What in the world was she supposed to say? “Thought I better hurry and answer before you deleted this message too,” she said under her breath. And what if this was some sort of trick or spam or anything other than Jace taking an actual interest in her?
There was only one way to find out.
Mr. Fearless!It’s great to hear from you. After checking my schedule, I discovered I could squeeze you onto the calendar between my appointments with Brad Pitt and Chris Pratt. No really, I’m pretty open this week. Let me know what you have in mind.
She hitsend before she could talk herself out of it, then stared at the screen, wondering if he’d reply right then. A short, melodious trill said that he’d seen the message and was, in fact, replying in that very moment. Another squeal sounded from deep in her throat. “Please be real,” she breathed. “Don’t be some stupid prank.” Another sound chimed, and a glorious message appeared:
How about tonight?
* * *
“Dude,she’s going to be ticked off that you didn’t tell her up front.” Kip, Jace’s brother, might be right; heck, the kid had been getting a crash course on Women 101 since he’d saidI dohalf-a-year ago. But there was nothing Jace could do about it now. Besides, Logan probably knew more on the subject, and ifhesaid this was the right way to go, Jace had to believe it was.
“It’s too late to go back now,” Jace said, lifting his chin so his voice would rise to the SUV’s Bluetooth speaker. He eyed the approaching street sign, knowing Sycamore Street was fast approaching. There was Princess Pine, Quaking Aspen, Redwood…
“I’ve got to go,” he mumbled as he pressed on the brake to slow.
“You’re going to have to bring it up gently,” Kip said. “Like, don’t wait too long or anything, but don’t spit it out the second you see her either or she’ll think you’re nuts.”
“Yeah,” Leo hollered in the background. Jace could picture the twins in Leo’s new home gym, pumping weights while staring into that floor-to-ceiling wall mirror. “And if she needs a little comfort on those dark, late nights, have her give good ol’ Leo a call.”
Jace shook his head. “Not a chance, Leo. What do you think I’m here for?”
“You’rehere to take any bullets for her, big guy.” Leo’s voice grew louder, as if he’d snatched the phone from his brother’s hand. “You do the fighting and let me do the loving. How about that?”
“Dream on, brother.” Tall trees lined either side of the quiet street, their leafy branches boasting leaves that were just starting to turn, the deep green color giving way to growing hints of orange and gold. He cracked the window of his SUV and breathed in the crisp, familiar scent.
“Let us know how it goes,” Kip said.
“We’ll be praying for you— ” The line was cut off there, and Jace cracked another grin.
“Dorks.” His twin brothersweredorks, but Jace missed spending time with them. Being in his hometown would be a nice change. He’d planned on coming out for the twins’ birthday celebration next month anyway. The thought had him wondering if he’d wrap up the case by then. Or would he and Amy be in the thick of it, staging a dangerous takedown involving the kingpin himself?
Jace wasn’t sure how likely that was, but by God’s grace, it wouldn’t take much longer to put the despicable ring to rest, and dare any other to take its place.
The houses along the street looked cozy, like old-fashioned gingerbread homes. And while the finish of each house was unique, many had similar structural traits. Tall dormer peaks at the center of each roof, a small, covered porch, and a chimney that promised warmth during Denver’s cold, snowy winters.
Jace peered at the house numbers as he went, counting ahead to see what must be Amy’s home. Wide-plank siding covered the surface, such a light color of sage he thought it was white at first glance. The frames around the windows and doors hinted to more of that pale, dusty green. On the porch, tan wicker chairs rested beside a matching picnic basket filled with flowers.
It fit perfectly into the cozy neighborhood that was starting to remind him of the quiet community his grandparents had moved into after they retired. Jace liked picturing Amy Nelson living here. It was safe. Until someone got their hands on her, he reminded himself. He wasn’t simply there to take her out and catch up on old times. And while he wished that the circumstances were different, Jace had to admit that a part of him was secretly glad her name had shown up on that website. It gave him an excuse to contact her after all this time. Besides, this raised the stakes, and Jace planned to rise to the challenge.
He pulled the SUV into the tiny driveway leading to a one-car garage. Wow, this house must be even older than it looked; did people even bother building one-car garages anymore? He wondered what kind of car she drove, what she liked to do in her spare time, and—once again— if she was dating anyone. He felt confident, after watching her squeeze biceps, flash winks, and flirt shamelessly on some of her segments, that she wasn’t serious with anyone. But perhaps she was with a guy who didn’t mind her making comments about other men and their buff abs and swoon-worthy voices.
If so, she was dating a better man than Jace. He quieted his mind and shut off the car. He shouldn’t forget the reason he was there in the first place.
“Right,” he mumbled to himself. Which, of course, took him right back to the dilemma at hand: telling Amy about what brought him to Denver. The appearance of her name on that God-forsaken website. Dread poured over him anew. Forget jumping out of airplanes or diving into deep, unknown seas—thiswas terrifying.
A resolution came to him then. Sure, he was taking her out tonight, before telling her about the danger she was in, but he shouldn’t move things further until he filled her in on it. Which meant, no kissing yet. Not that she’d even want to. But still, it was settled. He wouldn’t kiss her until she knew about the mission.
With that, Jace fisted his keys and unlatched his seatbelt. “Here goes nothing.”
