hand and placed it on top. “You need to hold this in place.” Once the man did as she asked, she put her jacket back on and continued speaking. “This tunnel should go on for about a mile. The end should come out in the woods that surround the bunker. From there, we have to go about another mile to a service road where I left a car. Do you think you can make it that far?”
    The man stared at her a moment before speaking. “I can’t remember your name.”
    The question caught Jacqueline off guard. Here she was worried about how she was going to carry this gigantic man when he passed out because there was no way she could leave him behind, and he wanted to know her name. “My name is Jacqueline.”
    “Okay, Jacqi—”
    “No, Jacqueline,” she said, cutting him off.
    “Jacqi, I’m Benjamin, but my friends call me Ben. I’m trusting you, so let’s go. A mile of tunnels and then a mile of woods. I can make it.”
    Jacqueline had her doubts on whether he could make it or not judging by his grayish, pale complexion, but she didn’t say anything as she followed him into the tunnel. Once inside, she rubbed her hands along the walls next to the entrance until she felt the switch to close the door. As soon as the door slid shut, dim lights came on in the tunnel, making her want to jump with joy. She hadn’t been looking forward to feeling her way through it in the dark.
    “Do you have a cell phone, Jacqi?” Ben asked as he began walking.
    She was tempted to ignore him since he insisted on calling her that ridiculous nickname, but Jacqueline couldn’t bring herself to do it. Ben was in pain and getting weaker by the moment. He had one hand gripping the shirt on his side, and he used the other to support himself on the wall as he walked.
    “I have one hidden in the car. You can use it to call whoever you need to once we get there.”
    A grunt was his only response. As they walked in silence, Jacqueline realized she had never been able to take the time to look at the man in front of her. Every time she had seen him, she was in and out of his room as fast as she could. Now, nothing was stopping her from admiring the back side of Ben, and it was definitely a nice back side. He was shirtless, and she saw each muscle in his back move with each step he took. The fact that Ben had been down there so long and still had muscle definition was a testament to the man’s size. He was wide at the shoulders, but his back tapered down to his narrow hips. He wore a pair of what looked like black military pants that cupped his ass nicely. Jacqueline had no idea what his legs looked like, but she could tell they were long, and she’d bet they were just as muscular as his top half.
    Her admirations were cut short when she slammed into the back she had been admiring and bounced off. Ben didn’t even budge, but she almost went flying backward. “What’s wrong? Why are we stopping?”
    “We’re at the end of the tunnel. There is a hatch here, but before I open it, I need to know what I will find on the other side. Will there be cover? Any guards that I’m going to have to deal with?”
    Jacqueline hadn’t thought of any of that. Her main goal had been just making it that far. “As far as I know, there shouldn’t be any guards. No one is supposed to know about these tunnels except for my father, so they don’t need guarding. I