Page 21 of Shades of You

“Thank you for dinner,” I said softly, my gratitude genuine but also tinged with something deeper, something akin to yearning.

“You’re welcome. It’s nice having company.”

There it was again—that electric charge, the pull that neither of us seemed willing to acknowledge fully. Then Pedro meowed loudly, breaking the spell as only a pet can.

“Looks like someone’s jealous.” I laughed and reached down to scratch behind his ears, grateful for the distraction.

“Can’t blame him,” Hunter quipped, a smile playing on his lips as he collected the dishes. “I make a pretty good chicken.”

“Undoubtedly,” I agreed, standing up to help with the cleanup. But as I brushed past him, our arms touched, and the simple contact sent an electric jolt through me.

This was dangerous territory, a path leading to forbidden pleasures and inevitable complications. And yet, as I stared at that broad back as he cleared the table, I wondered if it was already too late to turn back.

Chapter Ten

Hunter

The next morning,I sat downstairs at our group of desks with the scent of fresh coffee in the air. I used my office when I needed solitude, but I liked being in the middle of the space. In the thick of things. Across from me, Brenna leaned against a metal bookshelf with arms folded, her eyes clouded with concern that mirrored the morning fog drifting in from the shore.

“Garrett will stake out your shop today,” I said, and my friend nodded.

“How am I supposed to operate my business with a bodyguard around?”

“I’ll stay in my car,” Garrett replied, leaning back in his chair with an easy confidence that came from years of military discipline. “I’ve already found a spot that will give me a view of both the front and the back. No one will get in who shouldn’t.”

She pressed her lips together, then nodded slowly. “That works, I guess. Thanks.” The tension about Knox’swhereabouts was a shadow clinging to the corners of the room.

“I’m hoping to hear back from some of my sources today or tomorrow,” I said. “Then I’ll have some more places I can check out.”

She shook her head, a loose curl falling across her forehead. I wanted to get up and brush it back. “And what if you can’t find him?”

“Hey,” I said softly, finally reaching out to gently nudge her forearm and doing my best to ignore the ball of unease in my gut. That craving need to protect her. “People don’t usually disappear into thin air. Give me a couple of days.”

Brenna offered me a brief nod, then turned toward the stairs. “I’ll get my things and be down in a few minutes.”

Her frame was stiff and halting as she left—worried. I hated seeing her move like that, and it only made me more determined to find the son of a bitch.

“What’s going on between you two?”

Garrett’s voice snapped my head around. “Nothing.”

He lifted a brow, a smirk rising. “Your eyes follow her everywhere. That’s not nothing.”

I scowled, pissed I wasn’t doing a better job of hiding my feelings. “She’s an old friend, okay? I’m worried about her. And shouldn’t you be getting ready too?”

Rolling his eyes, Garrett pushed to his feet. “Fine. Keep your secrets.”

I didn’t reply as he moved to the back of the room, where we each had generous-sized lockers to hold our belongings and supplies. After stuffing what he needed into a bag, he shut his locker. “Enjoy your morning out at Calypso Key.”

“I will.”

I hoped. But his comment brought back the earlierconversation we’d had with Myles before our day shifts started and Myles went home for rack time. We all agreed on what needed to be done at the resort, security-wise. Now I had to convince my family.

Brenna stepped softly down the stairs, a backpack slung over one shoulder. “Let’s go, Garrett.” She caught my glance, and a silent exchange passed between us, a flicker of something deeper than concern for Knox or the day’s tasks. Or was that just wishful thinking on my part?

“See you tonight,” I told her.

The door clicked shut behind Brenna and Garrett, leaving an empty silence. The air was laced with a subtle, floral scent I tried not to notice. I paced back to the staircase, each step heavy with thoughts I shouldn’t be entertaining. Upstairs, my apartment was quiet too.

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