His body inched closer to hers, hints of warm vanilla and lavender filling the air with a passing breeze. Chase smiled to himself, grateful to know some things hadn’t changed.
“I really am sorry, Chase.” She reached up and covered the back of his hand with hers. “I was a total wreck back then. But you…you were the only thing holding me together. When my mom got sick, at the end, during her funeral…” Her voice grew thick as a few tears fell freely from the corners of her eyes. “You were there through it all. Right by my side. The only sign I was given that everything would eventually be okay. And then I?—”
“Was forced to move to Ohio,” he finished for her.
“I didn’t want to go,” she whispered softly. “I wanted to stay with you.”
“You needed to be with your family.”
Scottie shook her head from side to side. “I needed you.”
“I know, sugar.” The intensity in his gaze softened. “I needed you, too.”
Still do.
“Chase…”
His focus dropped as her chin lifted. Those full, tempting lips parted in a seductive, inviting way. Not intentionally, he didn’t think. Even as a hot as hell teenage girl, the woman had never seemed to see what he saw when he looked at her.
What everyone saw.
“Beautiful,” Chase uttered low. He leaned in, bringing his own lips closer, the desire to kiss her erasing everything else around them.
The buildings. The car-lined street behind her. The scattered few passing by.
All of it vanished the moment he realized…
She wants to kiss me, too.
Chase leaned in closer. Scottie rose onto her tiptoes. He pressed his lips to hers, his lids slowly beginning to fall shut. And then?—
Movement caught his attention from one of the cars parked across the street. Though he wasn’t sure what it was at first, it was out of place enough to make him pull away.
What the…
He zeroed in on the dark-colored sedan. Or rather, the man inside.
“Chase?” Concern laced Scottie’s soft tone. “What is it? What are you?—”
His hand dropped from her face to her shoulder, the gentle yet firm move preventing her from following his line of sight. With his expression schooled and his attention split between the car and her, Chase looked down at Scottie and forced his lips to smile.
“Don’t look, but there’s a man sitting in a car across the street, and it looks as if he’s…watching us.”
“Seriously?” Her eyes widened with alarm. “Are you sure? Maybe he’s just passing the time while he waits for someone.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
For some reason, his gut didn’t think so. He wasn’t even sure why the stranger had caught his attention the way he had. Not until…
There!
The asshole lifted what looked to be a camera, its lens pointing straight in his direction. Though Chase didn’t see a flash or the man’s fingers move, it sure looked as if the asshole was taking his picture.
Son of a?—
“Stay here.” He released the protective grip he’d had on Scottie’s shoulder, stepping around her toward the edge of the sidewalk’s curb.
“Wait!” She spun around. “Where are you going?”