Page 47 of Sheltered

Once Blaze was close enough that I wouldn’t need to shout, I said, “Hey, boss. What are you doing here?”

Something warmed in his features briefly. Blaze kept coming toward me, didn’t speak, and slid his arm around my waist the moment I was close enough to touch. His other hand drove into my hair and settled at the back of my skull. He angled my head, and the next thing I knew, his lips were on mine.

It took me almost no time to decide I liked being able to come home from work and have him there to greet me with a kiss before I even walked through my front door.

And because he was so good at everything he did—kissing at the top of that list—I didn’t find it strange to be almost instantly lost in his kiss. God, I loved the feel of his lips against mine. I loved the way his tongue explored my mouth. Most of all, I loved the sounds he made and the way he held me close while he kissed me.

Eventually, Blaze tore his mouth from mine. We both were staring at one another, and there was nothing but contentment moving through me. Unfortunately, I could easily see that wasn’t the case with Blaze.

Wanting to tread cautiously, I asked, “Did I get something wrong?”

“What do you mean?”

“I wasn’t expecting you here until tomorrow evening for our date,” I explained. “Did I misunderstand something in all the conversation we had yesterday?”

Blaze shook his head. “You did not. I had quite the day at work today, and I needed to come by to talk to you about it. I hope it’s okay that I just stopped by unannounced.”

I smiled at him. “If you greet me like that every time you show up, I don’t think I’ll ever have a problem with you showing up unannounced.”

He returned the smile, but it didn’t stay for long. “Do you have time to talk?”

Despite how magical his kiss had been, an unwelcome wave of anxiety moved through me. Something was wrong, and I hoped whatever it was would be something I could help Blaze work through before the night was over.

Nodding, I answered, “Sure. Come on inside.”

Blaze followed me into the house, and once we’d gotten ourselves settled on the couch, I asked, “What’s going on?”

He sighed audibly, which only made me grow more nervous. “Well, believe it or not, you helped me with a break in a case today.”

“Me? How would I do that? What case?” I questioned, my body tense.

“Technically, it wasn’t a case we were specifically working on, but it sort of is now,” Blaze revealed. “And after what happened today, something you had said to me the other week popped into my head.”

Tipping my head to the side, still as confused as ever, I asked, “What happened today?”

Blaze didn’t hesitate to bring me up to speed. “My boss’s wife, Tarryn, is the owner of The Early Bird. She has three other women who work in the coffee and doughnut shop with her, and when one of them went out to her car this morning, she realized all of their cars had been vandalized.”

My eyes widened in shock. “What?”

With a nod, Blaze confirmed, “Yeah. I was on my way to work when I got the call to meet Royce there. After getting the whole story about what happened and learning that the perpetrators match the description of the men who vandalized the pub and set fire to Hanna’s tiny home resort, I made a connection.”

“Which was?”

“When you and I were at the drive-in theater, you had said you were glad that everyone I knew in both cases was okay. This is the third of those cases where I know someone involved. Once again, everyone was physically okay, which is the most important thing, but we have a hunch that what’s going on right now has something to do with Harper Security Ops.”

I would have thought that the more Blaze spoke, the more relaxed I would feel. That wasn’t the case now. Because the more he shared, the more worried I was feeling. “Are you… Are you saying someone is purposely targeting those who are connected to the people who work at Harper Security Ops?”

Blaze nodded again. “Preliminarily, that’s what we’re thinking.”

Suddenly, it dawned on me.

Blaze hadn’t come here to tell me about how I helped him solve a case. He was here because he felt compelled to warn me.

Worried, I came right out with it. “Am I in danger?”

In an instant, Blaze took my hand in his. It was warm and comforting, but I had a feeling it wouldn’t feel that way once I no longer had his fingers wrapped around mine. “I want to tell you that you don’t have a thing to be worried about, and I’d like to think that’s the case, but I’d be lying.”

My body tensed further, and I rasped my disbelief. “What?”