“So many messages,” she muttered to herself and gave a weary sigh.
“Was that the guy on the phone? Back in the alley?”
She nodded absently as she tapped her screen. “Yeah. Rick.” She read for a moment, then groaned, rolling her eyes. “He says he wants to come over and check on me. God, I’m gonna tell him I tripped and accidentally put my phone on silent when I picked it up.” She glanced up at me, a faint hint of desperation in her eyes. “Does that sound believable? You said not to say anything about the attack.”
“Sounds fine to me.” I gave her a knowing grin. “You don’t want him to come over?”
“Absolutely not. First off, I’m supposed to be at work. What’s he gonna think if I’m not there? Also, if he camehere, how would it look if he showed up and you’re sitting in my living room? Even if Rick and I aren’t…” Cameron trailed off, looking a little embarrassed. “Uh, never mind. It would just be bad, okay?”
She’d wanted to say something else. Her heartbeat had sped up even as she’d spoken. Something was going on between her and this Rick guy. Trouble in paradise, perhaps?
For some reason, that thought sent a warm and pleasurable tingle up my spine.
“Ah, I see,” I said, grinning at her. “Worried he’s gonna think you’re banging the hot dude who’s hanging out in your living room?”
She smirked and shot me a look. Just like that, the wall between us fell away. Between the attack and this fun banter, things were more natural and relaxed between us. The change was nearly tangible. Suddenly, we were friends. Not close friends, but more than acquaintances.
“Very funny,” she said. “I see you’re modest, too.”
“Not unless I can help it.”
Her phone buzzed, and she looked at the screen. “Rick bought it,” she said. “I told him I was driving home and couldn’t call. He’s not going to try to come over here to see me.”
She let out a breath, obviously relieved. The way she acted about her boyfriend struck me as a little weird, almost like she was afraid of upsetting him. Was he abusive? I didn’t think so. She didn’t seem like the type to put up with that shit. It had to be something else, then, but I couldn’t nail it down from the limited knowledge I had.
The weirdest part was the flicker of jealousy that thrummed in my chest when she talked about him. I had no reason to be jealous of this guy, yet I was. There was something she wasn’t telling me. A secret I hadn’t discovered yet.
“What do I do now?” she asked. “If you can’t give me whatever info you have, can you at least tell me how to stay safe?”
That was a good question. It showed me she was pragmatic. Rather than panicking and losing her head, she wanted to know how to stay safe. The more I was around her, the more impressed I was.
“First off, try to limit the time you spend alone, especially outside in the open,” I advised. “Going to and from work or the store should be done in the company of someone else. As soon as I’m done here, I’m going to call Ollie and check if he can get a police detail to watch your apartment and follow you to work and back. As an extra precaution.”
“Well, uh, what aboutyou?” she asked, fumbling over her words and not looking me in the eyes.
“What about me?” I refused to look away from her. A small wavering flame of excitement threatened to ignite in my stomach, but I crushed it as fast as I could.
After a beat of silence, she met my eyes. There it was. In that look, I could see a confirmation of what I thought I heard in her voice. She felt safe around me. I’d saved her from certain doom, whisked her away, and brought her home. She didn’t want me to leave.
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from grinning at her.
“I guess that…” she started. “I mean, I know you. Wouldn’t it be better if you watched me instead of some random cop? That would be just another stranger.”
My wolf gave a low and hungry growl I was barely able to suppress. The thought of watching over her appealed to the creature within me. And to my human self, if I was being honest.
I eyed her speculatively for a few moments before answering. “I could stay here, I suppose,” I said, my voice low and almost flirtatious. “If that makes you feel safer.”
Cameron’s face flushed, and her scent changed. Fear, worry, excitement, and embarrassment all in one floral-scented burst of pheromones. Again, I forced myself not to smile.
“The couch is fine,” I added.
Her eyes widened, and she glanced around with a scandalized look on her face.
“But what about my family? You said not to worry them about a second attack. Kinda hard to keep a six-foot, muscle-bound biker on my couch a secret.”
“Six-foot-two inches, to be exact,” I amended. “We’ll just tell them that Ollie’s worried a second attackmightcome. I’m insurance he set up for you. That’s all.”
Before she could argue, the door to the apartment banged open, and a young boy’s voice called from the entryway.
