He’d debated getting her flowers, but had thought that felt wrong for some reason. Hell, this whole situation was wrong. He shouldn’t be here. But he was, and damn it, he needed to get his head on straight. Axel couldn’t afford to be distracted right now, not when he was trying to keep her safe.
Nodding once, he said, “I took a chance you would. Did you need a few more minutes before we head out?” He wasn’t sure how current dating worked exactly since he hadn’t been on one in… He couldn’t remember. Which was pathetic.
“Ah, no… Did you want to come in for a drink before we go?”
He shook his head, even though he would like nothing more than to see her place—her bedroom specifically.
Still blushing, she grabbed her purse from a small foyer table as she set the coffee bag down. “Will you shut the door first? I need to set my alarm and can’t do it if it’s open.”
At least she had a system in place. Nodding, he stepped inside with her, subtly inhaling her sweet vanilla and roses scent and trying not to stare too hard at her.
Once they were in his rental truck, he turned the music on low. “I have reservations at Bella Bella’s but if you wanted, I could also cook for you at my rental place.” Yeah, it was presumptuous but he wanted to get her in a location where she wasn’t out in the open. “Please don’t feel pressured to say yes. I just have a great view of the harbor.” And more importantly, it would be difficult to attack her at his place.
No one would know where she was. Which was the whole point of tonight. Keep her safe. Hidden. Then… God, he needed to tell her someone wanted to hurt her.
“Ah…okay. Yeah, that sounds nice.” Her voice was a little breathless and that damn blush was affecting him way more than he wanted to admit.
He was surprised she’d actually said yes. From her file, he knew she didn’t date much, or at all it seemed. And he was annoyed she’d given him her address. Because she shouldn’t be giving out her address to anyone, much less some guy she’d just met. But he couldn’t very well chastise her for it without blowing his intent or sounding like a jackass.
“What’s the address? I’m going to text a friend and let her know where I’ll be.” Then she snapped a picture of him—covertly, but not so much that he didn’t realize what she’d done. Okay, so she was being cautious.
Damn. Maybe he’d been wrong. Good for her. He quickly rattled it off, glad she was taking safety precautions. Not that she needed to worry about him. He was dangerous, but not to her. Never to her. But no way in hell could she know that. Not when they’d just met. It eased some of the tension inside him. Damn it, he just needed to tell her what was going on, except…how did he tell her that someone had put out a contract on her head and wanted her kidnapped, without sounding crazy? Or admitting what he did for a living.
“So how did your job hunting thing go today?” she asked, crossing her legs slightly as she turned to face him more.
He lifted a shoulder. “Eh, interviews about finance and real estate. There’s no way to make any of it sound exciting.”
She laughed, the sound intoxicating. “Do you at least like what you do?”
Oh, that was a complicated answer. And even though he was lying about what he did for a living, he hadn’t lied about his name. He hated the thought of lying to her in general. Which was new to him. And he wasn’t sure how he felt about it. “Some days I do.” Like today, because it had brought him to her.
“I understand that.”
“So are you interning anywhere?”
“Not yet, but I hope to find something by this summer. Before I moved here I worked at a small veterinary clinic in an admin role for almost three years. But I got to sit in on a lot of things and it really enforced that I was making the right career decision.”
“So why animals?” That was the kind of thing he couldn’t read in a file. Some things he wanted her to tell him anyway. Because he wanted to know everything about this woman with the sweet smile and adorable dimple.
She snorted softly. “Will you judge me if I say because they’re better than people most days?”
He barked out a surprised laugh at her honesty. “I understand.” More than she could realize. Before his current profession, he’d worked for the FBI and he’d seen the worst in people in ways he didn’t even want to think about. Especially from those who were supposed to be the good guys. “I’m surprised you don’t have any pets. Unless you have one I didn’t see?”
“Ah…I had a dog. Sassy. She died right before I moved here.” There was a note of sadness in her voice.
“I’m sorry.”
Hadley nodded once, her dark hair shifting slightly against her shoulders. “She was a rescue and her life hadn’t been easy from what we could tell. When she was found she had a chain hanging from around her neck, poor thing. Honestly I’m surprised she lasted as long as she did, but at least I know her last few years were good. I got to bring her in to the clinic most days and she loved the attention.” There was so much love and affection in her voice.
He’d never had a pet, not even as a kid. His mother had barely been able to take care of him, let alone an animal. “What kind of dog was she?” he asked as he turned into the gated community of the place he’d rented. The security here wouldn’t stop a pro but it was one extra layer. And he didn’t think they’d been followed. The men who’d been hired to take her were all loners so at least that eliminated the possibility of anyone working as a team.
“A shepherd-lab mix.”
He nodded once as he pulled through the gates, keeping an eye on the rearview mirror. Nope. No one was behind him. And he hadn’t noticed an obvious tail. When his phone buzzed he ignored it, even though he knew it had to be Isaac Murphy, the guy he had running info on Hadley’s would-be kidnappers. He wasn’t used to working like this, working to save someone in this way. Normally he simply took out assholes. And Isaac was a skilled hacker who helped him locate people.
“So…were you ever in the military?” Hadley asked as he pulled into the designated parking spot for the rental place.
Surprised by the question, he turned to face her. “Yes. Why?”
“You’re just hyperaware in a way my ha…my brother is. And he was in the Marines.”
He wondered if she’d been about to say half-brother. “I was too. Eight years.”
“Oh wow. How…” Even in the dimness of the truck, there was enough outside illumination from the moon and other lights at the complex that he could tell she was blushing again.
The woman was clearly trying to kill him and he couldn’t help but wonder how flushed she’d get during sex. Would it just be her cheeks or would that extend… Nope. Couldn’t go there now. Not if he wanted his dick to stay under control. “Were you going to ask how old I am?” he asked.
She let out an embarrassed laugh. “You don’t have to answer.”
“Nah. I don’t care. I’m thirty-two.” After the Marines he’d done a fast-track in college, pushing himself to graduate early. Then he’d been hired by the FBI, had thought it was his dream job. Yeah, he learned the hard way that it wasn’t. Not even close.
“You look younger.”
He didn’t have a baby face exactly, but without his beard he definitely looked to be in his mid-twenties. He used that to his advantage when necessary. “Yeah…so, you hungry?”
Smiling softly, she nodded.
And he knew that he was definitely screwed where she was concerned. He barely knew her but felt consumed with the need to protect her. He spent his time killing guys who deserved it, and she was this innocent, defenseless woman who tugged at all of his protective instincts. It was unnerving, but he wasn’t going to walk away. He couldn’t.
*