Just firm pressure of his lips.And far too brief before he straightened, putting an invisible barrier between them.
Tripp stared down into her eyes for a long, endless moment, then closed his eyes and kissed her forehead.“Good night, Will.”
He walked past her without another word, shutting the door behind him.She sank onto the edge of her bed, her legs a little unsteady.
What the hell had just happened?
TWENTY-NINE
T
ripp made another pass along the cedar plank with the hand plane, the soft scraping sound and the fragrant scent of the natural oils released from the thin, curling wood shavings doing nothing to soothe the turmoil inside him.
He’d slept like shit last night.Tormented by restless dreams about Syria, Peyton, and Willow.
It was too late for any kind of damage control or to put distance between them now.She was staying here until he knew for certain that there was no further threat against her.
He looked up as his dad walked into the shop.“Morning.”
“Morning.”His dad paused near the workbench, sipping at a mug of coffee as he examined the new mantlepiece.“It’s looking good.”He studied him a moment.“You, not so much.Rough night?”
“A bit, yeah.Someone tried to break into Willow’s place, so I brought her up here.”
“Ahh, I thought I heard a woman’s voice outside last night.She’s okay?”
“Yeah.Rafe’s on it, and she’s safe here.”
“That she is.”His dad sat on a nearby stool and watched him work for a few minutes in silence.“Wanna talk about it?”he finally asked.
“No.”It came out sharper than he intended.
“Got it.”He sat there quietly while Tripp continued to smooth the plank out.“How was whale watching?”
“Good.”
“Glad to hear it.”
