by Marnee Blake
There was nothing to do except take the bottle. Heidi took an obligatory drink under Maisie’s watchful eye. When her friend scowled, she took a few more sips.
“Thank you. I feel better already.” She offered her best convincing smile and got a satisfied grunt in return.
“Good, then.” To Dak, Maisie instructed, “Make sure she sits here for a few more minutes, to be sure. I need to get back to the counter.” Her tone said that she was assigning Dak responsibility here and she wouldn’t take well to him shirking his duties. It would have irritated Heidi’s independent sensibilities if she didn’t find it so endearing.
“I told you, I’m fine,” Heidi grumbled to him before pinching her lips closed. There was no use arguing with Maisie.
As if he could read her mind, Dak smiled, jerking a thumb at Maisie as she retreated. “Doctor’s orders.”
She rolled her eyes and he chuckled. She turned the bottle of juice in her hand, glancing up. “She’s great, though.”
“I know. I thought you guys might get along.” He’d made it sound like a compliment, so she took it as one.
They lapsed into silence. Finally, she leaned back. “Really. I mean it. Thank you.”
“For what?” He pulled a stool from under the desk, and wheeled it closer.
“You brought me here, to Maisie’s, when I blacked out.” That didn’t cover it, though. It wasn’t only about him bringing her there. He’d singled her out, stayed with her, while she was hurt. A paramedic would have helped her. One had been crouched beside her when she passed out. He would have helped, but instead, Dak had taken it on himself to assist and he didn’t have to.
She couldn’t stop thinking about the look on his face before she passed out. Full of concern and even a little fear. Maybe she had imagined it, but that hadn’t only been the fear of a firefighter doing his job. He had been worried about her.
He wouldn’t understand, but that? It meant the world to her. After everything she’d been through, that was the part of what he’d done that reached inside and softened her.
“No problem.” Confusion painted his features. “I couldn’t exactly leave you there, passed out in the middle of the parking lot, now could I?”
He grinned, but she couldn’t bring herself to grin back. Or if she did, it would probably look sick. Because being left alone in an emergency was the stuff of her nightmares.
And her memories.
“Yeah. They take away your Superman badge for that.” She glanced away and got to her feet. “Seriously, though, I’m fine. I just got a little overwhelmed. It’s time I hit the road.”
“Not so fast.” Dak snagged her sleeve, stopping her. “I’m driving you home.”
This close, she could see every beautiful variation in his whiskey-colored eyes. As her forearm brushed against his, heat rolled through her. Her fingers twitched, aching to touch him. The combination of his big warm body, the heat in his eyes, and the recent memory of being held against him, it all swirled low in her belly, coaxing her to lean closer, into his arms. Her breath caught, and she bit her lower lip, her gaze dropping to his mouth.
To his full lips.
What would they taste like?
As that question danced through her mind, she jerked her gaze away and back to his eyes. Which looked confused, surprised even.
“Oh, um, excuse me.” She shifted back from him, desperate to put some much-needed breathing room between them. “You don’t have to do that. I can drive myself.” Hell, not only could she, but she definitely should. Being in a cramped car right now was not a good idea. Unless she wanted to throw herself into his lap. Which she didn’t.
Did she?
What the hell was happening to her? She’d already told herself that she couldn’t afford to get involved with him. This man was the perfect combination of hot, heroic, and protective.
Her own personal kryptonite.
She needed to get out of this tiny office. Now.
His scowl deepened. “I know you don’t know me, but there is nothing in my makeup that would allow me to leave you to drive yourself home right now.”
As irritation hit her, so did relief.
This was exactly what she needed, some high-handedness. When he was like this, she could be angry. If she was angry, she could focus on that, instead of her wild attraction to him. “You aren’t the boss of me.”
“How old are we?” He folded his arms over his chest, and then he sighed. “Listen, you’re right. I can’t force you. But I’m asking you, please? Will you allow me to drive you home?”
She wanted to hold on to her frustration, desperate for any shield. But his sincerity was completely disarming. She swallowed, nodding. “Yes. I would love a ride.”
* * * *
They didn’t talk much during the drive to her condo in Bend except for her to give him directions. He wasn’t sure why they were acting so formal, but he suspected it had something to do with the tension in Maisie’s office earlier.
Because that awareness had returned full force as soon as they were together in the tight cab of his truck.
He’d barely shifted into park before she threw open her door and stepped out on the curb. Escaping.
“Thank you so much for driving me,” she said casually. “It was really nice of you.”
She planned to run away. Well, too bad.
He twisted the ignition, turning the engine off, and reached for the door handle. Her eyes widened. “No, no. You don’t have to—”
“Stop.” He shot her a glare. “It’s like you’re not used to simple gentlemanly things. Listen, I’m not the kind of guy to let a girl walk to her door by herself.” Christ. The guys she was used to mustn’t have been raised right. His parents hadn’t been perfect, but both of them had been sticklers about manners.
If he was an old-fashioned relic, so be it.
Her mouth snapped shut, her eyes widening. Then fire lit in her eyes.
He sighed. That had sounded surly. Maybe it was his argument with his brother or maybe it was the unspoken sexual tension getting to him, but either way she didn’t deserve him snapping at her.
In the streetlight, her cheeks had flushed. The heightened color made her even more beautiful. “Listen, pal, you don’t get to—”
“You’re right. I don’t get to be a grumpy asshole,” he said, stopping what would likely have been a spectacular tirade, if the glare on her face was any indication. “I’m sorry.”
She mustn’t have been expecting his quick apology. Well, sure, some guys were stubborn for the sake of being stubborn, but that wasn’t who he was. If he made a mistake he owned up to it. Was easier that way.
He used the resulting silence to get out and join her on the sidewalk. Together, they headed toward her building. He followed her up the few stairs and waited while she fished her keys out of her bag. When she had them in hand, she rubbed them, not meeting his eyes. “I’m not.”
“Not what?”
“Not used to simple gentlemanly things.” She tilted her head up, and the streetlight caught her gorgeous eyes, making them luminous. The words hit him in the middle of his chest.
The vulnerability on her face, he’d caught glimpses of it before. Most of the time, she exuded confidence. He got the impression that her strength had been hard fought. He doubted she let many people see this soft place. That she’d allowed him to see it touched him. He flexed his hands, wanting to reach for her. But he didn’t. After the way she shut him down yesterday, he was pretty sure she’d balk. So he stayed still.
The night was quiet around them, the only sound from the jingling of her keys. Her skin looked soft, glowing in the near darkness.
The longer they stood like that, close but not moving, the more he needed to touch her, to get under her skin somehow.
Because she was certainly under his.
Tes
ting the waters, he shifted a step toward her. When she didn’t back away, only tilted her head up, some primal force inside him howled in victory. He dropped his chin, closing the distance even farther.
“And do you like them?” he asked, his voice husky, but he refused to hide the desire racing through his veins.
“Like what?” she asked on a breathy whisper.
“Gentlemanly things.”
“I…” Her eyes searched his, but she didn’t continue.
He waited. He was a patient man, and right now he was fine dragging out the anticipation.
When her attention dropped to his mouth again, he grinned. “Heidi.”
“Yes?” she whispered back, still staring at his lips.
“If you keep looking at my mouth like that, I’m going to think that you want me to kiss you.”
Her eyes flared, her gaze darting back to meet his. “What? I mean—no. Of course not.”
Her response was too quick to be believable. Chuckling, he stepped back and down a step, giving her space. He had no intention of pushing her any further. “Right. Of course not.”
Tucking a hand in his pocket, he touched his eyebrow with the other in a mock salute. “Good night.”
It was probably for the best. He shouldn’t kiss her, not with everything going on with his family, with all the things he was leaving out, and all the secrets he was sure she’d find out about his father. Yeah, definitely for the best.
He started his walk back to the car when he heard her call him. As he turned back, it was just in time to catch her against him as she covered his lips with hers.
She tasted like coffee and something sweet, and he dipped his tongue in, trying to figure it out. She was eager and hungry, going too fast, so he ran his hand along her spine and she sighed, calming and melting against him.
Petite and compact with curves in all the right spots, she was a soft presence in his arms. He buried his hand in the hair at the nape of her neck to angle her mouth for better accessibility.
She was magnificent. He wasn’t sure if he would ever get enough of her mouth.
It was over too soon. When she pulled back, he let her break the contact even as he cradled her shoulders in his hands, pressing his fingertips into the muscles there.
Even in the darkness, he could see the color heightened on her cheeks. His girl was embarrassed. He found that intensely adorable, but he kept the observation to himself. Heidi Sinclair, with all her bravado, would not appreciate being called adorable.
He pressed another soft kiss to her cheek before dropping his hands. Grasping her hand, he tucked it into the crease of his elbow and escorted her back to her door. Her keys were on the steps, as if she dropped them in her hurry to get to him. The thought made him smile as he stooped to retrieve them.
She took them from him, rifling through with shaky hands until she found her house key and unlocked the door. As she pushed it open, she paused. “Dak?”
“Yeah?” He couldn’t help smiling at her.
“I know I said I couldn’t go out with you. But I think I could.” She glanced up at him, her eyes wide in the streetlight. “I mean, if you want to. I guess what I’m saying is, would you—”
“I would love to take you out.” As if there was any question.
Her lips spread into a wide grin. “Good. I mean, great. How about tomorrow night?”
“I’m supposed to play pool with my friend Lance.” Inspiration struck. “Come with me?”
He watched as she weighed the invitation. It wasn’t exactly a date, but maybe that was a good thing. She’d obviously assigned too much to the idea of spending time one on one. Maybe this would be a better fit. He’d still get to spend time with her, but without the pressure.
“Pool?” Her brow creased before she nodded. “Sure. Yeah. That’s good.”
He couldn’t get enough of her and her awkward cuteness. “Goodnight, Heidi. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She waved. “Right. Good night, Dak.”
This time, he jogged back to his truck. As he was pulling away, though, he was pleased to see that she was waiting there, watching him go.
Chapter 6
As Heidi paced in front of her door the next morning, waiting for Dak to pick her up to take her back to the reservation to get her car and meet Jesse Broadridge, she berated her stupidity.
Asking him out had been the dumbest idea she’d had in a long time. Then again, that hadn’t been her most regrettable decision yesterday. That kiss definitely ranked higher.
Even thinking about it sent heat flooding her face. Stupid, stupid.
She wasn’t ready to start anything with him. With anyone. Staying away from him would be the right decision. Why had she put herself in this situation?
If she spent time with him, she was only going to like him more. She could already see it playing out. It was setting herself up for heartache.
Apparently she hadn’t been through enough yet.
She paused, sighing. Wasn’t that the real issue? Every fiber of her wanted to go out with Dak. It had been so long since she’d spent any quality time with a man she found attractive, and she missed it.
Not that it was only that. Dak wasn’t just any man. He understood her somehow, in a way that she couldn’t resist. It wasn’t in her DNA to be lonely and a weak part of her was reaching out, searching for that connection.
But, did she really think she should do this?
It was as if every milestone she had passed since her divorce and move to Oregon meant nothing. She had convinced herself that she was a strong, independent woman. She got this job, had bought her first house alone. Her resolution when she moved was that she wasn’t going to let a man dictate her happiness, ever again.
Yet, one hiking excursion, a trip to a grocery store, and a firefighter doing what he did best—saving people—later and she was ready to break every well-constructed wall she’d built around herself.
She couldn’t afford to trust him. After everything that had happened with Jeff, after she’d recovered from the horrible events that had caused her to lose her baby and almost her life, she’d spent a year licking her wounds. Those months, she hated being weak and swore she’d never feel like that again.
Her body recovered, and with the help of a talented psychologist, she put herself back together. But this? Two days and she threw herself into the arms of someone who could undo all that progress. Tall, handsome? Devoted to saving the world? She’d been down this road before.
And was she ready to take a chance like that? Apparently, her body was. When he’d been standing so close, she’d been desperate for him to kiss her. He hadn’t. Why would he? She’d told him that she wasn’t interested. Why would he sign up for another rejection?
Yet she’d barely paused before running into his arms. And it felt so good, but that was a slippery slope. It was enjoying his kiss now and then coming to depend on him later.
She couldn’t afford that.
She shouldn’t have kissed him.
She definitely should have found another ride back to the reservation this morning. That would have given her more time to figure out how to get out of the date that night—a date she really wanted to go on. Instead, she was forced to pace here, overthinking everything.
Dak’s silver truck pulled up on the street outside, and she grabbed her bag. Only one thing to do now: face this head on. Squaring her shoulders, she locked her door, strode over, and opened the passenger door.
Sliding in, she dropped her bag on the floor and said without preamble, “It was a mistake.”
“Good morning to you, too.” Dak shifted into drive and signaled to pull out.
God, why was she so awkward? “I shouldn’t have kissed you last night. I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not sorry.” He grinned at her as he headed for the main road.
/> She chose to ignore that. “And I was wrong to say we should go out. I mean, I was right the first time, when I said we couldn’t. Because we shouldn’t.”
“Now we’re back to we shouldn’t?”
“I’m sending you mixed messages. And being completely unprofessional. I was serious when I said I can’t date you. And if I can’t date you, I definitely shouldn’t be kissing you.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you think too much?”
More than once. She scowled at him. “I’m serious. Aren’t you even a little frustrated with me?” Most guys wouldn’t take lightly to being jerked around.
He shrugged. “Figure you have your reasons for doing whatever you’re doing. Whatever conflict you’re dealing with is probably more confusing for you than me. Right now, I’m just a guy driving a pretty girl to her coffee date.”
“Don’t call me that.” She clasped her hands in her lap, disconcerted with how this conversation was going.
“What? Confused?”
“No. Pretty.” Because she had always been a sucker for compliments. It’s what had gotten her into trouble in the first place. Jeff, her ex-husband, had been a smooth talker, too. She had made the mistake of thinking words actually meant something.
Time to change the subject. “Do you know this Jesse Broadridge that Maisie’s going to introduce me to?”
He smiled at her, as if he saw through her. “Warm Springs is a small community. Everyone knows everyone. So, yes, I know him. He was a couple years ahead of me in school. Nice guy. I see why Maisie would send you to him.”
“You grew up on the reservation?” Maybe if she focused on asking him questions she could forget about all the chaos inside of her. “When did you move away?”
“I didn’t grow up there. I moved there when I was twelve. And I left when I was seventeen.” He didn’t expand, so she glanced at him. His earlier teasing look was gone.
She didn’t let that deter her. “So you haven’t been home in what, ten years?”
“Little more than that.”
