Grace almost laughed. Almost.
“For what it’s worth,” she started to turn away, and then paused, “I have never seen him look as afraid as he did when he realized he might lose you.”
Grace clutched the dish, she didn’t know what to say.
“And I have never seen him care less about what people might say.”
Then she was gone.
Grace watchedLuke's hands on the steering wheel as he drove her to work again the next morning.
She knew exactly what those hands felt like—knew the calluses on his palms, the way his fingers curled when he touched her, the pressure of his thumb against her pulse point.
This didn't make sense. None of it made sense.
Luke had been very clear about what he wanted from her. Sex. Privacy. Secrecy.
And Grace had broken those rules. Had asked for more, for his hand in hers on Main Street, for acknowledgment that she was more than just sex to him.
He'd said no.
It's not like this is serious. Why make it complicated?
Grace's throat tightened at the memory. He’d made it clear. Brutally clear.
So why was he here now?
Why had he driven across town in the middle of the night because she'd called 911? Why had he knelt in front of her couch with that desperate look in his eyes? Why had he brought her tohis house, given her his guest room, made her feel safe? Cared for?
Why was he driving her to school like it was the most natural thing in the world?
Luke slowed for a stop sign, glancing over at her. "You okay?"
Grace nodded without speaking.
She wasn't okay. She was confused and angry and something else she didn't want to name.
He was breaking the rules he’d set, she thought. Showing up at crime scenes he wasn't assigned to. Driving her around in his cruiser where anyone could see. Taking her into his home.
Except—
No.
Luke was a cop.
He was just doing his job.
A citizen was in danger. Of course he was helping. Of course he was being protective. That's what good cops did.
It didn't mean he likedher.
It just meant he didn't want her to get hurt.
Grace stared out the window as the school came into view. Her hands curled into fists in her lap.
Luke Bennett's reputation wasn't suffering because he was protecting a woman in danger. If anything, it made him look good. Noble. Dedicated.
Dating her would be a scandal.
