Page 78 of Under Pressure

“She broke the code”—his face darkened—“so I dealt with her.”

“The code?”

“SEAL code. Yeah, she was once on my team—a supporter in the shadows. She got roped into the same bullshit as me. I did everything I could to set her on the right path, use that power for good, but here we are.”

Delta paused, as if reading her mind. He looked her up and down with exaggerated slowness, so damn cool and collected. In that moment, Kendra stopped shifting on her feet. In the reflection of his dark eyes, she recognized her own stubbornness, her own guardedness.

Even though he was there, standing in front of her. He’d stayed.

“I just don’t understand.” Her voice grew smaller as she looked up at his great height.

“What don’t you understand?”

“You,” she said, her mind buzzing. “And why you are still here.”

He didn’t reply, simply assessing her in silence. It suddenly felt hotter in her house, and she found herself fanning open the top of her robe an inch or two for air.

When he was good and ready, he conceded, “I dropped my glove on purpose, you know.”

“On purpose?” she questioned. “But you took it back? And you were so angry when Warren told me?”

He nodded. “Part of me needed you to know the truth—and the other part of me hated that.”

She was stunned at his confession, hearing unadulterated honesty pouring from his mouth for the first time. Who is this man?

“I’ve been so angry for a long time, but something lifted when I accepted that you really knew and there was no turning back,” he admitted, stunning her even further. “I don’t want secrets between us anymore.”

The change in his tone struck her, making her tilt her head as she studied him.

“Then, what do you want?”

“I want to meet my son,” he responded, a thickness in his voice. “Now.”

She fell back a step, catching herself against the wall behind her, a little scared and very stunned at the direction the conversation was going. He followed, his once-brown eyes now nearly black—driven and full of purpose. This was a moment she’d worried about.

“Why now?” she asked.

“I need to protect you, Kendra. I need to protect both of you—and I’ll do whatever you want, if you let me stay.”

He pressed his hand against the wall beside her, leaning down mere inches from her face. A darkness crossed his face as he pushed his body against hers. The heat coming off his strong, wide chest filled her senses—that same delicious scent she’d gotten used to. Goosebumps flushed up her back as he stared down at her, locking on her, refusing to budge. He was saying things she’d never thought she’d hear him say.

“There’s something different about you,” she breathed out, the realization dawning.

“I’m trying to change.”

“Why?”

“Because, I’ve realized”—he trailed his gaze up and down her lips—“realized that I’m in love with you.”

Chapter Thirty-One

Delta understood that his words had sucked the life from her. Hell, they’d had the same effect on him.

She parted her lips as she breathed out what little air probably was in her lungs. Looming over her, trapping her against the wall, he grew more intense, more serious. He’d just admitted the painful truth to her. He was in love with her, not that he knew what to do with that information. He dropped his head like he was ready to take her mouth, the only thing he knew how to do.

“You’ve always meant something to me,” he said.

He reached his hand to the back of her head, angling her just right. As she bit her lip below him, he could feel her anxiety. It was going to be her life—their life. He tilted her chin up to him, feeling ready as hell to do a lot more than just kiss her.

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