“You look stunned,” he observed.
She gave a small shake of her head to clear it. “I am. Decker… Wow. He’s making a lot of progress fast.”
His eyes narrowed on her. “He’s motivated.”
Her mind raced through all the implications while she tried to keep her expression neutral. But this changed everything.
This was huge for Decker. He’d come here broken, couldn’t speak for months. And now he was potentially joining the team? That wasn’t just progress—that was a complete transformation.
Which meant she absolutely could not mess this up for him.
This was his shot, his chance to have a real future and a career that mattered. The last thing he needed were distractions, complications…or a woman who didn’t know how to keep things professional.
A man whose job was to protect people couldn’t afford to have his focus split. And if things went south between them, he’d probably want to leave the team to avoid the awkwardness. Thenwhere would he be? Back to square one, except then he’d have lost this opportunity too.
He’d workedso hardto get here. He deserved this chance without her potentially screwing it up just because she got butterflies whenever he came near.
Maybe she needed to be more careful. More…distant. At least until he was established on the team and didn’t need to worry about workplace drama.
The thought made her chest ache, but wasn’t that what someone who truly cared about him would do? Step back so he could succeed?
Yesterday’s kiss had felt like a beginning, but maybe he was just caught up in the moment. Now that he had a real shot at joining the team, he’d be relieved if she backed off.
She wanted what was best for him. Even if that meant staying away.
Even as the thought formed, Willow couldn’t shake the feeling that she was about to make the biggest mistake of her life.
“Well,” she managed, forcing her voice to stay steady, “that’s wonderful news. He’ll make a great addition to the team.”
Carson tapped a blunt fingertip on the desk as if everything was settled. “We have another matter to discuss.”
She stilled. Over the years, her brothers gave her a lot of crap about her choices. Whenever one of them told her they had something to discuss in that tone of voice, she braced herself for a fight.
“Oh? What’s that?” She kept her tone nonchalant.
Carson’s stare pinned her. “I need a list.”
Lists she could do. She grabbed a notebook and a pen, prepared to jot down anything he told her—as long as it wasn’t directly related to her.
“A list of what?”
“Of every man you ever dated. Anyone who’s ever sent you gifts, business or otherwise.”
Her mouth popped open on a gasp. “Oh my god. You can’t be serious.”
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
She didn’t need to glance at his face to know he was dead serious.
“There’s not enough paper.”
He issued a low groan.
“Joking. Sort of.”
“Willow,” he growled.
“You know how boys liked me. This could be a long list.” She tapped her pen in thought. “Thirty-four lines on a legal notepad. Fifty sheets.” She nodded. “That should do.”
