Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Lucky couldn’t believe she’d been so bold as to reach out and put her hand on Hawk’s muscled thigh.
Good god, he felt like steel beneath her hand.
He didn’t seem to mind her touch and she loved the warmth spreading from him up her arm.
She imagined being a lot closer to him, wondering what it would feel like to have his hand on her thigh. Higher.
Butterflies and awareness fluttered through her.
He was just so…manly. Big. Imposing. But gentle with her. Patient.
And fierce about keeping her safe.
I’m falling so hard.
Actually, she’d fallen a long time ago.
Hawk stared at the rearview mirror. “Who’s that coming up the road?”
She turned and spotted the silver sedan with the butterfly sticker in the corner of the windshield on the driver’s side.
She’d given the sticker to Desiree as part of her birthday present five years ago when Desiree’s dad gifted her the car.
“That’s Desiree.” She put her hand to her forehead, blocking out the sun from her eyes.
“I wonder what she’s doing here.” She checked her watch.
“School’s out—she should be taking Krystal home. ”
Hawk slipped his hand around her neck, his fingers tangling in her hair. “Let’s see what she wants.” He let her loose, then climbed out of the car.
She did the same and met him at the back of his Range Rover.
“Are you sure there’s nothing else you want from the house?” He took her hand and laced their fingers together.
She turned into his chest, his arm went around her, his big hand resting on her hip.
He hadn’t stopped touching her since the fire exploded in the house.
“I’ve got everything I need.”
His gaze intensified on her. “Is that right?”
She caught the double meaning of what she’d said and answered truthfully. “Yes. Amazingly. I still feel like pinching myself to make sure this is real.”
He bent and lightly brushed his lips against hers. “Real enough?”
“Yes.” The word came out breathy. Was that her?
Just looking at his handsome face made her catch her breath. He was so…sexy. And rugged. But soft with her.
He brushed his fingers along her cheek. “You look tired.”
She leaned into his touch, amazed that with him, she wanted to be caressed. Craved it even. “I am.”
“I’ll take you home, tuck you into bed. You need to rest so you can heal.”
“I’d like that. After a shower.”
A glint lit his eyes. “I can help you with that.” The heat in his eyes scorched her.
Desiree had already parked her car behind Lucky’s, climbed out, took Krystal out of her car seat, and made it to them without Lucky even looking her way. Desiree grabbed her by the hips and pulled her around to face her.
Hawk’s surprise and anger matched her own. “Hey. Be careful. She’s hurt.”
Lucky pressed her hand over her chest to ease the sting the sudden jarring caused. Not to mention the twist her knee took, making it throb in time to her heart.
Desiree rubbed her hand up and down Lucky’s good arm.
“Sorry. I came as soon as I heard.” She pulled Lucky into a hug.
“Are you okay? Did someone seriously rig your place to go up in flames?” She released Lucky and turned to the house.
“Is it really bad? You can come stay with me until they rebuild whatever burned.”
Overwhelmed, Lucky put her hand up to stop Desiree from saying anything more. “I’m fine. The house is fine. I’m a little sad I lost my mother’s quilt to the fire when Hawk used it to put it out, but that’s a small sacrifice. It could have been a lot worse.”
“You put the fire out?” Desiree looked surprised.
Hawk shrugged like it was no big deal, then brushed his hand over Lucky’s braid. “Sorry about the blanket. I didn’t know. I just acted in the moment.”
She gave him a soft smile. “I appreciate it. Really, I do. And I probably would have done the same thing if I hadn’t been so shocked by it all.”
“You’ve been through a lot. That’s why you should be with someone familiar. With us.” Desiree practically shoved Krystal into Lucky’s legs.
Krystal wrapped her arms around Lucky in a hug. “Hi Auntie. You got a lot of ouchies?” Krystal’s eyes held too much worry for someone so young.
Lucky couldn’t squat down with the brace on her knee and she ignored the pain to her stitched thigh, because Krystal’s hugs were the best medicine.
“I’m okay, sweetie. Just some bumps and bruises and one broken pinky.
” She held up the appendage with the silver brace on it, her pinky taped to her ring finger.
“Does it hurt?” Her bottom lip trembled.
“A little bit.” She didn’t want to lie and say everything was fine. It definitely was not. She ached. Everywhere.
“I need to take her home.” Hawk slid his hand to her lower back. “Come on, sweetheart. You need to get off that leg. The bright sun isn’t good for your head injury either.”
She wished she had sunglasses to block out the bright light piercing her eyes. “Do you still have the keys to my car?”
Hawk pulled them from his pocket.
“Would you mind grabbing my sunglasses from the visor?”
He went to retrieve them, while she turned to Desiree. “I appreciate you stopping by to check on me. It means a lot.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re just going to go stay with him instead of me?”
“Yes. It’s my chance to see if there’s more between us.” She wanted so much more with Hawk. A real relationship. Time together. A deeper connection. Love.
“You barely know this guy.” But Desiree knew how she felt about Hawk.
Lucky couldn’t hide it, even if she’d kept a lot of the details to herself. “That’s just it. It feels like I know him better than I know anyone else.”
Desiree’s eyes flashed with pain, then anger. “I’ve been by your side our whole lives.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.” She pressed her thumb to the throbbing headache between her eyes. “The pain meds are wearing off. It’s been a hell of a day. I misspoke.” Not really though. She and Hawk had some kind of…chemistry, kismet between them.
Desiree sucked in a breath like she was trying to calm herself. “This isn’t you. You don’t go off with guys you barely know.”
“I’ve been working for him for two years. We’ve been exchanging messages nearly that long. If nothing else, I know his reputation. People around town respect him, like him, admire him. He saves people. He saved me.”
“That doesn’t mean you owe him anything. And everyone also thinks he’s a gruff asshole who might be crazy.”
“He’s not any of those things. Not anymore. He’s changed. Healed. And the way he treats me…he cares.” She glared at her friend as Hawk returned, probably overhearing Desiree.
“Ready,” he asked, holding out her glasses.
She took them and slid them on. “Thank you. That’s much better.”
He kissed her on the head. “Anything for you.”
“You’re really big,” Krystal blurted out, staring up at Hawk, her eyes wide and wondrous.
Hawk squatted in front of her. “I ate all my vegetables when I was a kid.”
Krystal’s pert nose squished into a yuck face.
Hawk poked her in the belly, making her giggle. “Don’t you want to be big like me?”
“That’s too big for a girl.”
Hawk tilted his head like he was thinking about it. “Maybe you’re right. Still. You should eat all the good-for-you stuff, then maybe you’ll be as tall as your mom or auntie.”
Krystal looked up at Lucky. “Is he your boyfriend now?”
Before she could come up with a way out of answering that question, Hawk simply replied, “Yes, I am,” for her. Hawk stared at her, daring her to disagree.
After all this time wishing there was something more between them, she wasn’t about to contradict him.
And if he was willing to put it out there, the way he’d been doing since he found her nearly dead on that hill, then she could drop her own truth bomb.
“I like him a whole lot.” She said it for her niece, but held Hawk’s gaze the whole time, so he knew how much she meant it.
Hawk stood and took her hand, lacing their fingers together again.
“Is there anything you need me to do for you?” Desiree asked.
It was harder than it should be to tear her gaze from Hawk. “Not right now.”
“How long are you going to be at Hawk’s place?”
“I’m not sure.”
Hawk squeezed her hand. “You can stay as long as you like. At least until you’re healed enough to do things on your own.
And most definitely until they find and arrest whoever is fu—” He pressed his lips tight and changed the word to…
“Messing with you.” He dipped his head and whispered in her ear. “The longer the better.”
She caught her breath, astounded that he’d say that when everything was so knew between them.
Desiree eyed them. “Keep me posted on how you’re doing and what’s going on with the investigation.”
Lucky turned back to her friend. “You’ll probably hear before me. Did your dad say anything about it?”
Desiree shook her head. “You know he likes to leave work at the office.” Desiree’s assertion that her father, the sheriff, hadn’t said anything didn’t ring true.
When they were younger and Lucky spent time at Desiree’s house, her father would often talk about things that happened at work, especially since in their small town everyone knew everything anyway.
The town had grown, but not so big that you didn’t know your neighbors.
And she was Desiree’s best friend. Surely her father would not only make sure Jase was following every lead but also ensure she and Desiree knew what was happening.
“Come on, sweetheart.” Hawk waved his hand toward the car. “I want you off that leg, and your shoulder’s got to be killing you. It's time for your meds again.” Hawk used his hand at her back to steer her toward his car.
“Why aren’t you taking yours?” Desiree asked.
“Someone slashed the tire,” she called over her shoulder.
“What?” Desiree pulled Krystal toward their car by her hand. “I don’t like this, Lucky. It feels like someone wants you dead.”
Lucky stopped in her tracks, then turned her head to Desiree. “It’s him. It’s always been him. Or someone he sent. Just like the other times. But I’m not such an easy target now that I have Hawk watching my back.”
“You’re putting a lot of trust in him.” Desiree buckled Krystal into her seat.
Hawk held the door of his car open for Lucky. “I won’t let you down. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“You better keep that promise,” Desiree called out, then walked around her car and climbed into the driver’s seat.
Hawk did the same after making sure she was secure in her seat. “She’s very protective of you.”
“She’s been my friend since we were little. We lived across the street from each other, went to school together, did everything together.”
He turned the key in the ignition, then glanced at her. “That’s a long time.” Something in his eyes told her he had more to say.
“What is it?”
“You two seem so different.”
Lucky released a half laugh under her breath. “She can be a lot, but she’s always been by my side.”
“It’s good to have someone who really knows you in your life.”
“Like you have your brothers?”
“Yes.” He backed out of her driveway and pulled onto the road. “It’s how I want to know you and you to know me.”
“Well, we’re going to be in close quarters, so…”
He put his hand on her thigh. “It’s going to be okay, Lucky. I know this is kind of fast, but it also feels inevitable.”
She turned her head on the headrest and stared at him while he drove them home. “What took you so long, then?”
He glanced at her, surprise lighting his eyes.
“All those rumors about me being gruff and difficult and that I had a short fuse…they were all true. I wasn’t in a good headspace when I left the military.
I’d seen too much, done too many horrific things in the name of democracy and freedom.
Necessary things. And they left their mark and warped my mind for a while.
There were times—still are times—when I lose myself in the nightmares.
Awake and asleep. I’ve worked really hard the past couple of years with a therapist and by helping others to recover.
But sometimes it all comes back to me. Not as often anymore.
I know what to do to keep myself grounded. ”
She put her hand over his on the steering wheel he gripped so tightly his knuckles were white. “If you ever want to talk about it, I’m here to listen.”
He reached out and dug his fingers into the hair at the back of her neck beneath her braid.
“I appreciate that more than you know. And it goes both ways. I’ve watched you sleep in the hospital.
I know you’re plagued by nightmares of what happened to you.
You call out in your sleep. All I can say is that it gets better as you process what happened. Therapy helps.”
She cocked her brow at him. “You’ve been watching me sleep.”
He shrugged. “I couldn’t help myself. You were right there in front of me. Finally.” He pulled into the long driveway to his family’s land. “I couldn’t concentrate on anything but you, thinking about all we might have lost.”
“Everything we could have now?” she asked tentatively.
He stopped in front of his house, shut off the car, and turned to her. “I want you here with me more than anything.”