"Both." She turns under my hands, letting me wash her back, her shoulders, the curve of her spine. "And for not treating me like I'm fragile. For understanding I needed to feel something other than afraid."
"You're not fragile." I work the soap into her skin, the touch intimate but no longer sexual. Just the care of one person for another. "You're the strongest person I know. And you're allowed to need release from the pressure without being weak."
She turns to face me, water rinsing away the soap. "We're going to catch him. Whoever it is. They're going to make a mistake, and we're going to be ready."
"We're going to catch him." I repeat it with certainty, pulling her close under the spray. "And then you can go back to your life without looking over your shoulder."
"What if I want you in that life?" She looks up at me, direct and honest. "After all this is over. What if I want to keep you?"
The question hits harder than expected. "Then you keep me. If you still want me when the danger's gone and I'm just a K9 handler with a dog who steals your food."
"I'll still want you." She reaches up, her palm against my jaw. "This isn't just adrenaline and proximity. You know that, right?"
"I know." And I do. What's building between us started before the stalking escalated, before she moved into my quarters. It's been there since Duke decided she was pack. "Same goes for you. When this is over and you're safe again, I'm not going anywhere."
We finish the shower in comfortable silence, the earlier urgency replaced by tired contentment. When we step out, I grab towels for both of us, and we dry off in the steamy bathroom.
Andi heads to the bedroom in just a towel, and I follow after securing the house for the night. Duke's already in his spot on the floor at the foot of the bed, having checked all the windows and doors himself.
I catch Andi as she's about to drop the towel and climb into bed. "Not yet."
"Devlin, I'm exhausted."
"I know." I scoop her up, carrying her the few steps to the bed. She laughs, surprised, and wraps her arms around my neck.
"What are you doing?"
"Taking care of you." I set her down on the bed gently, then climb in beside her. "You gave me what I needed in the shower. Let me give you what you need now."
"Which is?" But she's already curling against me, her head finding my shoulder like it belongs there.
"Sleep. Safety. Someone watching over you while you rest." I pull the blankets over both of us and invite Duke on the bed. "Tomorrow brings whatever it brings. Tonight you get to just be Andi. Not the target, not the victim. Just the woman I'm falling for who needs sleep."
"Falling for?" Her voice is already getting heavy with exhaustion.
"Yeah." No point denying it. "Falling for."
"Good." She presses a kiss to my shoulder. "Because I'm falling too."
She's asleep within minutes, her breathing evening out, body relaxing against mine. Duke shifts at the foot of the bed, his head lifting periodically to check the windows and door before settling back down.
I don't sleep much that night, listening for sounds that don't belong, monitoring Duke's reactions to every shift in wind or distant noise. He's restless too, knowing something's wrong even if he can't articulate it.
Morning arrives with pale light through the bedroom curtains. Andi stirs against me, warm and soft and safe in my arms. I want to keep her here, locked in this moment where nothing can touch her.
But that's not reality.
She dresses in work clothes—cargo pants, fitted shirt, hair in its practical braid. Ready to face whatever the day brings. I watch her move through my quarters like she belongs here, and something in my chest tightens at the thought that this istemporary. That once Hutchins is caught, she goes back to her cottage and her independent life.
Unless she chooses to stay.
"I need to go into the operations building this morning," she says over coffee. "Lieutenant Colonel Cain wants an update on the investigation, and I have reports that can't wait any longer."
"I'll drive you. Duke and I will stay close." Not negotiable. Hutchins might be under surveillance, but that doesn't mean he won't try something.
"Okay." No argument, just acceptance. She's learning to let me protect her without seeing it as weakness.
We drive to the operations building together, Duke in the back seat. Base is fully awake now, morning routines in full swing. People notice us arriving together, but I don't care about gossip. The only thing that matters is Andi's safety.
