The Dangerous Thief (Stolen Hearts #3)(11)

She wanted to believe that her momentary lapse wasn’t noticeable, but he gave her hip a quick squeeze before he stepped away and removed his hand from her. He had to know. He wouldn’t have squeezed if he didn’t, right? She bit at her bottom lip and quickly went through the store with James at her side as she got the rest of the toiletries and clothes she’d need.

Assuming she did laundry every three days or so, she should be good for a while.

No one else came to talk to them, but Willa was aware of the glances thrown at them from the few shoppers in the store. She was right. Everyone was curious about the new woman in town.

She also grabbed a few books to read so she wouldn’t go insane. She was half tempted to ask James to grab a television, but she didn’t want to encroach on his bank account any more than she already was.

It was rather painful to have him buy her supplies when she had a massive trust fund just sitting unused at the moment.

Once she was back in the truck with James, things were different. It was as though once that switch was flipped in her head, she couldn’t turn the damn thing off. Because it wasn’t just an annoying caveman robot next to her. He seemed to take up all the space in the already large cab of the truck.

If her leg went over just a few more inches, she’d be touching his. He could move that big hand over and set it on her knee if he wanted. She wouldn’t mind seeing what those big hands would do to her body.

She forced her eyes on the road, which really didn’t help because she could see the outline of his muscular frame in the reflection in the glass. At least now she could look at him more subtly.

Fine. She thought James was attractive. He was. He was a masculine man, probably in his thirties, and he looked as if he could bench-press twice her bodyweight. If she was going to be spending so much time with him, she’d have to get used to the fact that they were going to be in close proximity and she might enjoy looking at his body. So what?

Once again she remembered the heat in his eyes as he looked at her. Damn it. She could get over her feelings toward him, or at least toward his body. But if he was thinking the same things.... Well, self-control had never been her strong suit.

The rest of the ride back to his place was a series of her trying and failing to convince herself that her newfound appreciation for James wasn’t a big deal. About a mile from his house, his cell phone rang. Except it wasn’t a normal ring, but the song “My Girl.”

He cursed as he answered. “Did you change my ringtone, Toni?”

Toni.... Melody’s sister. One of the few tidbits she’d caught while she’d been with Melody. Willa leaned in closer, trying to hear as much as she could, but it was useless. She couldn’t pick up more than a few words.

James was no help either. “Are you sure?” He maneuvered the phone to the side of his face farther from Willa. She gave him an annoyed look but he didn’t acknowledge her. “I’ll keep an eye out. Thanks for the heads-up.”

He hung up and Willa didn’t give him half a second before she asked, “What happened?”

“Probably nothing.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“Toni has been monitoring a few people close to your father and who might’ve worked for Sterling. She said that two guys just booked tickets to Phoenix and arrived this morning.”

“This morning? So they are here already.”

“Phoenix is a big city.”

Willa frowned. It wasn’t as if he needed to lie to her to make her feel safer. “Do you really believe that?”

“I think we can wait and see what happens.”

“We can wait and see what happens while surrounded by guns, right? I mean, that’s why you’re here. To keep me safe with your badassery.”

His grip on the steering wheel tightened and he glanced over at her. “Don’t worry, Willa. I got you.”

She blinked. It was the first time he’d said her name and it sounded strange coming off his tongue. Unnatural. She thought back to all the reasons they would probably never meet under anything resembling a normal situation. This whole thing was unnatural.

And that was what she was going to remind herself every time she found herself eying James’s body.





James did a quick run-through of the house and perimeter of the property but didn’t see any uninvited guests. Toni only saw two tickets of people she was monitoring, but that didn’t mean there weren’t more. There was a chance that the guys were here for some other reason, but considering that Willa had come here yesterday and now Sterling’s guys were here, he had his doubts that it was all a coincidence.

He double-checked that all the motion sensors were working and made sure the cameras had functional solar panels and were free of sand on the lenses. He was only one guy, so the best way to keep Willa safe would be to stick close to her.

When he got back to the house, Willa was looking out the window, following his approach with her eyes. He didn’t want to look as concerned as he felt, but the scowl was kind of his natural state of being.

Once he was inside, he motioned with his head for Willa to follow him. “You shouldn’t stand by the windows.” He moved down the main hallway.

“I know. I was waiting for you to come back.”

“From now on, don’t wait for me.” He reached his room and pushed the door open, but when he went inside, he noticed that her footsteps stopped. “Come on,” he said as he continued farther back.