Page 123 of Crash Course
An agonizing three minutes later, movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention. He peered over at her, found her staring at him with those sharp green lasers that had enthralled him since day one.
No tears.Thank you, sweet baby Jesus.
"I’m good," she said.
He laughed. "No, you’re not, but I am, as usual, wildly impressed with your determination."
She snorted, drove her fist into the air. "That’s me. Never let 'em see you sweat."
"How’d the exchange go?"
"Horrible. I suck at this."
She gave him a quick rundown of the drop and having experienced many jobs that went sideways, he sympathized.
The difference for him? He always had his brothers backing him up. A team figuring things out on the fly.
Cilla, at her insistence, had gone in alone to protect him from violating Zeke’s precious NDA. If he got caught being the driver, plausible deniability sat on his side.What documents? I thought she wanted coffee.
This woman? Total rockstar. And he had to have her.
"The good news," he said, "is that you salvaged the drop and got out of there fast." He flashed her an all-teeth smile. "Gold stars for the rookie."
"I don’t feel triumphant. I feel shitty."
"How about I take you home? If you’re hungry later, we’ll get some food."
He waited half a beat for her to, as usual, protest any suggestion of time off or relaxing. But, hey now, was she actually pondering this?
Priscilla Randolph, work-a-holic?
The sun glinted off her face in a way that accentuated the slight puffiness under her amazing green eyes.
His girl needed some rest, and he might have to push her on it.
"That sounds great," she said. "I have some work to do, though. Are you okay with that?"
Relief over not having to argue—or point out she looked like hell—settled on him. Progress. Always a good thing.
The light on the corner flipped to amber and he pressed the brake, easing to a stop behind the two cars in front of them. He swung his head, meeting her gaze. "If you can focus on work," he said, "I’m good with it. Gotta do what you gotta do."
"It’ll only be about ninety minutes. Frankly, it’s probably all I could stand tonight. You don’t have to stay with me. I don’t need a babysitter."
"Hell, no you don’t. Trust me, this is a completely selfish gesture. I like being with you." He grinned. "It has nothing to do with you and everything to do with me."
That earned him a laugh.Go, me.
"Excellent." Gaze locked on him, she let out a breath. "I need a shower and clean clothes, then I’ll feel better. If you want to help me, you’ll take that shower with me."
And, hello.Jackpot. He made a show of rolling his eyes, letting out a long sigh to emphasize the point. "Now, you’re asking a lot."
"Oh, please. Somehow, I think you’ll rise to the occasion."
"Honey, I sure will."
The following morning,after waking up with Mr. Delicioso, Cilla regretfully left him naked as a jaybird in her shower when she hustled off to work. Distractions had put her behind and now with the added pressure of an office move, she needed to log some serious work hours.
But. . .Cruz.
