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“Yes. No more trackers, remember?” He smiled. “We have Rhy’s SUV to use for the foreseeable future. Brock and Joe are heading home after they finish up processing the crime scene.”
“Okay.” She stood and moved toward the closest bedroom. All she had were the clothes on her back, borrowed ones at that. Still, she felt blessed to be alive. “Good night.”
“Good night.” Steele’s low, husky voice seemed to follow her into the room. Now she was being even more ridiculous.
After washing up in the bathroom, she bent to remove her running shoes and socks. Her blisters were still red and sore, but they looked better. She decided to leave the bandages off for the night. She could reapply the antibiotic ointment in the morning.
Her physical fatigue lulled her to sleep. But she awoke a few hours later, her heart pounding with fear. Gunshots? Had they been found?
She listened intently, then forced herself to relax. It was a dream. They were safe. If there had been gunfire, Steele would have barged in to get her.
Unless he was dead?
With the baby pressing on her bladder, she had to get up anyway. After a quick trip to the bathroom, she padded to the door and listened. Hearing nothing, she opened the door a crack and peered through.
It took a moment for her eyes to adjust. Movement on the sofa drew her attention. When a head popped up, she realized Steele was stretched out there.
“What’s wrong?” His voice was groggy with sleep. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, sorry. Just checking.” It sounded lame, so she added, “This is my usual midnight bathroom break.”
“Did you have a nightmare?” His astute question caught her off guard.
“I thought I heard gunfire.” She was glad the darkness hid her flush of embarrassment. “It was only my imagination.”
“I should have warned you about having flashbacks.” Steele looked and sounded more awake now, as he swung into a sitting position on the sofa. “You’ve been through a traumatic experience.”
“I know.” It was nice of him to try to make her feel better. She doubted he suffered nightmares after hearing gunfire. “Sorry to have bothered you.”
“You didn’t. I was only dozing.” He stood and moved toward her. Glancing down at her bare feet, he frowned. “I should take care of them for you.”
“No need. Tomorrow morning I’ll take a shower and put more ointment on.” The memory of how tenderly he’d cared for her injuries was front and center in her mind. “I’m fine.”
“Okay.” He stood there as if searching for something more to say.
She stepped forward and lifted up onto her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “You’re a nice guy, Steele. Good night.”
“Ah, good night.” He stood still, as if rooted in place. “Sweet dreams.”
She nodded, ducked into her room, and closed her door. She leaned against it, her knees feeling weak. For a moment, she’d thought he might pull her close, but he didn’t. Just like earlier, she was letting her imagination run wild.
Pregnancy hormones, she reminded herself. Who knew how potent they could be?
After a moment, she pushed away from the door and crawled back into bed.
Steele had chosen to sleep on the sofa despite the suite having two bedrooms to be in a better position to protect her. And he’d awoken at the slightest noise she’d made opening her bedroom door.
No one had ever cared about her as much as he did. Well, except for her parents, but they were gone. Tears of gratitude mixed with despair over wanting what she could never have pricked her eyes as she willed herself to return to sleep.
* * *
The faint lightof dawn was just on the horizon when Steele awoke. He hadn’t slept well, partially because the sofa was too short to be comfortable and partially because of the way Harper had kissed his cheek.
There was something seriously wrong with him that he had trouble falling back to sleep because all he could think about was kissing Harper. Not on the cheek, and not in a brotherly fashion.
Why did his memories of Monique seem so blurry? Two years had passed, but he’d had no intention of moving on. Especially not with a pregnant woman.
He really needed to get a grip. Being here with Harper was messing with his determination to remain single. After losing Monique, he’d lost interest in settling down, but now it seemed he couldn’t imagine moving on with his old life. One that didn’t include Harper.
