Page 94 of Her Rugged Guardian

“You think so?” he repeated. “You brought me back to life, Cass. You reminded me that family is the most important thing; that living isn’t about hiding behind shit that occurred in the past but about the possibilities for the future. You gave me the will to break out of a terrible shell I’d placed around myself. Through your eyes, everything had more color. The skies were bluer, the ocean a prefect cerulean, so vibrant that even standing this far away, I felt as if I could reach out and touch it, harness the beautiful energy. Because of you, anything is possible. If something happens to you, I won’t be able to survive. And do you know why?”

I was so taken aback I had no idea what to say. He was a man of few words, keeping his emotions closed off, rarely telling me how he felt or what he wanted. “No. I…” Me, unable to put a coherent sentence together? What was wrong with me? “Tell me.”

He closed the distance very slowly, sliding one hand around the back of my neck, cupping my chin with the other. “Damn it, woman. You really don’t see it? You don’t feel what’s happening?”

“Maybe not.” I was breathless, tingling all over.

As he lowered his head, I pressed my palms against his chest, my mind spinning with possibilities. And with something else.

Love.

“I’m falling in love with you,” he whispered before capturing my mouth.

CHAPTER 25

Jake

I’d had no understanding that I could care about anyone as much as I did with Miss Cinnamon Girl until I’d awakened to find an empty house. I’d made calls, only finding out she was alive when speaking to Millie. The relief had almost knocked me on my ass, but that had allowed my disappointment and irritation to grow. Yet seeing her walking through the door had opened my eyes as well as the ugly black box where I’d stored all my feelings.

We’d known each other barely a week yet I’d never felt so strongly about anyone. Holding her in my arms, kissing her with all the passion I thought I’d lost was the best feeling in the world.

It was also the most terrifying.

I couldn’t lose her. I couldn’t allow Malcolm to hurt her ever again. I swept my tongue inside, the taste of her mouth as if I’d never kissed her before. Every muscle was tense, every tendon so tight I was certain they’d snap. And the myriad emotions were killing me.

Yes, I was falling in love with her.

The sight of her as I stood staring out the window had been gut-wrenching. I’d even left a message for Bart, worried enough I’d been ready to hunt her down myself. She was breathtaking, more so today given I thought I might lose her.

Instead of jeans, which had become her normal attire the past few days, she was wearing an adorable jean skirt and soft red sweater highlighting her hourglass figure. Even better, she’d elected to wear cowboy boots, which I hadn’t known she owned. To me, she was the most beautiful girl in the world.

Yeah, I had it bad for her.

Cassandra eased her hands around my shoulders, clinging to me, her body shaking. I wanted to rip off her clothes right here, indulging in the passion that had been the catalyst, lust turning into something more powerful, but the woman needed to fully understand that she was in danger. I firmly believed Malcolm had threatened her and would do again, especially if the contract wasn’t legitimate.

She needed to embrace the reality of the situation and there was only one way I knew of to help her learn that lesson.

When I broke the kiss, she issued a single moan, tilting her head. Her eyes were dilated, her breath skipping. My God. She was the most beautiful creature I’d ever set my eyes on.

And the most mischievous.

“You’re a bad girl,” I told her, although the last thing I wanted to do was to make light of the situation. Everything about what we were doing, our attempts in discovering illegal activities had a trail a mile wide that Malcolm and his cronies could easily followif we weren’t very careful. The two murders also continued to weigh heavily on my mind.

“I really am sorry.”

“That’s not good enough.”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning you deserve punishment.” I backed away, lifting a single eyebrow.

“I was only gone two hours.”

I shook my head. “You still don’t get it. Malcolm has power that extends past this city.”

“I know that, Jake. Into California and Canada.”

The news was something I didn’t know. “Then you do understand. Come here.”

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