Chapter 8
8
Guthrie followed her home. He wouldn’t have been able to accomplish that, except Dathan and Caine had both sided with him. Either Guthrie followed her home, or Dathan did.
Apparently, Guthrie was the lesser of two evils. And Caine was insistent—Aubrey listened to Caine, too.
It was the first time Guthrie had ever seen her interact on a remotely personal level with Caine Alvaro. It was obvious the other man respected her and cared about her, but there was absolutely no intimacy between them. Purely professional, the entire way.
So who was behind the vicious rumors he’d heard about her and Caine having an affair this very week? Guthrie was going to find out. And if that person had had anything to do with what had happened to her car—Guthrie was going to deal with them personally.
He wanted to stay right where he was and just talk to her, for as long as she would talk to him. The woman flat-out fascinated him. He stood next to her car and just looked at the little bungalow she shared with her sister.
“It’s not exactly impressive, but it’s… home.” There was something in her tone that told him she felt insecure having him there. “I wanted a house for Ayla. It was important for my sister that we lived in a house when we moved here. We’ve always had apartments before. This move, we wanted a house.”
And he suspected there had been quite a few moves for the Fisher sisters. Aubrey and her sister filled him with questions. He had always been curious. He would get his answers eventually. “Has she always used the crutches?”
“Since she was thirteen or fourteen. Before that, she mostly used a chair. But she despises the chair now and refuses to use it unless she absolutely has to.” Her words turned guarded, protective, like they always did when her sister was mentioned. “This place was the only single-story on the market in Value when we moved here. We wanted close enough to town so that she could walk if needed, or take the transit. And I wanted close to the hospital. It needed work, still does, but I do it when I can.”
It was a nice house, not overly big. It had a cottage feel to it that suited her. A beautiful girl—two of them, actually—living in a little cottage in town. With fairies floating all around. Yes, he could see the two of them here. It suited them perfectly.
He got the impression the topic of her sister was off-limits. He could understand that. Aubrey was extremely protective. Well, Guthrie had three younger sisters of his own. He was extremely protective, too.
“I… should probably be going. But to be honest, I’m not too comfortable leaving you here alone tonight.” Why lie about it? Someone had taken the opportunity to vandalize her car for a definite reason. He couldn’t overlook that at all.
“I’ll be fine. The sheriff and his wife live three blocks that way.”
“Yes, and the mayor and his are three blocks in the other direction. At least let me call George. If something happens, you can call my older brother. He can be here in three minutes.”
She hesitated again. “You don’t have to do that. I lived alone for several years, in downtown Houston, while Ayla was with a few different foster families.”
Foster families. Just how alone she and her sister were was starting to sink in fast. Well, not any longer. They had him.
“It’s the vandalism that concerns me.” He wasn’t going to pressure her, but… “Why don’t you let me at least take you to Gia’s?”
Blue eyes narrowed, perfect pink lips firmed. And he knew he’d ticked her off with that one. “I don’t need a babysitter, Dr. Hiller.”
He didn’t miss the indignation. “I know. But… I’d feel a hell of a lot better if I knew you weren’t sitting here alone, a prime target for any asshole out there.”
“What? Are you angling for an invite to stay?” She leveled a blunt look right at him. “And then you can make your way right into my bed? I’m not exactly na?ve. And… you wouldn’t be the first man to try it, you know. I’ve been on my own a long, long time. I’ve heard just about every ploy there is.”
That he strongly believed. This was the kind of woman a man fantasized about. But probably not for just the reasons she thought. It was the heart that he found so attractive. He’d always had a thing for women who cared about others. “How about… the couch? I can camp on your couch. I even have a bag of clothes in my truck.”
“I’m sure you do.” She gave him another one of those prissy little looks that made him want to scoop her up and kiss the hell out of her. But if he did that—he’d probably be sent packing fast.
“Aubrey, if you don’t let me stay… I may camp out in your driveway all night long. I just want to make certain you are safe tonight. You had a bad night, let me… just be here. Help me feel like at least I’m doing something to make what happened right. We can watch a movie. And I’ll sit at the opposite end of the couch, like the good boy my mama raised me to be. If I misbehave, you can sic Genesis and Giavonna and Greer and our mama on me. I promise.”
He meant every word. Every instinct he possessed was flaring, telling him to stay close. He couldn’t explain it, but at heart, like every male in his family, Guthrie had a primitive side. The animal part of him was real. He’d probably inherited it from his father, honestly. That man was a bit on the overprotective side, too.
His instincts were on alert, telling him his woman might just be in trouble. Of course he wanted to stay close.
He was hardwired that way.
A Hiller protected the ones who mattered most.