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Olivia frowned in consternation. She felt annoyed by his practical thinking. What was so wrong with wanting to shut out the world? “What if I can’t give you more? What if he’s broken me so badly that I can never be normal? Do you really expect me to make promises to you while I still have him chasing me? I can’t think beyond this moment. Tomorrow is too uncertain.”
Paul shook his head. “I’m not looking for promises from you today, Liv. And I know he hasn’t broken you. You’re resilient. You have a deep well of strength inside you that he’ll never touch. But I won’t let things get carried away between us just to make you feel a little better. We both deserve more and I respect you too much to take advantage of your situation. And while I consider what you’re offering to be the most sacred gift, I ask you to save it for me. When all this is over and there is nothing standing between us, I want you to still want me. When your life is back to normal, will there be a place for me? You might look at me differently when he’s gone.”
Olivia bit her lip in uncertainty. She didn’t have an answer for him. Right now he was the most important person in her world. He represented safety. But when Ethan was eliminated as a threat would she disappear from Paul’s life as quickly as she entered it?
“I will always be grateful for what you’ve done for me –“
Paul laughed but it sounded forced. “Gratitude is nice but it’s not even close to what I want from you, Liv. And that’s why I’m holding back. I know you understand. You have too many things to sort through and you don’t need me making it more complicated. Let’s keep things easy between us. Allow me to be noble here. I’ll do my best to keep my hands to myself, just like I promised.”
“Fair enough. I’ll do the same,” she stated with a lift to her chin. The problem was, she felt like a wall was going up between them and she didn’t like it. Paul was the first man to touch her heart. Not even Ethan had gotten this close in the beginning. He couldn’t force her to love him, yet Paul had slipped in with his charm and fierce protectiveness and –
And what, Olivia? Stole your heart? She stilled at the thought. She’d never loved anyone before yet Paul was different from any man she’d ever known. He’d slipped past her defenses and touched her inner being. Ethan was wrong. She wasn’t created for him and they weren’t one soul. No, her heart cried out for Paul Justice. Of co
urse she loved him. There was no way to know for certain, but if she’d met him under normal circumstances she still would have fallen for him. And she would do anything to keep him safe. She pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I don’t like admitting you’re right in this instance, but thank you for looking out of me. I’ve never been interested in casual sex and I don’t want you to think there’s anything casual about the way I feel for you. Yet you’re right, things are too complicated right now without making them even more convoluted. Thank you for seeing that.”
He nodded. “It’s killing me to do the chivalrous thing – you gotta realize that.” He gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“I’ve heard cold showers are a good idea. I think I’ll grab one,” she said with a lopsided grin.
He waved her away. “Go, before I change my mind.” He reached for her again but she slipped out of his grasp. Despite everything, he made her feel better and her laughter rang out as she left the room.
As Olivia went upstairs to shower, Paul reached for his desk chair, righted it, then dropped down on it. With a groan of frustration, he swiped his hand through his hair. What was he going to do? Things were grimmer than he let on. Not only had his FBI contact been reassigned, another member of the investigation had disappeared. The guy’s computer had been wiped clean with only one message remaining: Agent Gomez should have known better. He should have left me alone. You fools won’t stop me. No one knew how Ethan Moore had accessed the computer through the secure network within the FBI but Paul wasn’t surprised. Olivia said he could hack his way into any system. Paul didn’t have the skill to beat him at his own game. He doubted anyone could. The entire investigation was being reassigned; thankfully they were willing to keep Paul in the loop. He had a new contact who was an old police buddy, Jeffries. He was willing to keep Paul abreast of the situation and together they would find something to trip up Ethan. Moore was a mad genius and his one weakness was Olivia. Jeffries suggested using her as bait but Paul refused. He wouldn’t put her at risk. If Olivia knew of the idea she would do one of two things, volunteer or take off again. Either action put her at risk. She was safest here. For the hundredth time that day Paul scanned the security monitor, searching for abnormalities but of course he found nothing. He had an edgy feeling he couldn’t shake. He’d gotten the same feeling when he worked undercover and that feeling never steered him wrong. He knew trouble was coming. It lurked right around the corner. The problem was, he couldn’t see it and his security cameras weren’t picking it up – yet.
He tapped at the screen, changing the view. “I know you’re coming, Moore. I can feel it in my gut. You think you’re so clever but I’m better than you. I’m going to stop you. I won’t allow you to win this time.”
He did one more system check then went upstairs. He needed to make sure Liv was okay. As he entered his bedroom Olivia stepped out of the bathroom. Her hair hung damp around her shoulders and she wore a tee shirt and jeans. His gut clenched at the sight of her. She was so beautiful. “You all right?” he asked gruffly as he forced his gaze away. He could look at her all day, drinking in the sight of her gentle curves, but looking led to touching and he had to keep his word.
She gave him a sharp look. “Of course. Why? Has something happened?” She walked toward him with brush in hand. He wordlessly took the brush and motioned for her to turn.
“Nothing new but I’m keeping a close watch.” Very gently he worked the brush through her hair, pulling out the tangles and making it smooth. She purred with pleasure. As he finished and reluctantly handed her the brush his cell phone rang. He answered the call when he saw it was his sister.
“What’s up, Janice?”
“It’s Chloe. Today at dance class –“
“What happened to Chloe? Is she okay?” Paul demanded sharply. He glanced at Olivia and her eyes were wide with fear and guilt.
“She’s fine, Paul. When she got home from dance class she told me there was a man there asking the girls questions. He wanted to know about –“
“Janice,” Paul interrupted. He didn’t want his sister blurting out Olivia’s name and giving any information. If Ethan Moore was as crafty as Olivia claimed, then he would know how to monitor cell calls. “I’d love to chat but you know how busy I am with security work. David’s hanging with Chloe, right?” He hoped his sister would catch on and quit blabbing.
“Paul, this sounds like –“
He knew what she was about to say. That it sounded like the precautions he took when he worked undercover. “It’s the same, Pumpkin.” He emphasized the pet name, knowing it would set his sister’s family in motion. They’d agreed on the code word years ago when he was concerned his undercover work would threaten their safety.
“Pumpkin? Well, crap. Okay then, I’ll see you later and I’ll call Mom and Dad. Make sure you do your own laundry, okay? Somebody’s got to look out for you,” she grumbled cheerfully but he knew it was all an act. As soon as she got off the phone she and her family would pack a bag and clear out of town for the weekend. It was a system they hadn’t put into action for a few years, but she obviously remembered. Having them safely out of town meant he could worry about Olivia and nothing else. David, a former Navy Seal knew how to keep his family safe and his parents had no problem disappearing for a mini vacation.
As he ended the call he turned to Olivia and reached for her hand. “I don’t want to alarm you but it looks like Ethan’s closing the net. Someone was questioning the girls in Chloe’s dance class about you. It might be a coincidence –“
Olivia nodded grimly. “But we know it’s not. He’s coming for me and he’s going to punish you in the process.”
“He won’t have the chance.” Paul felt her fingers tremble and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “We’re going to beat him. Trust me, Liv. We’ll get him before he gets us.”
“How do you know he won’t harm your sister and brother-in-law, or their little girl? And your parents? I would never forgive myself.” She made a helpless gesture with her hand. “He went after my family. My sister, Marissa, took steps to protect them but I haven’t talked to her or my parents in eight months. I have no idea if they’re okay.”
“We’ll check on them soon. And don’t worry about my family; we have an old system set in place where they drop everything and leave. Remember, I used to work with a bunch of nasty people and some were smart enough to figure out I was a cop. My family knew the risks and how to handle them. They’ll be fine. This is coming to an end – I can feel it, Liv. It’s almost over. You have to keep trusting me to keep you safe.”
“You always say that,” she said with a slight lift to her lips.
