I look out the windshield, trying to think of a way to tell her about Nathan putting a tail on her without her getting pissed. I don’t want to argue with her, especially in light of her being upset about her friend, but she needs to know I’m taking her safety very seriously.
I turn back to her and pray this goes easy.
“It’s apparent you already know what I mean, but I’ll tell you anyway, so there’s no miscommunication. I’m having Nathan put a protection detail on you.” I squeeze her hand when she opens her mouth to protest. “I know you don’t want that, but do you really think after what happened today, I’ll let you go anywhere without protection?”
“Tegan, it’s hard to believe he’ll hurt me.”
A horn blares behind us, and I’m forced to look away from her when I start driving again. Not wanting to do this without seeing her face, I pull over into a parking lot and park my truck, but leave it running.
“Willow, you thought the same thing about him hurting Minnie,” I remind her. “And he almost fucking choked you to death once already.”
Her brows dip into a frown as she thinks.
“I really don’t want someone following me all the time, stud. I don’t want my privacy taken away from me.”
I lift the console, unbuckle her belt, then snag her around the waist to pull her to my side of the truck. Her eyes lift to mine, and I hate the look in them.
“I understand that, baby, but this is something I need to do for my own peace of mind. Bryan is obviously unstable enough to not think clearly, so there’s no telling what his actions will be. I don’t think having eyes on you will keep him from trying, so one of these times, we’ll catch him and it’ll all be over.”
“Tegan…”
I cup her cheeks and kiss her into silence, letting my lips linger for several moments on hers. Pulling back, I rest my forehead against hers with my hands still on her face and stare at her.
“Willow, do you have any idea what it would do to me if anything happened to you? I can’t…” I stop and close my eyes with even the thought. When I open them again, she’s watching me carefully. “I can’t go through something like that. Please, just agree with me on this.”
She doesn’t say anything for several seconds, just searches my eyes for the truth of my words. Her eyes soften when she realizes how serious I am. She closes the gap between our lips and slips her tongue in my mouth. I groan and drop my hands to her hips, pulling her closer to me. Why in the fuck can I never get enough of this girl? I feel like Abby with her addiction to sex, except I’m addicted to sex with just one girl. And it’s an addiction I never want to be rid of.
With a tortured groan, I pull back and push her away from me gently.
“As much as I want to fuck you silly right now,” I growl, my need for her coming out in my voice. “We need to go check on your girl. Get your ass back to your side of the truck, or I may just change my mind.”
She snickers, then pats my cheek. “You poor baby,” she says, then laughs loudly when I reach for her again. She manages to pull the console back down between us before I can get my hands on her to bring her back to my side.
Her laughter dies down when she says, “I’ll agree with the security detail, but only when I’m going out. Not when I’m at home or work.” I look at her, ready to demand more than that, but she talks over me. “Think, stud. When I’m at home, I’ll have you with me for protection. And you have a security system. At work, I’ll have Nathan and the other guys there. And I highly doubt Bryan is stupid enough to walk into a security firm to confront me.”
I don’t like it, but I agree. There’s no way he’ll get around me when I’m with her, and I know Nathan won’t let him hurt her either. It’s better than nothing or fighting her on it.
“Fine. But if you go anywhere,”—I look at her pointedly—“I mean it, Willow, if you go anywhere, you call Nathan so his man can be with you.”
She nods. “Okay.”
I reach over and grab her hand. “Thank you.”
She smiles. “You’re welcome.”
I put the truck in Drive. “Now, let’s go check on your girl.”