Page 82 of Nanny for the SEALs

“Why do you say that?”

“Because he accepted my help, rather than trying to go back out himself.” Brady shook his head and went down the hall himself.

Asher kissed me on the cheek. “I’d better get to work. I’m glad our fun wasn’t interrupted.”

“Me too. I had a lot of fun.”

“Maybe we can do it again sometime.” Asher gave me a final smile, then went downstairs.

I got ready for bed and said goodbye to Brady as he left. Rather than go to my bed, I knocked on Rogan’s door and then let myself in. It was larger than the guest bedroom, with a king-sized bed adorned with plush grey sheets. Rogan was sitting up in bed, shirtless. His hand was on something on his nightstand, but he let go of it when he saw it was me.

His gun,I realized.

“Relax, it’s just me,” I said as I slipped under the sheets. “I came to comfort you.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m not in the mood to have sex,” he said.

I found his warm body underneath the covers. I threw a leg over his body and snuggled up to him. “No sex. I’m here to comfort you.”

I didn’t realize how stiff his body was until he began to relax. It was like every muscle was finally deflating after several hours of tension.

He sighed. “Thank you, Heather.”

“Just relax. You’re home now.” After a moment, I added, “You’re safe.”

Rogan gently caressed my back under the covers.

I was wide-awake now after hearing about Rogan’s evening. I wondered if I should tell him what Asher, Brady, and I had done while he was gone. I decided now wasn’t the time. I could tell him later, when things died down.

But Ididwant to tell him. No secrets.

“I made a mistake,” he said gently.

“What’s that?”

“I insisted on watching Amirah’s house myself, even though I was exhausted. That’s why I lost the fight against them. If I was fresh, I would have restrained the first guy sooner, and then his buddy wouldn’t have gotten the drop on me. If I had sent Brady in the first place, like he wanted, he would have caught them both.”

“Or maybe he would have been distracted listening to the Lakers game on the radio,” I said. “Then the attacker might have… You know. Succeeded.”

My eyes were closed, but I felt Rogan shake his head. “I need to do a better job delegating responsibility. I can’t do everything myself. It’s something I’ve struggled with for a while. I have to be in control. It’s not easy for me to give that control to someone else.”

“You’re acknowledging it, at least,” I said. “And I totally get where you’re coming from.”

“Do you?” he asked doubtfully.

“It’s the reason I’m so outgoing,” I answered. “I can’t just relax and go with the flow. I have to take life by the reins, leading the charge in whatever situation I’m in. At the Lakers game last week, Maurice wanted to stay in our seats on the upper level. I insisted we go find better seats, on the lower level or in a suite.”

I sighed against his hard body. “It’s the reason I hate going to auditions for commercials. I want somethingbigger,where I have more control over things.”

He stroked my hair tenderly. “Taking orders from other people is a big part of acting, you know. There’s a script, and a director, and a producer…”

“I know, I know,” I said. “I need to work through it. That’s what Maurice is always telling me, anyway.”

I felt Rogan rumble with silent chuckles. “Look at us. A couple of type-A personalities who keep fucking things up.”

“I’m glad you’re safe.” I kissed his chest for good measure. “That’s all that matters.”

“It’s notallthat matters,” he said after a moment. “Protecting our clients matters, too. If something happens to Amirah Pratt…”

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