Page 18 of SEAL by Fate

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GRAY PACED THE hallway, stopping on occasion to listen for any sounds in the bathroom. Stormy had been inside for a long thirty minutes and his protective side kicked in. What if she’d passed out? Fallen and hit her head? He was an idiot to suggest she take a bath. If she got overheated, combined with the head injury and she was in the water…

“Shit!”

He could find the dangers in something as harmless as taking a bath. Drowning. The hard edges of the counter. He wasn’t sure when he’d been elected as her protector, but he was taking it seriously

Standing in front of the door, he knocked softly. “Are you okay?” He’d risk overstepping all the invisible boundaries to make sure she was safe. “Stormy?”

No answer.

No sounds.

Rubbing his forehead, he calculated all the things that could have happened.

His stomach dropped to his toes.

He tried the door and the knob turned. “Stormy? I’m coming in. If you’re okay, now’s the time to holler,” he yelled loud enough so she could hear. She didn’t answer.

Opening the door slowly, he peered through the crack. He barely had time to register that her head was under water before he sent the door flying and striking the wall in a loud pop. In two strides he was across the floor and he dragged her up by her shoulders. Her eyes came open and shock spread her expression. Water poured down from her hair into her mouth and she sputtered, “What are you doing?”

“You were under water. Are you okay?” He investigated her eyes, her body.

“I’m fine. What’s wrong with you? Are you out of your mind?”

“You were drowning. You must have passed out. You didn’t answer me.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No. I was rinsing my hair.” Her eyes were blue gems and her cheeks were flushed. Her full bottom lip trembled.

Realizing he was still holding her, he removed his hands from her shoulders. “Is there a reason why you didn’t respond when I called?”

She sat up straight, covering her bare breasts. “Is there a reason why you stormed in here? Do you make it a habit to interrupt a woman’s bath?”

“I thought…” Fuck! He’d wanted to protect her, not come off as a pervert. He’d screwed up royally.

“How did you get in? The door was locked,” she said.

“No, it wasn’t. I didn’t hear any sounds.”

“Were you outside the door listening?” She blinked.

“No…at least not for very long. I started allowing my thoughts to get to me. Thinking that you could be in danger.”

“Danger?”

“Yeah. I’m a lawman. You wouldn’t believe the dangers I can create. From sharp edged countertops. Drowning. I’m digging my hole.” He stood and ran a hand through his hair. “You’re fine though. Very fine. I’m okay too. So, I’ll just let you get back to rubbing…I mean, rinsing.” He walked backwards to the door and closed it behind him as he stepped out, resisting the urge to bang his head against the wall.

What was happening to him? He was out of control. This woman, who he barely knew, was under his skin, making him do crazy things. He’d always been a cool-headed man, and this wasn’t his usual behavior.

He was still attempting to prove himself to her, which he usually didn’t find necessary. The people he cared about, and those he met along the way, knew he was an ex-Navy SEAL and a member of the elite force Ghost Hawks. For goodness sake, that made him trustworthy. He was one of the good guys, a man who caught the bad guys and got them off the street so innocent people didn’t have to worry. But he saw the question in her wide-eyed gaze and the apprehension. Yet, he could have sworn he saw something else—less fear and more interest, maybe?

Why does it matter so much if she has trust in me?

He scrubbed his jaw. The facts were, although she’d ran way from the groom, that didn’t make her “free”. She still wore the engagement ring, which meant, technically, they were still engaged. So, he needed to keep his thoughts clear. No matter how beautiful or tempting she was to Gray. There was something bigger here…he was on the mountain to catch a terrorist, not a lover. In his line of work, getting caught up made him weaker. He needed to remember he was here to catch Phantom, a terrorist who needed thrown into the slammer.

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