Page 64 of Theirs to Take

“You keep calling yourself a nerd, but I don’t quite see it, Ruby,” Luke said. “I mean, you’re quirky, I’ll give you that.”

“Gee, thanks,” she grumbled. “I’m not sure which is worse—you thinking I’m quirky or being a nerd. I don’t mind it, really. I just never seemed to fit in with any group of kids, and I was fine with that. I liked being alone, for the most part. I had a few friends that I knew that I could count on, but I was always a loner.”

“Ruby,” Luke whispered, pulling her hand into his lap.

“Don’t feel bad for me, Luke,” she said. “I wasn’t unhappy. And now, I’m making new friends here.” She smiled over at him, and he chuckled.

“I hope that you don’t mean me, honey,” he said. “Because I want to be so much more than your friend, Ruby.”

“You do?” she squeaked.

“I thought that I made that pretty clear when we were making out on the sofa back at your apartment,” he said.

“Well, yeah,” she breathed, “but, you still feel that way?” she asked.

He laughed again and Ruby wondered what she had said that was funny. “It’s only been a few hours, honey. I haven’t changed my mind if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I guess I just don’t have a whole lot of experience with—well, all of this,” she admitted. “But that’s good to know.” She yawned and leaned back in her seat. “I’m really tired. Do you mind if I take a little nap?”

“Not at all,” he said. “I’ll wake you when we get to the safe house,” he offered.

“Thanks,” she said around a yawn. “At least I’ll stop asking you if we’re there yet,” she teased.

“Thank God,” he whispered.

Luke

Luke had to admit that he found the little snoring sounds that Ruby made to be absolutely adorable. “What the hell is wrong with me?” he whispered to himself. He found just about everything she did to be either sexy, hot, or adorable and that wasn’t his style. Hell, he’d only just met Ruby today, even if he had been following her around like a damn puppy since she started at McTavish Enterprises. He just needed to remember to leave out the part about practically stalking her around the office. He didn’t want to scare her off before he even got his chance with Ruby.

It had been a bit of a drive but heading out of town to the safe house that Ranger found for them was a good idea. He had to admit that he was looking forward to spending some one-on-one time with Ruby, even if that’s not what their little trip was about. Keeping her safe was his top priority and if that led to her falling into his bed, so be it.

He pulled onto the unmarked road that led back to the house that Ranger had secured for them. His friend had texted him repeatedly over the past few hours, even asking the dreaded question, “Are you there yet?” a few times. Ranger was almostas bad as Ruby about asking him that, but he wouldn’t tell his friend that. He knew that Ranger was trying to help them, but this was his mess to figure out. The problem was, Luke knew for sure that if Ranger hadn’t involved himself, he wouldn’t be able to figure out who was following him all these years later—or even if it was the same people.

He parked in front of the house and looked around, making sure that they hadn’t been followed back to the property. Ruby stirred next to him, stretching and yawning. He shamelessly let his gaze run over her body and she smiled up at him.

“Were you just checking me out?” she asked.

“I was,” he admitted. “You good with that?”

“I’m not sure how I feel about that, honestly,” Ruby said. “I think that I’m going to need time to get used to it.”

“That’s fair,” Luke agreed. “And before you ask again, we’re here,” he said, nodding to the house. She turned and looked out the window and nodded.

“It’s cute,” she said. “Where are we, exactly?” she asked.

“We’re in the middle of nowhere, just where we need to be. I think that we’re off the beaten path enough that no one will come out here looking for us.” Luke assured.

“And if they do?” Ruby asked.

“If they do, then we’ll know it. This place has a state-of-the-art security system already in place. Plus, I still have this,” he said, patting the gun in his shoulder holster. He’d leave off the part about having two more guns in his trunk, along with a few knives. That was his world—not hers and he was sure that Ruby wouldn’t understand his need to travel with so many weapons.

“I’d love a bath,” she breathed. “I feel like we’ve been in this car for days, not just hours.”

“Well, let’s get in and you can have your bath while I call Ranger to let him know that we got here.” He got out of the car and grabbed their bags out of the trunk as Ruby climbed outof the passenger side. She still looked groggy, and cuddly from sleep and all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms and carry her into the closest bed.

“You just did it again,” she said.

“Did what?” he asked.

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