First

Her smile dips momentarily into a frown before returning to a more neutral expression. ‘Jake?’

I step back, dropping my hand from her, and stuff my hands into my pockets. ‘Hey.’

We stand there in painful politeness until she breaks the silence. ‘What are you doing here?’

I jerk my head toward Nelson, who’s retrieved our cart. ‘Just here to pick up supplies for dinner.’

‘Nice save, Jacobs,’ Nelson calls. He throws on a big smile and directs it at her. ‘You okay, miss?’

Maya nods and climbs down from the shelves. ‘Thank you. I guess Jake got here at the right time.’

Before Nelson can ask and make a fool of himself, I make introductions. ‘Maya, this is Nelson.’

She smiles and sticks out a hand for him to shake. He’s gone a strange, flushed colour. From behind her, I give him my best glare and growl politely, ‘Nelson, this is Maya.’

Hopefully he picks up on the unspoken message: Don’t be a jackass.

He shakes her hand and doesn’t say a word. Too bad Maya’s connected the dots. ‘Oh, you’re Nelson? From the phone call?’

Nelson releases her hand like she burned him and looks down at his boots. ‘Umm … yeah …’

She turns to me with lips twisted in irritation and says, ‘Well then, I guess Jake’s told you all about me already.’

I really shouldn’t be surprised by that, since she’s always assumed the worst about me. But her words still prick. Sex is one of those things I believe should stay private. I’d never share details about her or any other woman with the guys at the station. It’s none of their damn business.

My denial’s voiced by Nelson. ‘No.’

She and I both blink at that. Her head turns toward him. ‘Sorry, what was that?’

‘Jake doesn’t do that.’

I can’t see her face, but I know the look she’s giving him when she asks, ‘Do what, exactly?’ Her eyebrow will be slightly raised, her brown eyes surprised, her weight shifting to one hip as she settles in for a longer battle.

Nelson clears his throat and looks anywhere but at her. ‘Jake doesn’t talk about that kind of stuff with us. And … I’m sorry for how I acted that morning.’

I’m not sure whether to strangle or kiss him. Maya’s returned her attention to me. Something in my gut pitches at her thoughtful expression. It’s like she’s measuring me, trying to figure out if we’re playing her. As much as I hate the idea of her not trusting me to be a decent guy, I think I hate the idea of someone making her this cautious around men even more.

Nelson mumbles some excuse to me about needing to go get parmesan cheese and vacates the aisle, leaving Maya and I alone.

‘You didn’t … you know … share any details with him?’ she asks. Her voice is a little softer than I’m used to. If I didn’t know her so well, I might even call it cautious.

It would be easy to finally defend myself, to rip into her a little bit and remind her she doesn’t know everyone as well as she thinks, but I can’t bring myself to do it. We’ve been stuck in that same pattern for so fucking long. Besides, we’re standing in the middle of a busy grocery store. My uniform reminds me that I’m representing myself, my brothers, and my career. Acting like an ass isn’t appropriate.

It’s a good excuse for behaving well. A better excuse than accepting that I’m tired of fighting with her. That I’d like to get to know this quiet, thoughtful Maya who’s standing across from me looking at me like I’m a stranger.

I answer her question with one of my own. ‘You think I’d do that to you?’

She nibbles on her lower lip and my libido shoots to attention, along with more problematic parts of my anatomy. ‘Honestly?’

I brace for the sting her answer will bring.

‘No. I don’t think you’d do that.’ Her nose wrinkles. ‘You’re too much of a gentleman for that.’

‘Why does that sound like an accusation?’ I ask drily. Seriously, is it too much to ask for a compliment from her just once?

‘It’s not an accusation,’ she protests.

‘Fine. A complaint.’ Her eyes narrow and I hold up my hands. ‘Sorry. Look, I’ve got to find Nelson. Need me to get down anything else from the shelf for you?’