But he was watching her.
Which meant the guy had probably wired the place. Chance didn’t think the incident from earlier had been a mugging gone wrong. Hell, no. He thought that bastard had just planted cameras or bugs at Gwen’s place. Only she’d arrived home before the guy could make his getaway. And with Gwen so close, the guy hadn’t been able to resist grabbing her.
You are going to pay, asshole.
“I could have stayed in a hotel. Or even gone to my father’s place.” Gwen’s arms were wrapped around her stomach. “You didn’t have to bring me here.”
“Yes, I did.” Because he wanted her in his house. He wanted her close.
Gwen was wearing a pair of faded jeans that hugged her hips and ass beautifully. Her old college t-shirt was weathered and looked far too sexy on her. Her hair was loose, and it fell over her shoulders. He thought she’d never looked more beautiful.
Shit, pull it back, man!
The woman had been threatened, harassed, and the last thing she needed was his lust right then, too.
So pull the hell back. Give her the protection she needs.
He pointed to the hallway. “My room’s on the right. Go on in and get some sleep. I know you have to be dead on your feet.”
Gwen didn’t move. “Where will you sleep?”
His lips quirked. “The couch.”
“No, Chance, you—”
“Baby, I’ve slept on plenty worse.” Especially back in his soldier days. When he’d been a fresh recruit for Uncle Sam, he’d slept anywhere and everywhere, and often woken to the sound of gunfire. “Sleep in my bed, and I’ll bunk down out here. I swear, you won’t have a thing to worry about from me.”
She hesitated, but then gave a quick nod.
When Gwen started to pass him, Chance’s hand lifted and his fingers curled around her arm. “I’ll need your phone. If that creep calls back, I’ll handle him.” And he’d also get his buddy Dev to try and trace down those calls. He and Lex had plenty of military and security training. And Devlin Shade was their tech expert. Dev could hack his way into pretty much any piece of information.
She gave him the phone, but she didn’t move away. “I’ve been wondering…” Her head tilted to the side as she studied him. “How did you get to my place so fast?”
Ah, he’d figured that question would come up, sooner or later. He’d rather hoped for later. “This is the part where I get to confess that I hadn’t left.”
“You were…watching me?”
“I had a bad feeling.” True enough. “I just wanted to stay around a little bit, in case you needed me.”
Her lashes fell, covering her eyes. “You seem to make a habit of saving me.”
“I just don’t want to see you hurt.”
She swallowed. “My father…hell, he’ll have a field day with this. He was convinced Ethan was after me. I have a restraining order on the guy and I haven’t seen Ethan in months, so I thought he had to be wrong. Or maybe I just wanted him to be wrong.” Her fingers brushed through her hair in a weary gesture. “Now my dad’s going to insist I get a body guard and—” Her fingers stilled. A faint smile curved her lips. “I guess I have you.”
Always. But he didn’t say the word.
“Can I hire you, Chance? Will you keep up that habit of saving me…just until we figure out what’s happening?” She shivered and said, “The man on the phone…he was talking about my panties. About them being sexy and he said he’d never let me go.” Her lashes lifted. He could easily read the emotion in her gaze. “I’m scared.”
And I want to destroy that bastard.
“Tell me your price.”
Her words were eerily like her father’s. Only…there was no price to pay. “Go to sleep,” Chance told her. “You don’t have to worry about anything tonight. I already told you, I’m not going to let you be hurt.”
She started to speak, but then seemed to change her mind. Gwen gave a little nod and headed for the bedroom. He watched her walk away, his knees locked so he wouldn’t give in to the urge to trail after her.
“If you need me…” His voice came out gravel rough. “Just call out.”
Her hand lifted and her fingers curled around the door frame. Gwen glanced back over her shoulder. “Are you my guardian angel?”
Hell, no. His thoughts were far too sinful, and he was more like the devil who couldn’t let her go. “Good night, Gwen.”
“Good night,” she whispered and then she disappeared into his bedroom.
***
He’d followed Gwen back to Chance’s place. The prick Chance Valentine lived in a far more isolated location in the city. An old warehouse that Chance had converted into a home.
He’d already scoped the place out before, so he knew security was everywhere at that place. Chance and his little gadgets. The guy must think he was so damn smart.
Not smart enough.
Because if I can’t get inside to dear Gwen, I’ll just make Gwen come to me.
Playtime was over. He’d warned Gwen. The real party was about to begin.
“And it’s going to be hot,” he whispered.
***
She’d never been in Chance’s home before. And everywhere she looked, Gwen saw Chance. His touch. His presence. She could practically feel him, all around her.
Almost as if he were in bed with her.
He wasn’t, of course. He was down the hallway. Playing protector because she’d totally freaked out back at her apartment. But when a stalker called and basically threatened you, wasn’t a little freak out normal? Gwen sure thought so.
And she also thought that sleep was about a million miles away.
She shoved off the covers. She was still wearing her jeans and her t-shirt. After that phone call, she’d been a little gun shy about just stripping off her clothes. Biting her lip, Gwen tip-toed toward the door. She’d been in the bedroom for over an hour, staring up at the ceiling, trying to decide why someone would want to make her life hell.
So surely Chance had fallen asleep in that time, right?
She opened the door and crept down the hallway. Her bare toes curled against the wooden floor. He’d turned off all the lights so she kept her hand against the wall as she walked. Gwen didn’t hear him so she figured that had to mean Chance was sleeping—
“Where are you going?”
Or not.
She jumped, then automatically put her hand over her heart, as if that movement could somehow calm its frantic beat. “Jeez, Chance, were you trying to scare me to death?”