He smiled. “I’ve seen a few, but it never gets old.”
They started walking again, though Moriah kept glancing upward, hoping for another glimpse. “Does that happen here often? I’ve spent most of my life in the city—” She caught herself and quickly amended, “in several cities, where you’re lucky just to see the stars through the haze.”
When he didn’t react to her slip, a brief surge of tension eased within her.
“I’ve seen a few here. But mostly when I’ve been overseas with the team.”
That caught her attention. This was the farthestshe’d ever been from Chicago, while he’d been all over the world. “What’s it like?”
He glanced at her, brow furrowing. “What’s what like?”
“Being in a strange land. Fighting the bad guys and risking your life for your country.”
He shrugged, his broad shoulders shifting beneath his shirt. “I don’t know. I’ve never really thought about it like that. It’s my job. Someone has to do it.”
“I guess so.” Sensing he wasn’t eager to linger on the topic, she changed direction. “We’ve gone pretty far. Should we turn around and head back?”
Without answering, he lightly took her elbow and guided her into an about-face toward the house. Her pulse quickened at the brief contact, and she couldn’t help wondering if he felt it too—the faint spark that seemed to travel down her arm to her fingertips.
His hand dropped away a moment later, and she wasn’t sure if she was disappointed… or relieved.
Get a grip. The last thing you need is to be attracted to this man.
By the time they reached the house, she almost had herself convinced.
Moriah sat on the couch the next morning, tying her sneakers, when KC stepped out of his bedroom. He wore his usual training clothes—black sweatpants and a military green T-shirt—but somehow still managed to look… distracting.
His hair looked like he’d run his hands through it after a shower, probably following his morning run. Clean-shaven, his face looked smooth enough to tempt her to reach out and see how soft it really was.
She tightened her laces instead.
He crossed the room, seemingly unaware of where her thoughts had wandered. “All ready?”
“Yup.”
“Tonight, I thought we could meet my uncle at Sassy’s instead of having dinner here. It’s a great little restaurant in town. We’ve been going there since I was a kid. Sassy’s real name is Sara Parnell—a very nice lady. Her daughter and son-in-law took over after she retired. Tonight is their famous ‘Friday Fish Fry Night,’ and I try not to miss it when I’m in town. And, no, I don’t suggest you try to say that ten times fast.”
A laugh bubbled up—something that had beenhappening more often lately. “I’ll take your advice, and that sounds great, especially since tonight is my night to cook.”
He let out a soft snort. “Well, truthfully, I wasn’t looking forward to doing the dishes either.”
Feeling more carefree than she had in months, she followed him out the door and down the steps to the patio. A short, wooden pathway threaded through the dunes and out to the beach. Striding halfway to the water before he turned around to face her, KC explained that he would approach her from behind and grab her as if he were an assailant. He wanted her to use everything she’d learned in the past few days to escape from him.
He glanced up and down the beach. “Just making sure no one is around. I wouldn’t want anyone calling the police, thinking that I’m attacking you for real.”
Her smile slipped. “No, that would definitely not be a good thing.”
Because if someone called the police… everything would unravel.
Chapter Eleven
It was beautiful out,and KC felt more relaxed than he had in a long time. With each passing day, he was more convinced that the reason was the woman standing before him.
Positioning himself behind Maura, he slid his right arm around her neck and his left around her waist, pulling her back against his chest. Her ponytail brushed just beneath his chin, and the faint floral scent of her shampoo wrapped around him. He didn’t know what it was, but every time she was close, it got under his skin, settling low and warm, making it harder to think straight.
She fit against him in a way that felt… right. Too right.
For a moment, he let himself feel it—thesoftness of her, the heat of her body against his, and the way she stilled for half a heartbeat before her muscles tightened with awareness. His grip remained controlled, exactly as he’d shown her, but his mind drifted somewhere it shouldn’t. To what it might be like to keep her there. To lower his head, brush his mouth along her neck, see how she’d react.
