“I wanted to make sure you got to school.” He shoulder-shut the door while focusing on her. “You all right?”
She realized the brightness sneaking around the window treatments. “What time is it?” She knee-walked off the bed, his teasing smile, too much, too early. She should have woken him right when he fell asleep. Once again, being sweet had gotten her into a pickle. A bitch would have kicked him out.
“It’s almost six.” He looked wide awake and wonderful. “I got us breakfast.” He set a bag on the dresser.
She pushed a hand through her blond mess, trying to untangle her thoughts more than her hair. Had she slept all night with him? She remembered her mom saying something about him leaving. “Did you work last night?”
“Actually, I overslept.” His smile gave his words more meaning than she understood. “But yeah, I went to work.” He pulled two coffees from a bag and held one out to her. “Coffee now, or after you shower?”
She blinked, her brain on overload. “How did this happen?”
“What happen?” He set the bag and one coffee on the dresser. He wore the navy windbreaker. It didn’t look as if he’d changed clothes.
“This.” She waved a hand between them. “You here and talking about showers and bringing me coffee.”
“I was just trying to be nice.” He pulled the top of the coffee off and sipped from the rim. The smell of chicory and caffeine made everything seem more real.
She eyed the clock again, figuring how much time she had to get to work, then she looked back at him. “Why are you here now?”
The steam from the cup rose around his face. “Because I want to make sure Stan isn’t waiting for you at the school.”
She remembered her dream again. Her mom had said for her not to go out for lunch. She pressed her palms against her eyes.
“You sure you don’t need a coffee?” He took two steps closer. She took two back.
“No.” She grabbed her suitcase and stepped into the bathroom. Before she closed the door, she looked over her shoulder. “Is this normal?”
“Now that you mention it. No.” His grin came on slow. “Normally, when I bring a woman breakfast in bed, she’s a lot nicer.”
She frowned. “I mean, do you do personal wake-up calls and bring coffee to all the people you meet on your job? Aren’t you taking the protect-and-serve motto a tad to the extreme?”
His smiled faded. “I’m just trying to make sure you stay alive. The guy after you is suspected of three murders now.”
She nodded, recalling her dream where her mom said that Stan hadn’t been the one doing the killing. “So that’s all that’s going on?”
He raised his coffee and sipped from the cup. His blue-green eyes stared at her through the steam. “What else could there be?”
~
“So that’s all that’s going on?” He spent the entire time waiting on her to shower and telling himself that enough was enough. She was right. He was taking this too damn far. And it could backfire on him big time.
But the moment she stepped out of the bathroom, his resolve took a hike. It was her eyes. Big and blue. It was her body. Soft and sexy. But it was the mere possibility that the same asshole who’d killed the two guys back at the other hotel could do the same to her that sealed the deal. He wasn’t backing down.
He let his gaze move over her. The khaki pants and a pink sweater hugged her body in all the right places. His hands itched to reach around her waist and pull her against him. To feel her against him. Breathing in air that smelled like freshly showered woman, he envisioned removing each article of clothing she wore and pulling her into the bed and getting acquainted with every naked inch of her.
“Coffee now?” He held out her cup.
She accepted it and pulled off the lid. A bit of steam rose from the cup as she put her lips to the edge. Taking a small sip, she glanced up at him. “Thank you.”
He smiled. “You’re welcome.” He reached for the bag of donuts. “I just got plain glazed.”
“That’s what I like.”
He offered her the bag and she reached in and pulled one out.
They sat on the bed and drank coffee and ate donuts that were still warm. He remembered last night, the comfortable place they’d slipped into, right before he’d fallen into the first real sleep he’d had in almost a month.
“Sorry if I scared you this morning,” he said.
She nodded. “I’m sorry I was grumpy.”
The donut melted on Brit’s tongue. But he thought about something else he’d rather taste. Her. She licked her finger, then popped the little digit into her mouth, seemingly unaware of how sexy she looked. A flake of sugar clung to her bottom lip and he longed to lean down and taste it with his lips. His lower body tightened and the evidence of his arousal pressed against his zipper. He inhaled and tried to stop the blood from flowing south.
She finished her donut, and he offered her another.
“No. Thank you.”
That flake of sugar still clung to the side of her mouth. He reached over and brushed it aside. Their gazes met and held.