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“What are you sorry for?” She asked, as if I had confounded her.
“That I hadn’t seen what you were trying to do.” Because looking back, how could I not? This woman was such a strong, steady force, even when under attack. The corners of my lips tried to curl at the thought of her putting a bad man in his place.
Not that I would have reacted differently with this knowledge. I still ached to protect her, and I doubted I could have watched him continue to hurt her, even knowing she wouldn’t have let him get too far…
Actually, how did I know that? She had a fierce calm about her that lent truth to what she said, but what if she thought she could take him, only to be overpowered? I didn’t like that at all.
She disentangled her hand from mine and smoothed cool fingers over my forehead. “It might be dark, but I can feel your scowl from here.”
I immediately relaxed my face. “Sorry.”
There was that husky soft laughter floating over me again. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. But why the face?”
With absolutely no reason to be untruthful, and I wouldn’t want to be anyway, I answered her. “At first, I was glad, comforted by the thought of you being able to take care of yourself. Now, I’m worried you might overestimate your chances or your target won’t underestimate you. Is this something you do often? Because if it is, we’re going to have to do some sessions together, spar. I need to be absolutely certain you aren’t going to get hurt.”
I wasn’t the greatest fighter. At least, I hadn’t been, but I didn’t have any issue saving Vienna when she needed it. That was all I needed to do, channel my desire to protect her, and I’d be able to help her self-defense technique.
Easy peasyas one of my earlier therapists liked to say.
“You’re not serious?” She cut her gaze in my direction before taking a sharp left turn. We were leaving town, the buildings more and more sparse with every traveled mile. I had to admit, I was curious to see where she lived, what kind of life this angel had built for herself.
“Merrick?”
“Hmm?” I jolted out of my musings to find her staring at me across the console.
“You don’t really want to spar with me?” The whites of her eyes glowed under the dim moonlight.
“I want to make sure you’re going to be safe in any situation, especially if for some reason I’m not there.” Not likely, but surely that didn’t surprise her so much?
Suddenly, she chortled with unbridled laughter as the car slowed. I wasn’t being funny, but I smiled, enjoying this new side of Vienna. I think I’d take great delight in discovering all the facets of who she was.
The warmth of her laughter accompanied us on the rest of the ride. She drove with a kind of careless ease, one elbow against the door as she propped her fingers over her mouth, as though she might keep the magical sound to herself. Then she'd cast a look at me and laugh again.
"You know, it's considered polite to share the joke," I teased, more to see if I could elicit another laugh than anything else.
"I promise," she murmured. "I will share it with you later."
We'd long since left behind the lights of the city, instead we traveled down a narrow two-lane road, with nothing around us. The headlights cut through the darkness, but we might very well have been in our own bubble. Then she slowed and turned off the highway onto a road I couldn't even see, but there was only mild jostling. Ahead of us, a gate swung inward. It must have been on some automatic control.
There was a sign in the brush, but we passed it too quickly for me to read it. I imagined the gates swung closed behind us. She drove slowly and I barely noticed the unevenness of the path we traveled, though I didn't have to imagine the hints of dust floating up into the headlights.
"Dirt road?"
"Unfinished, really," she answered. "This whole area was set for development about twenty-five, thirty years ago. Then the housing market bubble fell out and they were left with like three models and a handful of almost finished places."
Huh.
"You live here?" Try as I might, I couldn't keep the skepticism out of my voice, or the curiosity.
"Sometimes," she answered, surprising me again. A house came into view and it looked almost ordinary. Someone had brought it up to more modern sensibilities because I didn't think they were building houses like this thirty years ago. It had stone-facing for the walls and a wide, sheltered porch. The garage was off to the side and the door opened to reveal two vehicles already inside the three-car garage.
For some reason, my heart fell. I hated the idea she lived with someone. I should like it. It meant she wasn't alone, but I didn't want her living with someone. The complicated thought chased itself in a circle around my brain as she swung the car and shifted so she could back straight in. There was no hesitation or adjustment.
Like the car belonged in that spot, she put it in and then she hit the controller and the garage closed, leaving us alone together.
"Well, Merrick," she said, that husky quality of her voice soothing my ruffled feathers. "Come on, I'll show you around."
She didn't wait for me as she climbed out of the car, and I didn't hesitate to grab my bag and follow her. The garage was so neat, it didn't even look like it had dust on the ground or signs of oil from a leaking car.
