Page 19 of Too Lethal to Love

And like that, sunshine burst through the clouds in his eyes. Pleasure at being able to bring him out of the dark rippled through her.

“Here’s how I see it, cowboy. There’s no need to be all sugarplum and couple-like unless we’re in a public place where someone might be watching. Traveling and staying together sends the message I’m living my life oblivious to the threats hanging over me. That’s what we want, right? To make them think we’re not on to them?”

Kane grinned. “First, I’m never going to stop calling you sugarplum. Second, I agree we don’t need to be couple-like when we’re alone. But we do need to let everyone we meet think we’re together because one, maybe two, murderers are watching you.”

She shot her gaze to the rearview mirror.

He looked too. “We’re not being followed, but that doesn’t mean someone isn’t monitoring us. Cameras and satellites can track our location just fine.” He checked the mirror again. “Scarlett mentioned your parents are in Africa on a safari.”

“Yes. Their plane took off about an hour ago.” And they didn’t expect to hear from her until Christmas Day, when this cartel crap would hopefully be over.

“Then we only need to worry about your friends. Why aren’t you spending Christmas with your parents?”

“My dad was a firefighter. He spent many holidays working, so we’ve always celebrated on our own schedule. We did our Christmas festivities a couple of weeks ago. When this opportunity came up, I encouraged them to take it. I can only stay away from the office for a few days anyway and want to be back in DC for Christmas Eve mass.”

“Don’t they have churches in North Benson?”

“Not a fabulous old stone church with a view of the Washington Monument from the steps.” A smile lifted her tense lips. “I don’t typically go to mass, except on holidays, but I teach a science class there for the youth group kids a couple of times a month. What about you? Do you mind spending the holidays alone?”

“Actually, this will be my first Christmas not spending it with Gran. She’s going to visit my twin sister Livvie and her boyfriend in Atlanta.”

“Twins? That must have been fun growing up.”

“Yeah, she was a lot of fun to tease. Despite being annoying, she turned out pretty okay. She’s an orthopedic surgeon now.” He blew by the entrance to the beltway. “We have to make a quick stop to see Gran and say Merry Christmas before she leaves for the airport.”

The way he saidwefelt way too comfortable. Like she could get used to spending holidays with Kane and Gran at the house they shared. “When we get near my parents’ house, we need to stop for a bottle of wine.” She rattled off the name of a liquor store. “I drank the last of my favorite when I visited a couple of weeks ago.”

“Got it. Remember, when we are in public, you treat me as your charming, handsome boyfriend.”

She rolled her eyes. Her arrival in town with a man on her arm would be like a Christmas gift for the gossip brigade.Except they’d have the added fun of speculating how long he’d live.

As Kane took the next exit, Scarlett’s words repeated in her head.

Kane will think your curse is nonsense, just like you should.

She should think it was nonsense. Time was supposed to heal her morbid thinking, and yet here she was, too afraid to fall for the guy sitting next to her and too afraid to tell him why. Maybe she should have stayed home and went to work where it was safe and Kane-free. Between the gossips who reveled in rewriting her past into a fractured fairy tale, the stalker who wouldn’t go away, and the new uninvited cartel characters in her story, North Benson felt triply unsafe.

“Wait.” She touched Kane’s arm. “What if my parents’ house is bugged? What if Chavez or?—"

“Relax. Nic had a couple of his ex-military buddies sweep the place. It’s clear.”

Telling her to relax in his country twang had the opposite effect. So did his explanation. “They broke into my parents’ house?”

“No. One of Nic’s friends owns the security company they use. He sent them a message late last night saying someone was coming today to fix a broken camera your dad had reported. He and his team did more than a simple repair.”

“You could have asked me first before you did that.”

“You were asleep, and it needed to be done to keep you safe.”

“I may not be a super soldier, but I know how to protect myself.” For two years, she’d controlled every decision to ensure her safety, from choosing the best defensive driving course to which martial arts school to attend to which brand of Mace to put on her key chain. Control kept her from taking permanent residence in her secure lab. Since Chavezstole her cake, she could feel in her gut, in her heart, that hard-won power unraveling thread by thread. She held on to the flimsy pieces and rattled off everything she’d done to take command of her life.

“Remarkable work, Dr. Parker.” Kane stopped at a traffic light. “What you have done may be good enough if a lone stalker attacks you again, but Chavez and his associates will outnumber, outgun, and outmaneuver you before your brain has time to tell your muscles to move. Now, tell me about your parents in case they come up in conversation.”

She pursed her lips together as her last scrap of control flew out the window. He was right. All her work would amount to a swat on the kneecap if she met Chavez and his men face to face. She stifled her frustration as she stretched out her legs. “My mom’s a retired nursing professor. Now, she heads up fundraising for the local hospital. I’m on the board, which is why I want to be at the party tonight. All proceeds go to the new cancer wing.”

“So, you’re both smarty-pants that give back to the community?”

“Yeah, we’re pretty amazing.” Her voice flattened out as she toyed with the medallion hanging in theVof her sweater. “I spent a lot of time at the hospital when I was in high school with a, uh, friend of mine who had cancer. I wanted to give back to the people who helped him.” She glanced at Kane. Respect glimmered in his gaze. She fed off that and forced a spark in her voice. “My dad retired from the North Benson Fire Department. Now he takes do-it-yourself classes at the local home store. He just renovated the kitchen himself and did a great job.”

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