Falling for Her Soldier by Ophelia London Page B

you,” she said, grateful for the vote of confidence.
    “I offered to help, even though I’m way out of my depth here. But I’ll do whatever I can.”
    “Thanks”—she chuckled under her breath—“again.”
    He opened the door for her, and she glanced at him as she passed into the parking lot. It was still a wonder that the stories Sam told her about Hunter and the guy holding open the door were the same person. The man she was getting to know might’ve been a flirt who tossed around laughably cheesy lines. But other than that, he’d been polite and helpful and well-behaved.
    And hot. She could not forget the hot part, no matter how hard she tried.
    Thank goodness for those twenty-three more days…
    “Will you have dinner with me?” Ellie asked, much to her own surprise. Hunter seemed just as stunned. And why shouldn’t he be? Hadn’t she shot him down twice already and told him never to try it again?
    “Uh, sure,” he said. “Of course.”
    “It’s not a date ,” she tweaked, if only for her own benefit. “We need to, ya know, figure this out.”
    “We sure do,” Hunter said, wearing a pretty intense expression as he looked at her. Not since yesterday had her legs done that wobble dance. They were wobbling now. “A lot of figuring out to do,” he added under his breath. He looked extra sexy when he was thinking hard. She’d need him to think hard to help her come up with a plan.
    “I’m driving,” he said.
    Ellie flashed a glance at his pretty car, the desire to see the inside pulling at her again. What harm could it do? It was just a drive. She’d even pick some place close to eat.
    “Okay,” she caved without a fight. “But I’m paying. My invitation, my treat.”
    Hunter opened the passenger door for her. “I didn’t agree to that.”
    “But—”
    “Shhh. We’ll discuss it later.”
    Ellie said nothing more and got in the car.
    It had black interior, that really thin, tight leather. And a bench seat. Something about that made a tingle tiptoe up her spine; maybe the fact that there was no gearshift or cup holder separating her from Hunter when he slid in beside her. The door made a metallic moan when he pulled it closed.
    She ran her hand over the dash.
    “You’re petting my car,” Hunter said, turning the key. “I usually charge for that.”
    “I’m not into heavy metal,” she admitted, “but this is really cool.”
    “Thanks. It took me seven years.”
    She looked at him in surprise. “You restored this?”
    “With my own two hands.”
    Ellie couldn’t help doing a quick examination of his hands. They certainly looked capable of restoring a car. Capable of other things, now that she thought about it.
    “That’s why it took so long,” he added, driving out of the parking lot.
    “That’s impressive.”
    “You sound surprised.”
    She shrugged one shoulder. “I sometimes forget Army people have interests outside the Army.”
    “I have many interests, Ellie.”
    She stared straight ahead, wanting to look at him but not wanting to look at him. “Hmm, I’m sure you do.”
    He burst into laughter. “Okay, we need to get something out in the open.”
    When she glanced at him, the way he was looking at her, how his eyes flicked to her mouth for just an instant, made Ellie wonder what he had in mind. Though she had a pretty good idea.
    “I know Sammy told you a bunch of stories about me.”
    Ellie nodded. “He sure did.”
    “It was fair of him.” Hunter squinted into the sunset. “But…”
    “Let me guess: You’re not like that anymore.”
    She couldn’t help laughing at the way he gaped at her.
    “Well…yes.”
    A second later, she stopped laughing. It surprised her how much she wanted to believe him. There was another warning gnawing at the back of her mind, though she couldn’t pinpoint what it was.
    “Look, it doesn’t matter what I know about you—this isn’t a date.” She motioned to the empty space between them on the bench seat for some