Okay, that was very cryptic, and while part of me was dying to find out what he meant, the other part of me screamed to run as far and fast as possible. Only then would I truly be safe from whatever was going on. But then I remembered how it felt to have his body pressed against mine last night—how I desperately wanted for something to happen.
To feel his breath on my skin and his fingers skating along my spine would be absolute heaven. But those were the wrong things to think about. His sister was here and she’d just been through the wringer. My needs and wants had to wait.
“Am I in danger?” The words felt awkward on my lips, and even as I said them, I found myself smiling. If I thought of this as some big murder mystery, maybe it wouldn’t seem so bad.
“No.”
“Then why would you need to come with me?”
“Protection.”
I snorted out a laugh, but when he just kept staring at me, the humor of the situation died.
Bad choice of words.
“Protection from what exactly?”
“Things.”
“You said that already,” I pushed. “Why do you keep saying things?”
“Because things happen.”
“Yes, I get that things happen,” I answered testily. “But you haven’t explained what these things are!”
“Bad things.”
Rolling my eyes, I headed for the door. “Well, thanks for the clarification on that.”
But as I shoved past him, he grabbed my arm, pulling me back to him. “It’s probably nothing,” he said slowly, his voice brushing against me like silk.
I shivered, my resolve to storm out of here melting as his hand slowly trailed down my arm, brushing against my fingers.
“JR, what’s really going on?”
He shifted only an inch, but it was close enough that he overwhelmed me. His masculine scent wrapped around me like a warm blanket, protecting me from whatever he deemed a threat.
I didn’t understand it, but I got the feeling I didn’t need to. Whatever was happening, JR was here, and he would keep me safe. Of that much I was sure.
But who would keep me safe from him?
“If you knew, you’d hate me.” His words drifted over me like silk, and I closed my eyes, shifting a scant inch closer.
“Why?”
“There’s so much you don’t know about me. I’m not the man you think I am, Josie.”
Shivers raced down my spine as his lips brushed my forehead. God, if he moved any closer, I would combust. I was already dizzy with need for him, and his warnings to stay away were doing little to sway me.
“Then tell me.”
For just a second, I thought he was actually considering it—that he would open his mouth and tell me all about himself. That there would be no more secrets between us, and I would finally understand the man I craved so much.
But just as he opened his mouth, he stepped back and shoved his hands in his pockets.
“Go get ready. I’ll be over in a few minutes.”
27
