“Roger that.”
The call ended. Hunter pocketed his phone and headed back inside. Dom was right. Time to stop treating Brie like a protection detail and start treating her like what she was. Hismate. Hunter watched the morning rush die to a trickle. Brie wiped down the counter and gave him a slight smile.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“No surveillance since the attack.”
“Really? That’s good news.”
His throat felt full of glass. “Would you have dinner with me tonight?”
Her head tilted slightly. “Dinner?”
“Not as your bodyguard.” The words scraped out of him. “As...” He stopped, started again. “As the idiot who deleted you and is trying to figure out how to deserve you.”
Something shifted in her expression. She studied him for a long moment. He felt exposed, like she could see every scar, every fear, every desperate hope he’d buried under years of isolation.
“I could go out tonight. I have tomorrow off. What time?”
Relief flooded through him so hard his knees almost buckled. “Seven o’clock,” he said. “I’m taking you to the Fate Mountain Lodge.”
Chapter
Thirteen
Brie saton the couch looking into her compact mirror. She’d applied deep rose lipstick that brought out the color of her eyes. The bedroom door opened behind her.
She saw Hunter in the compact mirror first. He was a stranger in a charcoal suit. The jacket emphasized his broad shoulders, tapered to his narrow waist. The white shirt made his skin look more tanned. Brie stood and turned slowly toward him as he adjusted his cuffs.
The air between them felt charged, like the moment before a lightning strike. Her bear pushed against her skin, wanting to get closer.
“You look...” Her voice came out breathless.
“I haven’t worn this suit in two years.” He smoothed his hands down the jacket. His eyes traveled over her slowly, taking in the black dress that hugged her curves. For once, he didn’t try to hide his appreciation. “You look gorgeous.”
Heat crept up her neck at the intensity of his gaze. “You clean up pretty well yourself,” she managed, reaching out to straighten his tie even though it didn’t need it.
He caught her hand against his chest, holding it there. Through the fabric of his shirt, she could feel his heart beating.
“I’m nervous,” he admitted. “Haven’t done this in... I can’t even remember.”
The confession melted something in her chest. “Me too.”
His thumb stroked across her knuckles, and they stood there for a moment, just breathing each other in. The coldness that had defined their early interactions was nowhere to be found.
His cellphone alarm went off, breaking the spell. He pulled it from his pocket and turned it off.
“We should get going,” he said, though he seemed reluctant to release her hand. “Our reservation’s at seven.”
She nodded, already missing his touch as he stepped away. Hunter crossed to where she’d draped her coat over a chair. He held it up for her to slip on, and his hands lingered on her shoulders. She couldn’t help leaning back so she could feel his chest behind her. He let out a strangled sigh and pulled her closer.
“Let’s go,” he whispered into the soft hairs at her neck, making goosebumps erupt on her skin.
Outside, the November air bit at her cheeks. She grasped his arm, and the muscle tensed under her touch. At the truck, he opened her door and helped her inside.
“I’m excited for tonight,” she said as he pulled out of his parking space.
He glanced at her, then back at the road. “Should have done this sooner. Should have...” He squeezed her hand. “I’m not good at this part. The feelings part.”
