Page 26 of A Texas Hero

Peter blinked as if he’d just walked into a brightly lit room after being in the dark for hours. “Um, I mean…isn’t there someone else stalking you?”

“No,” Zoey said. “And I would rather you leave. I’m trying not to hurt your feelings, but surely you remember we’re done.”

“That was a mistake.”

“Was it, really? Because I recall you bounced back pretty quickly with Miss Texas, was it?”

Peter waved a hand dismissively. “Ancient history.”

“Not to me.”

“We had a good thing going, didn’t we?”

Zoey sighed. In her mind, they did not. She’d tried with Peter, especially because it meant so much to her father. He thought of Peter like a son and trusted him with his daughter in addition to managing his financials. But love didn’t just need to be a part of a relationship, it had to be everything. She wanted the kind of love and attraction which made it difficult to be apart for even a few hours. Like her mother and father. And she’d never once felt that intensity with Peter. He was like an old, reliable piece of furniture. Convenient, comfortable, but definitely not someone she couldn’t do without. A marriage to him would have fizzled out after the first year. There had to be passion, fire, chemistry. Peter felt like a brother and always had.

“Thanks for dropping by,” Zoey said. “When you see my father, be sure to tell him I’m doing fine.”

Finally, Peter took the cue and left, giving Archer the side-eye as he walked past him.

Archer rejoined Zoey. “Everything okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Was he bothering you? Because unless I misread the signals, he wasn’t any danger to you.”

“No, he’s definitely not any danger.”

Archer cleared his throat. “And it seemed like you wanted to talk to him.”

“Not really,” Zoey said. “But I figured I should. Anyway, he shouldn’t be bothering me anymore.”

“If he does, I will be here.”

“He’s… I used to date him for a while.”

“I assumed that.”

“It didn’t work out. He’s always worked for my father. It just always seems that men are interested in me because they want to get close to my father.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

“That’s how it was with Scott, and well, Peter…he’s like a son to my father. He never put me first.”

“You deserve someone who will.”

“Thanks,” she said.

“You’re welcome.”

A curl of heat slid up her neck and she turned away. She’d known this for a long while but hearing it acknowledged and said out loud by Archer affirmed it.

Later that night, Archer had retired to his bedroom, and Zoey was sitting on her living room couch in her bathrobe, her hair already in her bonnet, a bowl of popcorn on her lap. She was video chatting with Twyla.

“I have a problem.”

“What’s the problem?”

“It’s official. I have a raging crush on my bodyguard,” she whispered.