“You’re staying on top of the realtor’s office, right? Mac mentioned it. I can give you a ride.”
She took another step back. He might not have any intention of arresting her, but she wasn’t a hundred percent sure he wouldn’t drive her out of the state if she got into a vehicle with him.
“It’s only a couple of blocks. I’ll walk.”
“I’ll come with you then.”
“It’s not necessary, Sheriff.” She started walking. “Most of the children are already in bed asleep, so I can’t lure them into my stranger-danger van with promises of candy and puppies.”
To her surprise, he let out a low chuckle as he fell in step beside her. “I’ll stick around in case you find a bank you’re tempted to rob. Not to mention, even in a town the size of Oak Creek, the buddy system is never a bad idea.”
She glanced over at him. “Are you sure someone kidnapping me wouldn’t solve some of your problems?”
“Nah. Too much paperwork.”
Sexy, a gentleman, plus a sense of humor under all that gruffness? That didn’t seem fair. They walked silently through the parking lot toward the main section of town.
“Will you tell me where you’re from if I ask?”
She needed to handle this delicately. If she hid too much—information most people wouldn’t mind sharing—it would just make him more curious. She definitely wanted to avoid that. She needed to tell him something.
She decided to go with the truth. The fewer lies she told, the fewer she had to remember.
“I’ve spent most of my life in either California or North Carolina.”
“East and West Coast. Winter is going to be quite a bit different here than either of those places. I hope you have a heavier coat than that.” He reached over and tugged on her sleeve.
She didn’t but planned to outfit herself in more Wyoming-appropriate clothes as soon as she had the cash to do so. Getting anywhere financially was slow given the monthly installments she had to pay on the ID she’d purchased. She barely had enough left for food and necessities. Forget any sort of clothing splurge.
“I’ll get one.”
“Do it soon. Winter can close in faster than you think around here. We’ve been known to have snowstorms in November.”
He was so bossy. Which both irked her to no end and turned her on a little. She gave him a little salute. “Roger that, Sheriff.”
His lips tightened—in irritation or in an attempt to ward off a smile?—so she kept walking. “You do know you don’t have to call me Sheriff, right? It’s a temporary title and the real sheriff of Oak Creek, Curtis Nelson, is taking back over soon.”
“What will you do?”
“Go back and resume my work for Linear Tactical. Teaching self-defense classes, weapons training. We do some other type of work too. Basically we take what we learned about survival in the Special Forces and make it applicable for civilians.”
He’d been a soldier. “Of course.”
“Of course, what?”
“You’re military. Or former military. I should’ve known it instantly by your awareness at the bar last week.”
He scoffed. “I obviously wasn’t too aware. You left Reddington City with the entire cash contents of my wallet.”
“Yeah. Sorry.” She grimaced.
“Was that guy Caleb in on it too?”
“No, he was just a bad choice.” She shook her head. “Taking your wallet wasn’t planned, I promise. You lent me your jacket, and it was right there in the pocket.”
“Doing something like that could be dangerous with the wrong person, you know. Get you in trouble.”
“Or arrested.”
He cut a glance her way. “Or that.”
“This is me.” She pointed to the plain door attached to the side of the small realtor’s office.
“You get to be right next to New Brothers Pizza. I’m surprised they didn’t jack up the rent because of that.”
“I’ll admit, it does smell delicious.”
“You haven’t tried it yet?” The sheer disbelief in his voice made her smile.
She couldn’t exactly explain to him why she hadn’t tried any of the mouthwatering smells that had tempted her senses since she’d arrived. Right now, and for the foreseeable future, her meals consisted of what she could get for free at the Eagle’s Nest or whatever was in a can and on sale at the grocery store. It wouldn’t always be this bad—she hoped—but that was how it was for right now. And splurging on a pizza definitely wasn’t an option.
She shrugged. “Too much working. But New Brothers is at the top of my list of things to try.”
He didn’t believe her. He stepped in closer, crowding her just the slightest bit. Not so much that she couldn’t get around him if she wanted to, but enough that he was making a point.
He wanted her attention.
“Tell me what’s going on, Lexi. Why are you here?” The words were soft, low.
She turned away from him. There was no answer she could give that would satisfy him since it wouldn’t be the truth. She put the key in her door’s lock, turning it and pushing it open.
At least with him here she didn’t have that moment of panic where she was afraid she’d been found again and some masked freak was waiting for her. Opening doors in the dark had definitely become a trigger.
But like her or not, trust her or not, Gavin would step in front of her to protect her from danger if she needed it.
Of course, no one was going to protect her from him, and he might prove to be the most dangerous of all. He wasn’t hunting her, stalking her. But he had already been closer—physically and mentally—than anyone else had been for the past two years. She leaned her head against the cool wood of the door.
“I’m just here for a job.”
“Look at me, Lexi.”
She wanted to say no. But more than that, she wanted to say yes. She slowly spun around.
He didn’t demand answers. Those brown eyes, though as intense as ever, were gentle. He reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. When was the last time someone had touched her with any sort of gentleness?
He eased forward until she was caught between him and the doorframe. She didn’t move as his lips closed the distance between them. Brushed hers in a feather-soft touch. Once. Again. A third time.
Then it was like something switched on in both of them. Their mouths melded together. Passionate. Hungry. And it felt so good. Gripping his waist she pulled him to her, sighing into his mouth as his tongue dueled with hers.
She wanted to stay here kissing him forever, but she also desperately wanted to drag him upstairs and take this much further.
“The heat between us at the bar was real.” He murmured the words against her mouth. “I thought you were playing me, but you weren’t.”
“Yes,” she moaned, as his lips took possession of her mouth. “Real. So real.”
He kissed her again, hunger ratcheting up between them. He reached behind her and opened the door she’d just unlocked, allowing them to stumble inside.
His lips immediately found hers again. “I want to come upstairs with you. Is that what you want, Lexi?”