The sleeves of his white dress shirt were pushed up to the elbows, but perhaps that was done to downplay the wrinkles thatcovered every inch of the fabric. It looked like it had been picked off the floor after being stomped over and thrown on in a rush. No tie. I assumed he wasn’t a necktie kind of guy, anyway. This man had a less office-like look.
Hard. Gritty. More muscle and force than brains and logic.
If I were honest with myself, I’d admit he was incredibly attractive. I’d gone through enough guys of a similar kind for my sister to label my type as “bad boy.” By God, if Jason Dunn didn’t look the definition of a bad boy.
There was no wedding ring on his left hand.
“You need another moment?” he asked, raking his fingers through his short, dark hair.
“No, Deputy.”
He swallowed an uneasy breath. “It’s Jason.”
“No, Jason,” I amended. “I’m better now.”
The drive led us out of the city as the weekend traffic began to flow in. Derrick drove while Jason scrolled on his phone. Neither marshal said much to the other. Had they not worked together before? That sort of made sense. I was sure it wasn’t true, but Derrick looked younger than I was.
I thought I’d be too stressed to sleep during the hour-long drive, but my eyes grew heavy and fell closed.
Abruptly, something jolted me awake.
“Green Civic behind us.” Derrick’s voice was clipped. “Could be nothing.”
Jason peered at the side mirror. “For how long?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. But he’s been with us since we got off of the Kennedy.”
“I’ll call it in. You got the plate?”
Derrick nodded. I tensed and fought the urge to turn and look at whoever was following us. But as soon as Jason brought his phone to his ear?—
“He’s turning.” The younger deputy sounded sheepish. “I said it could be nothing.”
The safe house was, in fact, a house, and it was nestled in a wooded area on the edge of a forest preserve. The single-car garage was attached to a seventies ranch-style home with zero curb appeal. The cement front porch sloped badly toward the crack-riddled driveway.
“It’s not much to look at, but that’s kind of the point,” Jason said as he pulled the back car door open for me.
I followed the men onto the porch, through the front door, and found the decor matched the tone set outside. Furniture that had once been nice was chipped and stained, but appeared to still be in working order.
“This all right?” Jason’s indifferent tone said it didn’t matter either way. The living room was small. There was a galley-style kitchen in the back and a hallway that led to the two bedrooms and bathroom.
“It’s fine.” I could survive here for a few days.
“That one’s yours.” He pointed to the bedroom that was farthest from the street. When I moved toward it, he reached out to stop me but pulled back as if he thought better of it. “Derrick’s going on a food run. What do you want?”
“Just some sleep. I’m not hungry.”
“And if you were hungry? Burger and fries?” He gauged my reaction. “Salad?”
I wasn’t trying to be rude, but I was on total overwhelm, so I simply nodded. That seemed like the fastest way to be dismissed.
Once Derrick had everyone’s order, he went out the front door, and the moment it closed behind him, it meant I was once again alone with Jason. Weird tension filled the room, andit grew worse with every breath I took. The idea of two days together in this small house? It made everything feel like it was upside-down.
I offered nothing as I left him and retreated to my room, desperate to escape his intense gaze.
The bedroom was dim and small, but it was safe, and I drew in a calming breath. It allowed me to collect my thoughts.
What was the marshal’s deal? If I opened the door, would he still be out there, wearing the same pissed-off expression he’d been moments before? I wasn’t sure what I’d done, but it seemed to have displeased him.
