The truth was, the more time she spent with him, the more Ellie realized who the real Lucky was. At his core, the former SEAL was a brilliant man who used his intelligence and military training to help those in need.
Now that she really thought about it, itdidseem as if their end goal was the same. Both she and Lucky spent their daysprotecting the innocent. They just went about it in two very different ways.
He uses bullets, and I protect them with the law.
Despite the means, the motive behind their chosen careers was the same. Which led her to start thinking maybe she and Lucky weren’t so different, after all.
“I was on the dance team in high school,” she blurted out of nowhere.
Apparently, this new, more positive outlook on the guy came with the compulsion to share random facts about her life.
Lucky’s grin revealed a dimple she felt a strong desire to touch. “I could see that.” He continued smiling as he drove. “What about college?”
Ellie’s lips curved into a bittersweet smile. “I tried out for the team freshman year. Made it after the first round of cuts.”
“Nice.” He lifted his fist and waited for a bump. When she returned the amusing gesture, he nudged for a little more about her time on the team. “Did you dance all throughout your undergrad, or…”
“I wanted to, but no.” She shook off the bittersweet memories. “My pre-law classes were pretty tough, and my assignments were more in-depth than I thought they would be. Plus I had a part-time job as a legal aid at the courthouse, and before long, it all became too much to juggle. Quitting school wasn’t an option, and neither was not working. I knew my courses would only get harder as time passed, and since my goal was to become a lawyer and not a professional dancer, I left the team after that first semester to focus on my studies.”
“That was a very mature, responsible decision to make.”
“That’s me.” Ellie’s lips pursed into a thin smirk. “Always the responsible one.”
“Oh, I don’t know. You seemed awfully carefree out on that dance floor tonight.”
The comment left her mouth stretching into a wider, much more genuine smile. Before even realizing she was moving, Ellie reached across the console and rested her palm over his upper arm. Heat from his bicep radiated into her skin and gave him a friendly squeeze as he continued guiding the car down their lane.
“Thanks again, Lucky. It was really nice letting go like that for a little while.”
Her gorgeous protector turned her way and flashed her a smile that made her heart swell and her insides melt. “Glad you enjoyed it. I have to admit, you’re a pretty fun date.”
“A date, huh?” she let her lips curve into a small, wry smirk.
Now who’s flirting?
Ellie started to let that smirk fall, but then she thought…so what if she was the one flirting this time? It wasn’t as if the guy didn’t corner the market on the ways of seduction.
So now you’ve gone from flirting to seducing? My, my, thisisa big night for you.
The man’s handsome face softened with sincerity as his heart-stopping gaze turned to her way. “Best date I’ve had in a long damn time,” he rumbled deep.
Ellie’s heart thumped hard, but she schooled her expression and held that grin steady. She waited, expecting Lucky to come back at her with some sort of off-handed quip or smartass comment.
Instead, those captivating blue eyes slid back to the highway and the traffic around them. With a gentle pat, he removed his hand to regrip the wheel, and still…he said nothing.
He was just teasing. It wasn’t even a real date, for crying out loud. Of course, he didn’t really mean it.
Ellie released the grip she still had on his arm before settling back into her seat and placing her hands in her lap. Over the course of the next several miles, she stared out the window in silence.
Along the way, she stole a few hidden glimpses of the confounding man. Each one bringing her closer to a truth she’d purposely ignored for as long as she’d known him. One that left her feeling both excited and terrified.
A truth she knew in her heart she could no longer deny…
I like him.
She really, really did.
But now that she knew this truth…now that she was finally allowing herself to accept the fact that