Chapter 6
Palmer
“What’s wrong with your face?”
I grimaced at the way my skin heated even more, but quickly attempted to cover it with a smile. My burnt whale pancake remained untouched on the plate in front of me.
I hadn’t been expecting the sight of a shirtless Roman Ramsey barging into the kitchen like that. Not that he had anything to be embarrassed about. Roman had the epitome of what I imagined a firefighter’s body to be. He was all bulky, chiseled muscle and tight, hard abs.
Oh, my God.
I touched my flaming cheeks and shook my head.
I couldn’t think of him like that. I shouldn’t be thinking about his body at all.
He was…Hailey’s father. I was pretty sure he was like, forty or something anyways.
Even if I wasn’t some random woman he’d literally dragged in from the side of the road, I doubt he’d appreciate the thoughts running through my head.
“I’m just a little warm,” I mumbled, cutting off the whale’s tail and popping it into my mouth.
The sweetness of the maple syrup almost covered the burnt flavor.
Hailey squinted at me with suspicion. She glanced out the window that was splattered with snow from last night. I’d gotten a notification that school had already been canceled for the day and I wondered how long it would be until the roads were clear enough for me to leave town.
“It’s pretty cold outside,” she mused, like she doubted my excuse, but she didn’t question me further as she shrugged and took another bite of her octopus.
I was proud of the cute little pancakes we’d made together.
We’d gone with a sea theme since blue was Hailey’s favorite color.
Besides the whale and octopus, we’d made a dolphin, jellyfish, stingray, and a blue crab with the most adorable claws.
A plate with the crab sat at the empty seat at Hailey’s side.
Roman hadn’t returned to the kitchen yet, and Hailey had decided the crab was the best fit for her dad.
“What should we do today?” Hailey asked, gaining back my attention.
I blinked at her. “What should we do?”
She tapped the tines of her fork on her chin as she thought. “Hmm…well, I don’t have school and there is a lot of snow, so we could go sledding. Or we could stay inside and watch movies by the fire.”
My stomach sank. “Oh.” I shifted on my chair. “I don’t think I can stay long, Hails. I was only here because of the storm…”
Her fork clattered onto the table. “What?” Her eyes went wide, on the verge of panic. “You can’t leave! You just got here!”
I bit my lip, my heart breaking at her brimming tears. Guilt punched me square in the gut. Maybe it had been a mistake to come. I should’ve found somewhere else to park that was nowhere near the bed-and-breakfast.
I reached for her hand and squeezed. “Hey, I’m so sorry. I had so much fun with you this morning. You’re an excellent pancake chef.”
Her lip wobbled. “I don’t want you to leave,” she said softly.
I squeezed her hand harder. I wanted to tell her that we’d only just met and she really wouldn’t miss me that much, but I couldn’t.
That was part of the magic of kids. They felt things so deeply and intensely.
Their emotions hadn’t been dulled and beaten down by life and experience.
They were pure and bright, and I didn’t ever want to minimize them.
“Hailey.”
The two of us jumped at the low, strong voice that vibrated through the kitchen.
Roman stood near the entrance, focused on his daughter. He seemed calmer than he had the previous times I’d spoken with him, less frustrated. I wondered what had changed—besides the black T-shirt he’d put on.
Hailey blinked at her father, and he jerked his chin behind him toward the stairs. “Go get dressed, Hailey.”
Hailey frowned. “But—”
“You can come back downstairs when I come get you.” Roman cut her off.
Her little nose wrinkled with disapproval as she glanced between her father and me. “I want Palmer to stay.”
Roman sighed. “Go upstairs.”
Hailey abruptly stood, pushing her chair so hard it almost fell backward. With lips pursed in a very impressive pout, she marched out of the kitchen. She glared at her father on her way, and we heard her every step as she stomped up the stairs.
Her footsteps faded until it was obvious she’d made it to her room.
“Can we talk?” Roman asked.
I wasn’t sure why my heart raced. “Of course.”
Roman approached the table and lowered onto the chair directly across from me. His lip twitched at the sight of the blue crab pancake, as if he fought a smile.
Then, he trained his stare on me. My face heated despite his cool expression and the shirt that was hiding those incredible muscles.
“Does your offer from yesterday still stand?” he asked bluntly.
“My offer?” I repeated, flustered by the memory of his naked chest even though I was trying really hard not to think about it.
He nodded once. “Are you still searching for a job?”
“Oh.” Excitement bloomed in my chest, thankful for the distraction. “Yes. I am.”
“Well,” he said slowly, “I suppose I’m in need of your services.” A muscle feathered in his cheek.
I tried to suppress my smile, but couldn’t. “Really? What changed? You didn’t seem like you needed me yesterday.”
He scrubbed the back of his neck. “That was before my daughter almost cried at the mere thought of you leaving.”
I froze. My hands curled into fists. “I’m sorry if I overstepped,” I said softly, eyes dropping to the tabletop. “I just…I wanted to thank you for letting me stay. I thought I’d make some breakfast, but Hailey woke up in the middle of me preparing to cook and—”
I stopped when Roman raised a hand.
“It’s fine,” he said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Actually…” He took a breath. “It was good. Things have been hard around here recently, and I think she needed something like this.”
He smiled faintly, but something sad lingered behind it.
Silence stretched between us and my curiosity grew alongside a slow, creeping anxiety. I glanced around the kitchen, giving myself something else to focus on besides the weight in Roman’s eyes.
The kitchen was stunning. Larger than most Victorian kitchens I’d seen. It had clearly been remodeled at some point, but so much of the original charm was preserved. The moldings and trim were a glossy, dark wood carved with patterns so intricate it felt almost reverent.
But it was the table that was the focal point of the room.
It took up most of the space as it was long, solid, and sturdy. There were enough chairs for an entire crowd, but right now, Roman and Hailey were the only ones I’d seen in the house.
The table that should’ve been welcoming was almost overwhelming in its emptiness.
“Can I ask you a question?” I asked.
Roman raised a brow, studying me for a moment before giving a short nod.
I bit at my lip, already aware that I was probably crossing a line, but unable to stop myself. “Even with the short time I got to spend with her, Hailey talks a lot about her grandparents. And her uncles.”
Roman’s body went rigid.
“Isn’t this your parents’ house? Where are they?”
His face went flat. He was suddenly very still, the air around him pulling taut with tension.
“We haven’t been very open about it…” He trailed off, like he wasn’t sure he should elaborate.
I shifted on my chair, having an inkling about what he was talking about. “About the fact that no one is living here but you and Hailey?”
A flash of surprise sparked in his eyes, but it was gone just as fast. He nodded.
“Why?” I wasn’t sure why they’d hide the fact that the bed-and-breakfast was closed. Something ominous prickled at the back of my neck.
“The fewer people who know where my family is, the safer they are.”
My stomach dipped. I waited for him to continue, but he just stared at me, his jaw working as if he were grinding his back teeth.
“What’s going on, Roman?”
He was quiet a few beats longer, but then he leaned toward me. “First, I need you to assure me that you’re serious about your offer to take care of Hailey. This information is only relevant if you are.”
I blinked at him, taken aback. “Of course I’m serious.” I frowned, my cheeks heating. It was annoying how my skin was always so sensitive to my shifting emotions. I blushed for just about every little thing that got my heart going.
“I was sleeping in my car, Roman,” I muttered, fighting the embarrassment. “I’m obviously in need of a job.”
He gave a stiff nod. “Officially, my parents and my brothers are on—vacation.”
“But it’s not an actual vacation?”
Roman shook his head. “You’ve heard of Amos Anderson?”
Another pulse of anxiety shot through me. “The Shadow Stalker?”
“Yes.” His nostrils flared. “His escape has put my family in a situation that’s…less than safe.”
My chest tightened. “What does that mean?”
His lips thinned. “My brothers married women who were victimized by him. It’s made our family a target. Everyone but me has relocated to a safe house.”
I stared at him.
A safe house.
His family was hiding from a serial killer.
My thoughts scattered like snowflakes in the drifting wind, moving so fast I couldn’t focus on a single one long enough to respond.
Roman continued, his voice steady but weary. “This is something you need to consider before accepting the job.”
I tilted my head, studying him more carefully now. “If everyone else left, why are you still here?”
When his eyes met mine, they burned with intensity. In the light streaming in from the kitchen windows, there was a blue hue to them. They were a dark slate-blue, like a storm cloud before lightning struck.
“I made a promise to this town,” he said. “To protect it. I can’t abandon it.”
My pulse spiked.
“And because I have Hailey,” he added more quietly. “I didn’t want to uproot her life. I don’t have the same connection to Anderson that the rest of my family does, either. I’ve taken precautions. We’re careful. The house is safe, but there’s still a potential risk that you need to be aware of.”
His stare bore into me, like he was searching for any sign of fear. I was shocked to discover that there wasn’t.
Not of the serial killer, at least.
“Okay,” I finally said, nodding.
Roman tilted his head. “You need to decide if that’s something you can handle.”
I opened my mouth, but he shook his head.
“I don’t want an answer right now,” he said. “Think about it. But if you do decide to work for me, know this: while you’re under my roof, I will keep you safe.”