Safeguarding Kelly(18)
Author: Zoe Dawson

 

Smiling slightly, he stroked her lip again, his voice softer, huskier, more seductive. “I’ve never let you go.”

 

Mesmerized by the look in his eyes, she somehow managed to swallow, her voice so uneven it didn’t sound like her own. “I never let you go, either.” She knew the words were true the moment she said them.

 

Jason slid his fingers along her neck, his touch making her shiver; then he rubbed his thumb against her frantically beating pulse point. “We can talk about things…later,” he said, his voice gruff and very low.

 

That admission did unbearable things to her heart, and she closed her eyes against the sudden fullness in her chest.

 

Jason shifted his hold, taking her face in his hands. “Look at me, babe,” he whispered. “I need you to look at me.”

 

Feeling as if she was drowning, she opened her eyes, drugged by sensation, paralyzed by his touch. He stared at her, his expression strained. Then he tipped her face up and slowly lowered his head, and Kelly made a helpless sound and her eyes drifted shut. Exerting pressure on her jaw, he opened her mouth, then covered it in a wet, deep, searching kiss that drove every ounce of strength out of her body and made her knees buckle.

 

Working his mouth hungrily against hers, drawing her hips closer, made her almost lose her mind. She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think; all she could do was hang on to him with all she had left in her while he evoked a thousand sensations.

 

Jason caught her by the hips and molded her flush against him, his mouth wide and hot as he ran his hand down her back.

 

She wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to bring him closer. Kissing him was everything.

 

He pulled away and pressed his forehead against hers. “We have a lot to talk about. The most important being that I’m staying here with you tonight and from now on until this serial killer is caught.”

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER SIX

 

 

 

 

 

It was like coming out of a fog into the stark reality of day. “Wha-a-at?” she said. “What did you just say?”

 

He gripped her shoulders. “I’m staying here until we have the serial killer behind bars. It’s nonnegotiable.”

 

“You think this person is targeting me?”

 

“I think someone tampered with your car, so you’d get stranded at NCIS late at night. A perfect time to kidnap you.”

 

“My car? You think someone is stalking me?”

 

“I think a killer is stalking you. One that has a specific agenda. They’re after medical personnel. That is clear and until we find out who it is, you’re vulnerable.”

 

This shouldn’t shock or delight her. Jason was, if anything, honorable and conscientious.

 

“This isn’t about getting you into bed.”

 

She looked up into his face. “Oh, it’s not?”

 

His mouth lifted at the corner. “Damn it, Kelly. Don’t get cute on me.”

 

Her heart beat faster. What if this was her opportunity to tell him the truth? What if the universe was giving her a second chance? Giving them time to make things right?

 

“You want to be my bodyguard? Live here until the killer is caught?”

 

“I want to keep you and Kiko safe. It’s pretty simple.”

 

It wasn’t simple at all. But one thought refused to let her go. Maybe honor went both ways. Maybe it was time she did the right and honorable thing.

 

Her heart froze, possibilities and options flashing through her mind like bright lights. Her heart rate going really berserk and a crazy kind of hope taking hold, she pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes, trying to grasp onto a thread of rationality. She needed to use some caution here—she needed to think this through. She needed to use her usual common sense.

 

But that little voice in her head popped up, making rude comments about her and her common sense where Jason was concerned. This wasn’t about her anymore. It was about Jason and Kiko. Maybe it was time for her to let him make his own decisions and give her daughter a father she deserved.

 

“Thank you, Jason, for the offer. I have a spare room next to mine. Let me get you some towels.” She let go of him and took a step back.

 

He snagged her wrist and said, “I’m not going to let anything happen to you or Kiko. I promise.”

 

“I know,” she said.

 

She went to her linen closet and pulled out a towel, hand towel, and washcloth. Entering the bathroom, she turned on the light and set the towels on the vanity.

 

“I’ve got my go bag for tonight. I’ll pick up some things tomorrow.”

 

She nodded and went to slip past him. He caught her and pulled her against him. “Good night,” he said, his voice very low and gruff.

 

She eased in an unsteady breath. “Good night, Jason.”

 

She went into her darkened room and opened up all the windows wide, letting the warm breeze in. Her expression taut, she kicked off her shoes, then stripped off her clothes. She heard the downstairs door open and watched as Jason opened his car and pulled out a bag. Then he was back in the house.

 

She climbed blindly into bed. Draping her arm across her eyes, she tried to will away the ache, tried to collect a modicum of common sense. Proximity, her rational inner voice whispered. Jason’s honor countered that other little voice.

 

Feeling totally shredded inside, Kelly wrestled with all the voices, part of her arguing that for the first time since she’d discovered she was pregnant, her mind was at ease. Finally and inextricably at peace with this decision.

 

If only her body would settle down. Turning on her stomach, Kelly pulled the pillow over her head and groaned. She didn’t think she could stand that awful unsatisfied ache throbbing through her whole body. Even the weight of the bedding was too much.

 

If there was anyone in this world she trusted, it was Jason. Hands down, no questions asked. She’d watched him go out that chopper door in wind-tossed seas, risking his life every time. He was the man she wanted, had wanted ever since she’d laid eyes on him. He might be younger than she was, he might be the biggest tactical military mistake she’d ever made. There would be consequences. That was a given, but maybe it was time to finally relieve them both of this terrible burden.

 

It was up to her to fix that. When the time was right, she would tell Jason he was Kiko’s father and let the chips fall where they may. Staying here with her would give him an opportunity to get to know his daughter. He would already be in love with her by the time Kelly told him the truth. The physical would have to wait. She couldn’t be intimate with Jason until all this was out in the open. For it to be right, he would need time with Kiko. She’d wait. It wouldn’t be easy, but she would wait.