Page 49 of Her Delta Force Protector

Harper stretched her arms above her head as she opened her eyes. She’d slept better than she had in months. But wait... She stared up at a ceiling fan. This wasn’t her room. She sat straight up and looked around. At seeing the log walls, she blew out a relieved breath. She was at Kade’s cabin. In his bed.

The previous night came back to her, and the last thing she remembered was climbing into his bed while she waited for him to join her. The covers on the other side of the bed were undisturbed, and she frowned. He hadn’t slept in here.

She hadn’t brought clothes to put on into his room because she wasn’t expecting to need any. Since he hadn’t joined her and she didn’t know why, she didn’t want to go from his room to the second bedroom naked. His closet door was open, so she slid out of bed, grabbed a blue-and-black flannel shirt, and put it on. Since it fit him, it almost reached her knees.

Somewhat dressed, she went looking for Kade and found him on the sofa, sitting up with his bare feet on the floor, his head resting on the back, and asleep. The TV was on with the sound muted, and she picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned it off. Duke was snoozing next to him, and when she turned off the TV, he lifted his head, stretched his mouth in a wide yawn, then went back to sleep.

Why had Kade stayed out here? Had something happened during the night? He had on sweatpants and a long-sleeve Henley, and there was no getting around it, the man was mouthwateringly hot. Her gaze roamed over his face. He wasn’t a classically handsome man or beautiful like some men were. His facial features were strong and rugged, the bump on his nose adding character to an already interesting face.

Both his brothers were handsomer if you compared their features one by one to Kade’s, but Kade did it for her. He was also the biggest of the brothers, more muscled, too. He was the one who could clear a path through a crowd with just an intimidating look. He was the one she wanted.

Even in sleep, he didn’t look peaceful, and she wanted to press her fingers to his face and smooth those worry lines. This was a man who’d lived on the edge, courting death for ten years, and when he should be walking away from danger and finally coming home to a safe life, she’d dumped more danger in his lap.

“Why are you staring at me?”

She jumped back. How did he know? His eyes were closed. “Why are you sleeping out here?”

“Not sleeping.” He opened his eyes, and his gaze roamed over her, stopping on her bare legs, then he lazily perused his way back up her body. He smiled. “You’re wearing my shirt.”

“Aren’t you the observant one? I waited for you.”

His eyes shuttered, and he sighed. “We need to talk, but coffee first.”

“I hate it when people say they need to talk. It’s never good. You make the coffee, and I’ll let Duke out,” she said when Duke jumped off the sofa and scratched on the sliding door.

“On it, but you’ll have to take him out on his leash, or he’ll head straight for the lake. And the temperature dropped, so you might want to put pants and shoes on so you don’t freeze.”

“Fine, you take him out.”

He winked as he walked by her, and she realized she’d just been tricked into doing what he wanted. She scowled at his retreating back.

When he returned from the bedroom with sneakers on, he had his gun in his hand. “I’m sure there’s no one around, but I don’t want you outside by yourself. Why don’t you get dressed, and I’ll made us coffee when I come back in?”

She dressed in a long-sleeve T-shirt and jeans, and because she liked his flannel shirt, she put it back on. She took the time to brush her teeth and hair and moisturize her face, and when she went to the kitchen, the coffee was brewing and Kade was putting down a bowl of food for Duke.

“Sleep okay?” Kade asked.

“Yep.” She’d never offered herself up before for a fling, and his rejection hurt.

He darted a glance at her terse answer, then he sighed. “You’re mad.”

“A little, but even more, I’m confused.”

“You have a right to be.” He poured coffee into two mugs, then added cream and sugar just the way she liked it. He drank his coffee black. “It’s too cold this morning to sit outside, so let’s take these to the living room, and I’ll start a fire.”

She settled on the corner of the sofa and tucked her legs under her. He handed her one of the mugs, set his on the coffee table, and then went to the fireplace. There was something about a man building a fire that was...well, manly. Or maybe it was just the particular man doing it that had her wanting to sigh into her coffee.

Once he had the fire blazing to his satisfaction, he sat at the other end of the sofa. “About last night.” He toed off his sneakers, shifted to face her, and put one foot on the cushion. He stared into his coffee for a moment before meeting her eyes. “I want you, Harper, like I’ve never wanted a woman before. Don’t doubt that.”

“So, the problem is?”

“Regrets. I don’t want either one of us to have them, and if we do this friends-with-benefits thing, I think we might have them.”

“I told you I wouldn’t have any. I agreed to your rules.”

“That’s the thing, though. Two people who are attracted to each other shouldn’t have to set out rules to be together.”

“Okay. No rules then.” Was she begging? It sounded a lot like she was, and she didn’t like herself so much for that. She was attracted to him—always had been—more than any guy she’d dated, even more than her one serious boyfriend, but she had her pride. “You know what, forget it. I can’t handle the way you run hot and cold.”

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