Chapter 3
“You don’t have to walk me out every night,” Saylor told Max quietly when he plucked the box of supplies out of her hands.
“I know. You’re doing me a favor. Mom-induced guilt would have me tossing and turning all night,” Max said with a grin that transformed his chiseled face from serious to fun-loving. “Besides, I wanted to see if you’d like to get some coffee tomorrow.”
“Max, I don’t date students.”
“Okay. Can I get on your calendar for two months from now? I won’t be a student then.”
“No, Max. The university frowns on fraternizing with students.”
“Sure, with nineteen-year-olds. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, I’m not a teenager.”
“Funny, Max. Would you drop it, please?”
“Of course, Saylor. Can you tell me why you have mace on your keyring? Not that I don’t approve of personal safety devices, but my guess is there’s something else from the way you scan the parking lot.”
Saylor stopped in her tracks and whirled to give him a death stare that would have flambéed him had Max not considered himself burn-proof. “I knew this was a mistake. I’ll see if there’s an opening on Wednesday evening with Arthur Pinellas. Would you be available to start…”
Pounding feet sounded on the pavement. The words coming out of Saylor’s mouth stopped abruptly. Her portfolio dropped to the ground, unheeded. She lifted her arm, fumbling with the canister of mace. Her hands shook so badly, the keychain dropped with a rattle to the concrete at her feet.
“No!” Saylor yelped, like a wounded animal. Frantically, she searched in the dark for her keys.
“You are a dead man, Justin Henry Miller. Just wait until I get a hold of you. Give me my algebra book!” a young woman yelled as she chased a slender man holding a textbook over his head.
Saylor’s butt dropped to the parking lot as she processed she wasn’t being attacked. A young man was flirting with another student. A juvenile approach perhaps, Max thought, but the girl seemed to enjoy his attention. Dismissing them from his attention, Max dropped to sit next to Saylor.
Her body shook with fright. Focused on the two who darted past them, Saylor continued to search for her keys, running her fingers over the pavement. Max squatted next to her and set the box he carried on the ground.
“Hey, Saylor. You’re okay. Look. Here are your keys,” Max said in a calm, low voice he would use with a frightened animal or a little girl.
She grabbed them from his hand and unlocked the canister, holding it with her thumb hovering on the spray trigger. She continued to scan the area frantically.
Max continued to talk to her in that same soft tone. “Saylor, you’re safe. You’re not alone. Can you look at me, little girl?”
She didn’t answer, but her head swiveled so she could see anything coming from every direction.
Her breath came in raspy pants that sounded as if they hurt her throat.
Max’s heart went out to her as he tried to figure out how to help Saylor.
He settled next to her on the ground, close enough that she could feel his heat.
“Saylor, I’m here. I won’t let anyone hurt you. I need you to breathe with me, little girl. Inhale. Hold it. Exhale. Pause.” Her breath hadn’t changed a bit. He had to get her to slow it down.
“Saylor, can you hear me?” Max asked, raising his voice slightly. “Nod if you can hear me. Little girl?”
Her eyes darted to him before returning to search her surroundings. Slowly, she nodded.
“Good girl. Now breathe with me. Inhale. Hold it. Exhale. Pause.” Max’s shoulders relaxed a bit. She was still not matching his pace, but she had slowed down. “That’s it. Try it again. Expand your ribcage and trap that air in your lungs. Blow it out. Wait. Now again.”
After several minutes of him coaching her through this process, she met his gaze. “Max?”
“Hi. I’m right here.” She looked so lost. That expression told him she needed more. Max dared to reach a hand out to stroke her shoulder, expecting to have her jerk away as he said, “Hey, you scared me.”
To his astonishment, Saylor climbed onto his lap and threw her arms around his neck, holding onto him for dear life. Without hesitating, Max wrapped his arms around her and gently rocked both of them back and forth. “I’ve got you, Saylor. I’m not letting go.”
With her head buried against his neck, Saylor nodded. “I’m sorry. I’m a complete idiot.”
“That’s a total lie, Saylor. I won’t stand for you speaking poorly about yourself. You’re scared, and I’m betting you’re scared for a reason. You will tell me later, but right now you need to be somewhere you consider safe. Do you want me to take you home?”
She paused and shook her head.
Appalled that she’d just indicated she didn’t consider her house secure, Max tried again. “My house is safe. May I take you there?”
Saylor didn’t answer for several seconds and then nodded. “Please.”
“Let’s go.” Holding her pinned to his body, Max stood. He carried her to her car and gently pried her keys out of her tightly clenched fingers.
“My portfolio,” she whispered.
He set her feet on the asphalt before asking, “Do you want me to lock you in the car while I pick up your papers, or would you prefer to stand next to the car where you can see me?”
“See you,” she whispered.
“Okay.” Max opened the passenger door and moved her into place where she could jump in if she got spooked again. “I’ll be right back. I’ll stay where you can see me all the time.”
In record time, he returned the half-scattered sketches tucked into the carrier.
Grabbing the box of supplies, he stashed both in the trunk before rounding the side of the vehicle.
Once back at her side, Max helped her slide into her car and closed the door.
He jogged around the hood and jumped into the driver’s seat.
She was beyond guiding him to her home. He would take her to the safety of his place. Backing out the car, he headed out of the parking lot and away from campus. At the first turn, he covered her twisting hand with his. “You’re safe, Saylor. I’m going to keep you safe.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“There are many things I could regret in life. Spending time with you isn’t one of them. I’m here because this is where I want to be.”
When they reached his house, Max pulled into the garage and closed the door. “Stay in your seat, little girl. I’ll come get you.”
She didn’t move until he opened the door. Saylor launched herself out of the seat and wrapped herself around him. Max carried her to the door into the kitchen. Before opening it, he stopped and checked his safeguard.
“Saylor, every time I leave my house, I leave an indicator guarding the door to make sure no one has entered. Do you see that hair stretched across the seam of the door?”
She turned to look as he instructed and nodded. Her gaze searched his face as he felt her tremble against him.
“I’ve never had anyone break in here, but I’m trained to make sure everything is safe. You’re protected here at the highest level.”
Her shaking calmed, and she whispered, “Thank you.”
“Come on, little girl. Let’s go inside.”
Max carried her into the automatically lit interior and sat down on the couch. He rubbed her back reassuringly, and she relaxed against him. Her head rested on his shoulder. Max could feel the puff of her breath against his skin.
Now in the stillness of his home, Max struggled to contain his Daddy side. She wasn’t his little girl. He didn’t wish to create a bigger problem for her by claiming her without Saylor choosing him. He warned himself to move slowly.
“Are you ready to talk, Saylor?”
She shook her head and remained silent as she tensed, waiting for him to insist.
“Okay. You let me know when you wish to talk,” Max told her gently. Holding her now would make letting her go harder in the future, but he’d take time with her on any basis. God, you’ve got it bad.
His hands stilled. Max held her gently, allowing her to find refuge in his arms. After several minutes, she relaxed again. A half-hour later, she fell asleep.
Moving carefully, Max eased his phone from his pocket and sent a message to Hank.
Hey, I need a favor. Would you grab Koa and go grab my truck from campus?
It’s parked on State Street in front of the Arts building.
The door code is 2429. I have a hidden key in a metal box magnetically attached to the underside of the driver’s seat.
Drop it off in my driveway. Koa’s little girl is at the station for the evening. Drag him out of bed.
Almost immediately, he got a thumbs-up in response and then a dancing emoji. Max returned a baby bottle symbol. Clapping hands answered.
Hank had checked to make sure Max was mobile and not in trouble.
When Max replied, letting him know he’d found his little girl, Hank had celebrated.
Max would clue him in later that the situation had complications.
Of all his team, Hank understood how precarious a daddy’s role could be.
Max closed his eyes, sending a plea out into the universe to allow this invisible bond he already felt between himself and Saylor to be permanent.
On a hunch, he searched Saylor’s name on the internet.