Page 63 of Truck Stop Titan

“Good morning.”

“Morning,” he huffed, his face wet with perspiration. “Mind if I grab a shower?” His black running gear clung to every dip and valley of his lean, well-cared for frame.

“Use the bathroom down the hall. Towels are in the closet by the door.” I set my mug on the counter. “Hungry?” I asked, heading for the fridge. “Eggs and pancakes?”

Tito smiled. “If it’s not too much trouble.”

“No trouble at all.”

He started for the bathroom, then stopped. “Movers are coming today. They’ll have Matthew’s things out of here by this afternoon. Rented a storage space on the other end of town. I’ve already emailed him the details, so he has no reason to bother you. You okay being here, telling them what to pack and what to leave?”

I’d planned on leaving Matthew’s belongings in the street, but heck, if there were men willing to do the heavy lifting, who was I to argue? “You arranged all of that already this morning?”

“Last night, actually.”

“Do I dare ask how?”

“Best if you don’t.”

“Thank you, Tito.”

Our eyes locked, his jaw worked, then his mouth lifted in a smirk and he nodded toward the closed door where Dane slept. “Got movers set up for you, too, in case you change your mind about Whisper Springs.”

“Tito, I—”

Hand raised, he cut in, “Listen. Not trying to sway you either way. None of my business. But that guy in there? He’s someone I can use on my team. I get the feeling, you stay in Shelbyville, he’ll find a way to come to Shelbyville, and he’ll be torn, because he has personal reasons for wanting to stay near Whisper Springs. You come to Idaho, that guy can stay where he belongs. If I play my cards right, he’ll come work with Tucker and me. I need people like Reynolds.”

“Criminals?” No sense beating around the bush.

Tito’s brows pinched. He studied me for a moment. Then nodded. “People who do their best work outside the law.”

Outside the law. That was the problem, wasn’t it? Then again, outside the law was the only reason my niece was safe. Of course, outside the law was the reason her mother was dead.

Words clogged my throat, finding no outlet. Emotions bubbled inside me with no rhyme or reason. I searched but couldn’t find a sane explanation as to why I wanted to scream,yes,yes,takemebacktoWhisperSprings. Nonsense. All of it. My stomach lurched.

Pushing past Tito, I dashed for the bathroom.

When I came out, Tito waited for me in the hallway, eyes set hard, arms crossed. “You okay?”

“Stress,” I said, waving him off. “Go have your shower. Breakfast will be ready in fifteen.”

“You sure that’s all it is?”

I nodded, staring at a scuff on the floor to avoid his scrutiny. “Been like this since I was a kid.”

“If you say so,” he retorted, shaking his head and moving past me. I waited for the bathroom door to close before releasing a huff and heading to the kitchen.

About the time the bacon started to sizzle, Dane came out of the bedroom, targeting me with a heavy-lidded gaze. “Moriah.”

“Morning.” A whisper was all I could manage, the sight of him sucking me dry. My voice, my confusion, my ire, evaporated, leaving nothing but airy, wispy, head over heels, in too deep, woman.

“Fuck.” He smirked, as if he could read my thoughts, then caught my waist in a crushing hug and pulled me up for a kiss that put the sizzling grease to shame, using tongue and teeth in a way that should’ve been painful but instead polished every rough edge in my body.

“You mad at me?” he asked, while I dangled in his arms.

Yes, should have been my reply. Instead, I wiggled free, mumbled, “Don’t know,” and turned back to the bacon, giving it a poke, then poured pancake mix into the other skillet. “You hungry?”

“Starving.”

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