Page 28 of Her Noble Protector

“Lisa, will you come to the patio door?”

“No. It’s no use.”

“Will you let me in?”

“No!” She heard herself; her voice was panicked and strident. She sounded like a shrew.

“It’s okay, baby, I won’t come in then. But you scared the fuck out of me. Please come to the door and let me see you. Please, I’m begging you.”

She looked over at the open door to the bedroom. The door that could only be open because Raiden was there to protect her.

“Okay.”

She lurched out of bed, the book falling to the floor. She was wearing thin cotton pajama shorts and a tank top. She thought about changing but it was too much effort. She flashed back to the Mexican jungle and remembered Raiden caring for her, tending her scratches and bruises along with the knife wound. He’d seen a lot of her that night. Seen a lot and had not taken advantage of her.

She trudged to the sliding glass door in the living room and pushed back the blinds. God bless him, he wasn’t right there next to the glass where he would overwhelm her; he was a few feet away, his expression concerned.

“See, I’m all right.”

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

She let out a short, anguished laugh. “Yeah, you could say that.”

“Who’s Damon?”

Fuck, had she’d said his name during her sleep?

“Nobody.”

“He sure sounded like somebody. You sounded scared of him,” he said softly.

“He’s nobody,” she insisted. She saw Raiden’s face. He knew she was lying. “Please, just drop it. Please?”

He nodded.

She looked past him and noticed that the sky was purple. It was sunset. “I haven’t seen that in a while.”

“What, baby?”

“A desert sunset.”

He looked over his shoulder, then turned back to her and smiled. “It’s beautiful. Almost as beautiful as you are.”

Those words made her sad. She knew they weren’t true. Maybe once she’d been beautiful, but that was a long time ago. She reached for the blinds.

“Wait!”

“What?”

“Did you think about dinner? I have an order in. Will you eat out here with me?” He walked two steps forward and placed his hand on the glass. “Will you?”

She looked at his big hand, then into his warm brown eyes. Safe, he made her feel safe.

“I don’t think I can.”

“I’ve gotta ask. It’s important. Will you give me an honest answer?”

His eyes were so warm. So sincere. He was actually here, and had been for almost three days. Lisa still wasn’t sure why he cared so much.