Page 38 of A Soldier's Destiny
“Sounds good.” It had been heaven having her in his arms, tasting her. He hadn’t lied when he’d said he wanted all of her, but his timing sucked. He should be kicking his own ass. Instead, he perused her collection of movies. He approved of most of her choices, and his first instinct was to pick one of the Die Hard movies but figuring a chick flick would be a better choice, he grabbed the movieLetters to Julietand popped it into the Blu-ray player. The opening credits were playing when Rori walked in with popcorn and two glasses of wine.
“Wow. A chick flick? I expected you to put in Die Hard or one of the Marvel movies.”
“I thought you might appreciate this more. I’ve never seen it, and I figured if it was in your collection you liked it.”
“I bet you’ll be asleep in ten minutes.”
“You’re on. What do you want to bet?”
“Hmm, if you fall asleep you have to clean up the kitchen tomorrow.”
“And if I don’t, what do I get?”
“What do you want?” Damn, talk about a loaded question and he was trying to behave.
“How about you let me take you to the beach for a picnic?”
“Really? That’s what you want?”
“It’ll do for the time being. Now, how about you let me have some of the popcorn?”
She passed him the bowl and settled onto the couch. He’d half expected her to sit as far away from him as she could get and was pleasantly surprised when she snuggled against his side. It eased his worry that he’d upset her, and a self-satisfied grin spread across his face.
“What are you smiling about?”
“Nothing really. Just enjoying your company, and the popcorn. Although I could really go for a few more of those macarons.”
“Oh my God, you’re unbelievable.”
“You’re just now realizing that?” Before he had a chance to move, she’d elbowed him in the side. It hadn’t hurt but it sure as hell made him laugh.
The movie wasn’t half bad and ten minutes later he was still awake and won their bet, but he’d have to wait to tell her in the morning since Rori was fast asleep against his side. She looked so peaceful he hated to disturb her, but she’d be hating life in the morning if she slept like that all night.
Gently taking the popcorn bowl out of her lap and putting it on the coffee table, he scooped her into his arms and tried not to wake her. He made it down the hall and into her room before she stirred in his arms.
“What’s going on?” she murmured still sounding half asleep.
“It’s okay, Angel. I’m putting you to bed.”
“Thank you.” He smiled as he placed her on the bed and pulled her quilt over her. “Will you stay with me?”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“Please? Just until I fall asleep.” This seemed to be turning into a habit but there was no way he could say no. Just looking at her beautiful face, and her curly chestnut hair framing her wide blue eyes.
“Okay. Until you fall back to sleep.” Her smile looked like the cat who ate the canary, and she moved over to make room for him. Hadn’t he decided not an hour ago to keep their relationship professional until the job was over? His Delta brothers would never let him hear the end of this if they found out.
Jasper stretched out on the bed, and she cuddled against his side with a sigh of contentment. He slid his arm under her shoulders and pulled her closer. Her hand rested over his heart. The feisty little baker had his heart in her hand, literally and figuratively. Mission or not, he’d do anything for her, even if she asked him to walk away forever.
It didn’t take long for Rori to fall back to sleep and as much as he enjoyed the feel of her body cuddled against him, Jasper had work to do, including reviewing the video to find the mystery man who’d been in the bakery.
After a gentle kiss on her forehead, he slid out of her embrace. Being careful not to make any noise, he waited a moment to make sure she was still sleeping, then left the door ajar. Jasper had to find out who was threatening his Angel and take care of them. For his own peace of mind, he needed to know she’d be safe even if he had to walk away from her.
While the video downloaded to his laptop, Jasper cleaned up the popcorn and washed the wine glasses. He didn’t want Rori to have to do it at zero dark thirty when she got up for work. The woman was unbelievable. How she’d managed the bakery all on her own for so long, he had no idea. It was no wonder Chase was concerned. The woman was on a runaway train about to careen off the tracks if they didn’t find the stalker and take some of the pressure off her shoulders soon.
The video didn’t give him much. The guy wasn’t some street thug from the way he knew to avoid the cameras and kept the hoodie pulled over his head. There were a few glimpses of the side of his face, but it wouldn’t give Alex or Rock much to go on. Making notes to send with the link to the video, he was on the third replay when he heard a soft whimper. Pausing the video, he went to check on Rori. He was halfway between the kitchen and her room when she screamed. His gun was out of its holster and the safety off before he raced into her room.
