Page 36 of Broken Bodyguard

“You should go.” She looked toward the front door. “You have such a long drive. All I can think about is how you’ll have to drive straight through if I keep you any longer.”

She wasn’t wrong. But I wasn’t quite ready to leave yet, either.

“I don’t need many breaks. I could probably do the whole trip in one go.” But the subtext behind her comment stuck with me. Reminding me of the truth: this was the end. I reached for her hand, giving it a quick squeeze. “What’s the plan, again?”

She offered me a warm smile. “File the report about the car. Meet with the lawyer. Work on the uncontested divorce. Follow up with you about what the doctor said about your knee.”

I fought a grin. “You’re really not gonna let me get away with ignoring it, huh?”

“Nope. So if you want me to follow the plan…then you should follow it, too.”

I nodded, finally realizing that she wasn’t going to drop it. Because she was right…and we both knew it. “Okay. But I want it to go on the record that I’m only doing this because you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

“Noted. And thank you.” Her hazel gaze twinkled as she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to my lips.

When she pulled away, her gaze slid to the front door of her parents’ house. Her mother poked her head out, looking toward the Jeep. Grace hopped at her feet. They were waiting for Maddie. But I wasn’t quite ready to end this.

“I should go,” she started.

I opened my mouth to say something—can we keep talking? What if I flew back to see you after Ecuador? Are you open to long distance with a guy like me?—but none of the words materialized. I had no idea how to launch this conversation.

“Thanks for everything, Troy,” she said, leaning over the console to throw her arms around me. I held her against me, my heart pounding against my ribs. This couldn’t be it.

Yet it had to be.

She slipped out of the Jeep before I could get my brain back to working order. As soon as the door shut behind her, sadness prickled through me, even though I didn’t want to admit it. It was time to leave. My path was set. I needed to accept it and get on with it.

I backed out of the driveway before I could do anything stupid, like walk up to her parents’ house and introduce myself as her boyfriend. I drove to the nearest gas station, my attention wandering as I filled up my tank.

Would one last good-bye hug be so bad?

Leaving now felt wrong somehow. I had a strange feeling in my gut that I didn’t like. One that I knew better than to ignore.

Once I was done pumping gas, I eased back into the driver’s seat and called Maddie. I didn’t care that it might make me look lovesick or smitten or any of those things I didn’t want to be but already knew I was.

“Hello?” I could hear the smile in her voice.

“Hey you. How you doing?”

She laughed softly. “Just fine. Same as when you dropped me off fifteen minutes ago.”

“Yeah, I figured. Just wanted to check in.”

“Are you going to be calling me every fifteen minutes while you’re gone?”

“If you don’t mind,” I teased. “I like to get frequent updates.”

“I suppose I could arrange some sort of live cam…”

I cleared my throat. “After hours style or what?”

“That would be a first for me, but it could be arranged.”

The sexy lilt of her voice had me grinning like a fool. “You sure you don’t want me to come back over there? I could stay a few more days.”

She sighed. “Troy, you need to get to New York and catch your plane. You’re leaving the country tomorrow.”

“You’re right.” I studied the leather braiding of the steering wheel as I fumbled for what my next words would be. “But it feels wrong leaving you and Grace behind.”

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