Page 121 of Joker in the Pack

“You think? But I never even went out for dinner with Warren when he asked.” Although that was mainly because of Tate, admittedly. If Warren had invited me again and Nye hadn’t been on the scene, I’d have been buying another new frock.

She shrugged. “Nye can see that you still like him, which I get. He was always kind, but…”

“But?”

“The garden thingisa bit weird.” She shuddered. “And I found out first-hand the consequences of men skulking around the Foxfords in the dark.”

Before I could ask her to elaborate on what she meant, Nye hung up and wrapped an arm around my waist.

“We need to call it a day. Most of us have got an early meeting in the office tomorrow, but we’ll finish off the rest tomorrow afternoon.”

At least that would give me the morning to catch up on work. “What about all the stuff out in the trucks? We need to put that back.”

“I asked around, and the farmer down the road’s diversified and converted one of his barns into storage units. I’ve rented you one for six months so we can put all the crap there instead.” He pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. “Then you can make this place into a proper home.”

Nye got me. He just got me, and that was the moment I realised my heart was in big trouble. The “L” word fluttered around in my throat.Too soon. Much too soon.

“Thank you. You have no idea how much that means.”

His eyes hooded, and I wasn’t imagining the fire smouldering beneath the half-closed lids.

“You can show me later,” he whispered, too quietly for anyone else to hear.

“How quickly can we get these people to leave?”

He chuckled and gifted me one of those smiles that made me melt. “I’d better make them coffee for the drive back.”

“I can do that, and dinner too. If you could just hurry up the rest…”

“Okay, babe, I get the hint.” He pulled me close and kissed me, ignoring the whistles from the doorway. “You’re mine tonight. Nothing’s gonna stop us this time.”

I hadn’t been jittery last night, when things had just happened, but tonight, I grew ever more apprehensive as I picked at the pasta I’d made us for dinner. What if I didn’t measure up to the girls in Nye’s past? With his looks and that damn motorbike, he must have had a few. Didn’t he say they were socialites? How long before the novelty of being with a girl who didn’t even need alcohol to make bad decisions wore off? And if…

“More wine?”

“Huh?”

Nye gestured at my glass. “You’ve just drunk it all.”

Oh. Oops. “I guess.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

He kept staring at me, and I realised seeing a detective had its disadvantages. “I’m nervous, okay?”

“About the stalker? I’ll keep you safe.”

“Not him… Tonight… I, uh…”

Nye pushed his chair back, and two seconds later, I was in his arms. When he kissed me, my insecurities faded away, and all I felt was him. Every last inch.

“Want to forget the rest of dinner?” he asked.

“Who needs dessert anyway?”

“I’m not planning to skip dessert. She’s standing in front of me.”

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