Page 45 of Unplanned Target

“I mean one that no one can hack into and gain information from.” I pull out her cell phone box next, stacking it onto the desk. “You and Allie are safe here, but that doesn’t mean your money and business are. I talked to Heidi and she made sure you could work without fear of being hacked into.”

That’s for our benefit as well, but I don’t want to overwhelm her with ramifications. It might discourage her from doing what she needs to do.

After pulling out Allie’s cell phone and laptop, I retrieve the final item inside. The manila envelope looks unassuming, but it essentially holds the keys to Miranda’s life inside. Handing it off, I explain, “These are your new bank cards. Once you’re logged into your computer, I’ll have Heidi send you a list of all your new usernames and passwords. When you have time, you can go and check and make sure everything is as it should be.”

Miranda takes the envelope, staring down at it. “This is insane.”

“Unfortunately, it’s necessary. It’s unbelievable what people can access in this day and age.” I cut through the remaining patches of tape on the box and collapse it.

“I’m not talking about that.” Miranda drops the manila envelope to the table. “I’m talking about you.” She waves one hand around the items I just unpacked. “Doing all of this.”

“It’s not insane. You needed all of this.” I thumb over one shoulder in the direction of the door. “Everything that was savable from your office and bedrooms is down in the lobby. I’ll bring it all up in a little bit for you and Allie to go through.”

Instead of looking excited or relieved, Miranda frowns. “You also had my things packed up and brought here?”

“Not all of them, but your clothes and some personal items, yes.”

Miranda continues looking less than pleased.

Maybe I overstepped. “Do you want me to send it back? I can⁠—”

“No, I don’t want you to send it back.” She pokes me in the middle of the chest. “You are making it very hard for me to be reasonable, and it’s starting to cause problems.”

I try to pick up what she’s saying, but fail. “I don’t understand.”

Miranda flails around, gesturing wildly at everything. “This. All of it.” Her arms drop to her sides. “How am I supposed to do anything but become obsessed with you when you act like this?”

She looks genuinely distressed, but I don’t know that I’ve been this happy in a long fucking time. “You’re obsessed with me?”

“Not yet, but it’s going to happen if you don’t stop being...” Again she waves her arms around, this time in my direction. “You.”

“I hate to disappoint you, but I don’t see that happening. I am who I am, Mir.” My mom might not have been able to give me all the material things I wanted as a kid, but she instilled a strong sense of self. Taught me to be proud of the person I am. To be respectable and kind. She showed me what’s actually valuable in this world. And up until now, I’d been worried I’d never find it.

“I know. I just don’t quite understand how I’m supposed to navigate you being who you are.” For the second time, her arms drop to her sides. “Without accidentally wanting you.”

“Then maybe you shouldn’t do it by accident.” I drop the collapsed box to the floor and step closer. “Maybe you should do it on purpose. With intent.” My eyes drift down her face to the triangle of skin peeking out from the neckline of my robe. “That’s how I’ve decided to want you.”

“But...” She pinches her lower lip between her teeth. “I’m scared. This is not how it’s supposed to go. I shouldn’t like you this much after just a couple of days.”

“Why not?” I shrug. “We’re both adults. We’ve been around long enough to know what we want and what we don’t. It only makes sense that when we find what we want, things move quickly.”

“But it’s not supposed to be this easy. It’s supposed to take work and effort and⁠—”

“Who told you that?” I shake my head. “Because they were wrong.” I think over our time together. “And just because being around each other has been easy, doesn’t mean our time together has.” I chuckle. “In fact, it’s been pretty fucking rough.”

Maybe that’s why we’ve bonded the way we have. If we’d gone about this in a traditional fashion, with phone calls and text messages and coffee dates, it’s possible things might have unfolded at a pace Miranda would find more acceptable.

But this has been trial by fire. In our short time together, we’ve faced some of the scariest moments possible. We’ve been shot at, chased, hunted, and followed. We had to be a team in order to survive. And if that doesn’t show you who a person is, I don’t know what does.

“But like I said last night.” I reach up to gently tug her hair free of the robe, running my fingers through the strands to work out any tangles. “There’s no reason to rush. Even if we know it’s right, that doesn’t mean it has to be fast.”

Would I love to be staying in this room with Miranda every night? Of course. But I’m not going to push it. I can be patient. As long as I know she’s in this with me, we can go as slow as she wants.

Miranda’s eyes move over my face. “But do you really want to be with someone like me? I’ve got baggage and a chip on my shoulder and, now that I think about it, stretch marks and a squishy stomach.”

“I have stretch marks too.” I lift the sleeve of my shirt to reveal the inside of my arm and the silvery lines zigzagging across my skin. “Who gives a shit?”

Miranda’s eyes lock onto my bicep. “Yeah, but your stretch marks are from working out. Mine are from pregnancy.”