If he had to sayI’m sorrya hundred times he would, anything to have her not look at him like he was the enemy.
How could he, a man closer to fifty than twenty, act the way he had? It didn’t make sense, but it told him all he needed to know—he was all in with Marie. Lock, stock, and barrel head over heels for her. How else could he explain his reaction to what was, for all intents and purposes, two colleagues chatting at the end of the day.
“I accept your apology, but that doesn’t mean it’s forgotten,” she turned to him, and the disappointment in her eyes had him cursing himself all over again. “Itwas embarrassing to have you practically maul me in front of Brendon, not to mention the other staff who would’ve seen you do it.”
“I know. I wish I could rewind time and act differently, because that’s really not me.”
But this was the first time that he was experiencing love for a woman. He’d never allowed himself to get close to anyone while he was working for the DEA. It was too risky, what with him always going undercover. The Ramirez Cartel job had been the one that had tipped the scales for him. He never imagined when he went under he’d be there so long. It changed him in a way that some days he hadn’t recognized who he was.
He was beginning to find out who he was now and it was due to the woman next to him. He wasn’t going to fuck it up again. She was far too precious for him to lose.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The aromaof tomatoes and garlic hit Marie the moment she stepped out of her room. As soon as she’d gotten home she’d headed straight for the shower, still trying to work through her feelings about the way Isaac had acted when he picked her up.
She couldn’t deny that a part of her was a tad excited at Isaac’s display of jealousy. In all the time she had been married to Joe, he hadn’t ever shown any sign that he was jealous if a colleague put a hand on her. At the time it hadn’t bothered her because she believed that they had such a good relationship, but in the end, what they’d had had been shallow and easily broken.
Isaac had acted out of character, but it showed her that he cared, and he’d admitted as much when he said he hadn’t acted that way before.
She wandered to the kitchen and paused in thedoorway. Isaac was stirring something on the cooktop, his back to her, so he didn’t know that she’d arrived. Or maybe he did, there were times when he called out to her before she’d even entered a room. When she’d questioned him about it he’d told her he’d sensed her coming. Marie never questioned it, just assumed it was a skill he’d honed while he’d been undercover. No doubt he would’ve always had to be watching his back, waiting for someone to stab him in it.
“Whatever you're cooking, it smells delicious.” Marie went to the fridge, trying to act casual when she was feeling anything but. What she wanted to do was slide her arms around him and hold him close.
Why can’t you?
Right? There was nothing stopping her from doing that, so that’s what she did, she changed direction and pressed her chest against his back.
A slight hitch in his breath was her only sign that she’d shocked him. A second later he turned, and she found herself wrapped up tightly in his arms. The exact place she wanted to be.
“You good?” His chest rumbled beneath her ear.
“Better now that I’m in your arms.”
His whole body relaxed at her confession. “Same.”
Marie had no idea how long they stood there, but she didn’t want to be anywhere else. Being in Isaac’s arms was a safe haven for her. A place where she couldbe herself and not worry about the consequences, or if he’d judge her for how she was acting.
“As much as I love holding you and having you close, dinner is going to burn if I leave it much longer.”
“I suppose that’s a good enough reason to let you go.” She went up on tiptoe and pressed her lips lightly against his. “Do you need me to do anything?”
His knuckles brushed her cheeks, and she was coming to love him doing that to her. A simple touch, but every time he did it she felt cherished, as if she was the most important thing in his life. “You can get the salad out of the fridge. Everything else is ready.”
“I can do that.”
Isaac turned back to tend to the pot, and she took a few seconds to appreciate that this man was in her life. She never would’ve thought when they’d met in Guatemala that a few months later she’d be standing in his kitchen watching him cook.
Life had a funny way of working out. If only there wasn’t the specter of uncertainty hanging over their heads.
Curledinto Isaac’s side on the couch was fast becoming another favorite place for her. She had so many now. Everything about Isaac made life so much more pleasant after a hard day at the hospital.
“Do you want to watch something?” she asked.
“We can if you want. But before we do, I need to talk to you.”
In the blink of an eye her body tensed at his tone. “Sure, what about?”
“There’s been some developments in the case.”
