The Protector

by Cristin Harber

  Jane tried to read his expression but Chance was a blank canvas. He didn’t say much, and she liked that he was an attentive listener. She also liked the way he filled out his clothes. But that wouldn’t be high on a get-to-know-you list.

  Minutes ticked by. Chance mouthed an apology, silently adding, “It’s work.”

  Would he be leaving already? His face didn’t offer any insight, and Jane promised herself that she would not be upset if he had to leave. She’d had more time with him than she’d ever expected—oh, whatever. It was going to suck when he left. Her voice of reason nodded woefully in the corner of her subconscious.

  “Sorry about that.”

  She jumped to face Chance. “Is everything okay?”

  His pursed lips already said no. “Do you know why the Thanes report some credible threats but not all?”

  “Of course.” Jane snorted as though the answer were as clear as the summer day was long.

  He crooked an eyebrow, apparently not seeing the reasons as clearly. “Credible threats. Not just bullshit from…” He rolled a hand as though searching for a word. “Gossip rags or whatever.”

  “Yeah,” she said with the same level of certainty.

  Chance plopped back onto the couch, and his game face was firmly in place. Even his blue eyes didn’t give a hint of the conversation they’d just been having. “Want to tell me?”

  Jane shrugged. “Sure, it’s not a state secret.”

  “Okay.”

  “Some problems create better press than others.”

  He blinked twice before his eyebrows pulled down, forehead furrowing like he tried but failed to hear her speak a language he understood. “Come again?”

  “Well, stalkers get a huge amount of attention.”

  His mouth hinged but he gestured for her to continue.

  “Think about it like… Did you hear about that time Dax’s phone was hacked?”

  He made a face. “No.”

  “Pictures were leaked.” Jane tilted her head, indicating the nakedness with a simple look. “Gigi filed a police report, but she also went on an intense media blitz.”

  He folded his arms over his chest. Disgust pulled at his frown. “What type of problem would be reported to the police but not the press?”

  Jane hummed. “Anything financial, or anything that could show Thane Insurance in a bad light.”

  “I see.” His jaw flexed.

  “Last week, I read something about trouble between Dax and Gigi. Nothing abnormal happened at home,” she said. “But when I checked some celeb and gossip sites, they had pictures—though out of context—and details that sounded bad for them. Lark was all over it, but I think she only fanned the fires. They love the attention.”

  “Doesn’t make sense,” he muttered.

  “That’s what I always think.” She shrugged. “But people eat it up, and crazy enough, it makes them even more money.”

  Chance rubbed a hand over his chin and then refolded it against his chest. “The money part is where it gets tricky.”

  “How so?”

  He pursed his lips. “I work with a guy you might’ve met. Parker Black.”

  Jane wasn’t sure. So many faces and names blurred together. “Maybe.”

  “Anyway, the office is keeping tabs on things too, but he had some questions about a few recent pictures.”

  “Why?”

  Chance shrugged. “I think they’re trying to give me as much information as possible. This isn’t our usual gig. Especially since plans changed before I landed.” He sucked in his cheeks, then shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. If they need to talk again, I might need to jump on the phone for a while. Headquarters wants to make heads and tails of what’s going on.”

  Remembering why he was there, her shoulders dropped, but she offered a fake smile. “I know you’re here for work. You don’t have to explain yourself.”

  He stepped closer as though he could clearly see through her veiled reply. Chance brushed her hair back and cupped her chin. “Yeah, I go places when I’m told. That’s my job.”

  “Really, you don’t have to explain. I know.” And she did, though her throat clogged with disappointment. Jane swallowed hard.

  “If I’m gone, you know where I’d rather be.” His thumb caressed over her skin.

  She blushed. “Sure.”

  Chance wrapped her in his arms. His mouth covered her. She melted, opening for him. The delicious velvet slide of his tongue against hers now had the unbelievable hint of familiarity, even as he erased the room around them.

  Then his lips softened. Their hunger hadn’t disappeared. The tangle of their kisses slowed until they were barely lip locked. He pressed his forehead to hers, holding her close. Jane drank his scent, his feel, without opening her eyes. His lips moved to where his forehead had just been, sweetly kissing the same spot.

  Then his phone rang. Her heart clenched.

  “Let me jump back on the phone with Parker for a bit, and then I’m all yours.”

  She knew he had to pull away, and she almost trusted he’d come back to her. He wouldn’t stay. That would be an impossible dream. But right then, Jane didn’t care. She wanted to pretend it was possible for someone like Chance to be with someone like her.

  CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

  An hour later, Jane experienced déjà vu when she answered the phone call from Chance. He had disappeared into his truck for his phone call with Parker. Once again, she’d been reading, but this time when he called, she’d raced to meet him in the front yard.

  His smile made her giddy, and as they ambled into the backyard and toward her poolside cottage, Chance unceremoniously took her hand like he’d done a hundred times before. Her neurotic mind tried to make sense of their handholding. Chance chatted about a work and a colleague’s baby.

  He didn’t show any nerves as they stepped into her little home. Meanwhile, Jane stumbled through the conversation and tried not to trip over her feet. Basically, she determined, Chance was unflappable. He jumped out of helicopters, camped in war-torn deserts, and didn’t shy away from PDA—or whatever might happen between them behind closed doors.

  Jane shut the front door, eyeing him as he walked around the quaint living room. Chance paused, pointedly glancing at her paperback romance novel on the coffee table and then giving her a wicked grin before inspecting a row of framed pictures on a side table.

  While he poked around, she tried to see what he might—her stomach turned. Semi-folded laundry waited for her on the floor. In her rush to greet him, Jane hadn’t thought about hiding her plain cotton underwear. She scooted in front of the clothes and heaped them into her arms. “Be back in a minute.”

  Thankfully, he continued to check the pictures.

  She returned. Chance held a framed picture of her and Teddy at a water park. “Nice bathing suit.”

  She flushed. Her suit wasn’t skimpy, but until then, she hadn’t noticed the angle of the shot. It made her nonexistent chest look like major curves. Jane tried to snatch the frame away.

  He held it out of reach. “What are you doing?”

  “What are you doing?”

  “Admiring your tits.”

  “Chance!”

  He laughed but squinted. “Too vulgar?”

  “No.” Heat crawled up her neck. “It’s just…” She jumped for it again. “Don’t be silly.”

  He moved his arm out of the way but stepped closer. Her hands landed on his chest as she tried to catch her balance.

  “Not silly, babe. Sexy.”

  Her mouth fell open. Jane couldn’t think of a retort.

  He lifted an eyebrow as though challenging her. “You haven’t been told that enough, have you?”

  “Ha.” She choked. “You’re the sexy beautiful one.”

  The corners of his lips curled but she didn’t think her haphazardly thrown comment was the reason. Purposefully, he placed the picture frame down.

  Her stomach jumped. “What are you doing?”

&nb
sp; Chance took her hand and led her to the couch. After they sat down, he hauled her closer. Her fingers rubbed her knee, and her pulse jumped. Playfully, he walked his fingers up her leg, teasing along her inner thigh.

  “What are you doing?” she asked again.

  “Making a list.”

  “Of?”

  “Places I want to kiss you.”

  She blushed and fidgeted. “Guess you can cross a kitchen off your list.”

  “I meant where I want to kiss you.” His fingertips slid closer her shorts. “Like here.”

  Her breath hitched.

  He turned his hand over and trailed his knuckles to her hip. “And here.” He skimmed the pads of his fingers under the hem of her shirt. “Everywhere.”

  Jane swallowed hard. She couldn’t tear her gaze from his wandering hand as he caressed down her hip and back to her leg. Her hard nipples pressed against her t-shirt. She wasn’t even wearing a bra. Most times, she didn’t need to. They were too damn uncomfortable. Yet, the way her breasts perked against her shirt made Jane feel incredibly feminine and… sexy.

  “What do you want to do today?” he asked.

  Jane wanted to say something about his kiss list. But she couldn’t.

  “Lie down with me.” He pulled her to his chest then down. Their heads shared a throw pillow, and he snaked his foot between hers. Their bare legs tangled. “Better.”

  “Better,” she repeated.

  “All right. You don’t know what we should do.” He hummed. The corners of his lips quirked. “Finish your laundry?”

  He did see her piles of boring cotton undies! “No!”

  “You’re right. Besides, I have a better idea.”

  “What?”

  He laughed. “We’ll go on an adventure where no one will try to kill us—or show up unexpectedly when I’m kissing you.”

  “If I lock the door, Lark can’t come in,” Jane pointed out, then slapped her hands over her face. “I didn’t mean we should stay on the couch and—”

  He kissed her. “In due time.”

  Her stomach backflipped even as she wanted to die from embarrassment. Chance pulled her off the couch and guided her out the front door. An excited, mischievous smile curled on his lips. “We need to go for a drive.”

  Chance didn’t give her an opportunity to ask more questions. They retraced their steps to his truck. He pulled the door open and lifted her in. “There’s something I want to show you.”

  Jane stared back, wary. “Maybe I should change first.” Her flip-flops weren’t good for anything but hanging around the house, and again, she wasn’t wearing a bra! She was ninety-nine percent sure her employment agreement with the Thanes required her to be presentable in public—she was no lawyer, but even loosely defined, presentability probably meant wearing a bra.

  “Do you want to change?”

  She gestured to her super casual outfit. “I should.”

  “No one will see you but me.”

  That didn’t make her ratty outfit any better. “I am comfortable.”

  “Comfort for the win.” He closed her door as if that had determined the final answer.

  Jane buckled her seatbelt. Nerves and anticipation mixed with compounding lust that freely flowed through her veins. She had absolutely no idea what the hell she was in for and couldn’t wait.

  He climbed in the driver’s side with a million-dollar smile and muscles that flexed without meaning to. Chance seemed better suited for a rugged truck commercial than taking her for a surprise jaunt. Even the sun cast a brightly glowing halo around him before he shut his door. Jane wasn’t entirely sure this was actually happening. If it wasn’t, it was one hell of a good dream.

  CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

  The engine rumbled when he turned it over. As soon as they slipped through the gates that surrounded the Thanes community, Chance rolled down the windows. Her hair flew in the wind, and he cranked the music loud enough for them to sing.

  Maybe Chance didn’t have a specific place he was taking her to. That’d be okay. Music and the open road worked for her.

  An hour might’ve passed. She could only guess. The drive had been like a road trip of winding hills and two-lane straightaways. He never looked at a map, and she didn’t question where they were going.

  They slowed, and his truck rumbled onto a well-worn driveway draped on both sides by thick trees. Chance slowed in front of a rustic sign. Jane read it aloud, “The Mud Palace.”

  “The Mud Palace,” he repeated affirmatively.

  “What does that mean?”

  He grinned, lifting a shoulder, then urged his truck off the gravel road. She pushed up in her seat as they bumped along. The makeshift path was hard to see. After a few seconds, the ride smoothed out. He’d found a groove in the dirt tracks and followed them even as they disappeared into the tree line.

  The road wound up a hill and opened into a cleared area. A handful of mud-caked sport-utility vehicles were parked in the field—then the name clicked. It was some kind of off-roading extravaganza. Chance rolled to a stop and she took it all in.

  Dense woods surrounded the field. Several marked and blazed openings were wide enough for monster trucks to pass.

  “Where do you want to go?”

  She didn’t have a clue. The trail markings might have well been written in Greek. Jane pointed toward a trail on his side.

  “Good choice.” He angled to the far left and drove back into the tree cover. The incline sharply grew until they summitted the hill. It opened into another clearing—except it had small hills and valleys like a golf course on steroids.

  Instead of sand traps, Jane saw… her eyes rounded. “Is that mud?”

  They rolled to a stop. Chance dangled his wrist over the steering wheel, laid back even as the truck engine revved. “It’s not called the Mud Palace for nothing.”

  “I’ve never heard of anything like this.” She tried to take the sprawling space in, then turned.

  He grinned. “You want to drive?”

  Jane balked as though Chance asked her to land a shuttle on the moon. “I think I’ll let you start.”

  “All right. Let me know when you change your mind.” He rolled up their windows. The engine roared. “Hang on, Mary Poppins. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.”

  Jane was certain this place wasn’t on a map. “Did you grow up around here?”

  They rumbled forward. “A little farther south, more in the mountains.”

  Midas the mountain man… He’d wanted to see the real her, but she loved seeing the real him.

  Across the mud pits, Jane watched other off-roaders—a Wrangler, a dune buggy, and one monster truck—splash and spin over the landscape. Her heart raced as their truck approached, ready to do the same. He cut her a quick, mischievous glance and pressed his foot to the gas.

  They headed straight for the nearest mid pit. Anticipation built in her chest. Her fingers clenched, and Jane held her breath as the truck dove into a pit. Mud splashed. She squealed in delight. They rocked side to side. The engine rumbled as they streaked through the mud and up the embankment.

  “Fun?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she laughed and hollered at once. “Wait—we can’t see!”

  The wipers swiped some of the mud away. “Sure we can.”

  Not nearly enough. Nothing would be in their way, but the low visibility heightened her excitement. Chance jerked the steering wheel. They fish-tailed over the slick field. His laughter boomed, mixing with her eager shrieks.

  “Eeek!” She pointed then gripped the door. “Watch out—whee!”

  Mud rained in clumps. The truck slid and spun, and the poor windshield wipers raced to remove the never-ending coat of mud. They squished into swamps and carved out tracks as their wheels spun. She jostled back and forth in her seat, shouting where he should go next.

  Finally, Chance pulled to the side. She pressed her hands to her chest, surprised to find her heart racing. “I need a break to catch my breath.”


  He laughed, and she tipped her head back. After a moment, she faced him. “Wow.”

  He agreed. “Adrenaline packs a hell of a punch.”

  She smiled. Her eyes sank shut. Adrenaline still buzzed through her. The hairs on her arms had stood, electrified. Her eyes opened, and she looked at him. His casual posture belied the fierce hunger on his face. Jane could blame her adrenaline rush all she wanted, but that didn’t change the fact that Chance was the reason for her visceral reactions.

  The space between them was too small, too warm. Heat crawled up the back of her neck. Everything about Chance—physically—made him mind-numbingly gorgeous. But his kindness and laughter, his sense of humor and easygoing yet fiercely protective nature—that made him hotter than the sun on an August day. But even that wasn’t the reason Jane’s heart jumped and her panties dampened. She was vividly aware of his feelings toward her. The man had made a list of places to kiss her, and he liked to hold her hand. That combination was one hell of an aphrodisiac.

  He pulled in a deep breath and shook his head as though holding himself back. Then he quickly grinned.

  “What?”

  His blue eyes danced. “Your turn.”

  “Oh no! No, no, no.” Jane inched back, trapped against the door. “I didn’t survive Syria to die at a place called the Mud Palace.”

  “Babe.” His finger motioned her closer. “Get behind the wheel. No more running from what you want.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

  If the man only knew. Jane wanted his mouth on hers. But three important things surfaced in her mind. The first was simple. Babe would never be her preferred term of endearment, but it was infinitely better than Mary Poppins. Second, despite that, the way that Chance said babe made her shiver. His voice dropped and the corners of his eyes tightened. She couldn’t explain the arousal-inducing formula, but she couldn’t ignore it either. Finally, third, no matter the situation, Chance knew what she wanted—sometimes before she realized it herself. Kissing him would be awesome. Driving his truck through the mud? That’d be pretty amazing, too.