Her head turns a fraction, and her eyes meet mine.
Too blue.
Too honest.
“People ignore couples,” I say. “They don’t look too hard when they think they’re interrupting something. It was cover.”
She nods quickly. Too quickly. “Yes. Of course. I know.”
But her voice isn’t as steady as she wants it to be.
I watch her swallow. Watch her try to pull herself back together.
Something in my chest shifts.
Guilt, maybe. Anger. A protective instinct that is already wrapping too tight around her.
“I’m sorry,” I say, and the words scrape out of me like they don’t get used often. “I should’ve warned you better.”
She huffs a tiny breath that could be a laugh if she had any air left for it. “You told me to laugh.”
“That wasn’t the warning part,” I say.
Her eyes flick down to my mouth, just for a second, then back up.
Damn.
I start the truck.
“We’re going to Valor Springs,” I tell her. “Lone Star Security. The Ranch.”
Her shoulders go rigid. “How far?”
“Far enough,” I say. “But you’re safe with me.” I keep my eyes on the road, because if I look at her too long, I’ll do something stupid. “Just follow my lead.”
She nods, a little slower this time.
“Okay,” she whispers.
I pull away from the curb, merging into traffic.
And I tell myself the kiss was just a move.
Just cover.
Just a tactic.
But my mouth still remembers hers.
And that’s a problem I don’t have time for.
Chapter 3
Sierra
Thetrucksmellslikewarm leather and something rugged I can’t name. Clean in a sharp, masculine way. Even with the AC blasting, the heat still clings, Texas summer pressing at the windows like it refuses to mind its business.
Knox drives like he belongs on the road. One hand on the wheel, the other resting loose, ready. His forearms flex when he turns, and I hate myself a little for noticing.
