to find a good location so Bauer called to set it up and she put her two guests up at another inn just to make room for us.”
“That was nice of her.” She stared through the windshield at the pretty inn, the front verandah wrapped with strands of white lights and a pair of gas lanterns flickering on either side of the wide front door. A few minutes later Cruz stepped back out onto the porch and held up a key.
“All right, let’s go,” Nathan said.
As soon as he opened the passenger door, the rhythmic sigh of the surf reached him. Standing beside the vehicle, Taya closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath of the cool, salt-tinged air. Almost as though she was savoring the experience.
Nate took her suitcase from the back and stayed at her back while she walked up the front steps to meet Cruz. The other agent gave her a small smile and handed her the key. “Pleasant dreams.”
“Thanks. You too.” The response was automatic, but immediately she realized it sounded stupid. Both he and Nathan would likely be up most of the night, keeping watch and doing investigative work and whatever else being on a security detail involved.
“Let’s get you settled,” Nathan said, leading the way up the wooden staircase to the second floor, Cruz right behind her. Nathan held up a hand in a silent command for her to stay put while he and Cruz went in the room first to look around.
Cruz walked out and gave her a nod, then Nathan stuck his head around the doorway a moment later. “Okay. I put your suitcase on the ottoman over in the corner.”
“Thanks.” She walked past him into the room and tucked a lock of hair behind one ear, trying not to stare at him as he shut the door, the action sending her heart rate up a notch. Over by the bed the leaded glass lamp on the nightstand cast a warm yellow glow that brought out the rich red highlights in his hair and lined his broad shoulders. He was an inch or two over six feet and his presence in this cozy, feminine room seemed suddenly intimate somehow.
Blocking the path her train of thoughts wanted to follow, she searched for a safer topic. “Should I color my hair now, or…”
“In the morning’s fine. Get some sleep first. We’ll probably eat downstairs, but not all together. One of us will be with you whenever you leave your room.” His warm hazel eyes seemed to caress her face for a moment, then settled on her eyes. “Just remember you’re safe here. And I’m right next door if you need anything.”
He might not have meant the double entendre intentionally, but there was no mistaking the sudden leap of heat she read in his eyes as his words registered. She’d caught flashes of male awareness and maybe even appreciation from him a few times today, but this was the first time she’d been sure the pull wasn’t one-sided.
Staring up at him, Taya caught her breath at the answering flare of arousal that sparked inside her. Their history was already problematic, all tangled up with strong emotion forged in the most difficult of circumstances. Knowing he was guarding her only intensified her attraction to him. If it had been just physical, she could have ignored it easily enough. But it wasn’t.
Nathan was strong and protective and capable, but he also had a softer, incredibly caring side to him that had stolen a piece of her heart long ago. She’d seen him fight through his grief to do his job while under fire and mourning the loss of his fellow PJ, in the field and on the chopper ride to base.
She’d felt his skilled touch while he tended to her, keeping her from bleeding to death, then again later after she’d come out of surgery at Bagram. His face had been lined with exhaustion as he’d leaned over her bed. He’d cupped the side of her face in one hand, just above where the bandages stopped, smiled down at her and said, You’re going home today, Taya.
She remembered tearing up instantly, her voice scratchy because of the recent intubation.
“That was nice of her.” She stared through the windshield at the pretty inn, the front verandah wrapped with strands of white lights and a pair of gas lanterns flickering on either side of the wide front door. A few minutes later Cruz stepped back out onto the porch and held up a key.
“All right, let’s go,” Nathan said.
As soon as he opened the passenger door, the rhythmic sigh of the surf reached him. Standing beside the vehicle, Taya closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath of the cool, salt-tinged air. Almost as though she was savoring the experience.
Nate took her suitcase from the back and stayed at her back while she walked up the front steps to meet Cruz. The other agent gave her a small smile and handed her the key. “Pleasant dreams.”
“Thanks. You too.” The response was automatic, but immediately she realized it sounded stupid. Both he and Nathan would likely be up most of the night, keeping watch and doing investigative work and whatever else being on a security detail involved.
“Let’s get you settled,” Nathan said, leading the way up the wooden staircase to the second floor, Cruz right behind her. Nathan held up a hand in a silent command for her to stay put while he and Cruz went in the room first to look around.
Cruz walked out and gave her a nod, then Nathan stuck his head around the doorway a moment later. “Okay. I put your suitcase on the ottoman over in the corner.”
“Thanks.” She walked past him into the room and tucked a lock of hair behind one ear, trying not to stare at him as he shut the door, the action sending her heart rate up a notch. Over by the bed the leaded glass lamp on the nightstand cast a warm yellow glow that brought out the rich red highlights in his hair and lined his broad shoulders. He was an inch or two over six feet and his presence in this cozy, feminine room seemed suddenly intimate somehow.
Blocking the path her train of thoughts wanted to follow, she searched for a safer topic. “Should I color my hair now, or…”
“In the morning’s fine. Get some sleep first. We’ll probably eat downstairs, but not all together. One of us will be with you whenever you leave your room.” His warm hazel eyes seemed to caress her face for a moment, then settled on her eyes. “Just remember you’re safe here. And I’m right next door if you need anything.”
He might not have meant the double entendre intentionally, but there was no mistaking the sudden leap of heat she read in his eyes as his words registered. She’d caught flashes of male awareness and maybe even appreciation from him a few times today, but this was the first time she’d been sure the pull wasn’t one-sided.
Staring up at him, Taya caught her breath at the answering flare of arousal that sparked inside her. Their history was already problematic, all tangled up with strong emotion forged in the most difficult of circumstances. Knowing he was guarding her only intensified her attraction to him. If it had been just physical, she could have ignored it easily enough. But it wasn’t.
Nathan was strong and protective and capable, but he also had a softer, incredibly caring side to him that had stolen a piece of her heart long ago. She’d seen him fight through his grief to do his job while under fire and mourning the loss of his fellow PJ, in the field and on the chopper ride to base.
She’d felt his skilled touch while he tended to her, keeping her from bleeding to death, then again later after she’d come out of surgery at Bagram. His face had been lined with exhaustion as he’d leaned over her bed. He’d cupped the side of her face in one hand, just above where the bandages stopped, smiled down at her and said, You’re going home today, Taya.
She remembered tearing up instantly, her voice scratchy because of the recent intubation.
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