Guardian For Hire: A For Hire Novel by Christine Bell Page A

sat up to find Gavin at the foot of her bed with a tiny motel towel hitched precariously around his lean hips. Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth as she stared. His tattoo stood out in bold relief against his swarthy skin. The shoulders that had looked broad with a shirt on were even more spectacular unclothed. Thickly muscled and gorgeous. Don’t look down. Don’t look—
    It was no use, though. Her gaze tripped lower as if magnetized, and she took in the contours of his chest, the ropy muscles of his abs, the tight vee right about that thin, white towel…
    She swallowed hard and shook her head to clear it. It was way too early for this. Too early to tamp down her reaction to his brutish but undeniable sexuality. He’d already gotten her feet wet and the condition seemed to be spreading upward. But as hard as she tried to tear her gaze away, it seemed as though she always found herself in the exact same spot. Staring at the droplets of water clinging to his pecs, inanely jealous she wasn’t one of them.
    Not that she’d ever tell him that. She worked up some saliva and met his eyes with a frown. “Ugh, will you put it away? It’s sort of early for stripper-robics, I think.”
    He chuckled and shook his head. “Sorry, sleeping beauty, but we’ve got to get going. The shower’s free if you want in.”
    She was surprised by how easy his smile looked. As if he hadn’t just obliterated her insides by flashing around his mostly naked body all over the place.
    “I just forgot to grab my clothes. I’ll only be another minute and then it’s all you.” He flexed over his suitcase, and she caught a glimpse of that tattoo again, 8-28-02. Curiosity tugged at her. First, at what it meant, and second at why she couldn’t seem to look away.
    And as she stared, she noticed there was more than just the tattoo. A long, thin line extended from the center of his chest to just above his right nipple. The lower left section of his stomach was peppered with long-healed pink reminders of previous wounds.
    Until that moment, she’d sort of thought of him as a hired hand. He did his job and got out. His body told a different story. He’d sacrificed. He’d suffered. He was a warrior. And while that should have comforted her considering their situation, it only managed to make her that much more afraid. She wasn’t the only one at risk here. Her unwitting actions had also put someone else in danger.
    She cleared her throat, trying to wrap her head around the turn her life had taken. She had to get her mind off of the situation… to focus on the future because the now was just too damned scary.
    “Where are we going, exactly?”
    “Breakfast.” He tossed the word over his shoulder before disappearing into the bathroom.
    “Funny. But really, where?”
    “Denny’s probably. Delicious food. Plus, it’s five a.m., and they have a great early-bird discount.”
    She sighed. Maybe the best course of action was to stay mute. Trying to make conversation with this confounding man was a one-way path to insanity. “Awesome. We’re on the lam from a hit man, and your plan is to hit the Denny’s,” she mumbled.
    Clearly not as quietly as she’d hoped because he shouted through the door a second later. “Man’s gotta eat.”
    She grumbled under her breath some more, this time more softly. He was the expert, so she’d do what he said, but it went against the grain. Still, if he was half as good as Owen said he was, following his directives could make this whole thing go away a lot faster, so she’d make the best of it.
    She quickly packed up the few things she’d brought, and he emerged from the bathroom a minute later fully clothed, thank the baby Jesus. She pushed past him into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. After a quick hosing off in the surprisingly not filthy shower, and a mirror pep talk full of affirmations about how she was strong, confident, and not a victim, she was feeling marginally better and