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“Yeah.” A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Didn’t wake up even once.”

Her heart gave a flutter, knowing she’d given him the security he’d needed, too. “Me neither.”

At a red light, he reached over the center console and squeezed her hand. “Thank you.”

“For what?” she asked softly.

“For letting me stay. For not being afraid of me.” His thumb brushed the back of her hand before he let go, moving with the downtown traffic as the light changed. “I needed that.”

They didn’t speak again until he pulled to the curb in front of the hospital. He shifted into Park and turned toward her. “I’m going to run home, change—” he gestured to his eye “—clean my prosthetic and check on Mrs. Maynard. Then, I’ll stop in at KCPD headquarters. Find out where Joel Standage is on the investigation.”

Polly nodded. “Good. I want to know if they’ve made any progress, too.”

Daniel’s gaze softened. “I have a feeling your stepdad will be sitting in on that meeting. You okay with that?”

She nodded. “I didn’t think the feeling of being watched was going to turn into something like this. I wanted to be a grown-up and handle it myself. Mom and Ash have both been through so much, and I didn’t want to worry them unnecessarily. But a man is dead, someone tried to run us down and these threats aren’t going away. I think I’m ready to accept all the help I can get.” When they stopped at the next light, she focused her gaze on him, willing Daniel to look her way. “You’re still going to help me, though, right? You’ll be with me as much as you can?” She gestured between the two of them. “I feel like something’s starting here. And I don’t want to lose that.”

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth in a shy, unsure gesture. But she needn’t have worried about voicing her growing feelings for the man.

“You can’t get rid of me, Sunshine. I’m doing my best to stay present for you, not get lost in my head. I feel something starting between us, too.” He reached across to press his thumb against her bottom lip, gently tugging it free of the clench of her teeth. Then he stroked the pad of his thumb across her soft, luscious, mouth in a brief caress she felt all the way down to her toes before he pulled away. “I’ll be here by the end of your shift if not sooner. You’ll stay put inside the hospital?” She nodded. “Text me if anything feels off today.”

“I will.”

She reached for the door handle, then hesitated. He was looking at her with that steady, quiet intensity again. Before she could overthink it, she leaned in, pushed herself up on the console and brushed her lips over his.

His hand came up to cradle the back of her head. He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips and she opened for him. He held her against his mouth, deepening the kiss for several slow heartbeats before he pulled back. “Don’t know if I’ll ever get enough of that.” His words were a gravelly rasp of need. He pressed a quick, chaste kiss against her lips before releasing her and sitting back. “Go save lives, Polly Cooper.”

She smiled, her cheeks warm with a blush of arousal. “See you later, Marine.”

He chuckled. “Count on it.”

After reaching into the back seat to give Pirate the goodbye pet he demanded, she slipped out of the truck and crossed the parking lot, aware of Daniel’s gaze on her until she disappeared through the sliding glass doors.

Inside, the familiar antiseptic smell of the hospital hit her, grounding her back in her routine. She hung up her coat in the staff locker room, swapping her boots for the navy-blue work clogs she wore on shift. Her scrubs were navy as well, the soft white sweater over them a small concession to the sterile chill in the building.

Charli was already at the mirror, reapplying lip gloss and tugging her blond braid tighter. “Hey, stranger. We missed you yesterday. How was the clinic?”

“As busy as you’d expect for this time of year,” Polly said, tucking her hair behind her ears as she changed. She wasn’t particularly anxious to share her personal troubles, or talk about the threatening note she’d received. She was tired from all the emotional ups and downs but feeling mellow after spending the night in Daniel’s arms. It felt kind of nice to be able to focus on work and nothing too personal for a while. “They were glad to get the extra meds and supplies. They asked for more when I go next time.”

“You missed all the excitement here,” Charli informed her. “Security had to walk a guy out of the waiting room after he started yelling at one of the nurses. And we’re starting the quarterly inventory this afternoon.”

Polly groaned softly. “Great. My favorite.”

Charli’s eyes flicked up to meet hers in the mirror, a teasing glint in them. “Speaking of excitement—who was the hottie you were kissing out front just now?”

Polly flushed hot. “That’s Daniel. He’s…a friend.”

Charli’s brows lifted as they headed for the exit. “I’d say he’s more than a friend. You’ve been holding out on me, girl. Who knew Polly Cooper had a boyfriend?”

Polly opened her mouth to protest, but when the door swung open, Tate Emery was standing there, his expression unreadable. His scrubs were neatly pressed, his hair styled just so, but his gaze flicked between Polly and Charli with a glint that set Polly’s nerves on edge. “You have a boyfriend?”

“It’s complicated.” It certainly felt like she was growing a relationship with the wounded war hero who’d saved her more than once already. But since they hadn’t actually used the terms, she wasn’t sure she could say they were dating. “But yeah, I’m totally into Daniel. And it’s mutual.” Polly tugged at the cuff of her sweater as she tried once again to dismiss his interest in her.

But when she stepped to the side to follow Charli, Tate shifted, blocking her path. “You sure about that?”

A nervous frisson of fear skittered down her spine to see him blocking her path again. But that was quickly replaced by something more akin to anger. “This is getting old, Tate. Let me pass.”

His tongue came out to sweep across his top lip. “Ooh. So, there’s some fire underneath that cool, touch-me-not exterior. I can work with that.”