“Don’t you think that’s for me to decide?” she asked from her doorway.
“I’m sorry,” he rumbled once more without turning around. But then, as if he couldn’t keep from it, Slade looked back at her from over his shoulder and confessed, “I can’t look at you and not want. And I’m not a fucking saint. I touch you like that again, there will be no stopping. Which will only make it harder on us both when this is over, and we have to walk away.”
Their gazes remained locked on one another’s for several long, agonizing seconds. But then Shadow’s expression slowly changed from a look of desire to acceptance, and with a slight dip of her chin, she stopped begging him to stay.
“Goodnight, Digger.” She went back to using his nickname. “And….just so you know…no matter what does or doesn’t happen between us, I’m…really glad you’re here.”
Slade watched as she moved backward just enough to shut herself in for the night. And when the door snicked closed, and he could no longer see her, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d just made the biggest mistake of his life.
CHAPTER8
Two days later…
“We come bearing gifts.”
Slade kept his hand on the door he’d just opened as Bones and Falcon stared back at him from where they stood on the porch.
“What’s that?” He eyed the two bulging bags Bones was holding at his sides.
But rather than waiting for an invitation, the other man took it upon himself to squeeze his way past.
“Lunch,” his teammate answered only after he was fully inside.
While he put the bags onto the rustic dining room table, Falcon shot Slade a look and an unapologetic shrug. Slade sighed, moving further to the side to make room for the former Army Ranger to enter.
“We have food here,” he grumbled as he shut the door and reset the alarm.
Bones reached into one of the bags and pulled out something wrapped in deli paper he recognized on sight. “Yes, but do you havethese?”
“You brought us Petruccelli’s?”
His initial annoyance at their unannounced visit all but vanished with the ill-timed growling of his stomach. A small, family-owned deli not far from where they worked, Petruccelli’s was one of Charlotte’s best-kept secrets.
“I got you the Porchetta, of course.” Bones handed him the wrapped sandwich still in his hand. “I wasn’t sure what Shadow would want…” He reached back into the sacks and began pulling out the remainder of the food. “So I picked up a meatball sub, focaccia caprese, and an Italian hoagie sub.”
“Speaking of, where is Shadow, anyway?” Falcon’s gaze scanned the parts of the cabin within their view.
“Upstairs.” Slade set his sandwich down onto the table before turning and heading that way. “I’ll go get her.”
But before he could even make it to the first step, a bellowing Bones yelled her name to get her attention, instead.
“Hey, Shadow!” The other man cupped both sides of his mouth as he shouted for her again. “Come on down and get yourself some grub!”
“Jesus, Bones.” Slade faced his teammate with a deep scowl. “I said I was going to go get her.”
“I know.” Bones shrugged. “But why waste all those extra steps when hollering for her works just as well?” Right on cue, his gaze slid to the top of the stairs. And when he lifted a hand and pointed in that direction, the medic flashed him an I-told-you-so grin. “See?”
He looked toward the top of the stairs at the same time Shadow appeared. She looked first to him, but as she’d done the last two days, her beautiful gaze quickly skittered away.
“Hey, guys.” She turned her attention to Bones and Falcon as she started down the stairs. Her focus shifted to the food set out on the table. “What’s all this?
“Petruccelli’s,” Bones responded proudly. “We figured after being stuck out here for the past few days, you’d be ready for a change.”
Appreciation lit up her gorgeous face. “Are you kidding? Ilovethat place!” Her steps quickened to cover the distance between her and the food at a faster pace.
“The sandwiches are marked,” Falcon informed her. “Dig’s is the Porchetta, but the others are up for grabs. Bones and I aren’t picky, so whichever two you don’t want, we’ll take. Oh, and there are bottles of water in the bag on the left.”
“Thank you so much.” She grabbed the Caprese and a bag of chips before plopping down into one of the table’s six chairs.
