He felt a hint of possessiveness shoot through him as she stayed near his side.Radley wasn’t his, but shit.He had no trouble imagining what it would be like if she was.
“You want a beer?”Boone asked, feeling chivalrous as he helped her slide onto a barstool.
“Sure, sounds great.”
He gestured to the bartender, taking a pull of his own longneck, and tried not to stare at how fucking pretty she was.
“Don’t worry, no one followed me here,” Radley said.For once, she’d misread his expression, and for that, he was fucking grateful.
“Any new messages?”he asked.
“Negative,” she said smoothly.“Maybe they had enough of harassing me for today.”
Boone’s first tightened around his beer.He didn’t like that they were harassing her at all.
Radley’s knowing gaze tracked from his hand to his face, meeting his dark eyes.“Easy there, tiger.I’m a big girl.”
He made a sound of protest.“That doesn’t mean any man has the right to be following or threatening you.”
“Yeah.I think we’ve been over that.”She let her gaze wander around the space, clearly wanting no part of that discussion at the moment.There were groups of friends laughing over drinks, several couples snuggled up close, and the usual mix of conversation, music, and hustle and bustle of a busy bar.“I like this place—it’s cozy and not pretentious.”
“I’m amazed Xaden’s the one who found it,” Boone said.
Radley laughed, looking over at their colleague.“Who’s the girl he’s with?”
“Flavor of the night,” Gage said, joining in their conversation.“Xaden’s popular here with the ladies.”
“Apparently so,” Radley said dryly.“No wonder he was raving about it earlier.Is Holt coming?”
Gage shook his head.“Not tonight.He’s meeting someplace with Jett while he’s in town.”
“Damn.I would’ve liked to thank him in person.Jett’s the one who got me this job.”
“I’m sure he’ll come around sometime,” Boone said.“Anna might be having kids, but this office is Jett’s new baby,” he joked.“He won’t be able to stay away for long.”
“Valid point,” Radley said.
The group eventually moved to a table, ordering food since none of them had eaten dinner yet.Boone ended up beside Radley, his arm stretched across the back of the booth where they sat beside one another.She’d taken off her jacket at some point during the evening, and he’d tried to keep his gaze away from her creamy cleavage.The top she had on showed off all her best assets.
“What’s on tap for tomorrow?”Radley asked as they’d finished eating.“Holt didn’t mention any more surveillance.We might have to head into the office like normal, boring people.”
“Who said anything about us being boring?”Cooper protested.
“Touche.I have a feeling the office won’t ever be boring with you guys around,” Radley said.
They finished dinner and paid their bill, eventually heading out to their vehicles an hour later.It was late, the moon high up in the sky, and there was a nip in the air.Boone helped Radley slide her jacket back on as they went outside.“I’m following you back to your place,” Boone said in a low voice as they crossed the parking lot.
“That’s unnecessary,” Radley told him, shooting him an annoyed look.
“It’s not up for debate,” he said, his firm voice brokering no argument.
Boone walked Radley to her car, opening the door for her.“What if I lose you on the way?”she joked.“I could always practice my evasive driving skills.”
“And what good would that serve when I’m making sure that you’re safe?”
“If I lose you, then no doubt I’d also lose any imaginary tail.”
Boone’s lips quirked as he studied her.Most women would be happy to have a former Spec Ops guy escort them safely home.But Radley?She’d fight him tooth and nail, insisting she could handle herself.