Page 30 of Defender

He could tell her the story of how he’d tracked down Marcel, the owner of The Blooming Idiot, to find out what had been in Friday’s original bouquet and where he could purchase them.He could tell her how Marcel had laughed when Ashton had told him he was definitely in the doghouse with her now.But he wasn’t sure if she would appreciate the story or not.

Honestly, he was just glad she’d let him through the door.

When he’d heard Chloe’s sweet little voice this morning calling out to him with such joy at the grocery store, he’d been thrilled.He wanted to squeeze her little legs and hear her talk to him in her gibberish like she always did.And he’d known, without even consciously thinking it, wherever Chloe was, her breathtaking mother wasn’t far behind.

When Summer turned around, face devoid of all color, he’d remembered where he was.That he was in full SWAT gear.What he was doing.

He remembered every secret he’d ever kept from her.

Lillian had patted him on the shoulder and taken his rifle.“Good luck, dude.You’re going to need it.”

Ashton wasn’t sure what he was going to say to Summer, but he knew he had to say something.

Then she’d turned and left.Without a word.Chloe’s cries breaking his heart.

He’d wanted to go after them right then and there.To explain.To at least try to get Summer to listen to him.

But he couldn’t.He couldn’t leave an active crime scene while he was on the clock, even if it looked like the crisis had already passed.

Plus, what exactly would he say to Summer there in front of dozens of other people?

So he’d watched her walk away, worry burning like acid in his gut.He’d been terrified that her rigid back and quick pace in the other direction might be the last time he ever saw her.

When Joe had hunted him down this afternoon, asking Ashton what the hell was going on with Summer, demanding why she wanted to know whether Ashton workedforJoe, the situation had gotten worse.Ashton had explained the misunderstanding about him being the handyman, since he’d fixed her garbage disposal himself a few months ago.

Nobody blamed him for that.

He’d told Joe what happened, how it had basically just accidentally grown over time.Joe wanted to know the same thing Ashton was sure Summer wanted to know: why hadn’t he just told her afterward that he wasn’t the normal handyman?Maybe she would’ve laughed.

Haha.My mistake.If I can’t pay you, can I take you out to dinner?

Maybe that’s how it would’ve gone, what she would’ve said.And Ashton wouldn’t be standing here now afraid he was about to lose the person who had been his first thought in the morning and last thought at night for the past six months.

Now she was glaring at him where he stood awkwardly in the middle of her living room, “Where’s Chloe?”he finally asked.

“She’s at Joe and Laura’s house.I didn’t want her to be around for a bunch of yelling.”

He winced.They stared at each other.

She took a step closer, then stopped.“You told me you were the condo’s handyman.”

“No.I never said that.”He shook his head.“That first afternoon, I told you Joe asked me to deal with the broken garbage disposal, that I wanted to look at it myself first and that we could call a specialist if needed.”

“But you knew what I thought.”

“I didn’t.Especially not that first time.You offered to pay me, but that wasn’t so unusual.”

Her eyes narrowed.“I’ve called you back like eight times in the last six months.You had to have known I thought you were the maintenance man for the condo!”Her volume rose.

He winced again.“Look, I’m not saying I handled it well.I didn’t.I was wrong and I’m sorry.”

That didn’t seem to appease her in the slightest.“I thought you wereshy.I bought that ‘I grew up on a farm in Wyoming’ stuff hook, line and stupid.Was any of it even true?”

Ashton ran a hand through his hair.“Of course it’s true.It’s all true.”Now his voice rose slightly.“I wasn’t trying to lie to you, Summer.The only thing I wasn’t fully up-front about was the fact that I’m Omega Sector.”

But that wasn’t the complete truth, now was it?Yet he couldn’t bring up her husband’s death now.Not until the initial shock of his sudden career change had been dealt with.Maybe not ever.

“I feel like an idiot that I didn’t figure it out.”She wrapped her arms around herself.

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