“Joel wants extra security for myself and Sloane.” I told her.
“Are you opposed to it?”
“Not at all. Sloane and the kids will get the additional protection because if anything happened to them—” I sat my burger down on the plate, my appetite suddenly vanished. “It would destroy me.
She reached across the table, covering my hand with hers. “Don’t you think they feel the same about you?”
“I can take care of myself.”
“Under normal circumstances, I might agree, but you’re being targeted, Finn. There’s nothing normal about that.”
“I know.” Flipping my hand over, I laced our fingers together. Tonight was supposed to be about us, not the drama in my life, so I steered the conversation to a question which had plagued me for days. “Why did you leave the island early? What happened?”
Redness bloomed over Waverly’s milky skin; the color almost matching her fiery auburn hair. The blush peeked out from the V in her T-shirt—making me wonder how far down the color went—and spread up her slim neck, eventually stopping at her cheeks. She dipped her chin as she spoke.
“We had an expiration date.”
I was about to protest when she shifted nervously, dislodging our hands and lifting her eyes to mine. Sorrow oozed from their emerald depths, quieting anything I was about to say.
“At least that’s what I kept saying over and over in my mind,” she continued. “I’d come back to Huntington, and you’d go off to wherever it was you were heading next. It was supposed to be a bit of fun; no strings, no commitments, but I was lying to myself. The truth is you scared me—or rather how quickly my feelings for you developed scared me. When you suggested we reveal our last names, I panicked. I’m not built for long-distance relationships, but I knew if you asked, I would’ve given you everything.”
“I’m asking now, Waverly. Let’s see where this goes. I promise, I’m not going anywhere.”
There was a war raging behind her expressive eyes. Her indecision tore at my gut until she finally gave me the words I wanted to hear.
“I’ll try.”
4POT MEET KETTLE
Waverly
The memories from last night were swirling in my head when I walked into work at seven thirty the next morning, which was how I ended up running into Duncan when he came around the corner from our offices.
“Shit. Sorry.”
Thankfully, my grip on the large caramel macchiato I was carrying never wavered. That would have been a travesty of epic proportions. Coffee was life, especially when sleep had eluded me.
“What’s going on, Boss Lady? It’s not like you to be zoned out.”
“I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
Skirting around him, I proceeded into my office; not surprised in the least when he followed.
“Oh, I’m sure you do.” He chuckled.
Moving around the antique wooden desk, I slumped down in my slightly-worn leather chair.
“Is there something you need, Agent Palmer?”
At six foot six and two hundred fifty-five pounds ofsolid muscle, Duncan Palmer was one of the best men I knew. His size and training made him lethal, but it was his keen intelligence which put him into the elite agent category. He was also one of two people who would call me on my shit without a second thought. Shayne was the other.
“There’re a great many things I need, Way. At this point, I’ll settle for an explanation as to what the fuck you’ve got yourself tangled up in.”
Shortening my name was something Duncan did when he’d been drinking or when he was worried about me. Since it was way too early for him to be sipping his favorite Jameson, he was obviously the latter. I’d spent most of the day yesterday avoiding this very conversation, even though I knew it was inevitable. It wasn’t like I wouldn’t clue him in, I just needed a minute to wrap my head around the whole situation first. The last thing I expected when I came to work yesterday was to have the man I’d been obsessed with for two weeks sitting in the conference room.
“Hold up.” He braced his hands on my desk, leaning into my space. “You actually like this guy, don’t you?”
Well, hell.The truth was I more than liked Finn, but I also didn’t think I’d ever see him again. Since he’d shown back up in my life, my mind had been racing with endless possibilities; all of which terrified me.
