Page 7 of Allie's Shelter
He waited, but she didn’t elaborate. “Since I stopped a man from killing you, I’ll stay concerned for a while longer.”
She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head slightly, as if she couldn’t quite force herself to look at him. It wasn’t fair since he couldn’t seem to stop looking at her. Finally, she made eye contact and the determination on her face made him want to applaud. She’d always been tough underneath the beauty and gracious manners.
“You expect me to blindly accept your help, but I need a clear explanation. Please, Ross, why were you in Aunt Ruth’s house?”
“You first.” He mimicked her earlier phrase and regretted it as the bravado leaked out of her. It was a struggle to hold his ground when he felt an overwhelming and entirely unwelcome urge to soothe her.
“I had an invitation. And a key,” she snapped.
He managed a sober nod instead of laughing aloud. At some enlightened moment in the lonely years after high school, he’d decided being too much alike was the root of their problem. They’d both been too stubborn to compromise.
But this wasn’t the time for a personal relationship epiphany. She was in danger and he’d effectively put himself between her and whoever hired the shooter. The unexpected arrival of a hit man was a piece of the puzzle that really bothered him. He needed a few hours and some real intel to put it in perspective. Why couldn’t she come clean and save all of them a load of time and effort? Too bad not even saving her life could restore his credibility where she was concerned.
“And you used the key because?”
“Fine.” She shoved her hands into her back pockets. He did his best to ignore the way the move thrust her breasts forward. “It’s a simple misunderstanding. I got caught in the middle of a…a power struggle at work. I need some time away to let things cool off. When it all gets sorted out, I’ll head back. Besides, I had vacation days that won’t carry over to next year and it’s nearly Thanksgiving. The sheriff has probably already determined that the guy at the house was some random robber.”
He half-listened to the rambling, knowing she wasn’t giving him anything useful and she expected him to believe her tall tale. He wasn’t supposed to know the murky truth about her running off with sensitive information. Doing another mental rundown of the case, he decided his team needed an update. A quick text would ensure Eva or Rick would be properly prepared when they arrived for the shift change. He checked his watch, noting he had a little better than three hours until that meeting.
“You’re timing me?”
He sighed. “Of course not. I’m checking to see how much sleep I can catch before the shift changes.” He sat on the edge of the bed to remove his shoes. He placed them next to the bed with habitual military precision, where he could reach them in a hurry, but he wasn’t ready to reveal the pistol at his ankle or the knife at his wrist. Sheriff Cochran had kept his primary weapon for ballistics analysis, and while he didn’t like it, he realized the necessity and wisdom of cooperating with local law enforcement.
“What shift? What the hell are you talking about now?”
“You and I are here,” he circled his hand to indicate the room, “because the sheriff released you into my custody. He asked me to keep you safe. I take that sort of responsibility very seriously. For the safety of the witness, or person of interest in your case, protective custody happens in shifts. If you’re done ranting about sharing a room—a detail that cannot be changed for your safety—I suggest we get some sleep before my relief arrives.” He was bluffing about the sleep, but she didn’t need to know how afraid he was to be alone with her. If she offered even the slightest invitation, he’d be all over her, the years and hurt between them long forgotten.
“Your custody! He didn’t say that to me. Why didn’t you say that to me?”
He made a study out of the proper position of the pillows on the bed nearest the door and leaned back as if he wasn’t fantasizing about all the other things her mouth could do besides berate him. “Thought you knew.”
She chewed on that for all of two seconds. “Bull.”
He shrugged. “Maybe I knew you didn’t know. So what? You obviously need protection. I proved I’m capable. Either settle down and get some rest or tell me why anyone would want to shoot at you.”
“It was a robbery gone wrong,” she insisted, obviously exasperated with him. “Why were you in the house?”
He gritted his teeth. It was never wise to be the first to give up real information, but maybe if he opened up, she would too. He wanted to stamp ‘closed’ on this case as quickly as possible and move on before he did something stupid where she was concerned. “I was in town on business. Wrapping up another case,” he added, before she could ask. “I was in the neighborhood because Sheriff Cochran had complaints from the residents about a stranger poking around. My team gets called in to assist law enforcement for that kind of thing occasionally.” That much was true. The sheriff had offered those details when he questioned Ross. Of course, there was more to it as it pertained specifically to Allie, but the bottom line was still true.
“Sheriff Cochran called you?”
“You don’t have to sound so surprised. He knows what my team can do and he saw the wisdom of calling us in. You know how small the department is. Glad I was there as it turned out,” he added with a pointed look.
She had the grace to nod her agreement.
“I was in Ruth’s house because I followed the shooter inside. As for the custody thing, you’re a person of interest here even though I shot him. You’d be a tremendous drain on department resources if they had to put someone on you twenty-four-seven. My team can take care of you, leaving the sheriff and his staff to solve the case. Cochran’s worried there’s more going on here than a botched robbery.”
She paled and her eyes went wide. “What sort of team do you have?”
He chuckled, thinking of hard-nosed, opinionated Eva and her polar opposite in stoic, silent Rick. “Well, we don’t play football.” She glared at him again. He preferred it, preferred most any look to the scared rabbit expression. “Look, they’re good people I’ve worked with through the years. We saw a need and opened a specialized security service.” He sighed. The last thing he wanted to get into was the exact nature of his business. “We’re good at what we do.”
“Which is?” With her hands back on her hips, it was clear she was ramping up for another round.
“Complicated. And confidential.” He shifted, trying to get comfortable on the bed. An impossible but worthy goal considering the erection he was sporting just because she was close. Old times all over again. Except this time, he wouldn’t fall for her. He was smarter now, knew how to keep his emotions in check. He closed his eyes to prove he had the willpower. “Let it go, Allie. We can fight about it after a nap.”
“I am not staying one more minute in this room with you. I don’t know you. I don’t know your real agenda.”
He opened his eyes, staring her down. “You don’t believe the sheriff needs my team?” It was pretty obvious to him that Allie—her situation—was too much for Haleswood to handle.