A flicker of surprise flashed across Cassie’s gorgeous baby blues as they locked with his. Holding her gaze steady, Archer hoped like hell she could see he meant what he’d said.
To hell with the fact that they’d only known each other three days, and fuck what the evidence said. His time as a Navy SEAL had taught him more about life and the human race than he’d ever wanted to know.
The good, the bad, and the ugliest the world had to offer.
Between his training and subsequent tours in the Middle East, Archer had honed countless lifesaving skills along the way, including his gut instincts and innate ability to read people. And when he looked at Cassie…when he allowed himself to really study her intelligent gaze…there was no doubt in his mind or gut that she was innocent of the crime with which she’d been charged.
I just have to prove it.
“Don’t worry, Lori,” Cassie spoke up again. “Archer’s basically serving as my bodyguard while he and his team do an independent investigation into Russ’s death.”
Crossing her arms at her chest, her friend’s tight jaw clenched shut. Tears welled in her eyes, and with a slightly jutted chin, Lori said, “You have to find the person who did this to Russ. Because I’m afraid…” Her voice cracked, but she cleared her throat and licked her thin red lips. “I’m afraid, if you don’t, they’ll kill her, too.”
“I won’t let anything happen to her,” he vowed. “You have my word on that.”
Lori stared back at him with a pointed look before saying, “Just make sure you keep it.”
Archer’s only response was a dip of his head. A single nod to seal his promise to keep Cassie out of harm’s way.
And as the group of three stood there, waiting for Lori’s husband to make his way through the thick crowd and over to them, he couldn’t help but feel as though he’d just made the most important promise of his life.
7
I know.
Cassie’s chest tightened, her heart swelling with hope as she stood half-listening to Archer and Lori’s conversation. He believed her. The manbelievedher. And the best part about hearing those two powerful words grace his kissable lips…
He meant them.
Archer didn’t give platitudes, and he refused to blow smoke up her ass. That’s what he’d told her the first night he’d stayed at her house, and so far, he’d been a man of his word.
For the past two days, they’d discussed every detail of her life. The man knew everything there was to know about her. Even things she wouldn’t have thought remotely relevant to what he’d been hired to do…
The story of how her dad split when she was three. How her mom died when Cassie was twelve after drinking herself into oblivion and then driving her car down a steep ravine.
She’d shared what it was like moving in with her grandmother. It had been such a scary, uncertain time, and Cassie had been so very thankful her grandma was there.
Yes, she’d answered every question the man had asked, even the ones that seemed completely unrelated to her case. The name of her favorite teacher. Her first crush. Every lover she’d ever had.
That last one was easy enough to answer. She’d only ever been with two men.
Cassie’s first had been a guy she’d met her freshman year in college. Matthew Colson was his name, and a lifetime ago, she’d thought he wasthe one.
As it turned out, Matt was nothing more than a baseball player with a killer smile and a wandering eye.
That had been her first lover. She’d just buried her second.
So yeah, the dark and brooding man standing beside her knew all about her sad, uninteresting life. Yet she knew almost nothing about his.
Cassie knew Archer used to be a SEAL, what he did for a living now, and that he was currently single. He’d volunteered that list bit the first night he’d stayed in her house because, in his words, he’d hadn’t wanted her to be concerned about his focus being split between her and his responsibilities at home.
He’d never been married, didn’t have any children, and wasn’t currently involved with anyone. When Archer had revealed his single status, her relief had been grand. But that wasn’t the only thing she wanted to know about her mouthwatering bodyguard.
I want to know where he grew up, what made him want to become a Navy SEAL…why he’s so certain I’m not a killer.
Oh, who was she kidding? When it came to Archer Knox, Cassie suddenly wanted to know…
Everything.