“Sure,” said Daisy, glancing inside his roomette.
It wouldn’t work to have a woman in his room with him. “Here,” he said, pulling back the partially drawn curtain on the roomette across the hall. “This one’s empty.”
“Wait, I stayed in the room you’re in last time. Do you guys always travel with an empty room?”
“Are you prying? Should I be suspicious of you?” He was teasing but also watching her reaction.
“Me? No. I couldn’t hurt anyone even to save a life.”
She didn’t show any of the signs of lying that Blayze had taught him, and Cannon’s gut said she was definitely safe. Even if she did have evil intent, Cannon was confident he could protect himself and Pasha from anything Daisy and any possible conspirators had planned.
“We keep a room as a buffer for Pasha’s suite.” He didn’t mention that he went back and forth between the two rooms to keep it fresh and confuse would-be threats.
“Thank you,” said Daisy, accepting his offer to sit in the empty room. He carefully reached past her and turned on the night light in her room. It wouldn’t do to have her in the dark and him in the light. He wouldn’t be able to see her natural smile that she’d come all the way down here to give him.
“Tell me about the book.” Cannon leaned against her door, facing the hallway.
She started with the characters, an old man and distant niece, gave the setting, the plot, going on and on. Cannon never wanted her to stop.
When she got to the end of her description, saying something about the cousins who hated the girl, Cannon asked, “Why?”
Again she started into more of the story, and talked for a couple minutes, then stopped suddenly. “That’s it. It’s their motivation. How did I not see that? Cannon, you are a genius! I could kiss you right now.”
That sounded so tempting to Cannon, but he couldn’t do it under the circumstances. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t look at her upward-turned lips and imagine what it would be like to kiss them. If her smile could inspire him to cross oceans, what would that kiss do for him?
“The smile was probably enough inspiration, but I’ll take a rain check on the kiss.” He was rewarded with another brilliant smile. He flushed and felt like his collar was too tight. Running his hand along the side of his hair he realized he still had the Bluetooth speaker in so he popped it out and tossed it back into his roomette.
“Were you listening to something?” she asked.
“Yeah. You know Jim Butcher?”
“Of course,” said Daisy. “Harry Dresden Files?”
“Yeah, book seven.” He didn’t like looming over her in the hallway so he sat Indian-style on the floor of the hallway with his back facing the door of Pasha’s suite. As quietly as they were talking, he was certain it wouldn’t disturb Pasha or Miss Dee since they slept with a white-noise maker. “What else do you like to read?”
“I’m pretty wide read, but I do love anything with romance. Some of my favorites are Checketts, Hart, Youngblood, Krey.”
“I have to admit,” said Cannon, “I don’t have a whole lot of experience with that.” The genre or the real thing.
“What is it about Harry Dresden?” she asked. “I don’t see you just blowing through it like pulp fiction.”
“You’re right,” he said, amazed that she’d picked up on that. “He’s one of my fictional heroes.”
“Why?”
“He’s just a normal guy, other than the fact that he’s a wizard living in Chicago. He’s so resourceful, and even though his weapons are a lot different than mine, since I don’t know magic, he’s always using something unexpected to overcome insurmountable odds. Plus, Harry’s never corrupted by money or power, but always protects weaker people and women, no matter the cost.”
Daisy had come forward on her seat, studying him. “That’s the important part, isn’t it? That last part.”
How did she keep seeing do deeply into him? She was right, though. He couldn’t deny it. “Yeah, that’s why he’s one of my heroes.” He looked up at the ceiling of the train, trying to decide how much to tell her. If he didn’t tell her, she’d probably just figure it out. “I was reading about a couple other heroes earlier: John the Baptist and Peter. There’s a balance to my life I think I’ve been trying to figure out for a long time. It’s the balance of being worthy to be a man of God, but also strong enough to protect the weak at any cost, because I couldn’t be the man I am today without going through what I’ve gone through in my life. It feels kind of like a paradox.”
She waited for a second to make sure he was finished. Cannon could not believe he was opening up to her like this again. He didn’t talk about this to anyone.
Daisy said, “It’s what you told me last time we talked here. A battle between darkness and light.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve thought about that,” she said. “How can you fight the darkness, but remain in the light?”
“Yes!” he exclaimed quietly, coming up onto his knees. She actually understood. It was like a miracle and he wanted to complete the connection by taking her hands, pulling her in, and getting that kiss she’d promised. But this wasn’t the time or place.
He did have to see her again, and he wasn’t going to let her slip away like last time. This was an area he wasn’t familiar with, and instead of proceeding with caution to avoid any pitfall, he just plunged ahead.
“Will you go out to dinner with me?”
Her mouth fell open, but she didn’t speak. Her mouth twisted as she considered him.
“A date?”
“Yeah, a date?” Why was she hesitating? Had he picked up the wrong signals? He was suddenly very alert to their environment, since suddenly the world was askew.
“I … want to, but I’m a little nervous.”
“Why? I can line up a double date if being on a date with a guy you barely know makes you nervous. Or you can bring a couple friends. Or we could each bring a friend and make them go blind, or meet in a public place. Zane would be perfect. He looks like Thor, so if you’ve got a friend who’s into superhero types—” He took a breath. “I’ll stop rambling now.” Hopefully Daisy wasn’t into superheroes because Cannon couldn’t take it if she started dating Blayze.
Daisy chuckled and said, “I’m not scared of anything like that.” She paused again, studying his face with those incredible blue eyes. Even with her face backlit, he could see them glimmering.
“What’s going through your mind?” he asked.
She let out a breath, “Oh, just trying to decide if I want to admit my insecurities to you.”
“After all I’ve dumped in your lap about my darkness? Besides, I’ve already plunged into treacherous waters by asking you out,” he admitted. “I’m really inexperienced at it.”
The way her eyebrows went up made it clear she was surprised. “Okay, then I’ll be honest with you.” With the slightest defiant tilt to her chin, she said, “I don’t want you to be distracted.”
Cannon was no expert on psychology and reading body language—but he’d had enough training crammed into him to know instinctively that what she said was important to her. He’d even go so far as to say all-important.
“You don’t want me to be distracted?”
“That’s right,” she said. “If we go out, I want to be your date. I want to know I will be more important than everything else around you.”
Oh, now he got it. She didn’t like how he was so focused on security on the train, that they couldn’t get close.
As if on cue, and with horrible timing, another set of footsteps started from the stairwell.
Cannon rose to his feet, and before the person made it to the bottom of the steps, he set his eyes firmly on hers and said, “I promise I will be all yours.”
And just like that he had to look away from her again, right after promising she’d have his attention. From the corner of his eye he saw her scowl and retreat into the room.
That move, that p
romise, could have been smoother. His attention was definitely divided with her on the train, but his loyalties were clear. Pasha was the only thing that mattered. If he could get Daisy on a date, he could prove how much he cared about her and only her.
The guy finished in the bathroom and went back upstairs, but Daisy was already standing to go. She held out a business card and he saw a phone number on it.
“I smell coffee,” she said. “You need a refill?”
“Got one right before you came,” he said. “But I don’t need it.”
“No?”
Cannon shook his head. “I got your smile, remember?”
That earned him another smile, sending electricity coursing through his body.
“Goodnight,” she said, turning to leave.
“Goodnight,” he said, savoring the intimacy this time.
At the stairwell, she paused and turned her head back over her shoulder. Cannon winked, and she disappeared.
A date. They were going on a real date. And he could prove to her that he could put her first.
Cannon couldn’t remember ever being this excited for a mission.
Chapter
Red flag! Red flag! Red flag! Not two seconds after promising to give her all his attention on their future date, she was all but ignored.
Was there some threat she couldn’t see? Were their lives in danger? Was she overreacting because her made-up boyfriend was doing his job?
Yes to that last one. The other questions she couldn’t answer. But she’d give him a chance on a date when he wouldn’t have an excuse. And if she didn’t get his attention at that point, she could walk away. Not only could she walk away, she would walk away. She wouldn’t hang around for three years with hopes of the future.
She heard steps in the hallway and peeked around the corner to see a middle-aged man duck into the restroom. Cannon must have sensed him coming. Some sort of Spidey-sense or something. With his attention divided—no that was the wrong word—with his attention elsewhere, she didn’t want to talk to him.
True, he’d done the exact same thing before when someone appeared—basically prepared for a fight. It was just the timing that made her feel like she had a pit sitting in her stomach.
Daisy didn’t know what she’d say once they were alone again. With the date planned it was almost as if she didn’t want to get all the talking done. There were still a million things she wanted to know about him, and she really doubted she could get sick of learning more about him, but now that the date was set, any more conversation felt premature.
Reluctantly, she stood, but waited until the gentleman had come out of the restroom and returned to the upper level so she knew he was paying attention to her. She gave him her card so he could get in touch with her and offered to get him some coffee.
He told her he didn’t need it because, “I got your smile, remember?”
She felt relief that her silly, confident plan had worked on him, but she also felt a rush of pleasure that he liked her smile.
All she could say was, “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” he told her in a smoldering voice, and she felt it all the way down to her toes.
As she was about to head up the stairs, she glanced back and caught a wink.
Daisy had to pinch herself to keep from fading into fantasy land. She’d already gone mentally AWOL on him once this conversation.
As she made it upstairs and back to her car, she thought about their conversations, laughing when she thought about him rambling and all his ideas to make the date safe for her. He was so cute and confident and strong and somehow nervous about asking her out.
Inside her room, Daisy did an ungraceful spin, giggling and putting a hand to her chest. She wanted to sing, but it was much too late. His handsome face was front and center in her mind and she loved it. Never in a million years did she think she’d be twirling and giggling on a train, but Cannon was worth it with his James Bond looks, and mysterious, brooding dark past, and the intensity he body-guarded with.
She let out a wistful sigh … admitting to herself that she really did like him and if things didn’t go well on the date, it could be bad. But in the meantime she’d keep hoping this fake boyfriend could turn into something real.
Chapter
Daisy waited in the lobby of Outback Steakhouse two days after the train arrived in L.A. She was fifteen minutes early and couldn’t wait to discover what she would find in her maybe boyfriend without all the distractions.
They hadn’t driven together because Daisy had a thing about getting in a guy’s car on a first date, even though it wasn’t technically their first time being together. If she still felt okay with him after their date, she’d get a ride home with him. Besides she was only a few blocks from home and her roommate had been heading out anyway.
With ten minutes left before the time they’d planned to meet, Cannon walked in the door.
All of a sudden Daisy’s heart was beating a thousand times a minute and she could feel her eyes go all dreamy.
When the door opened, a marble statue in a sweater walked in. Only a Renaissance sculptor could craft facial features so defined and manly…
Daisy pinched her thigh as she stood up. She expected she’d be using that trick around Cannon a lot to stay in the here and now.
Her hopefully boyfriend was wearing a gray sweater over some loose fit jeans. He was clean shaven, as usual, and his hair was styled slightly messy, taunting her to run her fingers through it. And those emerald eyes. She had to pinch herself again. Daisy was glad she’d worn a dress—a teal and brown herringbone maxi—because she felt like her and Cannon just went well together.
“You look amazing,” said Cannon, opening his arms and bringing her in for a hug. She gladly reciprocated.
When my arms touched his back, it was like hugging a demi-god. Strength poured from him in waves and I had to hold on to keep from being washed away. But in his power there was gentleness and joy, and he held me like a precious gem.
When he released her, Daisy stepped back and looked up into his eyes again. It was every bit as magical as her fantasy had been. With Cannon, she didn’t need to go away to another world, because what could be better than the perfect mix of strength and softness she got with him?
From the moment he walked in, his eyes hadn’t gone anywhere but to her. Her boyfriend was back. And where had that sense of strength come from? It wasn’t his muscles, wait, it was his muscles, but it was more. She could sense inner strength as if he had a lion’s heart beating in his chest.
“Mind switch?” he asked with that amused smile.
Daisy blushed, and rolled her eyes in embarrassment, but deep down she loved that he could recognize it, even if he didn’t know exactly what was going on.
Cannon broke the connection momentarily to check in with the hostess, who had their table ready and showed them back. A booth would have been more intimate for the date, but at least the table gave them more chances for distractions. TVs blared in every direction, some men at the nearby bar were loudly into a game, most of the other tables were full, and servers walked by constantly.
“I hope Outback is okay?” he said, after pulling her chair out for her. “I saw you eat salmon and steak on the train, plus there’s a bar here and I didn’t know if you were a drinker or not.”
“Sometimes,” she said, reveling a little in his awkwardness. “Not so much on first dates.” With all the distractions, still, Cannon seemed to notice only her and it was clear he was out of his element in the dating world. He made the most irresistible fish out of water she’d ever seen, and yet he still wore that smile like everything was right in the world.
“Same here,” he said. “I’ll admit I’ve got some nerves running sharp, but it wouldn’t be worth dulling them at the risk of drowning any of my common sense.”
Daisy took his hand and felt the tension ease out. Her own body came alive at his touch.
He let out a breath. “Thanks.”
; “What would you tell Pasha if she was nervous about a new situation?”
“That girl?” He chuffed. “She eats new situations for breakfast.”
“Okay what if she was scared? All little girls get scared sometimes.”
“Scared?” He said the word like it was new to him. “I’m not scared. But if Pasha was, I’d sing her a song.”
Daisy was dying to hear him sing. “Why?” she asked.
“To take her mind off whatever was bugging her. To let her know someone had her back.”
That was so precious, but before she could respond, the server walked up. She was a cute blonde who could have passed for Daisy’s younger, cuter, perkier sister. She was wearing a button-down shirt, that was not only too tight for her, but also buttoned down at least one button more than Daisy would be comfortable with. Another great test of his attention to Daisy. She had to squeeze Cannon’s hand to get him to even notice someone had come up to their table. Wow. Her new boyfriend was seriously into her.
They both ordered water, but asked the server to give them a few minutes since neither of them had picked up a menu. Again, his eyes never left Daisy’s as the waitress swayed away from them.
They took a minute to figure out what they wanted, then he said, “Tell me about yourself.”
“Me? You already know my life story thanks to your little interviewer. The only thing I know about you is that your only hobby is to sit in a room and look around.”
He laughed, that magical and genuine movement. Daisy started to float away to her fantasy land but pinched herself in time.
“She’s something else, isn’t she? What do you want to know about Cannon Culver?”
“Your name is an oxymoron,” she told him.
“Oxymoron,” he said slowly, and she could see the files opening and closing in his mind as he searched for the literary definition.
“It’s a phrase that contradicts itself,” she said. “Like little giant, or the living dead. Culver means dove, which is the sign of peace. So basically your name is Big Gun Peace.”
His eyebrows went up. “The guys in my platoon call me Big Gun, and I do love the idea of a forceful and fierce path to peace. I think you’re the first person to ever figure that out about my name, though. I was like 25 when I realized it.”
The Peaceful Warrior: Navy SEAL Romance Page 7
