Page 22 of Taylor’s Warrior

Seconds later, they were standing at the door to her room. Rhys plucked the key card from her fingers, unlocked the door, and held it open for her. She stepped inside and turned to face him.

“Make sure you lock it, and don’t open it to anyone who isn’t me.” He pointed to the door viewer. “If in doubt about anything, call me.”

“Understood. And… thank you. I… I really enjoyed tonight.”

“My pleasure.”

The smile he gave her was warm and genuine… and rocked her to the core. At this rate, she’d need all her self-control not to make an almighty fool of herself before things got back to normal.

Are you sure it’s not already too late for that?

“Sleep well, Taylor, and I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, his voice quiet and low, with the Welsh lilt even more apparent. “And make sure⁠—”

“To lock the door. I remember,” she laughed, trying to hide any hint of the riot going on inside her. “Good night, Rhys.”

And with that, she closed the door and locked it, before she could give in to the rogue impulse to kiss him.

However, with the barrier of the door for protection, she couldn’t resist a peek through the peephole. She expected to see him leaving, if he hadn’t already vanished from sight, but was startled to see him standing there, apparently deep in thought as he contemplated the door.

Then his gaze locked onto the peephole.

Taylor spun away, flattening herself against the door. Surely, he couldn’t see her? Peepholes didn’t work that way… did they? Of course they didn’t. Her heart was less than convinced, judging by the way it was hammering against her ribs. She waited, blood roaring in her ears, until she felt brave enough to check again.

This time, however, he was gone, and Taylor had no idea whether she should be relieved or disappointed.

>>><<<

The third and final leg of their journey to San Diego proved to be as uneventful as the first two stages had been. Shortly after they left the hotel, Rhys received a message from Wolf that included the address of their accommodations, and by mid-afternoon, he was parking the pickup in front of their base for the next couple of weeks.

The gray and white two-story house was a perfect fit for the residential area, which itself was very, very green, and very quiet. And, given she was now so used to the wide-open spaces of Texas, a little claustrophobic, with the homes being so close to one another.

“So, what do you think?” Rhys asked.

Taylor shrugged. “It looks very… California. It’s only missing a couple of surfboards on the porch there.”

He laughed. “You want to go surfing?”

“Not really. I can’t say it’s something that’s made it onto my bucket list. You ever tried it?”

“A few times. There’s a reason I didn’t join the Royal Navy and try out for the SBS.”

“SBS? What’s that?”

“Special Boat Service. It’s the Navy’s equivalent of the SAS. They do everything we do but underwater—or so they claim. Don’t get me wrong—we have to be good swimmers as well, but it’s something I prefer to keep as a recreational activity, given the choice.”

Taylor detected a little friendly interservice rivalry in the comment. She hoped Rhys wouldn’t have to call on whatever specialist skills he’d acquired during his career. “So, the SBS are kind of like SEALs, then.”

“Kind of.” He grinned. “Ready to go in?”

She managed a wry smile. “I guess we have to eventually—might as well be now.”

Taylor waited while Rhys exited the vehicle and came around to the passenger door. He’d made it quite clear that he didn’t want her out in the open without him being right beside her. In other circumstances, it would have been… nice. She hadn’t dated in a while, and if she were honest, she’d have to admit she was a tad envious of the old-fashioned courtesy with which Nick had treated Charity from the moment they’d started seeing each other. Rhys might be treating her with the same respect, but it was only because of the situation.

Still, a woman could dream.

Oh, no. No. No. And no. She was not going to investigate the basis for that particular thought—it would only be yet another step on the road to a place that had to remain strictly out of bounds.

Inside, the house was light and airy, the décor an interior designer’s perfect concept of a Californian coastal residence. The property itself was larger than she’d anticipated, which made the thought of exploring it more appealing.