“And I don’t want anything to happen to you.” Jude reached out and took her hand. “You need to promise me that you will do what I say if we’re ever faced with that situation. Or if I’m not with you, you listen to whoever is guarding you. We can’t do our job if you’re trying to keep us from getting hurt.”
Angela nodded, then her gaze lowered to their hands, his large and tanned against her smaller, fair one.
The simple contact sent warmth up his arm, and he had to resist the urge to intertwine their fingers. He was supposed to be teaching her to drive, not getting lost in her closeness.
"Angela." He had to clear his throat before he could continue. "We need to talk."
She looked up at him, those blue-green eyes searching his face with an intensity that made his chest tighten. "About what?"
The words he'd been rehearsing for days suddenly felt inadequate. How did he explain that she'd become the center of his world? How did he tell her that he thought about her constantly? That somehow she’d undone his carefully controlled life and made him long for things he’d never seriously wanted before?
"About us," he said finally, his thumb brushing across her knuckles before he could stop himself. A flush crept into Angela’s cheeks. The knowledge that he affected her the same way she affected him made him press on. “I think it’s time to have a discussion about what’s happening between us.”
Jude forced himself to release her hand, immediately missing the contact. “But first, let’s get out of here. I don’t feel like having a conversation in the garage where there are cameras.”
“There are cameras in here?” Angela asked, leaning forward to peer out the front windshield.
“There are cameras in all the public areas on the estate.”
“It’s hard to comprehend.”
“Actually, it’s not that unusual,” Jude said. “Most places out in the world have cameras, so you’re being filmed no matter where you go.”
“Oh, I suppose that’s true.”
“For now, why don’t you drive us off the estate, and after a little bit, I’ll take over.”
“Okay.” Angela reached out and pressed the button to start the engine, then she put it into gear.
Gripping the wheel with both hands, she slowly accelerated. The car had been backed in the last time it was used, so she could pull straight out of the garage.
Now having a better understanding of why Angela wasn’t as gung-ho to get her license as Kiara, Jude decided to just focus on teaching her to drive. The license could wait forever if need be. As long as she became comfortable behind the wheel, he wouldn’t press her to get her full license.
He didn’t say anything as she carefully guided the car toward the front gate. It opened as they approached, and Jude lifted a hand at the guard who was on duty.
After they’d pulled through the gate, Angela looked at him. “Which way?”
He considered it for a moment, then said, “Turn left.”
There wouldn’t be a lot of traffic on the portion he was going to have her drive, and since this was her first time driving off the estate, that would be a good thing.
As she drove, he considered yet again what to say to her. He wondered whether Duncan had spoken to her at all about the conversation they’d had.
She drove slowly, her knuckles white from gripping the steering wheel too tightly. Jude resisted the urge to tell her to relax her grip. She needed to find her own comfort level.
"You're doing fine," he said instead, keeping his voice low and calm. "Just keep your speed steady."
The car rounded a gentle curve in the road, tall pines lining both sides. Jude glanced at Angela's profile, noting the slight furrow between her brows as she concentrated.
"There's a turnout about a mile ahead," he said. "We can pull over there."
Angela nodded without taking her eyes off the road. "Is it on the left or right?"
"Right side. You'll see it."
Jude's heart pounded against his ribs as he considered what he was about to do. Nerves weren’t foreign to him. Whenever he went into a high-risk situation with Duncan, there had always been nerves.
However, these types of nerves were new to him. It felt like so much was at stake.
