Page 53 of His Forgotten Colton Fiancee
He pushed back the beer. Water would suffice. “Valeria may mean well, but she’s young and impulsive.”
“She invited me to a family barbecue this Sunday. I told her no, but she was persistent.” Quinn’s gaze looked troubled. “Do you think it’s safe for me to go? Will you go with me?”
West’s heart beat a little faster. Maybe he was a stranger to her, but she trusted him a little. “Of course. I’m sure Brayden will be there, and your cousin Finn, Valeria’s brother.”
They finished dinner andhe insisted on cleaning up, telling her to go into the living room while he made her a cup of tea. She didn’t protest, which indicated she was more exhausted than she’d let on.
When he brought out the tea, he sat next to her on the sofa. Quinn pushed over to the sofa’s opposite side. West clenched his gut. Once, she would have all but been in his lap.
He patted Rex’s head as the dog cameover with a chew toy. West tossed it into the far corner. Rex grabbed it and lay on the floor, happily gnawing.
“This party, there will be a lot of police there?” Quinn asked.
“Maybe a few. Does that bother you?”
“No, it makes me feel safe.” She looked at his belt. “Where’s your gun?”
“Locked in the gun case in your nightstand drawer. You always insist I lock my sidearm when Icome over.”
“I don’t like guns. But knowing you have one makes me feel safe.”
She curled her feet underneath herself, a move he recognized as pure Quinn. Flexible. So flexible. He tried not to think of exactly how flexible she’d been when they’d been naked together...
“I know. I tried to take you to the range to shoot, but you nixed that idea.” West’s mouth quirked. “You told me ifan intruder came in, you’d beat him over the head with your cast-iron skillet.”
“What else do I like to do besides cooking? What did we enjoy together?”
The question startled him. He considered. “There’s things I had yet to discover about you. But you and I enjoyed horseback riding, shopping at flea markets and yard sales, seeing movies. Mostly just talking and relaxing together.”
And sex, yeah, the sex was amazing, but you won’t even sit next to me, as if you’re afraid of me. Damn, that hurts.
“Was I a chatterbox? The type to never stop talking? My cousin Valeria seems that way. She’s sweet, but she goes on and on.”
“Not you. You would have made a terrific bartender.”
She gave him an incredulous look. “Because I know how to pour beer?”
West’s chest tightened.“No. Because you know how to listen. You’re good at it, Quinn. It’s what drew me to you. Rarely do you find someone willing to truly pay attention and listen to you, someone who doesn’t finish your sentences for you because they’re eager to talk about their own troubles.”
Fingers curled tightly around the teacup. Quinn stared into the cup as if trying to divine the future. Or the past. “Idon’t know if I can be that woman again. I don’t know who I am, or what I am, West. All I know is someone nearly killed me. And I need to find myself again, before whoever did this finds me first.”
Couldn’t help it. He pushed over to where she sat, her lower lip wobbling tremulously. Brave Quinn, strong and stubborn.
“I won’t let that happen, honey. I’m doing everything in my power, andso is the entire Red Ridge PD, to find the unsub.”
He slid a hand around her neck, staring into eyes that once sparkled with life and now flashed with fear. Quinn glanced at him, nodded. Then she pulled away.
“I’m really tired. I’m going to bed now. I found a soft mattress topper downstairs, put it by the sofa for you.”
Before vanishing into the hallway, she paused. “Thank you, West.I’m sorry. I know this must be hard on you.”
“Good night,” he said quietly, his body aching to hold her, his mind screaming with the need of it.
Discipline and focus had seen him through the FBI academy. He needed both now.
West waited until hearing her bedroom door close. Then he headed for the bathroom.
He brushed and flossed. West went to throw out the floss and saw a whitestick in the trash. His heart skipped a beat as he fished it out.
Pregnancy test.
Staring at the test’s single line, he sat on the tub’s lip, his head spinning. Quinn must have thought herself pregnant and bought it before the bombing. But it was negative.
They’d been careless, yeah, but the timing had been on their side.
West replaced the test in the trash and splashed cold wateron his face. Then he prepared for bed and collapsed onto the sofa, Rex on a pillow on the floor. Sleep proved elusive. For the longest time he remained awake, staring at the ceiling.
Wondering if he would ever get to share a bed again with Quinn Colton.
