Page 64 of Trail to Trouble
It was difficult to speak professionally and not beg her to take the job on a personal level. He hoped this approach would have her reconsider taking the job.
“It’s very kind of you to call, but I just don’t think it is a good idea.”
The crack of her voice at the end of her sentence let him know that this happenstance meeting of theirs had put her in a tailspin of emotions as well.
“Will you at least think about it for a few days?”
“I can’t.” But there was enough hesitation before she answered that he knew she wanted to.
“Katrina...” he said and paused. It didn’t sound right to call her Katrina rather than Hannah, but he’d do it to prove he could keep her secret. Maybe that way she’d reconsider taking the job and seeing him.
He cleared his throat. “Katrina Holmes, I’d like to take you to dinner tonight. How does six o’clock at Malone’s Steak House sound? I can pick you up at five-thirty, or we could meet there if you’d prefer.”
The silence was excruciating. He’d never felt so vulnerable. He wanted to see her so badly.
“I don’t like to be seen in public much.”
He blew out a relieved breath. It wasn’t a hard no.
“I’m a master at grilling steaks. I can cook for you at my place, or bring takeout to yours.”
Like a teenager, he crossed his fingers, waiting for her response.
“It’s probably best and more discreet for me to come to your place. Text me your address. What can I bring?”
Adrenaline rushed through him so hard, his extremities shook.
He drew in a breath to calm himself.
“Just yourself. I’ll text my address. See you at five-thirty.”
“Okay. Bye.”
Hunter hung up the phone receiver and leaped out of his chair. After pacing his large office a couple of times, he sat back down and mentally prepared his menu. He’d grill some ribeyes, potatoes, and asparagus. For dessert, some Dutch apple pie with ice cream. The steaks he’d pick up from Downtown Market. They had the best steaks and nothing but the best for Hannah. Katrina, he reminded himself. That part was going to be difficult. The rest of the items he’d get at the supermarket. This meal had to be perfect. This night had to be perfect.
Though the office closed at five o’clock, he left at four. He liked to lead by example, so he rarely left early, but today he practically ran out of the building an hour early. At Downtown Market, he picked out the two biggest ribeyes they had. At the supermarket, he grabbed the vegetables, pie, ice cream, and two bottles of red wine. He had beer at the house, but maybe she liked wine. He didn’t know, and he wanted to be prepared.
Once home, he seasoned the steaks and busied himself with cleaning up his large house. It wasn’t like it was a mess or anything; he lived alone, but he tidied up the papers on his desk in his home office. Then, he organized the sporting goods samples wholesalers had sent to him for review, hoping he’d stock them in his stores. He loved trying out new products.
He returned to the kitchen, grabbed the potatoes, and put them on the grill just outside the sliding patio doors.
Back inside, he dusted off the dining room table that he never used, but planned to use tonight. Then, he snagged the table settings from the cupboards.
Why was he so nervous? Why, because the stakes were high and he had everything to lose all over again.
Katrina wrapped her nervous fingers around her steering wheel so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Relax.
She shouldn’t have agreed to this dinner, but couldn’t help herself. She wanted to be with Hunter. Her desire for this man had always been strong, but until she saw him again three days ago, she’d done a good job of ignoring her desire to see him.
Seeing him in person, hearing his deep voice, staring into those warm chestnut eyes had her arguing with herself to let him back into her life. Still, the danger was real, and if the Garcias connected her to Hunter, it could mean trouble for both of them.
A lump rose in her throat. She’d put Hunter, her family, and friends in danger before, and it didn’t end well for most of them. After she and her brothers changed their names and went into their own form of hiding, the fear of threats to their lives lessened. Her brother’s fear as well, she assumed, because as far as she knew, her brothers had never actually been threatened. She wondered if their hiding stopped threats, or were there never any to begin with? Since Sebastián was in prison, that probably had something to do with it as well. Yet his family was still on the loose. Maybe the Garcias thought better of more deaths in her family and the negative attention it would bring them. How was it that nobody other than her and her brothers could see that the Garcias were behind the murders of Alyssa and her parents? Would things change when Sebastián got out of prison? Would he come after her?
Katrina spun her car around and headed back to her apartment. Being with Hunter was too risky, and she needed to cut him off now, before she got in so deep that she couldn’t.
Tears of anger burned her eyes.Dammit.She had a life to live and wanted so badly to live it.
