As if noticing for the first time that he was touching her, she yanked her hand out from beneath his, a little crease forming between her brows.He was beginning to understand that wrinkle meant her stubborn streak was about to kick in, and he pulled his chair forward so that their knees made contact and she was now trapped between him and the table, unable to move with the wall at her back.
“Jacob knows what he’s talking about.You need to listen to him.”Mårten wasn’t going to plead with her, not in front of Jacob and Nikki, but he could feel the urgency simmering inside him.She didn’t trust him right now, not after the way he’d rejected her.Hell, the fact she was shooting daggers at him with her eyes, she probably hated his guts.But he was prepared to weather her dislike, embrace it even, if only she’d hear him out.“Please promise me you’ll stay here, at least for the next few days.”Mårten needed her to give him this assurance.With his imminent departure back to Sweden looming, he needed to make sure she was going to be in safe hands.And Jacob was the only person he truly trusted in this city, in this whole damned country, even, to do the job.
He watched several emotions swim across the dark pools of her eyes as she studied him.
“Are you okay with this?”Summer asked, looking at Nikki now.“I mean, this is your house.What if this madman finds out I’m here and targets me here?You could be in danger.”Underneath the table, where only Mårten could see, Summer was scrubbing her thumb across the palm of her other hand over and over.It was the same habit he’d noticed back at her apartment.Now he could see it was a mannerism brought on by stress.
She sat in her chair scowling at him as she waited for Nikki’s reply.This time, it was Nikki’s turn to lay her hand over Summer’s, only now she didn’t pull away.“My priority is to see you safe, Summer.And of course if you need to stay here, then you’re more than welcome.I understand the risks, but I also trust Jacob with my life.He won’t allow any harm to come to me.Or to you.If you’ll let him.”
Jacob nodded earnestly in Summer’s direction, then draped an arm around Nikki’s shoulders, tucking her under his shoulder in a comforting move that was also slightly possessive.Mårten was struck by a sudden jolt of yearning as he watched Jacob show his complete support for his woman.What would it be like to have someone to care about as deeply as Jacob did?Someone who cared equally about him in return.
Summer lowered her gaze, humbled by Nikki’s compassion.And by Jacob’s determined offer to protect her.At last she said quietly, “I’m not saying no.But I need to go for a run.I need to clear my head and think about all this, if that’s okay?”She pushed her empty mug away and went to stand.
“Of course,” Nikki replied.She and Jacob stood as one, concern etched on both their faces.Jacob flicked Mårten an almost imperceptible glance, letting him know they were both thinking the same thing.
Mårten didn’t stand, however, knowing that he was still blocking Summer in at the table.He checked the window.It was barely light outside.He agreed with Jacob’s silent communication.“I’ll come with you.”It wasn’t a question.He was going to be her shadow, whether she liked it or not.She could hate him as much as she wanted, but he wasn’t letting her out of this house alone.
Summer studied him for a long time, heavy lashes fringing her narrowed eyes, and it was all he could do to stop himself from being drawn in to her, to drown in those pools of emotion.
“Provided you can keep up with me then, police inspector,” she said with a derisive snort, snapping him out of his reverie.
“I’ll go and change,” he replied, pushing his chair back and moving out of her way.“Don’t go anywhere without me,” he commanded over his shoulder.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” she replied, saccharine sweet.But that tone didn’t fool him.He knew what she had in mind.She was going to push him as hard as she could, to punish him, and he was going to have to run as if his life depended on it to keep up with her.Which was ironic, because maybe it did.
CHAPTER NINE
MÅRTEN’S BREATHING WAS labored as he pounded up the hill behind Summer.Jesus Christ, this girl could run.Mårten was fit, but not nearly as fit as her, it seemed.Even his police training didn’t come close to covering conditions for triathlons.The only good thing about the past half hour of pure torture was the view of her gorgeous ass encased in black lycra shorts as she ran in front of him.And the way her long ponytail flicked jauntily down her back as she moved was also doing strange things to his insides.
He knew she was going to punish him for pulling away from that kiss, and she was succeeding.He might even have to call a halt soon, before he passed out.He was no judge of how well Summer might be doing in the triathlon world, but if this run—and it could be called nothing less, there was no jogging going on here—was anything to go by, Summer must be very competitive.
They crested the slight incline, and Lake Washington came back into view.They’d been following the shoreline off and on, as Summer snaked her way through the suburbs, Mårten trusting she knew where she was going because he would not admit he was completely lost.The sun was just coming up, with a delicate mist rising off the calm water and the sky tinged a pale pink above.A grassy verge led down from the path to the edge of the water, bordered by pretty shrubs and even a flush of summer flowers.It was quite beautiful, and it reminded him of the lake near his hometown where he sometimes went hiking whenever he had a day off.Seattle wasn’t a terrible place to live, he decided.
Mårten was just about to call out and ask Summer to stop—ostensibly to admire the view—when she slowed so that he nearly ran into the back of her and had to pull up short.
“I thought we should pause before you keeled over and died,” she said tartly, flicking him a haughty look over her shoulder.Even while he was trying to hide just how much he was struggling to breathe, an urge to kiss that smart mouth of hers overtook him.But she took off at a light jog toward the water’s edge, and he followed, his retort stuck in his throat as he gasped for breath.
She stopped, studying the view unfolding before them, and he took a moment to appreciate her shape outlined against the luminous water.Long legs, the jut of her hips and then a dainty waist that he longed to wrap his hands around so he could pull her to him.She was tall and athletic, muscular and strong.Everything that he appreciated in a woman.No wonder he was so drawn to her.But it was her feisty temperament, and the fact there was clearly lots going on inside that quick mind of hers, that intrigued him as much as her body.
She turned to stare at him as he stepped alongside her.A hint of perspiration and a slight rosy glow around her cheeks were the only suggestions that she’d run five miles at a breakneck pace.While Mårten was sweating heavily and his chest burned from the unusual, arduous exertion.He knew his face was as red as a beetroot, but he stood up taller, pretending he was fine.The thought that he now had to run at least five miles back to Nikki’s again was pushed to the dark recesses of his mind.He was here to keep Summer safe.And if she wanted to run ten miles, twenty even, then he’d just have to keep up.His muscles were going to scream at him tomorrow, but that was a price he was happy to pay.Maybe he should take up running when he got home.Just to increase his cardiovascular fitness.That was all; no other reason.
“So, you compete in triathlons then?”He asked when he finally had his breathing under control.They’d already touched on this subject, but perhaps it was an opportunity to find out more.Triathletes were a special kind of person.From the little he knew, it took dedication, lots of time, and sheer unwavering grit to be any good.And he wanted to know if she was any good.
Her gaze remained fixed on the view, and he wondered if she was going to answer.At last, she said.“Yes.I like to keep busy when I’m not working.And owning my own photography business, I can usually schedule my jobs around my training timetable.”
That made sense.“And you’ve been doing this for a while?”
She nodded slowly, but the stubborn turn of her lip told him she was considering not answering.Then she let out a sigh of capitulation.“I started when I first moved to Seattle about six years ago.My friend, Serena, got me into it.She was born in Namibia and was lucky enough to be relocated here as a refugee when she was young.She got into the modeling business and started doing triathlons as a way to stay fit and trim.But now she’s shifted to the other side of the camera, and she takes the photos instead of posing for them.She gave up triathlons a few years ago to concentrate on her photography, which was good for me, because she’s one of the best runners I’ve ever known and I could never beat her.But I could always catch her in the swim leg,” she added with a wry twist to her lips.
This was the most Summer had revealed since he’d met her, and it was fascinating finding out more about her life.Mårten kept his gaze directed forward like hers, not wanting to break this fragile truce.She might not have forgiven him, but at least she was talking.
“It becomes a bit addictive, you know,” she added thoughtfully.
He wasn’t sure he agreed with that.To him, exercise was merely a means to an end.He couldn’t say that he enjoyed the endless hours of sweating.And if they ever brought out a pill that meant you never had to work out again, he might well take it.
“You must train most days then?”He said, not letting on to his true thoughts.
She looked at him for the first time since they had stopped, then quickly averted her gaze.“Yes, most days.I swim twice a week, run at least twice a week, and train on my bicycle at least twice a week.”
