Page 14 of Hidden Interests


Font Size:  

“Hallie? I just want to make sure you’re okay. I got your address from the FBI file. Please, I promise, I’m not here to -”

She swung the door open before he could finish. “I called a lawyer and he said I could call him again anytime.” As much as she’d been longing for this man just moments ago, there was no doubt in her mind trusting Caden was completely out of the question.

His expression softened as he scanned her from head to toe, then his gaze landed on the business card in her hand. She was holding it up like a shield, and weirdly enough, it gave her the sense of being more powerful than she felt. Especially with his eyes on her, looking at her the way he was. She couldn’t tell if he wanted to kiss her or destroy her. And she still hadn’t decided if their coffee date was a trick or not, but she wasn’t about to be fooled again.

His hand came up slowly and just when she thought he was reaching for the card to snatch it away, his fingers landed on the side of her still damp cheek. “Damn them all for making you cry,” he said in that husky voice that made her knees go weak and her eyes burst into tears.

In the next instant, he was wrapping his arms around her, pulling her into him. “I didn’t know. I swear to you, I didn’t know my boss was going to do that until I got back from my lunch break with you. That’s when he presented me with the warrant and ordered me to pick you up.”

Hallie hiccupped, her face still buried in his chest. “Why didn’t you say no?”

“I wanted to,” he said without hesitation. “But if I had -”

“You’d get in trouble,” she finished for him.

“To hell with that. If I had said no, he would’ve just asked someone else. Hallie, look at me.” He pulled back just enough so he could see her eyes. She wanted to turn away or bury her face in his crisp white dress shirt again, but he held her out so she had no choice, but to look at him. “I was there when those two agents came the first time. I saw them, and I saw how scared you were. I didn’t want that for you again. I didn’t want you to be scared.” He caressed her cheek with the pad of his thumb and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear.

“But you didn’t come back,” she accused with a lump in her throat. “You just left me in that room. Alone.”

Caden shook his head. “I never left you. I was behind the glass the entire time until you called for a lawyer. I’ll admit, I started to leave a few seconds before that because I wasn’t sure what you would say and I couldn’t watch anymore. It took everything I had not to bust into that room and haul you out of there, but trust me, that wouldn’t have done either one of us any favors. The best - the only - thing I could do was take a step back and hope and pray that you called for a lawyer.”

Hallie took in his words, not sure what to say. She nibbled on her bottom lip, grateful the onslaught of tears had finally stopped. It wasn’t like her to cry in the arms of a stranger, but somehow Caden had never felt like a stranger to her.

“I’m so sorry, Hallie. I only did what I thought was best. For you.”

She sniffled and nodded. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. If he’d acted out or played favorites, his boss would’ve likely only been harder on her. “I understand.”

Caden grimaced. “Don’t do that. Don’t give me any passes just because I have a badge. It’s not why I wear it.” A shadow of pain crossed his eyes and Hallie had the intense urge to kiss this man, if only to relieve even a fraction of the pain she knew he carried with him because of the loss of his brother. Never mind he was an FBI agent and could literally arrest her and haul her back into questioning or custody or whatever. There was something between them she couldn’t explain and there was no doubt in her mind he felt it too.

“Then I guess I can tell you that I’m really pissed off at you for making me think I could trust you only to haul me in for more questioning and then ditching me the first chance you had. And then, I suppose it’s only fair that I thank you for coming by to check on me and explaining your side, and helping to make me feel better.”

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as she watched his expression darken and then soften at her words. “Yes, you can tell me all of that. And more. Whatever you want. I’m here to listen.”

“Ha,” she burst out with a slight chuckle. “Nice try. But that’s not gonna fly. I won’t be caught unaware again.” After a hitched breath, she added, “you should probably go.” It was scary how close she’d come to trusting this man again and all he’d done was show up at her door.

Maybe he really had come to destroy her because he was getting precariously close to making her fall completely in love with him. And that would be as close as anyone had ever gotten to her complete destruction since he had the power to take her down like no one else she knew.

His eyes darkened at her words, but he nodded in resignation before looking away as if to check over his shoulder to make sure no one was coming. There was no one there. “You can trust me,” he said in a strained voice, then backed away until they were no longer touching, and with one final, and decidedly longing glance, walked away.

***

Caden couldn’t sleep most of the night, tossing and turning. Hallie’s face haunted his dreams. Those tear-stained tracks running down her cheeks, the way she threw herself into his arms only to pull back like she’d remembered who he was - that he was not to be trusted. He’d never meant to hurt her or trick her into trusting him. No matter what Avery wanted him to do, the only thing he’d report back was information directly pertinent to the case. And Caden very much doubted Hallie knew anything remotely interesting for him to worry about.

This woman had somehow managed to worm her way into his heart without even trying, and he’d be damned if he let work get in the way of the connection they had. She’d felt it too. He’d seen it in her eyes last night. She wanted to trust him. Wanted to tell him something. He sensed it, but hadn’t dared to mention it with her being so vulnerable and upset. He didn’t want to trick her into trusting him. He wanted to earn her trust.

After pouring the last half of his morning coffee down the drain, he left his apartment in a hurry, wanting to make a stop before going into the office. He was already running late, but he just couldn’t bring himself to care. Avery had told him to get close to Hallie, and that was exactly what he was going to do. On his terms.

He drove to The Mystic Cow, but it was only when he pulled up in front of the store that he remembered Hallie worked in the afternoons. Her employee would be there now. Caden sighed. He didn’t want to go an entire day without seeing her and talking to her after last night, but it looked like he didn’t have a choice. He could be a dick and force the situation, look up her cell phone in her FBI file, but he’d already pressed his luck by looking up her home address and that definitely hadn’t gone the way he’d wanted. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected when Hallie opened the door, but seeing her crying damn near broke him. He’d never hated anyone as much as he hated Avery in that moment, and that alone should have surprised him. As much as Caden didn’t always agree with Avery’s methods, he’d never hated the guy. If anything, he’d learned from him. This was different though. This was Hallie. Caden winced back the words as soon as they crossed his mind. He couldn’t think of her like that. Not yet. Not so soon. But he was.

The rest of the day dragged on and looking at the clock every ten minutes didn’t help. Thoughts of Hallie only ramped up in his mind as the hours ticked by. When he finally left the office a few minutes early, Caden was tired and anxious, but he wanted to make sure to catch her before she closed.

When he parked in front of her store, the robin’s egg blue door was open and he audibly breathed a sigh of relief. She was still here. Just inside. He killed the engine and stepped out of his vehicle. He was about to close the door when he paused and shrugged out of his suit jacket, leaving it lying across the backseat. If she saw him coming in dressed in his full suit, she might think he was here to bring her in again. And he didn’t want her to flinch or back up when she saw him.

Their gaze locked the moment he crossed the threshold of her store and it was like time itself stopped. All sounds and motions around him ceased to exist except for the beautiful brunette that filled his vision. She scanned him head to toe like she was looking for something - a badge, a gun - he wasn’t sure. Not that he’d ever harm her. When she brought her eyes back up to meet his gaze again, her shoulders dropped a fraction of an inch. She wore a cute summer dress with a small green print that matched the color of her eyes. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail, exposing the long column of her delicate neck.

“How much do you hate me?” Caden hedged, hoping it came out more as a joke than a serious question.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Hallie said. There was coldness where Caden had only ever felt warmth from her, and the smile she’d gifted him in days past was nowhere to be seen.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com