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The man made a pshaw motion with his hands. “Right as rain. Not a big deal, just need to plug the holes—and have a sandwich.” He looked at Darius. “You have bread and some cold cuts, right—oh, hey! Fritz! I’m starved, can you—”
“Oh, yes, sire!” the butler said from the dining room with equal enthusiasm. “Right away! I have lamb and beef, and roasted potatoes—”
The blond man leaned in and wagged his brows at her. “Actually, I lied about the sandwich. Of course, I’m looking for a whole meal. Big surprise, I know.” More loudly, he called out, “Fritz, if you’ve got dessert, too?”
“Baked Alaska,” came the cheerful reply.
“Ammmmmmmmmmmmmmmen.” The man lowered his head and placed his palms together as if he were praying. Then he smiled and winked at her. “I knew I could count on that butler.” With another shot of volume, he said, “I’m coming, Fritz—maybe we do both the beef and the lamb? Boeuf and turf? Moo and chew? Except I think that’s moo-and-baaa, but it’s not really funny enough… hey, does anybody know what rhymes with cud—wait! I got it! Meat and bleat!”
With a flying peace sign, he took off after the elderly man, all but skipping, in spite of his wounds.
“Thud,” Darius said under his breath. “Thud rhymes with cud, and it’s the sound of my head going through a plate glass window from frustration.”
“Technically, that would be a crash.”
“Excellent point. And before you ask…” Darius started to shut the front door. “Yes, he works with me, too—”
The heavy panel was caught just before it met its jamb by a strong hand. “Hey, can I use your phone?”
At the sound of the male voice, Darius’s head dropped in obvious exhaustion. Then he took a step back to let whoever it was inside. “Anybody else in the clown car tonight?”
The man who came in next had professional soldier written all over him, from his erect carriage to his short hair and his tired, navy blue eyes. Like the others, he was dressed in black and wearing a loose jacket that she knew was less about the night’s temperature and more about what kind of weapons were under it—
Stopping short, he looked over at her, his stare doing an up and down that was judgmental, but not in a hostile way; more like he was cataloging her attributes in case he ever needed to ID her body. And his focus was so intense, she felt like he was going back through her family tree.
With that over, he touched his brow and inclined his head, as if he were wearing a formal hat. “Ma’am.” Then he glanced back at Darius. “So can I use your phone? I want to call Wellsie so she knows I’m okay.”
“Yeah,” Darius murmured. “You know where it is.”
“My car’s blocking your driveway.”
“At this point, that’s the last thing I’m worried about. And just as an FYI, I’m not leaving this house tonight.”
“I see you got a nice tan on your back.”
“I forgot my sunscreen, what can I say.”
The soldier walked off toward the kitchen while Darius leaned outside and double-checked the entryway. Like he was wondering if there was another wave coming.
As he shut the door, he took a deep breath.
Before he could speak, she reached out and took his hand. “Hi.”
His eyes shifted to hers and he smiled a little. “Hi.”
She traced his face with her eyes. Then brushed his mouth with her thumb. “Listen, I have to go to work in the morning.”
“I know. I’d like to drive you home?”
“I can take a taxi—” She squeezed his palm to cut off an argument. “You have a lot going on here and you’re hurt and I… I’m going to take a taxi.”
He frowned. “I want Fritz to drive you then, okay? I won’t feel right otherwise.”
“Okay. Deal.”
There was a long moment as they stared into each other’s eyes. And then she was smiling even more and so was he—because they both knew it wasn’t ending here. This was just a pause, a speed bump that slowed things down.
“Tomorrow night,” he said softly.
“Yes,” she whispered.
As he glanced toward the dining room, to the voices in the rear of the house, she knew he wanted to kiss her—and when he looked at her once again, she stepped into his body. Being careful not to touch the bandages up his back, she rested her hands on his hips and tilted her head.
With a gentle caress, Darius cradled her face, his thumbs stroking her cheeks. “I don’t know how I’m going to make it till tomorrow.”
“Me, too.”
“I’ll come to you. At nightfall, I’ll be at your house, knocking on your door. And no one will find me there.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
The kiss started restrained, but that didn’t last. The next thing she knew, he had bent her back and she had her fingers in his silky hair and that amazing cologne of his was the only thing she could smell—just like he was the only thing she could feel.
