Disappointment built up inside Luca. Every day he got closer to her, but he knew she wasn’t telling him the whole truth. He couldn’t protect her if he didn’t know what he was protecting her from, damn it. What the hell was she hiding?
“What about her home intruder?” Luca asked, frustration eating at him.
“We’ve been back three times, Rocket.” Bodie spoke with the same frustration in his voice. “Dusted every print we could find, and nothing suspicious has popped up. The best we can assume is that they weren’t after her.”
“The place had been empty for months. It’s possible they were squatters,” Asher said as he crossed his arms over his chest.
No, Luca would have heard them. Caught them leaving. Something wasn’t adding up.
Turning, Wyatt placed a hand on Luca’s chest. “Her heart rate seems to be about normal again. She’ll wake soon. Just keep an eye on her, brother. We’re getting close to cracking the file, we can’t afford a setback.”
“Already done.”
Wyatt glanced around Luca at Evie before turning back to him. “I hope you’re right about her.”
Turning, Wyatt moved to leave the room. The rest of the men slowly followed. Asher gave Luca a supportive pat on the back while Bodie gave Luca a nod on the way out.
When it was just him and Evie left, Luca ran a hand through his hair and turned back to her. He wasn’t making a mistake by trusting her. He could feel her goodness. She was hiding something, but it wasn’t what Eden thought it was.
Squatting down, Luca sat on the edge of the couch. Sleeping, she lost the constant worry lines, which seemed to be a permanent fixture on her face. She looked peaceful. Luca wished she had that peace more often.
Slowly, Evie’s eyes fluttered open. At the sight of her beautiful green eyes, Luca felt like he could breathe again. As her gaze darted around the room, it took her a moment to get her bearing.
Placing his hand on her shoulder, Luca scanned Evie’s face. “How are you doing, sweetheart?”
Trying to sit, Luca placed a hand on Evie’s arm to help ease her into a sitting position. “Did I… did I pass out?”
Gently moving his hand over her cheek, Luca nodded. “You did.”
Evie’s eyes widened. “I’m so sorry, Luca. I didn’t mean to do that at work… in front of clients.”
Keeping his voice smooth, Luca scanned Evie’s face. “Want to talk about what happened?”
Not hesitating, Evie shook her head.
Luca wanted to question her until she told him, but he knew she would shut down. He had to go gently.
“I’m going to give you a lift home.” It was a statement. Not a question. Luca wasn’t going to give Evie the option.
“No, that’s okay.”
Evie jumped to her feet before Luca could anticipate her actions. Stumbling, she absently reached for Luca’s chest.
Placing both hands on her elbows, Luca steadied Evie.
“Woah, darlin’, you just passed out. Go slow.”
Slightly panicked, Evie turned her gaze up to Luca’s. “You don’t need to take me home. I’m okay. Plus, the walk will do me good. I really need some fresh air right now.”
“Okay, I’ll walk with you. Could use some fresh air myself.”
“No. Look, Luca, I’m okay, really.” She took a step back from him, and he felt the loss of her touch immediately. “I’ll be back at work tomorrow.”
A chuckle escaped Luca’s chest. “If you think I’m letting you walk home by yourself when you just passed out on me, then you must have me confused with some other asshole. There is no way in hell. I’m taking you home period. Now I can drive, or we can walk.”
Luca gave Evie an innocent smile and received a defeated look in return.
“Walk,” she said. Her tone wasn’t happy, but at least she accepted it.
Luca stepped aside, allowing Evie to go first. As they started heading home, the walk was made in relative silence. Whenever he looked over to Evie, he could see she had that pensive look on her face again. Her mind was elsewhere. It wasn’t until they were close to home that Luca decided to attempt a conversation.
“Tell me something about you, Evie.” Evie’s gaze darted to Luca, then away. Nibbling on her bottom lip, she seemed to be contemplating whether to tell him something or not.
“I like computers.”
Luca’s brows shot up. It wasn’t a surprise, he’d suspected as much, but he thought she’d share something trivial, like a favorite color.
“Makes sense. You learned how to use the online system at work pretty quickly.” Evie’s eyes dropped to her feet at the compliment, but Luca saw a hint of a smile on her lips. “What do you spend most of your time doing on computers?”
Evie shrugged, looking uncomfortable for a moment. “Not much. Just some gaming and things.”
Lie. Evie had just told Luca a lie. He could tell by her pupils dilating, her gaze darting away. There had also been a slight hitch in her heart rate. Why would she lie about that?
“Ever thought about studying IT?” Luca pushed.
There was another pause before Evie’s gaze dropped, and she continued, “No. I, uh… it hadn’t really crossed my mind.”
Another lie. Interesting.
As Evie took another step, her foot caught on something, and Luca could see she was going to tumble down. Catching her arm with his lightning reflexes, Luca held her body against his. Her skin was warm to touch where her shirt had risen slightly.
When Evie glanced up. Luca could smell vanilla and strawberries on her. She was all soft and delicate, where he was hard and not delicate. He had to fight the urge to pull her head up and press his lips to hers.
“Go on a date with me.”
It was a statement, but Luca still needed a yes.
Evie looked taken aback. Luca was a bit too. He hadn’t anticipated those words to leave his mouth, but now that they had, they felt right. Knowing what kind of response he was going to receive before she spoke the words, Luca patiently waited to rebut.
“I can’t.”
Wishing she would expand, he was disappointed when only silence followed.
Not willing to give up so easily, Luca lowered his head and placed his lips next to her ear.
“Go on a date with me.”
He felt the shiver run up her spine. Evie’s head turned, and her lips were a mere few centimeters from his. Her warm breath touched his lips. If he just lowered his head a fraction, they would be touching.
The indecision was clear to see in her eyes, but beneath that, he could see the desire. It was almost a desperate yearning to say yes.
Deciding he didn’t want to play fair, Luca pulled Evie closer. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.
“Say yes,” Luca started a gentle stroke on the inside of the wrist as he whispered the words into her ear. “Please.”
Trailing his mouth down her neck, his lips never touched her, but the promise was there.
“Yes.”
For a moment, Luca thought he’d heard wrong. When the confirmation sunk in, he wanted to go to the nearest cave and beat his chest. He decided to go with a more civil approach.
Lifting his head, he trailed his finger down her cheek. “Great, I’ll pick you up at eight.”