Chapter 2 #2
He cringed. She’d obviously only invited him inside to be polite.
He should have seen her safely inside then made his own way home.
He’d be lying if he told himself not wanting her to be alone was his only motivation for accepting her invitation.
Eve had piqued his curiosity from the first time they’d met.
Always matching him word for word with a smart-ass comment and able to hold a conversation about what players the Colts had traded in the off-season.
She was unlike anyone he’d ever met, and he couldn’t pass on the opportunity to see a different side of her. To see where she let her guard all the way down at the end of a long day. The place she called home.
“I’m sorry. I’m intruding. I really just wanted to see you here safe and sound, and now that I have, I’ll get out of your hair.” He set his bottle on the end table beside the sofa and stood, wiping the condensation from his palms onto his thighs.
“I didn’t mean you had to go. Honest. I was just saying…well, I don’t know what I was saying.” She let out a long breath. “Please. Sit. Finish your beer. Tell me something about your day. Anything to take my mind off what happened tonight.”
“Are you sure?”
She grabbed his forearm and pulled him back down beside her. “Yes. Positive. Why were you walking by the bar so late? Hope Madden’s not working you too hard.”
“Work’s been steady—crazy, actually—but that’s not why I was heading to see you.”
“You were coming to see me, huh?”
The tiny smirk that slid up the corner of her mouth urged him to tell her more. “I needed a drink,” he said, grabbing his beer and saluting her. “And some good company to take my mind off a phone call with my sister. I’d hoped you’d let me in, even if you’d already closed.”
She frowned. “Is everything okay with Tara?”
The fact she remembered the name of his sister, whom she’d never met, spoke volumes of the kind of person Eve was.
“She’s fine. She’s dealing with stuff about my dad that always brings back bad memories.
I wanted to unload a bit before heading home.
” He didn’t want to burden her with more details.
She didn’t need to hear about how his dad had conned Tara into picking him up early from rehab and then stolen money from her before disappearing.
Same old story. A Sommers man who couldn’t keep his shit together and hurt the woman in his life who loved him. A stark reminder of why he couldn’t get too close to Eve. He couldn’t risk turning into his father—hurting her even if he tried his hardest not to.
“And instead, you found yourself in an even bigger mess. Sorry about that.”
The sadness in her voice twisted his gut.
He ducked his chin to stare her in the eyes, tucking a long strand of hair behind her ear so she had nothing to hide behind.
“Listen to me, don’t you ever apologize for anything that happened tonight.
You aren’t responsible for a criminal acting like an asshole or for the bad mood my dad’s actions heaped on me. ”
Tears glimmered in her eyes. “I know you’re right, but I can’t help but think of things I could have done differently. Should have done differently.”
“Nope,” he said, catching her chin between his index finger and thumb. Her skin was so soft, so smooth. What he wouldn’t give to slide his palm up to cradle her jaw and finally discover how she tasted.
But that was a line better left uncrossed. Especially with Eve.
“I won’t let you place blame on yourself,” he continued. “And if you keep at it, I’ll have to camp out on your couch and talk your ear off about all the fascinating things I’ve learned in my time in Cloud Valley.”
A hint of humor danced across her face. “Like what?”
“Like how many cattle are on the Wilson ranch or what old man Hackney was up to last week when his wife was afraid he was cheating.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Do I want to know?”
“Well, his wife hired me to protect her but later revealed she wanted me as arm candy to escort her around town to make her husband jealous. She thought he was with another woman when he was really paying for a hotel room to nap. He didn’t want to hurt his wife’s feelings by complaining about her snoring. ”
Eve let loose a full belly laugh. “Wow. You have been busy keeping the fine folks of Cloud Valley safe, haven’t you?”
There it was. The pure, genuine laugh he’d give anything to hear. “You have no idea. Luckily, I could help keep one safe who means an awful lot to me.”
Her laughter melted away, replaced by wide eyes and her mouth agape.
Shit. He’d gotten lost in the moment and said more than he should. He forced a chuckle and stood. “I mean, I need you around to keep those cold beers flowing. Listen, it’s getting late, and I’ve taken up too much of your time. You sure you’re good by yourself?”
“Absolutely. Go on home. I’ll see you later.”
He hated the flicker of disappointment she tried to hide beneath a tight smile, but he couldn’t sit here any longer. Not with all the pent-up feelings he’d buried now simmering at the surface. He had to leave before he said something he couldn’t take back.
He may have helped keep Eve safe tonight, but if he was completely honest with them both about where his feelings truly lay, he’d be the one who could hurt her the most.