“Make yourself at home,” Dev said to Shelby as he set her suitcases down. “I’ll take care of this while you get settled.”
He crossed the floor to the kitchen, and when the other guy rose, they clasped hands like they were going to arm wrestle. Instead they pulled in to give each other firm thumps on the back. Shelby snuck glances of their exchange as she hung up her coat before ambling to the kitchen island to set down the baggie of chocolate chunk cookies.
Brennan stepped back, his gaze flicking to Dev’s legs as his brows shot up. “Wow. Look at you after only three fucking months.” He shot a glance toward Shelby. “Shit. Language. Sorry.”
She smiled and shrugged.
Dev rotated slightly toward her. “Jensen Brennan, Shelby Diamond. We served together for six years.”
Totally explained the camaraderie. Shelby moved forward, meeting him halfway for a polite handshake. “Nice to meet you,” she murmured.
“Likewise.” Jensen turned back to Dev, hands propped on his hips. “You are fucking Superman.”
Dev shifted his stance, clearly uncomfortable. “The doctors underestimated, that’s all. You said you’re almost done?”
The pointed change of subject had Jensen giving Shelby another quick look before turning back to the French doors. “Yeah. Give me five minutes, and then I’ll show you what this bad boy can do.”
His words overshadowed her curiosity over Dev’s apparently miraculous recovery. They were clear evidence that what had been presented to her earlier as a choice was quickly proving to be nothing more than a placating pat on the head.
Jensen disappeared into one of the bedrooms, and Shelby planted herself in front of Dev, arms crossed over her chest. “Did you figure you could use a souped-up security system no matter what, too?”
His brow furrowed until she saw understanding dawn in his eyes. “Does it matter?”
“Apparently not. I just want you to admit you weren’t actually going to give me a choice.”
“Of course the choice was yours. Still is.”
“Um hm.”
His jaw tightened as he tilted his head, “Do you want to go back to your place?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Do you want to rent a whole new apartment? Or move back home?” He threw his hands up from his sides and stalked over to pick up her suitcases. “Tell me what you want, Shelby, and that’s what we’ll do.”
“The place is not the issue,” she exclaimed as he stood there with her bags hanging from his grip. “I hate being patronized, that’s all.”
“I wasn’t patronizing you,” he insisted. “I swear to God, if you had wanted to stay at your place, I would’ve had security installed there, too. It was a
fifty-fifty chance, and going off your reaction last night, I bet on my place first.”
The words sank like a pit in her stomach. He’d correctly guessed her choice, not made it for her. She stood there feeling like an idiot for making a big deal out of what two seconds later seemed like nothing.
Dev dropped her stuff and closed some of the distance between them. “I know this isn’t easy on you, but picking a fight with me isn’t going to help.”
She nodded as she grimaced at her bags. Reminded herself to act like a mature adult, not a child.
“Shelby.”
Dev’s gentle tone drew her gaze back to his.
“Listen, I get it. I know what it’s like to not have a say in something so monumental it turns your life upside down.”
His involuntary medical discharge from the Army. Her chest tightened at the genuine sympathy in his low voice, and she wanted to hug him.
“I can’t help that you’re going to be restricted until this is over,” he continued, “but I’m not going to take anything away from you unless it impacts your safety. And, I promise I’ll be straight with you on everything, but you gotta trust me, too.”
Trust him. That was hard when she was thoroughly confused about so many things. She lifted her gaze to his, her pulse speeding up as a question formed in her head. The question. A swipe of her tongue wet her dry lips in preparation to ask, but then his attention dropped to her mouth, and suddenly he’d taken another step closer.