Page 68 of When He Protects

“No. I am busy.”

Was she crying? Didn’t sound like it but unease slithered down his spine. “Open. Up.”

“Busy!” Esme shouted back. And there was a definite sniff.

Oh, fuck. Oh, no. “Are you crying?”

He heard the sound of the sink running. He gripped thedoorframe fiercely and waited for the door to open. To open…

You can’t kick down the door. She’s not crying. You didn’t break her heart.

The door opened. There was water on Esme’s cheeks.

“I splashed a little cold water on my face. I was feeling a bit sleepy. Thought it would wake me up.” Her smile dipped toward him as she waved one hand. “Are you having some sort of emergency? Please, go right ahead and take the bathroom, I’m done.”

He didn’t move. “You weren’t crying.”

“You’re in my way.”

“You…wouldn’t run away to cry.”

Her eyes rolled. “Tell me more about what I would and would not do. So sexy.”

“You’re fucking Jorlan.”

Her mouth dropped open.

Wait. Shit. He hadnotmeant to say those words right then. Absolutely not. But…I am not in control.Ever since Gray had made his big reveal, rage and jealousy had been twisting in Tyler’s gut. He’d intended to wait until he and Esme were alone again, until he’d cooled the hell down, and then he’d planned to carefully question her about her involvement with a man who was as freaking deranged and diabolical as they come.

But…here they were.

Her mouth snapped closed. Her nostrils flared. A jerky nod, and then, “The phone call.” A long exhale. “Had to be Grayson calling. Let me guess, he had some new intel to share? Intel aboutmoi?”

“Esme.”

“I believe I warned you before about that old saying. Don’t you recall? I specifically told you that if youwere smart, you’d believe absolutely nothing that you hear and only about half of…” She stopped. “Screw it. You know the rest. But at the first whisper of a rumor, you go all in and believe exactly whatever BS Grayson is spouting. So annoying. Get out of my way. I’m not in the mood to be trapped by a jerk and held prisoner in a bathroom of all places.”

Slowly, he backed away.

Her spine was straight, her chin was up, and she did not deign to glance his way as Esme made her way back to the front of the house and to a waiting and clearly curious Kane. Even though Tyler followed her every step of the way.

Esme extended her hand to their neighbor. “I don’t believe I caught your name.”

“Kane.” His hand swallowed hers in a brief shake.

Her hand fell back to her side. “And, Kane, I’m to assume that you’re on my protection detail, too?” Her head angled to the side. “Another U.S. Marshal? Or are you part of Tyler’s former Marine crew?”

“Why don’t you tell me?” Kane’s eyes assessed her. “Because I think you have already figured it out, haven’t you?”

“Semper Fi,” she murmured.

“All day long.”

Finally,finally, Esme glanced back at Tyler. “He was already in place? Before we came here, he was already in Asylum? How is that possible?”

“Kane moved to town about a month ago. He’s in between jobs, and Clay had always tried to get us all to come visit this area. Said the fishing was fantastic.” The guy used to brag about his catches in the bay for hours on end.

“In between jobs…” Esme seemed to taste those words. Her focus shifted back to Kane. “Will you tell me what sort of jobs you normally do?”

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