The corner of his mouth tipped up at her outrage. “I’m an Army guy, Emme. Architecture isn’t my area of expertise. I’ll take your word for it.”
She huffed. “Which way?”
He cocked his head to the rear of the foyer and the large hall leading to the back of the hotel. “That way.”
Turning on her heel, she walked ahead of him. Her annoyance added an extra flounce to her step and sway in her hips that drew his eyes to her ass. Maybe he shouldn’t fault those two men for checking her out.
They exited onto the large flagstone patio and she kept going until she reached the steps leading down to the promenade. Her rib cage expanded slowly. He could see her inhale. She released her breath and repeated the sequence.
He stopped to her right. Her face was tilted up to the sun and her eyes were closed. “You okay?”
“I didn’t realize how much I needed this.” Her voice was soft and reverent.
His brow furrowed. “What?”
She opened her eyes and looked at him, her eyes sparkling. “The end of the world.”
He shook his head. “I don’t understand.”
“It was really hard at times to remember there was more than that dirt room and getting beat almost every day.” Her voice was soft. “My world had become so small and confined. I’d forgotten there was more to it.”
“And the ocean helped you remember?”
“Yes.”
He tried to see it the way she did. To him it was a natural progression of geography. He turned to face her fully “Did you turn into a hippie?”
Her laugh was surprisingly light and it hit him like a concussive blast. The force of it should have knocked him off his feet and sent him flying. Her ability to laugh like that in the face of everything that had happened floored him.
An unexpected longing filled him. He wanted an eternity to make her laugh like that and to wake up each day with the prospect of being surrounded by happiness and joy.
Jordan looked like he’d been punched in the gut. Or someone had told him they’d kicked his puppy. Emme touched his arm above the elbow and his muscles jumped under her fingers. Because of her? “Are you okay?”
He gave a slight shake of his head. “Yeah.” He shifted to the side and her hand fell away. “Yeah. You hungry? We passed a cafe this morning during our run.”
“Sure.”
He gestured down the steps to the right and she led the way, waiting for him at the bottom. They followed the walkway from the hotel to the wide path that ran along the low wall separating the beach from the hotels and shops.
Walking beside him in silence was awkward. They were close enough to touch, her arm kept brushing his, but it seemed like he’d put a physical distance between them.
Several minutes passed. Looked like she was going to have to start the conversation. “How long were you in the Army?”
“Still am. I commissioned right out of college.”
Her brow wrinkled. “Are you Reserve?”
“No. Active.”
“I thought you were with Titan.”
“Nope.”
Can I get a three-syllable word, Pat?She stopped. “How does that work?”
He turned back and slipped his hands into the pockets of his khakis, pulling them further down on his hips. “Didn’t I explain that?”
“You said Dad hired Titan. I assumed he hired Titan because of you.”
