Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
“Hudson…”
I put my hand on her lower back, and when she doesn’t pull away, I help her to the passenger side door. “Ellie.” I say her name only because she said mine, but the way she sucks in a breath, bites her lip, and looks up at me makes me glad I did.
I help her into my truck. When I’m in the driver’s seat, I feel a calm come over me. I know it’s because she’s near, and I know it will be short-lived since I’m just taking her a few blocks, but I’m going to enjoy it while I can.
I act as if I haven’t memorized everything about her file. “What’s your address?”
She rattles it off, and I’m already pulling in that direction before she finishes. “Do you like your truck?”
I shrug. “I’ve never been into material things, but this is something I knew I was going to get when I got out of the service. For the longest time, I’ve driven a twenty-year-old Chevy.”
There’s a silence for a few moments, so I ask, “Do you like living in Whiskey Run?”
She looks out the window. “I love it actually. I’m hoping…”
Her voice trails off, but there’s no way I’m going to let her get away with not telling me. “You’re hoping what?”
Her hands twist together in her lap. “I hope I get to stay. That’s all.”
My hands tighten on the steering wheel. “Why wouldn’t you get to stay?”
She shrugs and points through the windshield. “The duplex is up ahead on the right.”
Fuck, she obviously doesn’t want to talk about what’s happening, and I let it go for now. For the first time, I’m wishing Whiskey Run was bigger. It didn’t take any time to get to her house. “Okay.”
I pull to the side of the road and park on the street. She instantly has her hand on the door, and I reach for her. She doesn’t jerk away, so hopefully I’m making some progress with her. “Talk to me, Ellie. Why are you scared of me?”
She looks at where my hand is on her arm. “I’m not scared of you. Not anymore.”
I nod. “But you were. And you may not realize it, but you’re constantly looking over your shoulder. No one knows anything about you.”
“If you’re worried about Blaze Whiskey, don’t be. I’m not some kind of spy, and I have no bad intentions. I just needed a job.”
“I’m not worried about Blaze Whiskey. I’m worried about you.”
That stuns her, and she scoots farther away. My hand that was on her arm now lies on the console. “You don’t even know me.”
I shrug. “That doesn’t mean I don’t want to protect you.”
“Protect me?”
Chapter 6
Elle
I shouldn’t be surprised. Just looking at him tells me that he’s the protective type. He’s a military man through and through, and I guess he’s bored now that he’s home. “I don’t want to be your little project.”
He grunts. “My little project. What does that mean?”
I sit taller in my seat. “What do you see… what do you think, when you look at me?”
“You don’t want to know what I think when I look at you.”
I hold back my groan of disappointment. I don’t know what I was thinking. I know what I was hoping for, but I didn’t know. With one hand on the door, ready to bolt, I tell him, “I know what you see when you look at me. You see a worn-down woman that is falling apart. You think you can save me, but you can’t. No one can.”
I get out, grab my things out of the back of the truck, and try to get away as the tears start to roll down my face. I hear him call my name, but I don’t stop. He rushes past me and stops in my path. I can’t look at him. He already thinks I’m weak; he doesn’t need to see the tears on my face.
His voice is soft. “Ellie.”
I shake my head, staring at the ground between us.
“Ellie… please.”
The nickname has me lifting my head. He’s a big man, but I swear it’s like he’s trying to appear smaller to me. He must have made the connection that I’m afraid of larger men. Men than can overpower me. With his hands held out in front of him, he continues, “When I look at you, I see a woman that’s been through something, and trust doesn’t come easy for you. I see a beautiful woman that tries to hide behind her clothes. You’re something else, Ellie. You're special, and after only knowing you one day, I know that. I also know that I want to get to know you better. I want whatever you are willing to give. I want to be your friend.”
“Friend?”
He nods. “Yeah, for now.”
I open my mouth and shut it when I don’t have the nerve to ask him more.