Part 15 (2/2)

”Yes. And over breakfast I need to talk to you about a couple of things.”

She arched an eyebrow. ”What?”

”The threat on your life.”

She chuckled lightly as she came back to the table. She sat down after filling their gla.s.ses with juice. ”Getting tired of your babysitting gig already?”

He took the chair across from her. ”No. I just don't like not knowing who and what we're dealing with. That's why I talked to Alex.”

She paused and reached for a slice of bacon. ”Alex?”

”Yes, Alex Maxwell. Remember him?”

She nodded. ”Yes. I don't want to think what could have happened to Mac if he hadn't figured things out,” she said.

”Alex has agreed to help us, but I need you to be up front with him and tell him everything, Sam. You need to tell him about all those guys you didn't mention to Detective Adams. He will need names.”

”The only reason I didn't mention anything about them to Detective Adams is because I don't think there's a connection.”

”Maybe not, but we need to let Alex check things out and decide that.”

”And he's willing to help?” she asked.

”Yes, he's willing to help investigate.”

What Blade didn't tell her and what he himself hadn't wanted to dwell on was the reason Alex was willing to do it. It was simple. Alex was doing it because he'd asked him to. They were family and if Blade had come to him with concerns about Sam's safety, then that pretty much sealed it. Although Alex hadn't said anything, he knew Sam wasn't like those other women Blade had messed around with. For some reason, Sam meant something to him.

”But what if this was just a joke? And someone is doing what Detective Adams said, just trying to ruffle my feathers?” Sam asked, breaking into his thoughts.

As far as Blade was concerned Sam's questions were timely and necessary. He still wasn't ready to think about his relations.h.i.+p with Sam. He wasn't even ready to consider the possibility that they even had a relations.h.i.+p. And he was certain that she would be the first to deny one existed.

He leaned back in his chair. ”And do you really think that?”

She slowly chewed her bacon. ”I honestly don't know what to think, Blade.”

The frustration in her voice touched him. He was tempted to get up and pull her into his arms and hold her, whisper in her ear that as long as there was life in his body, nothing would ever happen to her.

He took in a sharp breath. He was confused at how he was thinking, shocked by how he was feeling. He grabbed his gla.s.s of orange juice and almost finished it in one swallow. It would have been better had it been a gla.s.s of cold beer.

”I think the worst thing we can do is to not do anything and a.s.sume that note is the end of it and we won't hear from him again. Whether this guy plans to take things further or not doesn't matter.” His tone then turned somewhat angry. ”I want to know who he is regardless. I don't want him to get away with what he's done.”

And he won't get away with it, Blade thought, as he continued to eat. Whoever the guy was, he had gone too far and Blade was determined to let him know it.

”You said you had a couple of things to discuss with me. That's one. What's the other?”

He glanced over at Sam. And suddenly his mouth almost went dry when she licked a crumb off her lip with her tongue. He straightened in his chair when he felt his erection straining against his zipper.

”I want to talk to you about this weekend,” he said.

She raised a brow. ”This weekend?”

”Yes. I'm leaving town for the weekend, heading back to Houston.”

”Oh.”

”I'm attending that party Jake and Diamond are hosting for Sheikh Rasheed Valdemon and his bride. I want you to come with me.”

A look came across her face. He could tell she was surprised by what he'd said. h.e.l.l, he could understand that, since he was surprised by what he'd said, as well. For him to bring a woman to a family function was something he would hear about for the rest of his life. It would set a precedent. It would start all kinds of speculations. It would give his great-grandmother the idea that she should start looking for a dress to wear to his wedding. h.e.l.l, it would set off all those rumors he'd rather not deal with. But for some reason he wanted Sam with him. If only so he could continue to protect her. If he left her here he would only worry, so it stood to reason that she should come with him. It made perfect sense.

Evidently it didn't make perfect sense to her, if the expression on her face was anything to go by. ”Do you have a problem going to Houston with me this weekend?” he asked her.

”Yes.”

Her response had been quick and he wasn't sure just how much he liked that. ”Why?”

She set her fork down. ”Because for some reason you've gotten it into your head that I can't look out for myself, Blade. I am well aware that I need to be cautious until I find out who sent those flowers and that note. But I refuse to become dependent on a man. I appreciate you being here and wanting to make sure I'm okay, but we agreed it was only so that Peyton, Mac and Luke wouldn't worry. I don't think we should get carried away with anything.”

Too late, he thought. They had already gotten carried away. He had done some things with her he hadn't done with any other woman, and being inside her body without a condom was just one of them. And the crazy thing about it, as strange as it sounded and as unwise as he knew it was, his shaft was bursting to get back inside of her, just that same way.

”Want some more juice?” Sam asked when she noticed his gla.s.s was empty.

”Yes. Thanks.”

Sam lifted the pitcher off the table and poured him a gla.s.s. She wondered how and why he'd made an offer like that. Take her to Houston with him? And just where was she supposed to stay when she got there? She knew he had a condo, but did he actually expect them to stay under the same roof? All night? And what would his family think if they did?

And why was every muscle in her body, every fiber, oozing with a need that was as intense as anything she'd ever experienced? The sensations running through her had her almost to the breaking point, but she still refused to give in. She was a tough nut to crack-stubborn to a fault. A die-hard Di Meglio.

But as she sat there and watched Blade b.u.t.ter his toast, she knew she was in deep trouble.

Chapter 17.

”Since you prepared breakfast I'll clean up the kitchen,” Blade said as he stood to start clearing the table.

Sam stoodm as well. ”That's not necessary. It's the least I can do, since you got out of bed early for nothing.”

”No problem,” he said, walking toward the sink with dishes in his hand. ”Any inconvenience was repaid twofold. You outdid yourself with breakfast.” And he really meant it. He'd never eaten eggs so fluffy and she'd even baked homemade biscuits.

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