Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 133531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 534(@250wpm)___ 445(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 534(@250wpm)___ 445(@300wpm)
She couldn’t physically get away from a confrontation. He hadn’t considered what that would feel like. She was short, and men would loom over her. If they deliberately wanted to intimidate her, they knew they easily could. He despised that for her. He could see why she would always want a barrier between her and a crowd.
“I’ve taken self-defense classes and I can handle some weapons, but the truth is, I don’t have staying power.” She stopped abruptly and pressed her fingers over her lips, her eyes going wide. “I suppose I shouldn’t admit that to you. You’re really a stranger to me. I don’t know why you don’t feel like a stranger when you really are. This is so bizarre.”
“You don’t feel like a stranger to me either,” he admitted. “Since I don’t know the first thing about relationships, I can’t call it bizarre. For all I know, when a man finds the right woman, they just click, and they aren’t strangers at all.”
She shook her head. “It isn’t like that.”
“You said you don’t know anything about relationships either, so you can’t say for certain.” He held out his plate. “More of everything, please.”
Rory gave him one of her smiles. “You ate all that while you were talking. How did you manage?”
“It’s a practiced art. Street kid, remember? You eat what you can, when you can. Then most of the family joined the military with me, and I had to fight for my food all over again. Now they’re with me here, and when one of the women cooks, it’s every man for himself. I know exactly how fast those men can eat, especially when they try to distract you by talking.”
Her laughter washed over him like a bright warm wave. “I see. You really are like one big family. I imagine if you wanted seconds, you would have to eat fairly fast.”
“Not fairly.” He took the plate from her. “Just plain fast. Manners go out the window if it’s fantastic food. We try to pretend we’re civilized later, but during the actual dinner, it’s every man for himself.”
He couldn’t help teasing her just to watch her eyes light up.
“I’m a big man, Rory. The time to worry about coming up here alone with me was before you did it, not now. Telling me you run out of steam fast is going to put you at a disadvantage even if you had ten weapons on you.”
She shrugged, not looking too upset. “I told you I felt abnormally comfortable around you. I’m just going with it. Besides, you might start worrying about me. Did you ever once consider I might be a black widow?”
He’d been in the process of taking a drink from the bottle of beer he’d just opened. He nearly spit it down the front of him, mainly because his mind kept circling back, wondering if it was possible she was a GhostWalker. If she was, that meant Whitney most likely sent her out to spy on them.
“There’s that. I hadn’t considered that possibility. I suppose I should have. Are you?” he asked solemnly. He heard lies. If she answered verbally, he should be able to hear one way or another what she was there for. He sent a silent prayer to the universe that she wasn’t there to screw with him.
“No. You said you worked in security. People who work in security companies aren’t typically wealthy, Gideon. I think black widows usually go after wealthy targets. It didn’t occur to me you might have money when you came into the bar. Men with the kind of money to own a building like this one wear a certain type of clothing and act with a kind of entitlement you don’t. I suspect your company owns this building, not you. At least I hope your company does, because I wouldn’t know what to do or even say if you owned it.”
Every word she said was the absolute honest truth; at least he heard the truth. He let out a sigh of relief. She didn’t ask him for confirmation, probably because she didn’t want to embarrass him. He ate the potato salad and washed it down with beer. She had such a compassionate nature. He was allowing her to believe things about him that weren’t true, but it was safer for her. At least until he had her completely hooked.
Her long lashes kept sweeping down, an alluring temptation that was becoming much harder to resist. He set the beer bottle down and turned fully to her, reaching to remove her water bottle. The moment his fingers brushed against her skin, he felt the familiar shocking sizzle of electricity rush through his bloodstream.
“Gideon.” She whispered his name, her eyes going wide. She gave a cautionary shake of her head.
He felt the sound of her voice combine with sparks of electricity to streak through his veins and spread through his body. Gideon slid one hand into the thick silk of her untamed cherry-red hair. He’d been a little desperate to feel it, and he wasn’t in the least disappointed. He closed his fist around the wild waves and curls, tipping her head back slightly and holding her still.