Page 68 of Allie's Shelter

She laughed, the sound brittle even in her own ears. “You’ve needed better publicity since we were kids.”

Her heart broke as his shoulders relaxed and his mouth curved into a grin. He really was talking business. Maybe business with a few benefits. She considered her body a traitor for being willing to settle for that.

“No.” It was her turn to avoid eye contact. “The FBI has what they need. Once Ruth gets back and we catch up, I’ll move on too.”

“But, Allie…”

She waved off his protest. “You and I have always had our own goals and they’ve never quite lined up. It’s time to accept that.” She turned toward the path, suddenly wanting the protection of the house.

Damn him for breaking down the wall she’d built around her heart. Damn her romantic soul for thinking they might find a happier ending this time. As much as it hurt, she was determined to remain friends. No matter the pain right now, she didn’t want him to fade back into the shadows of her life. “Ross, I do appreciate everything you’ve done. Most likely I’d be facing a life sentence without you and your team.”

“I wouldn’t have let that happen.”

The solid alibi. Had she really been angry with him for withholding that? It seemed a silly point to contest now, in light of everything else. He’d stood by her, when he could have simply offered the alibi and moved on to the next case. Eva had admitted she’d advised him to do that very thing.

She took another step away from him, wondering how many times a heart could shatter.

“Stay with me. Please?”

Her heart was playing cruel tricks now, hearing what couldn’t possibly have been a vulnerable crack in his voice. They were a couple of old friends and would soon be former lovers once more. They knew each other too well for games.

“You need the job and we need your skills. I can offer you a great compensation package. Say you’ll think about it.”

Impossible. Working for Ross would be unbearable, would make it impossible for her to have the life she’d dreamed of. The words that needed to be said clogged in her throat, but she forced them out, one by one. “I can’t stay. But I’ll send you a PR kit you can use.”

She hurried up the path. Alone. She heard a twig snap and hoped like hell he wasn’t coming after her. If he touched her now, he’d know how desperately she wanted what he wasn’t offering.

And that desperation wasn’t fair to either of them.

* * *

Ross watched her go. Man, he’d completely blown it. How had the words come out so wrong? Yes, he wanted her to stay. With him. For him. Yes, he ran a business and hoped she’d want to be involved, to be a part of what was so important to him professionally.

He’d planned to tell her he loved her. Instead, he’d offered her a damn job. What was wrong with him? Plucking a stick from the ground, he snapped it and sent one half flying into the lake. He’d brought her out here to propose for God’s sake and now she probably thought he’d found the great sex a convenient way to pass the time.

They were both harboring old hurts that the recent days should have mended, despite the chaos Roberts caused.

That sense of rightness when she’d been curled against him had surprised him. He realized now it shouldn’t have. Allie was the woman he’d wanted his whole life. It was her face, the memory of her laughter, that had buoyed him through impossible situations around the world and even last year’s gunshot wound. She was the one woman he wanted beside him for the rest of his days.

He sent the other half of the stick sailing out over the water. She thought he was offering a job rather than his heart. But she already had his heart had, in fact, been the keeper of it for as long as he could remember.

He scrubbed at his face. So he’d botched it. That didn’t mean it was over. There had been countless situations he’d conquered during his years of service with the Army. Situations with unexpected obstacles and live ammunition.

Live fire or not, Allie was worth any risk, worth any direct hit his pride had to endure.

Knowing that gave him confidence. As he followed the path back to the house, Ross reviewed the angles and developed his strategy.

He was running when he reached the house. In his office, he opened the safe and pulled out what he needed. His palms were damp and his heart pounded against his ribcage when he found her back in the bedroom, her eyes rimmed with tears.

“Allie, I’m sorry. That wasn’t—”

“I’m fine. Ignore me,” she said, turning her back on him. “It’s just that I’ve never not had a plan, you know?”

“I do know.” Another trait as specific to her as a fingerprint. Something he’d always admired and secretly emulated. He came around the bed and dropped to one knee.

“Don’t worry about it.” She gave him a watery smile. “I’ll get over myself.”

“But, sweetheart, will you get over me?”

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