Looking down at her twisted fingers, she tried to picture what could happen in Seattle. She couldn’t, so she gave up trying. She met Ross’s stare. “Your mom told me she worries about you all doing this dangerous work. If she knew what happened to us so far, she’d lock you in your room.”
“I have no doubt she could too. Pippa, it’s been decided that you can’t go to your family’s house. We’ll have guards on them, just in case. But we can’t take the risk.”
She blew out a sigh. “Even though I already knew it, I still held some hope of seeing them.”
“I’m sorry.”
“C’est la vie,” she said with a forced note of brightness.
He tipped his head, eyes glowing at her. “I suppose you studied in France too.”
“No. I only spent one weekend there. Meredith and I took a long weekend after we graduated from our doctorate program.”
“I wasn’t aware you graduated together.”
“Yes. We started MIZR at the same time, though I’d been slated to work there since I won the science competition in high school.”
“Did you get her a job there?”
Surprise made her blink in reaction. “No. Not at all. She’s brilliant. She’s done a lot of work on fusion proteins.”
“Whatever those are.”
She chuckled. In only a few days her voice had returned to normal and the bruising on her throat began to fade. “Tell me your hopes for WEST Protection.”
He squared his shoulders, making them appear broader. “I want to be the best in the country.”
“I have complete faith in your skills.”
As their gazes locked, it hit her—how different their lives were. She worked in a lab and was happy as a cell organelle to bury her nose in research and learning. Ross lived and breathed the ranch and his security company. They lived states apart. Seeing each other in future would be impossible.
None of these revelations shocked her, but they did jab her square in the heart. Anything they may have gained would be lost. Cut short. Maybe forgotten.
No, she’d never forget their scorching encounters and his burning kisses. Even the way he looked at her now left her on edge and breathless.
“I don’t know what you’re thinking, Pip, but I don’t like the look on your face.” His voice came out as a low rasp.
She turned her attention to her hands. “I was just thinking of my family. How much I miss them.”
When she glanced up, she found him studying her. Since she was a terrible liar, she wouldn’t be surprised if he called her out on the one she’d just told. But he remained silent, and the moment passed.
“How do you manage to throw yourself into the protection agency and keep up with the ranch?” Turning the topic seemed to be her go-to when it came to avoiding strained moments with Ross.
Thankfully, he rolled with it. “We’ve got enough ranch hands. Most of what I do is on the management end. I’m slowly taking over some of those jobs my dad always did.”
“Is he ready to retire?”
“Don’t know if he’ll ever fully retire. But I think he’s happy to step back sometimes and let us do the work. Pretty sure he always liked bossing us around better.”
She smiled. “That’s what they call a supervisor. And you’re the same, Ross. Cut from the same bolt of worn denim.”
Her statement made him drop his gaze. For a moment, she wondered if she’d offended him in some way. Then he said, “Ryan Letters split with his girlfriend three weeks ago.”
Her jaw dropped. “He didn’t say anything to me.”
“Would he have said something? You say you aren’t close.”
“We aren’t. It’s office chit-chat. Water cooler talk. I know he roots for Detroit Mercy Titans basketball and he and his girlfriend were talking about getting a place together.”
“What does he know about you?”
Flustered, she straightened in her seat. The angle of the back was starting to make her spine ache the longer she sat here, but their discussion wasn’t finished, and moving to the bed meant other things might happen. Things she wanted with every burning ember of her being.
But whatever chemistry boiled between them would end abruptly the minute the danger ended and they returned to their separate lives.
Another pang hit her heart—sharper than before.
“Ryan doesn’t know anything about me.”
“Does he know what team you root for?”
Irritated, she turned the question on him. “Do you?”
He leaned forward, staring her in the eyes. “You hate basketball.”
“So do you.” Why was her heart thumping so hard and fast? Knowing some stupid little detail about her such as the fact she wasn’t a sports fan meant nothing.
He did know what made her moan, though. How to make her pant for more.
And she knew how to raise his skin into goosebumps under her fingertips.
That bolt of lightning that she really did love Ross sent electricity through her limbs. Energized, she pushed away from the table.
“If you suspect Ryan has something to do with the situation I’m in, then investigate it. By all means, arrest him. If he deserves it, if he chose this path. But please don’t suggest that something more lies between us. We work together. Nothing more.”
She stood and started by him to the bed. As she passed, he thrust out his arm to bar her way. She glanced down at the obstruction, passion raging through her veins. She wanted to turn into his arms. She wanted to run away.
Closing her eyes for a beat, she said, “It’s late, Ross. I’m tired.”
When she opened her eyes again, he’d withdrawn his arm.
“I’d like to talk to my family. Am I allowed to video call them on my laptop?”
He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out his phone. She stared at the device dwarfed by the size of his big, deliciously rough palm. “Use mine.”
“What if you get a call while I’m on?”
“It will go to voicemail.”
She took the phone from him, trying not to brush her fingers against his skin. She crossed to the bed and sank to the edge. For long minutes, she didn’t dial her parents’ number or Holly’s. The room felt like a cage locking her within its walls. When would this all end? Did she clue her family in to the peril she faced?
Across the room, Ross’s chair creaked as he shifted to his feet and began clearing the detritus of their meal. She stared at him for a heartbeat, unable to imagine being ripped from him.
Would her life be enough once she returned to it? When compared to her dull existence—she could only think of it this way now—she didn’t know if she could ever be happy without Ross.
Swallowing the lump in her throat, she dialed her parents instead of video calling. She didn’t trust herself to keep the stress off her face.
The minute her mother’s voice projected into her ear, the blockage in her throat slipped downward into her stomach and lay there, a heavy coal.
“Pippa! Hold on. Let me get your father. Gabriel! We’re so glad to hear from you.” She pictured her momma’s beaming expression and her father’s wide grin and ached for them all the more.
Forcing a note of normalcy into her tone, she said, “Hi, Mom and Dad.”