HARDIN
Even though she was hurt and barely able to move, Elara still found the strength to shove my hand away when I tried to lift her off the ground.
"Go…" she rasped, her voice rough and uneven, barely even loud enough to hear if I wasn't so close to her mouth.
I ignored it. I wasn't leaving her like this. I pulled her arm gently over the back of my neck, slid one arm around her back just beneath her armpit, and hooked the other under her knees. Then I lifted her carefully. Too carefully for someone like me.
When I reached the bed, I knelt on both knees at the edge and laid her down as gently as I could, my muscles tight with the effort of holding back.
Without hesitating, my fingers quickly flew down the buttons of my shirt, yanking them open like time was running out, as if I'd lose her if I didn't move quicker. The last button came undone. I ripped the shirt off and grabbed her hand.
