Chapter 17: From Bad To Worse

I'm so determined to escape Ford that I'm not paying attention to where I'm going. Only a dozen steps into the building lobby, I run smack into another person so hard that I literally almost bounce off him. If it weren't for the pair of strong hands that grab me, I'd be flat on my ass on the ground.

"Easy, there," Orlando says, his hands steadying me. "What are you running from so fast?"

I look up into his wild, ever-intriguing eyes.

"It's nothing," I say quickly. "Just the rain." I notice suddenly that I grabbed his shirt as I was trying to regain my balance, and I'm still clinging to him like some sort of lovesick hussy. I unclasp my fingers, but the way he's gripping me still leaves me pressed against his body.

He glances over my shoulder, back the way I've come. He frowns, and something that looks like anger flickers in his eyes. His fingers tighten on my upper arms.

I glance over my shoulder just in time to see Ford turn and walk the other way. His white-toothed smile is gone