Page 3 of Protected By the SEAL
I glance at her, debating how much to reveal. “They think there’s something between us. More than friendship.”
“And what do you think?” She looks at me cautiously.
“I think they need to mind their own business,” I say, not looking at her. I spent a lot of the drive here thinking about what the guys had said during the team meeting and wondering if they were right. Since basically when Morgana and I met, I swore she was too important to risk losing, if we dated and it didn’t work out, but now I’m wondering if I’ve had the love of my life right here with me this whole time, but I was too much of a dumbass to realize it.
The silence stretches between us, no longer quite comfortable. After a while, she turns up the radio and sings along to a song she likes, and the tension eases. By the time we reach wine country, we’re back to normal, or at least pretending to be.
“There it is,” she says, pointing to a sign for the winery.
“Not bad.”
“Not bad? Kane, this place isgorgeous.”
I grudgingly agree with her. Her ex must be loaded to afford all this.
We check in at the boutique hotel attached to the winery: two rooms next door to each other. I insist on carrying her bag up.
“Such a gentleman,” she teases as we reach her door.
“I do my best,” I tease back.
She laughs, but when we get to her room, her hands are trembling, and she nearly drops her key card.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine, but everything comes in waves. I’m over Victor, truly. But I know this is going to be an intense weekend with my family. It’s a lot.”
I step closer and steady her hands with mine. “Hey. You’re going to be okay. You’re not alone.”
She looks up at me, her blue eyes vulnerable. “Thanks.”
We stand there for a moment, closer than necessary, her hands still under mine. Then she steps back, breaking the spell.
“The welcome dinner starts in thirty minutes. I should get ready.”
“I’ll knock on your door in twenty-five.”
I head to my room and unpack. Everything about this place screams couples’ retreat. My phone explodes with messages from the guys.
Jake: Status report. You there yet?
Owen: Did you tell her how you feel?
Reed: Twenty bucks says he chickens out
Zane: Fifty says he doesn’t
I toss the phone aside and change into dark jeans and a button-down.
Twenty-five minutes later, I knock on Morgana’s door. She opens it, and my brain short-circuits. She’s in a sundress that hugs every curve, her brunette hair down and wavy. She looks nervous and beautiful.
“Too much?” She smooths the dress.
My mouth goes dry. Morgana is wearing a beautiful white and orange dress, heels that make her feet look like works of art, and she’s stunning beyond words. I cough, confused at how my cock is responding to her. It’s not like I haven’t seen her dressed up before, but seeing her right now sparks an unfamiliar set of emotions.
Are Jake and the guys right?
CHAPTER 2
