Claim mate. Quickly!
He barely kept from rolling his eyes. His reindeer needed to calm down. He was one hundred percent sure that shifting and trying to bite her was not going to win her over.
Try anyway.
He shook his head and followed Hailey to her car, helping her climb over the gate. Her son, Riley, was fast asleep in her arms. They whispered to each other quietly as they walked so as not to wake him.
On their way, Hailey told him how she’d gotten into the accident in the first place. A flash of anger surged through him when she told him about the driver shunting her and then driving off without so much as an offer of her, but he quelled it quickly. She’d been through more than enough in one day without thinking the guy helping her was violent. It was too bad she hadn’t managed to get the driver’s license plate. He’d have dearly liked to charge him for endangering his mate. His animal had other ideas about how to handle things.
Chase grimaced when he saw her car—a small hybrid that wouldn’t come even close to taking the same tires as his truck. So much for his knight in shining armor routine.
“Sorry,” he mumbled, shaking his head. Hailey’s face fell, and he felt guilty all over again.
She sighed, pressing her hand to her forehead. “It’s not your fault. I don’t suppose you happen to know any nearby motels with vacancies?”
He shook his head apologetically. “None that would be open at this hour today. I’m sorry.”
“Of course. Don’t worry. We’ll sleep in the car tonight.”
Anger the likes of which he’d never felt before flashed through him at the thought of his mate and her son being forced to spend the night in a cold car on the side of the road.
“Yeah, there’s no way that’s happening,” he said firmly. “You can spend the night at my place.”
Chapter Three
Hailey
“…I’m sorry?” Hailey asked, sure she must not have heard him correctly. “Could you repeat that?”
The man winced. His intoxicating deep brown eyes widened, which probably meant he was having second thoughts about asking the complete stranger, who was clearly a trouble magnet, into his home. And this was the part where he was going to backtrack and take the offer of a warm bed and roof off the table, and she’d be back to sleeping in her car.
“Sorry…” he muttered, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. “I don’t mean to come on strong or try to tell you what to do…”
She opened her mouth to tell him that hadn’t been what she’d meant, but he carried on.
“…but I wouldn’t feel right leaving you two out here like this. Call me old-fashioned, but I don’t feel it’s right not to help a lady out when she needs it.”
He was just being a gentleman. And he didn’t seem like the sort who’d want some kind of personal favor in return for a room for the night. That probably shouldnothave been a disappointment. What the hell was wrong with her? With an effort, she kept her eyes from his tight, muscular body, and on his face. She needed to focus. On finding somewhere to stay. Definitely not on his body.
She was a mom. She had bigger concerns than the abrupt and unexpected return of her sex drive. The man could be a serial killer for all she knew. Anybody could be a murderer. Even a sexy security guard.
Hailey groaned at the thought. That was the real problem. Her attraction to the man.
In truth, even though she’d just met the man, she trusted him. It wasn’t his job making her feel that way, it was her intuition. She felt…safe when she was around him. All her anxieties had evaporated the second she laid eyes on him.
And that was exactly what made her so wary.
Michael had also initially seemed like a good man. It wasn’t until a year into their relationship when he’d first began to reveal his true colors. But she hadn’t taken that opportunity to leave, sure that it had been her fault somehow that his attitude had changed so suddenly.
Obviously, Hailey regretted that decision now. Though she still wouldn’t change anything if given the opportunity. After all, she wouldn’t have Riley right now if she hadn’t stayed. But Riley was also the reason she couldn’t afford to make another bad judgement call.
She couldn’t do that to her son. Not again.
Besides, even if this Chase did turn out to be a genuinely good guy, she still shouldn’t get close to him. For the man’s own good. Bad things had happened to anyone who’d tried to help her.
And yet, even though she knew all about the dangerous individuals who worked for her ex, she couldn’t help but feel as though this man could probably take care of himself. His face may have possessed a certain boyish charm, but there was also a steady, underlying strength to his lean and muscular body. And there was deep wisdom lurking in those soulful brown eyes. Chase seemed intelligent and strong. Like he could protect not just himself, but her and Riley too, if she needed him to.
Heat pooled in her lower belly as Hailey’s eyes raked over the muscles visible beneath that thick winter jacket. She couldn’t help but picture what it would be like to be held by those arms, to feel safe, warm, and desired. Hailey imagined wrapping her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his hair, and pulling him down into a hot, messy kiss.
