Page 16 of Stirring Attraction (Second Shot 2)
“Does he laugh at your jokes?” he demanded.
“He doesn’t find me funny,” she said. “But—”
“And he sure as shit doesn’t make you feel safe,” he said. “Or he’d be by your side night and day, making sure no one hurts you.”
“He trusts the police and thinks I’m overreacting. What happened was awful, but it’s over. Done. I should move on. And I am . . .”
It’s not that easy. You’ll never be the same. Even if you prove that you’re right and the police are wrong.
But now probably wasn’t the time to tell her that. She’d figure it out on her own.
“Ted is a good man,” she said. “He’s great with kids.”
But is he good with you? Does he know how to make you come, make you scream with pleasure while he buries his face between your legs?
Dominic wasn’t that guy. Not anymore, but he knew what she deserved.
“Maybe you should ask him to wear a sign when he comes to pick you up that reads ‘Ted, the Good Guy,’ ” he said.
She smiled, but her blue eyes shone with challenge. It was as if he’d told her he couldn’t keep seeing her all over again. Until that last time, when he’d been free and clear of his duty to serve, she’d never demanded that he change his mind.
“He’ll probably show up with flowers,” she said, thrusting his mug back into his hand. Then she reached for the door.
“Is that why you and your partner in crime hurled pie and wine at me last night?” he asked mildly. “Because I forgot the flowers?”
“Once upon a time, you showed up with Chinese takeout when you know I hate everything about it,” she said.
You have one helluva memory. But then he recalled the color of her nail polish and the way the light played off her pink toes.
“I’ve never expected flowers from you,” she continued, thrusting the door open. “I never expected you to come back here.”
He held up his damaged right hand. “I’m broken—”
“So you’ve what, been throwing yourself an extended pity party?”
“Yeah. But I didn’t want guests,” he said, his gaze fixed on the ugly scar in the center of his palm. “I needed time to put my life back together before I showed up here. I had to come to terms with the fact that I threw away a helluva lot to end up on the sidelines with a fucking hand that won’t work. A bullet nicked my pulmonary artery and it’s the one that passed through my hand that left me unable to serve, to hold a gun, to shave my face like I could before.”
He looked over at her and his gaze honed in on the visible reminders of her attack slashed across her skin. He’d spent the night watching over the kindergarten teacher who’d proven far more resilient. He’d spent months hiding from the uncertainty of his future. But she’d gone out, weeks after her attack, and started working again. She’d pushed out of her comfort zone, determined to get to back to her classroom.
“And now you can’t go back to who you were before,” she said.
“I can still keep you safe,” he promised.
“Because you don’t believe there is a threat out there. You think it’s all in my head.”
“I didn’t say that,” he ground out. “I—”
“You didn’t need to.” She shifted her legs and climbed out of the car. Then she turned back and said, “You’re promising to keep me safe, but you just admitted you can’t even fire a gun.”
He watched her walk away and wondered if he’d made a mistake coming back. He should have told Ryan to fly back and talk to her new boyfriend. He should be the one picking up the slack here. But if Ted with the flowers was such a great guy, why wasn’t he out here making damn sure she felt safe while she slept?
Because Ted didn’t believe her.
“I believe you, Lily,” he said, his words filling the now empty sedan. “If you say the bastard was after you, then he was. And I don’t need a gun to keep you safe. I can take care of you. Just don’t expect me to bring you a bunch of fucking flowers.”
Chapter Five
“WHERE’S MY BROTHER?” Josie demanded as she shifted her weight from side to side to calm the nine-month-old baby strapped to her chest. The little girl’s big green eyes peered over the edge of the carrier. She opened her mouth and bit down on the fabric edge, then smiled.
