Police Protector

“What?” Cole said, spinning back toward the direction of Shaye’s house.

His partner was right. Shaye was storming their way, her injured leg dragging a little behind, her hands crossed over her chest and a furious look on her face. None of that stopped him from noticing she was heading toward them in a nightgown that was way too short and way too thin for this kind of weather.

His mouth dried up as he got out of his truck, rushing over to her side and slipping his arm behind her shoulders in case she was still off balance from her injury. Behind him he heard Luke step out of the vehicle a little more slowly.

Shaye shrugged his arm off. “What are you doing?”

“Keeping an eye on things,” Cole said. “Just until we catch the shooter.”

She scowled but didn’t look at all intimidating in her nightgown. It was just cotton, basically a big T-shirt, but on Shaye it somehow looked sexy. Especially with her hair spilling around her shoulders, loose and rumpled.

“I told the chief I didn’t need protection.” Her words lost some of their anger as he continued to stare at her, trying to keep his gaze on her face. As if she suddenly realized what she was wearing, she tugged the hem of her nightgown farther down her legs, her gaze darting to Luke and back again.

Then she spun around. Just when he thought she was going to demand he leave and call the chief about his unauthorized stakeout, she called over her shoulder, “This is unnecessary. But if you’re going to insist on being here, you shouldn’t sleep in the truck. Come on. You can stay with me.”

A million images rushed through his brain, most of them involving that nightgown on the floor, and Cole knew he should refuse and climb back into the truck with his partner. Instead he followed Shaye inside.

Chapter Four (#u7ad02723-41b0-5f69-a36f-b1bc725b0b43)

Shaye tried not to feel self-conscious as she strode quickly back to her house, but she’d never been more aware of the swing of her hips as she walked, of her long, awkward limbs. She pulled at the hem of her nightgown, willing her cheeks to cool as she held the door open for Cole without turning around.

Mixed in with her embarrassment was annoyance. The chief had offered her protection, even though she could tell he thought it was unnecessary. She’d had only a moment’s hesitation before she refused. And yet here Cole was anyway, deciding what was best for her.

She tried to shove back her frustration. Cole was just doing what he always did, what seemed to come naturally to him: protecting everyone around him, whether they needed it or not.

“I’ll be right back,” she said over her shoulder as she headed to her bedroom. Pushing the door shut behind her, she changed quickly into a pair of loose sweatpants and a T-shirt, cringing every time she moved her leg. The painkillers were starting to wear off.

She paused a minute in front of the mirror, combing her hands through her messy hair. There wasn’t much she could do about the deep circles under her eyes, not without makeup, and she wasn’t going to dress up for Cole. Not when he’d shown up uninvited, determined to look after her whether she wanted his help or not. And not when the sound of his car on the quiet street had woken her from an almost sleep.

When she returned to her living room, she found Luke settled on her couch, his legs stretched out in front of him and his hands tucked behind his head. Somehow he managed to look relaxed and totally alert at the same time. She nodded at him and continued looking around, until Luke pointed silently into her kitchen.

That was where she found Cole, checking the locks on her windows.

Shaye let out a heavy sigh. “I always leave those unlocked.”

He spun toward her. “What?”

“The front door, too. I just let anyone in who asks.”

He frowned, giving her the kind of stare she’d seen him use on hostile suspects. “That’s not funny.”

She planted her hands on her hips, subtly resting more of her weight on her left foot as her whole right leg started to throb. Apparently when the painkillers wore off, it wasn’t a gradual thing. “I told the chief I was fine. You told me I had nothing to worry about, that this was an unlucky fluke. So why are you here? Were you lying to me?”

He leaned back slightly, and she could tell she’d caught him off guard. Good. She was tired of being scared all the time, tired of waiting for someone else to solve her problems. Tired of being in the dark about what was happening with cases that concerned her.

“No,” he said slowly, looking her over as if he wondered what had happened to the nervous computer nerd he was used to.

She’s gone, Shaye wanted to say, and she’s not coming back. Except that wasn’t the truth.

The truth was she was scared. But she needed to take charge of her life instead of letting things happen to her.

“Maybe you should sit down,” Cole finally said.

Frustration built up in her chest, and she was humiliated to feel tears prick the backs of her eyes. But she’d been shot today, so maybe she had an excuse. Her hip felt like it was on fire.

“I’m fine,” she lied. “And I really don’t need a couple of babysitters.”

“If I’m a babysitter, my rate is ten dollars an hour,” Luke called from the other room.

A smile quirked her lips, and she tried to hide it as Cole rolled his eyes.

“I wasn’t lying to you,” Cole said, taking a step closer, his hand hovering near her elbow, as though he expected to need to catch her if she suddenly fell. “There’s no reason to suspect this guy was specifically targeting you. Because if that were the case, how would he even know where you were at that exact time? It makes more sense that he’d come here, beat the pathetic lock on your front door and do it in the middle of the night when you were sleeping.”

She must have gone pale, because he was quick to continue. “That’s not what happened. You were at the wrong place at the wrong time—that’s it.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because.” His frown deepened, but instead of looking annoyed, he looked flustered.

She didn’t think she’d ever seen him flustered. She tilted her head, curious. “Why?” she insisted. “If this was a total fluke and no one was targeting me, then what were you doing sitting on my street in the dark, watching my house?”

They were keeping something from her. She stared up into his light blue eyes, trying to find answers there. “It’s gang related, isn’t it? You think this guy wants revenge for last year?”

“Probably not.”

“Then what?” she snapped, leaning even more on her uninjured leg. She wanted to sit, but he already had a height advantage. Plus, he was properly dressed in dark jeans and a button-down while she was dressed like a slob. And she needed answers. Needed the truth about what danger she was really facing. “What is it?”

“I can’t take the chance,” he barked right back at her.

She swayed, and it had nothing to do with her injury. “It is connected to the shooting from last year?” She had an instant flashback to being in that parking lot, bullets flying over her head as she hugged the pavement. To the panic, the absolute certainty she was going to die, and all the things she hadn’t accomplished yet in her life.

“It’s not connected to anything. Everyone thinks I’m crazy. But it’s you, so...”

Her lips parted and she tried to find words, but there were none. Because all of a sudden, she saw what was underneath the anger and worry and frustration in his gaze. He was attracted to her. And not just in a he’d-seen-her-in-her-nightgown kind of way, but genuine interest.

The realization slammed through her, shocking and empowering. The pain in her leg faded into the background as she took a small step forward, then leaned in.

For several long seconds, he stood immobile. Then something shifted in his eyes, and all she could see was desire.

Shaye’s heart took off at a gallop as his hands came up slowly and feathered across her cheeks. His thumbs stroked her face, and then his fingers plunged into her hair and his mouth crashed down on hers.

I’m kissing Cole Walker. The stupefied thought blared in her head as he nipped at her lips with his mouth and tongue and teeth until a sigh broke free and her lips parted. Then his tongue was in her mouth, slick against hers, sending shivers up and down her entire body.

She leaned into him, and thankfully he dropped his hands from her hair to her waist, keeping her from falling. His big hands seemed to make a hot imprint through her T-shirt and for a second, she wished she’d worn something sexier. Then she couldn’t think at all as he changed the angle of their kiss, and every nerve in her body came alive.

The scruff on his chin abraded her face, but it didn’t stop her from pressing even harder, wanting more, wanting it now. Looping her hands around his neck, she pulled herself up on her tiptoes to eliminate any last space between them, and then yelped as pain shot down her leg.

Cole lifted his head, the fire that had been in his gaze doused with worry. “Did I hurt you?”