“I won’t. I need all the help I can get. Feel free to give pointers.”
After a few miles, he could tell she was getting less nervous and more comfortable. She actually wasn’t too bad a driver. “You’re doing great,” he said.
She glanced over quickly, giving him a sweet smile. The sheer joy on her face had him memorizing the moment. Even with the black eye, she was so beautiful. And so out of his league.Keep it in your pants, Jake.
He put his home address into her phone and had her practice following directions from the app. They made it back to the farm without incident.
“Nice. You got us here in one piece, and I didn’t throw up. You’re hired.”
“You mean you’ll let me drive your car?”
“I’ll find a key ring and put a car key and a house key on it for you. I’d rather you stay here for now. At least until we can be sure your place is safe. Are you okay with that?”
“Yes, that’s fine. I do feel safer here. Obviously, if whoever tried to kill me knows where I live, it wouldn’t be smart to go back there until he’s caught.”
“Agreed.”
She parked the Jeep next to his patrol car, giving it a wide berth, and they got out.
“I seem to be saying this a lot, but thanks, Jake. Again.” They met in front of the car, and she hugged him. She was soft and fragile in his arms. He didn’t want to let go, but released her easily when she pulled away and led the way up the steps. “You’ll let me know when I wear out my welcome, right?”
“Oh. You’ll be the first to know,” he said, and she laughed, preceding him through the door.
“All right,” he said, turning the deadbolt. “Let’s talk safety.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Monday morning, Jake geared up and headed to work. Hannah could tell he felt anxious about leaving her alone, mainly because he called every hour to check on her. And the one time she didn’t pick up, he’d driven halfway out to the farm, thinking the worst, before she called back to tell him she hadn’t heard her phone vibrating. She apologized for making him worry and promised she would be careful going to school that day.
The night before, he’d given her a safety lecture, telling her to be aware of her surroundings, stay in a group whenever possible, lock the doors when she was home alone, and to keep her phone on her at all times.
His lecture had freaked her out a little, but it also made her careful. She made it to school and back safely, driving to the light rail station, taking the train, and attending classes. Who knew going to school could be such an adventure?
Two of her classes had over a hundred students, and in those she blended in without speaking to anyone. Everywhere she went was crowded, so she wasn’t too worried about someone trying to hurt her again, but she kept watch for anyone suspicious just to be safe. Every once in a while, someone would catch her eye, and she’d give a half-wave, not knowing if she was offending a best friend by not saying more, or waving at the person who’d tried to kill her. Having no memories was trippy.
Her last, upper-level class only had a handful of people, and the girl who sat next to her was chatty. Hannah got the impression they were the kind of friends who stuck together during class but didn’t necessarily hang out outside of school. She confided in the girl, telling her about the accident and the amnesia and asked if she could call her with any questions. The girl, Tess, was more than happy to help. They even set up a study date for the following week. Midterms were fast approaching, and Hannah needed all the help she could get.
When Jake pulled into the driveway that evening, Hannah was tempted to greet him at the door but dismissed the idea, thinking it was too presumptuous. Instead, she stayed where she was on the couch, browsing through the syllabus for one of her classes. Jake had set her up to use his laptop so she could access class information and homework.
He entered, and the air in the room shifted. Most men look good in a uniform, all pressed and official, but damn if he didn’t make the dull blue look damn right edible.
“Hey,” she said, pulling a headphone out of her ear. “How was work? Anything cool happen?”
“Good, and no. Nothing monumental today. Day shifts are usually pretty boring. A lot of car accidents and stuff like that.” She wondered if he found it weird to come home to someone. If he’d never had a serious relationship, was she the first person to ask about his day?
“How about you? How was your first day alone?” he asked, hanging his soggy coat on the back of a kitchen chair.
“Also boring. I didn’t really feel alone because someone kept calling every two seconds to check on me. It was like he was sitting right next to me.” She smiled.
“Sorry about that.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “Probably hard to get your work done with me bugging you every hour. I was worried.”
“I know. And I appreciate it. I’m just teasing you.” She set the laptop on the coffee table and walked to where he was standing. “Is all that stuff heavy?”
“Yes, but you get used to it.” He unholstered his gun, engaged the safety, and laid it on the top of the refrigerator. “Do you know how to use a gun?” he asked, brows narrowing with concern.
“Doubt it,” she said, shrugging. “I found one in a kitchen drawer earlier but didn’t touch it. How many do you have?”
“A few.” He chuckled. “Pretty much one for every room in the house. Since I live alone, I rarely lock them up. I want ’em handy in an emergency. They don’t bother you, do they?”
