Wyatt (7 Brides for 7 Soldiers #4) Read online

  “He’s her bodyguard,” Claudia said. “It’s hush-hush.”

  “Yes, I’d heard he had a girlfriend in town. From Virginia, I think.”

  “That’s just my cover,” Paige said. “I didn’t want anyone to know I was here. Please don’t share it.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it. But don’t tell Hildie Fontana or the whole world will know,” Diana said with a laugh.

  “Oh God,” Claudia chimed in. “I love her, but she sure can tell some tall tales.”

  “Yes, she really can. But she means well in her own way.”

  “How long have you had this store?” Paige asked, wanting to turn the attention away from her and her secrets.

  “About a year.” Claudia frowned. “It’s been tough though.”

  “Why?”

  She waved a hand at the T-shirts. “I’d like to put in some quality merchandise, but everyone wants this stuff. I have to carry it, or I sell nothing at all.”

  Paige’s senses prickled. She turned her eye on the store, envisioning displays of clothing and accessories. Upscale decor with budget pricing. Dressing rooms with soft lighting that flattered and enhanced. Maybe a coffee and champagne bar too. Upbeat music, but not too loud or boisterous.

  But this wasn’t her town, and she wasn’t staying. Still, the ideas excited her.

  “I have some ideas if you want them,” Paige said.

  Claudia’s eyes widened. “Oh, well, that’s nice of you. But I can’t afford to stock Jimmy Choo or Versace. A single Louis Vuitton would break the bank for months.”

  “No, nothing like that. But really, fashion is my thing. I know a bit about it. If you ever want to talk.” She fished a card from her purse, one of the ones she’d had made for the executives she’d been meeting with. “Call me if you want to hear my ideas.”

  Claudia turned the card in her fingers. “I’ll do that. Thank you.”

  She wasn’t certain the other woman would, but at least she’d tried. “Well, I’d better get going. We have lunch reservations.”

  Diana Wood lit up. “Blue Moon?”

  “Yes. How did you know?”

  “It’s the only place in town you need a reservation. But it’s so worth it. Very French. Very delicious. It was lovely to meet you, Paige.”

  “You too.” Paige waved at the women as she walked out the door. Wyatt pushed away from the wall where he’d been waiting, his gaze heating as it passed over her. She liked it, and she’d liked imagining the shop done up right too.

  “You done in there?”

  “Yep.” As they walked away, she snorted as she remembered the way he’d looked at Diana Wood. It hadn’t made her jealous, though maybe it should have. Except it was too funny. Like he’d had a childhood crush or something. “Want to tell me what that was with Diana?”

  “Oh hell, you noticed that?”

  “I think we all did, Wyatt.”

  “Shit. I’m leaving town then. First thing tomorrow.”

  She playfully punched his arm. “You aren’t and you know it.”

  “No, not really.” He sighed. “Miss Woody—and yeah, I nearly said that—was the object of a million teenage fantasies. Remember those best friends I mentioned?”

  “Yes.”

  “She was the detention monitor that semester. We spent a lot of time thinking about her. And we called her Miss Woody for obvious reasons.”

  Paige laughed. “Poor woman. The source of a thousand teenage erections.”

  “Millions, probably. Can’t figure out why she never married, though I have to admit we all thought we had a chance once we were older. Figured one of us would marry her. Didn’t happen though.”

  “She’s gorgeous.”

  “She definitely is. But so are you.” He turned and caught her to him when they passed behind a hedge in Sentinel Park. “She made me hot when I was sixteen. You make me hot now.”

  Paige melted into his arms for a leisurely kiss that had them both breathing a bit heavier.

  “Oh my!”

  Wyatt stiffened and they broke apart. Hildie Fontana stood there in another of her colorful caftans, silver hair gleaming in the sun filtering through the trees. In her hands she had a bag from the bakery and a coffee.

  “Morning, Mrs. Fontana,” Wyatt said.

  Paige tried not to laugh. She really did. But this woman seemed to catch them every single time he kissed her in town. It was like he had a magnet on him that drew her the instant his lips touched Paige’s. She couldn’t stop the laughter that burst from her.

  Hildie wasn’t deterred. “Morning, Wyatt. Morning, Nicole. Are you two ever coming to the shop or what?”

  “I would love to,” Paige said, still giggling from time to time. “Wyatt?”

  He looked like he’d rather wrestle a bear. “Sure. Yeah.”

  “I’m sorry, Mrs. Fontana. I’m just so happy. I can’t stop laughing.”

  “Oh honey, of course you are,” Hildie said. “With a man like Wyatt in your corner, life is very rosy.”

  Paige shot him a look. “Yes, ma’am, it definitely is. Wyatt? You ready to go have a look around Mrs. Fontana’s shop?”

  “Yeah. You bet.”

  Paige curled her arm in his and they followed a chattering Hildie all the way across the square and back to her cute little antique shop.

  But by the time they got there, Paige’s spirits had dampened. She’d been having fun, but it wouldn’t last. Soon she’d be on her way back to Seattle. And Wyatt wasn’t going with her.

  Chapter 22

  Lunch at Blue Moon with Gran and Paige was a very bad idea. Wyatt nursed his glass of water and watched the two of them. Gran liked her, it was clear. And Paige liked Gran.

  They laughed and talked about horses, about coffee, about baking the perfect coffee cake. They exclaimed over the food too. Bailey came over and talked to them for a few minutes, blushing a little at all the compliments over her cuisine. She really was a fine chef. Wyatt had known her since they were kids, back when she’d just been Adam and Zane’s annoying baby sister, but she’d certainly come into her own. Dating Ryder and everything.

  “Are you ready for dessert?” she asked them.

  “Yes,” Paige and Gran said at the same time that Wyatt said, “No.”

  He glared at Paige. Gran rolled her eyes.

  “Bailey, dear,” she said, “do you have something that’s sugar free?”

  Wyatt relaxed, but only marginally.

  “I have a sugar-free chocolate torte. We serve it with whipped cream and fresh strawberries. Believe me, you won’t even know the difference.”

  “Then I’ll have that,” Gran said. “And a coffee.”

  “Make that two,” Paige added.

  Wyatt let out a long-suffering sigh. “Fine. Three.”

  “Excellent. I’ll let your server know.”

  “Wyatt William, you sure are grumpy today,” Gran said after Bailey was gone. “What’s the matter with you?”

  “Nothing, Gran. I’m not grumpy at all.”

  Paige smirked. When they got back to the cabin, he was going to spank her. And then he was going to lick her.

  “Hildie caught us in the park and forced us to go over to her shop,” Paige said, eyeing him. “She’s been asking and Wyatt’s been promising, but this time he couldn’t think up an excuse.”

  “Oh my,” Gran said.

  “We spent half an hour looking at estate jewelry while she whipped out ring after ring and pronounced them good engagement rings. Or, at the very least, promise rings.”

  Gran laughed. “Hildie is a force to be reckoned with. Did you buy anything?”

  Paige dropped her lashes, and Wyatt suddenly felt uncomfortable. Why the hell had he insisted on buying her anything anyway?

  “Wyatt bought me a pin.” She dug the velvet box from her purse and handed it over. The cat was as pretty now as it had been in the shop. Silver, with green jewels for eyes, it was a lovely little thing. And perfect for Paige.

  Gran studied it
. When she looked up at Wyatt, he thought he couldn’t possibly get any more uncomfortable than he was right that minute. He could see the spark of hope in her eyes, the wish that he might settle down and start having grandchildren. He hated to disappoint her—because that’s not what was happening here.

  He liked Paige. But what they had was physical, not lasting. He loved her body, not her. Loved the way he felt when he was buried inside her—but he would feel that way with any woman.

  It was sex. The euphoria of sex. That wasn’t love and never would be.

  “She has a cat,” Wyatt said gruffly. “It seemed appropriate.”

  Paige had tried to tell him no, especially since the pin had been nearly two hundred dollars. But he’d talked Hildie down and bought it anyway. He could afford to spend that much, even if Paige was accustomed to spending far more.

  He’d wanted to get her the pin, but he felt stupid now. She’d been nice about it, but she could afford anything she wanted. Hell, her watch was Cartier. The diamonds in her ears could choke a horse. But she’d gazed up at him with tears in her eyes when he’d bought that pin.

  Even now, she treated it like it was precious.

  “I love it,” she said. “It’s perfect.”

  Gran shifted her gaze to Paige. Then she patted Paige’s hand. “It is, honey. You’re a sweet girl.”

  Wyatt stifled an inner groan. This had been a spectacularly bad idea. He’d just been trying to take care of Gran, protect Paige, and have a nice lunch. Instead, he’d gotten up the hopes of one, made a fool of himself with the other, and the day wasn’t even over yet.

  The cake and coffee arrived then, and he was saved from continuing the conversation. He had to admit, after the first hesitant bite, that the cake was pretty damned amazing. Ryder was going to weigh three hundred pounds in about ten years with Bailey’s cooking.

  But what a way to go.

  “Will you two be going to the Fourth of July festivities?” Gran asked.

  “Paige might be back in Seattle by then,” Wyatt said before Paige could answer.

  “I don’t know yet,” Paige blurted. “Nothing is settled. But I might have to go.”

  Gran’s gaze darted between them. “Have you found her stalker?”

  “He’s been identified. But he’s not in custody yet,” Wyatt told her.

  “Well, I hope he gets caught soon. And I also hope you stay for the fun, dear,” Gran said. “Eagle’s Ridge really does it right.”

  “I’d like to,” Paige said, but Wyatt didn’t think she meant it. She was a city girl at heart, and she wanted to get back there. Besides, she had her plan now, and he didn’t think anything was going to stop her. Paige Spencer was going to be a success on her own terms, no doubt about it.

  Yet part of him wished she was a small-town girl. That her dreams weren’t so big and that she might want to stay in Eagle’s Ridge and spend the winter cozied up in a firelit cabin with him.

  “It’s only a couple of days away now. Maybe you’ll still be here,” Gran said with a smile.

  “Yes, maybe so.”

  “Don’t get your hopes up. Either of you,” Wyatt said. “This has always been a job—and once it’s over, Paige is going home. And I’m moving on.”

  “Of course, dear,” Gran said, looking slightly scandalized. Maybe he had been a bit blunt.

  Paige didn’t respond. Or look at him. She forked up a bite of her cake and kept her attention anywhere but on him.

  Wyatt ignored the sinking feeling in his gut. It’s a job, he told himself. A job.

  But sometimes it felt like a lot more.

  His phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and glanced at it. Turning away from his lunch companions, he took the call.

  “They got him,” Hawk said. “Joshua Kingsley is in custody.”

  “Kingsley,” Paige said. She kept turning the name over in her head. How had she not remembered that? He’d called himself King. And he’d called her “my queen.” It should have been obvious, but she hadn’t remembered a thing about the man who’d spent a month as her part-time protector.

  They were back at the cabin and Wyatt was at his computer while she paced back and forth in the living room. She’d put Mr. Fluffypants in her room and shut the door so she could open the french doors onto the deck. The breeze on the mountain was fresh and sweet, though it had been hotter in town. She strode outside and gazed at the valley below.

  The sight tugged at her heart. But then she remembered Wyatt’s words at lunch. She’d be leaving and he’d be moving on. That’s what he’d said. Of course it was the truth, and yet hearing it made a knot form in her chest.

  But what had she expected?

  He’d bought her the pin, though she’d objected because of the expense, but he’d insisted it hadn’t meant anything beyond the moment. Maybe he’d done it to shut Hildie up. Maybe he’d just been being nice.

  Wyatt looked up, his expression fierce. “The studio should have never hired him. He had no experience. He’d once been in the Army for two years, but as a regular grunt. He had no Special Forces training. Nothing to recommend him for the job.”

  It didn’t surprise her, though it did make her angry. The producers were always trying to cut corners. Yes, they were a small production set in Seattle, not a big Hollywood operation. But a security professional should have qualifications, not a vague résumé with some military service.

  Huh, maybe she had learned something from Wyatt.

  His phone rang and she stopped pacing while he took the call. After a few minutes, he hung up and met her gaze. Her heartbeat slowed. She didn’t like that look on his face.

  “Your lawyer is filing a temporary restraining order against him. They’ll let him go and schedule a court date for a hearing. The judge can grant the order then, or not. It will probably be granted, based on his behavior. The cryptic notes, the photo. The threat against you and your cat. They’re vague, but should be enough for a judge.”

  Paige’s heart hammered. “What are you telling me? That he’s going to be let go? That he’ll be free to keep harassing me?”

  He came over and took her by the shoulders. “He won’t be free to harass you. If he does, he’ll go to jail. But the justice system doesn’t lock people up for vague threats, Paige. And that’s all he’s done. He’s entitled to due process.”

  Anger swirled inside her. “And what about me? What am I entitled to? What am I supposed to do when he knows where I live?”

  “You don’t have to go back yet. Or, when you do, stay with your father for a while.”

  Acid scalded her throat. Stay with her father and Melanie? She’d rather spend the night in a snake-filled pit.

  “It’s not fair,” she said. “He’s turned my life upside down, and the only assurance I have that he’ll quit is a restraining order?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  She pulled in a breath. “Come to Seattle with me, Wyatt. Protect me there. At least until we’re sure he won’t violate the order.”

  His gaze was troubled. His fingers dug into her shoulders. “I can’t, Paige. But I’ll make sure you have someone good. Hawk runs a high-end firm with former military guys. You’ll be safe with his crew.”

  Her heart hurt. The idea of going back to Seattle no longer appealed. Not without him. It hit her, quite forcefully, that she needed him. That her life wouldn’t be the same without him.

  Oh my God—was this love? Did she love him?

  Oh wow, she did. Loved his grandma too—and loved this mountain and the view. How could she love these things in so little time? And how could he contemplate sending her away so easily? Did he really feel nothing? He’d bought her the silver cat, told her his secrets. Didn’t that mean anything?

  “I want you,” she said, her voice quivering.

  His fingers tightened on her shoulders. “I can’t, honey. I swore I’d be here for Gran. That I’d take care of her. I can’t go.”

  Paige sniffed. “Mary Beth doesn’t need taking care o
f, Wyatt. She needs your love, but she doesn’t need you hovering over her like a prison warden.”

  His brows drew down. “Don’t tell me what my grandmother needs. You don’t know her at all. A few days in Eagle’s Ridge doesn’t make you an expert on either one of us.”

  Oh, he knew how to twist the knife, didn’t he? She pushed out of his grip and went out onto the deck. The breeze fluttered her hair. The tears pricking her eyes grew cool in the wind.

  She knew, didn’t she, that people only did things for you when you paid them to? That her worth was directly tied to the compensation she could provide. And here she’d fallen for the one man who couldn’t be compensated enough to stay by her side.

  She heard him come outside. He walked up behind her, his powerful body giving off a lot of heat as he stood close enough to touch. But she refused to turn.

  He wrapped his arms around her, bent his head to her ear. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.”

  She wanted to stand firm, not touch him. Not melt. But she wasn’t that strong. She put her hands on his arms, held him to her. His lips feathered along her neck, and chills ran up her spine on spidery feet.

  “You’ll be safe, Paige. I won’t let anyone hurt you. I promise.”

  Except he’d already broken that promise. Because he was the one hurting her—and he didn’t even know it.

  Chapter 23

  In some respects, it was an awkward couple of days. Wyatt and Paige had an unspoken truce going. They didn’t talk about the future, though they made love like there wasn’t one. He didn’t know why it hurt every time they were in bed together, but it did. Hurt right in the center of his chest and wouldn’t stop.

  In fact, it hadn’t stopped hurting since the moment it started two days ago. He could forget it for a short while, and then it came roaring back.

  Maybe it was because the temporary restraining order against Joshua Kingsley had been granted and a hearing date set. Which meant that Paige could return to Seattle at any moment. But Hawk didn’t have anyone to take over her protection there just yet. It was a holiday weekend and his people were otherwise engaged.