by Elle James
“That could take a while.”
He smiled, staring at the quiet city street in front of him. “I have all night. Lay it on me.”
“I’ll fill you in on all the details when we get to the hotel.” She twisted her hands in her lap, a frown denting her forehead. “I should have called you earlier. I’m in way over my head.”
The neon light of a small motel glowed like a beacon in the night. It looked old, but the grounds were well-maintained, and it had a retro feel to it. Trevor pulled in. Tired to the bone and in need of a couple hours of shut-eye, he still looked around for signs of potential threats.
Lana chewed on her bottom lip as she stared at the two-story building. Only a handful of cars were parked in the parking lot. “Are you sure we’ll be safe in a motel?”
“I’ll park the car behind the building. No one will know we’re here unless they drive around the structure.”
Lana nodded and gripped the door handle.
“Stay here, while I get a room.”
Trevor parked in front of the motel’s office and walked up to the bullet-proof glass window. He cringed. Bullet-proof glass didn’t bode well for the establishment, but going to a more populated, well-lit area put them at too much risk. As long as the room was clean, and they could hide the car in back, they could deal with one night.
The man behind the counter had dark skin and dark, straight hair. He appeared to be eating food from a Styrofoam container. He laid down his fork and approached the window, his eyes narrowing. “May I help you?”
“My…wife and I need a room for the night.” Trevor stood sideways to the clerk, his attention divided between the office and the car where Lana sat patiently waiting.
“We have several rooms to choose from,” the man said in a stilted British accent. “Upstairs or down?”
“We prefer the privacy at the back of the building. Downstairs.”
The motel clerk checked his computer screen. “The second room from the end is available. One key or two?”
“One, please.” Lana had to understand they couldn’t be split up into two different rooms. He had to be as close as possible to keep her safe.
“And I’ll need a toothbrush, if you have one.”
The clerk nodded and quoted a dollar amount.
Trevor opened his wallet and extracted enough cash, not even considering leaving his credit card. If the attacker figured out who he was, he could potentially trace him through his credit cards. Having rammed the back of the rental vehicle, he could easily have gotten the license plate and could learn who he was by tracing him through the rental agreement. Using cash was the only way to stay off the grid until they got away from San Diego. And California.
The idea of leaving California took root in Trevor’s mind. If he could get her out of the city and to a place where he could see the enemy coming…a place like the wide-open spaces of Montana…he had a better chance of keeping her safe.
As soon as they settled in the room, he’d bring up the subject. But first, he had to stash the car and get her into the room. The single room, where both of them would sleep for what was left of the night.
His groin tightened.
He’d given up on having Lana as his own when she’d agreed to marry Mason. But that decision didn’t begin to quell the way his body reacted to her. He still wanted her…still loved her. With Mason gone, would it be so wrong to pursue her and make her his?
The image of Connolly dying in his arms forced Trevor to give himself a firm shake. Lana was his friend’s widow. He’d promised to look out for her, not to jump her bones and make love to her after he was in the ground. A year still seemed like yesterday to Trevor. A year in which he hadn’t seen Lana and had only spoken on the phone with her once a month.
He’d thought staying away would lessen the desire and longing he had for the only woman he’d ever loved. If anything, it had strengthened his yearning. He hadn’t dated any women since he’d met Lana. He’d thought about it and had almost asked one of the waitresses from the Blue Moon Tavern in Eagle Rock, Montana to go out with him. However, before he could open his mouth to pose the question, images of Lana rose in his memory, and he couldn’t do it. Lana was the girl for him. No one came close to competing.
But Lana was hands-off. He couldn’t remind himself enough.
Squaring his shoulders, he tucked the toothbrush the clerk handed to him into his pocket and turned toward the car. Lana sat staring through the window. Though the reason for his visit was unsettling, the joy of seeing her there couldn’t be denied. He drew in a deep breath, marched to the car, slid into the driver’s seat and cranked the engine.
“Did you get us rooms?” Lana’s husky voice melted like butter over every pore of Trevor’s skin. His jeans tightened, and he tossed the room key into her lap.
“Room,” he corrected. “I got us a room.”
“Not adjoining rooms?”
He shook his head. “I don’t want you out of my sight, except when you’re in the bathroom.”
“I’d say you were taking it a little too far, but…” she shivered, “you’re probably right. I can sleep in one of the chairs.”
“I’ll sleep sitting up. I don’t want to be surprised.”
“You’re too big a guy to sit up in a chair all night.”
“It’s only be a couple hours until morning. I’ve had less sleep on a mission.”
“And I’m a mission?” She shook her head. “You’re not as young as you used to be, and we both need sleep to keep up our energy reserves.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’ll take a shift for a couple hours while you sleep.”
He shot a look her way, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “You’re still as stubborn as I remember.”
Her mouth firmed into a straight line. “Damn right. And don’t you forget it.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Trevor parked the car behind the building. No part of the vehicle would be visible from the main road. Unless someone drove into the parking lot and around to the back of the motel, the car wouldn’t be seen.
Trevor slipped out of the driver’s seat and rounded the front of the sedan.
Before he reached the door, Lana was out and standing on the pavement, the key in her hand. She turned toward the rear of the vehicle where they’d stashed her suitcase.
“Leave it,” Trevor said. “I’ll get it when you’re safely inside.”
“I can do some things for myself, you know,” she muttered.
“I know. Just humor me.”
She stiffened. “I will, but don’t get crazy on doing everything for me. I like my independence, in case you didn’t remember that about me.”
He touched a hand to the small of her back. “Oh, I remember, all right. You always were a law unto yourself. You made your own decisions.”
Some of the starch left her spine. “Yeah, I make my own decisions.” Her lips closed together in a tight line as she marched toward the door.
The key slid into the lock without any trouble.
Lana turned it and the knob at once, and the door opened.
Before she could step inside, Trevor touched her shoulder. “Let me go first.”
She frowned. “Afraid there’s someone waiting inside to jump me?”
“No, but there might be bugs. And I remember how you felt about roaches.”
She shivered and grimaced. “Right, again. I can deal with snakes, attackers and rude people. But cockroaches make me lose it.” She waved him past her. “By all means, go first.”
Again, she shivered. “Now, I won’t sleep at all. I’ll see images of bugs crawling over me for the rest of the night.”
“Don’t borrow trouble,” Trevor warned. “And don’t stand beneath a street light. We don’t want anyone to identify you.”
Lana pulled back her shoulders and stuck out her chest. With a mock salute, she said, “Okay, let’s get inside.”
Trevor made a quick sweep of the room, checking for bad guys and bugs. He a
lso checked the bed linens. The room was dated, the furnishings old, but it was clean, and the sheets appeared to be freshly laundered.
He returned to the door. “It’s safe to enter.”
“No bad guys,” Lana asked.
Trevor shook his head.
“No bugs?” Lana quizzed.
“None that I saw,” Trevor replied.
“Great. Let me look.” She pushed past him into the room, her gaze roving the floor, the walls and into the bathroom. When she emerged, her eyes were narrowed. “You’re right. None that I can see.” She pulled back the bedspread and pillows. “They look clean enough. I suppose it’ll do.”
Trevor flipped the deadbolt and secured the chain over the door. They were locked in for the night. He turned to face Lana. “Now that we’ve conducted a thorough investigation, do you want to shower first?”
“I’ll shower in the morning. It helps me wake up and gives my hair a fighting chance for a style.” She lifted her arms toward the ceiling. “Right now, I need sleep.”
“You have the bed. I’m hitting the shower. I didn’t have a chance to shower and change before I hopped on board a plane to get here.”
Her brow furrowed. “I’m sorry my message was so cryptic. As soon as I sent it, I wished I could retract the text.”
“I’m glad you couldn’t. And I’m glad I made it here in time.”
She nodded. “Me, too.”
An awkward silence fell over the room.
After their years of friendship, Trevor regretted that silence. They used to be able to say anything to each other. “Lana—”
She held up her hand, her eyes glistening in the limited light glowing from the sconce attached to the wall over the nightstand. “Get your shower. We can talk afterward.”
He wanted to clear the air first, but the look on her face, as though she was struggling with herself, decided for him. “I’ll get our things from the car.”
She nodded and turned away.
Using every bit of his strength and resolve, Trevor forced himself to walk out the door and back to the car, when what he wanted to do was take Lana in his arms and reassure her everything would be all right.
But he wasn’t sure everything would be all right. He didn’t know who was after her. More importantly, he didn’t know where he stood in her life. She’d pushed him away after Mason’s death. Was she as determined to expel him from her life after the dust settled on her current situation?
Chapter 5
After Trevor left the room, Lana stared at the wall for a long moment, fighting to keep from doing what she wanted to do most. She wanted to fall into the man’s arms and let him hold her until all the bad left her life.
But part of the bad had to do with the loss of Mason. That situation wasn’t going away. Mason and Trevor had been the best of friends, until she’d chosen to marry Mason.
The key turned in the lock, and the door opened behind her.
She glanced over her shoulder.
Trevor entered, carrying her suitcase.
“Did you bring anything from Montana?” she asked.
“I didn’t have time to go by the B&B I’m staying at there. I went straight to the airport.”
Her lips twitched. Trevor had always been there for Mason and herself. Even after she’d married Mason, whenever Mason had called for help moving something heavy, Trevor had been there.
He set the bag on the bed.
“Do you need any toiletries?” she asked. “I have shampoo and conditioner and an extra tube of toothpaste.”
Trevor patted his front shirt pocket. “I have a toothbrush, and I think I saw soap and trial-sized bottles of shampoo in the bathroom. I’m set.”
She nodded, her heart skipping several beats as she watched Trevor stride toward the bathroom. He wore his softly faded jeans well, the back pocket cupping his ass to perfection.
Heat built inside Lana.
Trevor paused at the door. “You know the drill.”
She nodded. “Don’t open the door. If anyone tries to get in, I get you out of the shower.”
“Right.” He winked, entered the bathroom and closed the door halfway.
Lana opened her suitcase and selected a T-shirt and leggings from the pile of clothing she’d stuffed inside. Her gaze darted to the half-open doorway.
Trevor pulled his T-shirt up his chest and over his head. He tossed it into the sink, filled the sink with water and a squirt of shampoo, and washed the shirt.
It hit Lana again. The man had come straight from Montana to help her. What had he left behind? Did he have a girlfriend? After a year away, he had every right to get on with his life. And the man was amazing to look at. She stared at his profile, admiring massive shoulders and the muscles rippling down his back. He could have any woman he wanted at the snap of his fingers.
For a moment, Lana wondered how she would respond if Trevor snapped his fingers and told her to join him in the shower.
Deep down, she knew.
She’d join him in the shower. Regrets and self-loathing would come later. But for a few brief moments, sliding her naked body against his would be pure heaven.
Heat coiled low in her belly, and she ached for the first time since her husband’s death. Ached for a man’s touch. Not just any man. She loved Trevor. But that ship had sailed when she’d chosen to marry Mason. And her love for Mason had been just as strong.
How could one woman love two men? But she had. Still, she wasn’t the kind of woman who could marry two men. Mason and Trevor were alpha men, through and through. They would never have shared her between them. As a friend, yes. As a wife. No way.
And the two men lived by the code: you don’t mess with another man’s wife. Especially a man who is your best friend.
Trevor had lived up to that code, though his friendship with Mason had been somewhat strained up to the wedding and even after they’d exchanged vows.
Though Lana had been happily married to Mason, she’d always felt like a traitor to Trevor. Now that Mason was dead, she couldn’t seduce the man. Not after she’d ditched him to marry his best friend.
It didn’t matter that she’d wanted what other women had. A man to come home to. Babies, when they were ready for them. A home in the suburbs where their children could play in a nice yard.
Way back when she, Mason and Trevor started hanging out, Trevor had been adamant about not wanting to get married. He had too much life to live, and marriage would slow him down.
But then he’d kissed her… Dear Lord. That kiss had been electric. To her, at least. He hadn’t tried to kiss her again, nor had he said anything about it. So likely, it hadn’t been as monumental for him.
Then Mason had taken her out on an honest-to-God date, ending it with a proposal of marriage that had completely shocked her and made her happy at the same time.
She’d loved Mason. She’d loved Trevor. Of the two men, Mason had seemed the safest choice. He’d never said he didn’t want to get married, and she’d known he would make a wonderful father to their children.
Lana had said yes. She’d never regretted marrying Mason. If anything, she regretted they’d never had a chance at a longer life together.
Now that he was gone, her life stretched before her, a long and empty space. Her chest hurt just thinking about it. And she didn’t have children to fill her days or share her love.
She glanced at the bathroom again, just in time to see Trevor shuck his jeans.
She caught a glimpse of long, thickly muscled legs and a tight ass.
Her core coiled into a tight, needy ball. A year of celibacy was wearing on her. But she couldn’t come on to Trevor. He’d been Mason’s best friend. Lana was sure it would make him incredibly uncomfortable. And it would fill her with that same guilt she’d felt when he’d held her in his arms after the funeral.
Torn between wanting the man, and doing right by her dead husband, Lana forced herself to turn away.
The squeak of the shower curtain rings slidin
g across the bar and the water turning on made her imagine Trevor standing there naked, water rivulets trickling down the front of his broad chest.
Even looking away didn’t help to keep her body’s response under control.
She wanted to seduce Trevor and claim him. The urge to strip down to her birthday suit and join him in the shower was so strong she was afraid to move lest she do just that.
For a long moment, she concentrated on breathing in and out, until her pulse calmed, and the insane urge went away.
While Trevor showered, Lana changed into her soft jersey T-shirt and Capri leggings. She’d opted not to take up space in her suitcase for pajamas, knowing she might not get back to her house for a while. She could sleep in the tee and leggings or wear them to a gym, if she wanted to work out. And the best part was that there was nothing sexy about what she was wearing.
She wasn’t trying to excite her protector. Not that she could, even in sexy lingerie. He was an honorable man, who would never do anything untoward with respect to his best friend’s widow.
The devil on Lana’s shoulder wished he would try something.
The water shut off.
Lana pressed her palms to her hot cheeks. She had at least a minute to get a grip before Trevor emerged from the bathroom. She slammed shut her suitcase and shoved it into a corner.
“What was that?” Trevor asked from the open bathroom door.
Lana spun to face him, and her mouth dropped open.
He stood there, wearing nothing but a towel wrapped low around his hips. The terrycloth formed a bit of tent. The more she stared at the tent, the more it jutted out.
“Are you all right?” Trevor asked. “I thought I heard a gunshot.”
“Gunshot?” Lana said, her voice breathy. “Uh. No. Just me shutting my suitcase.” She waved a hand nervously. “Shouldn’t you put on some clothes?”
“I would, but what I brought with me had to be washed and is hanging up to dry on the curtain rod.”
Oh great. She had the hots for her husband’s best friend, and that best friend only had a towel to wear through the night.
