by Cat Johnson
Zach made it all the way to his own house without a peep from anyone. That was a good sign, he hoped.
He pulled into the driveway and cut the engine, turning to glance at Gabby. She’d been silent the whole drive over.
“You okay?”
“Just trying to take it all in.”
He laughed. “Good luck with that. It’s a lot.”
“Yeah.”
“You want me to take you to Amanda’s?” It was a half hour drive and past midnight, hella inconvenient, but he’d do it.
Why, he didn’t know. He must be getting soft in his old age.
“No. It’s late. I don’t want to wake her. And then she’ll want to hear everything and I’ll never get any sleep.” She glanced up at him. “You don’t mind me being here, do you? I can go back to Amanda’s—”
“Gabby, it’s fine. I invited you.” He smiled. “Besides, you haven’t seen my new lampshade yet.”
“Well, I don’t want to miss that.” She laughed.
“Come on. I’ve got a guest room all set up for guests for some reason.” He sent her a sideways glance as he slid out of the driver’s seat.
“This is the reason,” she said loud enough for him to hear as she got out of the passenger door. “Everyone should have a room for unexpected guests—who are on the run from Mexican drug lords.”
He laughed as he walked around the truck to her side. He reached out and braced a hand on the back of her neck, beneath her long fall of hair. “You did good tonight.”
“Did I?” she asked, sounding surprised.
“You did,” he said, as they walked toward the door. And he meant it.
He’d been braced for hysterics. He didn’t get them. Her obsession with the damn tile had been the only real issue tonight.
Yup. Tonight could have been worse. So much worse.
He drew in a breath as he put the key in the door. “I could use a drink.”
“You and me both.”
“Lucky for you I’m well stocked in that department.”
“At this point I’d drink rubbing alcohol, but that’s good to hear.”
He grinned. She was funny and clever and . . . quirky.
That was a good word for all of the things that were uniquely Gabby. He hadn’t appreciated all that about her before. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the fact that he appreciated it now.
Inside, she pulled her cell out of her pocket and glanced at it. “Dead.”
“Lucky for you I have a charging station. Come with me, madam.” With a sweep of his hand, he ushered her to the box and opened the lid. “As you see we have one of every kind of cord for all of your device charging needs.”
“I knew that multi-cord would come in handy.” She smiled looking genuinely thrilled he was using her contraption.
“And you were right,” he had to admit.
She plugged in her cell and turned to him. “Thank you for tonight. I want you to know how hugely grateful I am for your help. And your friends who came. And Amanda for letting me stay there. I don’t know what I’ll do without you all—”
Her voice cracked on the last word.
Zach frowned as he saw the tears in her eyes.
“Whoa. Wait. What’s going on? Everything’s fine. There’s no need to cry now.” He reached out and brushed one tear from her cheek. “We’re safe.”
She shook her head. “It’s not just tonight. It’s that on the drive, I did some math.”
Math?
“You did what?” he asked.
“I ran some numbers in my head and even after I finish the shop and get paid, I’m not earning enough to stay here. Not now that I lost my apartment. I guess I’d been hoping with a few completed projects in my portfolio, the jobs would come rolling in.” She drew in a breath and straightened her spine. “But they haven’t and now it’s time to face facts. I can’t keep living with Amanda forever. I’m going to have to go home to my parents’ house and move in with them like a twenty-nine year old loser.”
She bit her lip and visibly fought the tears.
“Come here.” Zach reached out and pulled her to him wrapping his arms around her. “You’re not a loser. Starting a business is hard. And this isn’t exactly an affordable area to live in.”
She nodded against his chest as he spoke, her arms wrapped around his waist.
“I’m sure you’ll figure something out. You’re very innovative. I mean who else could have furnished my whole house with trash?” Smiling he smoothed a hand down the silky length of her hair.
She drew in a deep breath and pulled back just far enough she could look up at him. “Thanks for the pep talk.”
“Anytime.” He brushed a stray hair off her face with the back of his hand, but found his fingers lingering there against the soft warmth of her cheek.
He leaned in, or maybe she did. He wasn’t sure. But somehow their faces ended up just a breath apart. Their lips so close it seemed natural that he should close the distance and press his against hers.
He’d known her for most of his adult life. And tonight, they’d traveled to hell and back—or at least to Tijuana and back with a load of drugs.
They’d shared a meal together. She and he had both been there for more than a decade’s worth of monumental moments in his sister’s life.
And that was why he shouldn’t angle his head and thrust his tongue between her lips, even if he wanted to. Why he shouldn’t thrust inside the wet heat of her mouth until his cock was so hard it pounded against his zipper to be let out.
Nope. Shouldn’t do any of that.
Even so, he moved his hands down from her back to the dip of her waist, then down farther to the flare of her hips. She fit perfectly against him. He had no doubt he’d fit perfectly inside her, as well.
The sound of her sniffle broke him out of his very dangerous fantasies about them together.
He pulled back to a safer distance and studied her glassy eyes and adorably pink nose. “Don’t worry. Between you, me and Amanda, we’ll figure something out so you’ll be able to get work and stay in California.”
“I know.” She shook her head even as she agreed with him. That was Gabby—always a little bit contrary. She swiped at her eyes. “I just can’t seem to stop.”
“You’re over-tired. It’s been a long night.” And that’s why he dropped his hands from her tempting body.
She nodded. “I didn’t really sleep last night. I’d been too nervous about the trip to Tijuana.”
Perhaps she should have listened to her instincts and not gone. He kept that thought to himself and instead tipped his head.
“Let’s get you to bed.” He watched her eyes flare. Shit. He did not need her to be interested in that, because he was having enough trouble keeping his own libido in check. He added quickly, “To sleep.”
“Okay.” This bold woman with an insecure side shifted her glance to and away from him, then back again. “Will you stay with me? To sleep. I’m afraid I won’t be able to sleep with everything going on.”
“Yeah. Sure.” It was going to be torture, being in the same room with her for the rest of the night given the thoughts running through his head.
But he’d feel safer with her near him. There was still the unresolved matter of the drug cartel coming after their stash and possibly after her.
Looping an arm around her shoulder, he led her to the bedroom where they would just sleep, and nothing else.
That was definitely for the best.
Sex came with too many complications as it was. Sex with Gabby came with more than usual.
She was his sister’s best friend. And he’d accepted now she wasn’t going anywhere. She’d always be in his sister’s life and by extension in his.
The aftermath of a one-night stand with her would make their inevitable reunion at the next gathering more than awkward.
So instead of taking off her clothes, Zach reached into the dresser and pulled out a shirt for her to put on. He thrust the extra-large U
S NAVY T-shirt toward her. “You can sleep in that if you want.”
She stared at it for a second before she reached out and took it with a mumbled thanks. It seemed the poor tired thing was having trouble with even the most basic things.
“I’m gonna go brush my teeth. I’ll leave a clean towel and a spare toothbrush in the bathroom for you.”
“Thank you.” Her eyes were glassy again, like she was going to cry over a toothbrush.
Yup, she was definitely over-tired. And thank God he’d gotten control of himself and hadn’t kissed her.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He backed out of the room and closed the door behind him before he decided to comfort her in so many inappropriate ways.
By the time he got back, she was sound asleep on top of the covers, the T-shirt reaching to her knees, which were tucked up as she curled into the fetal position.
Luckily his new decorating scheme was ripe with throw blankets. They might look nice draped all over the living room but until now he was wondering when the hell he’d ever use them.
He grabbed one and flipped it into the air, spreading it out and letting it settle over the bed and Gabby. He stripped quick and pulled on a pair of cotton drawstring shorts and crept under the throw next to her on the bed.
Definitely not how he’d pictured this night going, but as she sighed adorably in her sleep next to him he repeated his assertion, it could have been so much worse.
EIGHTEEN
Gabby opened her eyes and went stiff—but not as stiff as what she felt pressed against her.
Holy moly, she was in Zach’s bed. And Zach’s . . . you know what was jamming her in the back.
She reviewed the events of last night and tried to fill in the blanks. She remembered him handing her a US Navy T-shirt. The same kind of T-shirt he’d been wearing all those years ago when she’d first spied him walking into her dorm building before she’d even known who he was.
The same kind of shirt she’d dreamed of—literally—since then. And now she was wearing it.
But enough of that. Back to last night and how she ended up in Zach’s bed with him—OMG—spooning her.
Last night she’d stripped out of her own clothes, which she’d been in for more than eighteen hours during her Tijuana fiasco, and pulled his T-shirt over her head.
She recalled noticing it smelled like her favorite Yankee Candle Company scent Clean Cotton.
They were one of the few splurges she allowed herself. Those candles weren’t cheap and she rationed the number of hours she’d let herself burn one each night before bed. But she might have to stock up on more because she had a feeling she’d want to be reminded of this moment often.
She’d lain down on top of his bed, waiting for him to be done in the bathroom and that was the last thing she remembered.
Apparently she’d fallen asleep and he’d crawled into bed with her.
Definitely a dream come true. He’d even covered her with one of the throws she’d bought for the living room. The decorator inside her swelled with pride that he was using it.
But more than pride, was amazement. He could have slept in the other room, there was a bed in there, but he’d said he wouldn’t leave her alone and he’d kept his promise.
Although the spooning was a bonus, and a very nice surprise.
A low groan from behind her had her holding her breath and trying not to move.
“Good morning.” Zach’s voice was gruff.
“Good morning. How did you—” She rolled over and came face to face with Zach and had trouble finishing her thought given the closeness. She swallowed hard. “How did you know I was awake?”
“Your breathing changed. Your movements were different.” He lifted one shoulder. “I just felt it.”
“Oh.” What else could she say to that? She’d have to remember SEALs had super good senses.
Good thing he couldn’t read minds too . . . she hoped.
She searched for a change of subject and spotted the lamp on the bedside table. She remembered the conversation from last night. “Nice lampshade.”
The corner of his lips quirked up in a crooked smile. “Thanks.”
Damn, he looked good in the morning. Which raised the question of how she looked.
She had a feeling it wasn’t good. Since she’d fallen asleep with yesterday’s make-up on, she probably had raccoon eyes from her mascara.
And God she hoped she didn’t have morning breath to the tenth power since she’d never gotten to brush her teeth last night.
Scratch the dream come true part, because in her dreams of her and Zach she’d had fresh breath. And she’d looked breathtaking—at least that’s what she’d imagined him saying to her.
“Coffee?” he asked, bringing her back to reality.
“Yes, please.” And while they were back in reality, there were a few loose ends from last night she’d forgotten about.
Drug runners. The car she’d purposely left in Coronado for them to rob. The tile she hoped made it to the shop with the couple of SEALs who’d swooped in to the rescue.
Zach untangled himself from the throw and sat up. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he glanced back and frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“How do you know something’s wrong?”
He laughed. “You don’t exactly have a poker face. I can see something is going on in that brain of yours. Something’s bothering you. What is it?”
“I was just wondering about my car. And the drugs . . . And the tile.”
“I’ll check my cell. If there are no messages, I can make a few calls. Good?” he asked, his amusement at her random list of concerns evident.
“Perfect. Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.” He walked to the dresser and grabbed another T-shirt out of the drawer, pulling it over his head and hiding one of her favorite parts of him—those abs.
Then again, after this morning, she’d been up close and personal with another part of him that had felt pretty damn nice too. Of course, that part had faded the moment he woke up and his conscious self realized it was only her he was in bed with.
She sighed as he left the room. She heard the bathroom door close and waited for her turn. It opened again a couple of minutes later and she swung her legs out of bed.
It had been too long since she’d used a bathroom so she didn’t take the time to change. She padded barefoot across the hall and took care of necessary business, before she allowed herself to look in the mirror.
It wasn’t horrifying, but it wasn’t great either. As he’d promised, Zach had left her a toothbrush and a towel. She brushed her teeth and scrubbed her face and did the best she could finger combing her hair.
Clean faced was the best she could do since her purse was somewhere out in the living room. And there was only lip gloss in there anyway. No makeup. She hadn’t been planning a sleepover with a hot guy when she’d left Amanda’s house yesterday morning.
Oh well. Zach was going to have to put up with her just the way she was. Not that he cared what she looked like anyway.
That was obvious since they’d been in bed together and he hadn’t even made a move. Morning wood didn’t count.
Resigned to the fact he wasn’t attracted to her, she was about to go back into the bedroom and get dressed when the tantalizing aroma of fresh brewed coffee drifted to where she stood in the hall.
That temptation was accompanied with the sound of Zach speaking to somebody on the phone piqued her curiosity. She bypassed the bedroom door and headed for the kitchen.
Zach stood in the kitchen with the cell phone in one hand and the coffee pot in the other.
When he saw her he froze mid-pour. His gaze dropped down her body, from the T-shirt he’d loaned her, to her bare legs that the shirt didn’t quite cover.
“Yeah, okay.” He broke his gaze away from her to answer whoever was on the phone. “Understood. Thank you.”
He lowered the cell and laid it on the counter.
“Cof
fee’s ready,” he said as he kept his gaze on her face this time.
“Great. Thanks.” She grabbed her own phone out of the charging station and hit the button to wake it up as she moved toward the kitchen.
The screen filled with notifications—missed calls, texts and voicemails—all from Amanda.
Gabby drew in a breath and let it out in a sigh. “Your sister is blowing up my phone. Do we have any updates?”
His eyes were on the T-shirt again when she set her cell on the counter and glanced up at him.
He slid a coffee mug toward her. “Uh, yeah. Actually I do. First, there was a text from Hawk. Your tile is safe and sound inside the shop. He even sent a picture as proof.”
She picked up the mug and smiled. “Hawk is a smart man. Please thank him for me.”
“Will do. Next, though Silas was not happy with us for not following orders, he told me our friends from across the border did come and retrieve their boxes.”
She swallowed a mouthful of coffee as her eyes widened. “Did they arrest them?”
Zach pressed his lips together. “He wouldn’t say much but he said not to worry. They are on the case. My guess is they want bigger fish than a couple of low level couriers sent to grab the boxes, so they’re probably tracking the delivery to the distributor. Oh, and he said your car is still at Compass’s place and unharmed.”
She shook her head in amazement. “Wow. It all worked out.”
“Amazingly, it did.” He cocked a brow. “But that doesn’t mean you should plan on getting more of your decorating supplies from Mexico.”
“Oh, don’t worry. I’m done with that.” Her gaze dropped to the steaming brew in her mug. “My business here is probably done too so . . .”
She shrugged and let the sentence trail off.
When she glanced up, Zach’s gaze was on her face. She saw genuine concern etched in his features.
“You really think so?” he asked.
“Yeah. It’s time to face reality and do the adult thing.”
“I’m sorry.”
She believed him. “I know. So am I.”
“So what are you going to do?” he asked.