Page 52 of Her Dirty Defender

“Maybe.”

“Are you checking up on me?”

Yes. Always.

She steps closer, close enough that I can smell engine grease and the hint of sweetness that's uniquely her. “You going to tell me what's got you prowling around in the dark?”

“You should stay at the ranch tonight.”

She lifts an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Something’s come up. I don’t have all the pieces yet, but I will once I meet with my contact. I’ll be back by morning. Please… don’t be alone tonight.”

She studies me. “Does this have something to do with the sabotage?”

“It’s connected to something bigger,” I say carefully. “But I won’t know how deep it runs until I get my hands on the files.”

Her brow furrows. “And you’re going after them now? Tonight?”

“I have to. My contact found things no one else has been able to dig up. It’s not something he’s willing to send over a wire.”

Her expression sharpens with understanding. “So he wants you to come in person.”

I nod. “I’ll be gone most of the night.”

She crosses her arms tighter. “And you want me to hide at the ranch while you go charging off?”

“I want you with people I trust,” I say. “Angus is there. Henry and Tom, too. You won’t be alone.”

“You think I can’t take care of myself?”

“No,” I say softly. “I think you shouldn’t have to.”

Her gaze catches on mine. Flickers. Softens. “You’re serious about this.”

“As a heart attack.”

She exhales slowly, searching my face for the thing I’m not saying.

“I trust you,” she says finally. “But you better promise me you’re coming back and that you’ll tell me everything.”

That lands somewhere deep in my chest.

I step forward, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek. “I’m coming back, George. And I promise.”

She nods, but her voice is rough when she answers. “Then go get what you need.”

I press a kiss to her forehead, lingering for a second too long before I turn to leave because if I stay any longer, I won’t go at all.

This isn’t about a favor for a friend anymore. Hasn’t been for a while. It’s about a future. Hers and mine.

George doesn’t have time to wait for her father to take action.

So I’ll do what I was trained to do: bypass the noise. Neutralize the threat.

Wade won’t see me coming. And when he does, it’ll be too late.

Because if there’s one thing being a SEAL taught me, it’s how to hunt in the dark.

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