Harlequin Romantic Suspense April 2021 by Karen Whiddon (good e books to read txt) 📗

Trace shook his head. There was no reasoning with this woman. He placed his hand at the small of her back and followed her to the door. Neither of them spoke as she disarmed the alarm and turned on the kitchen light.

“I’m staying the night,” he said, bracing himself for the argument he knew was coming. She could be stubborn all she wanted, but she had just met her match. There was no way he was leaving her alone in this condition. Besides, they still hadn’t talked about his reason for showing up at her house in the first place.

“Okay, but...do you mind if we go to your condo instead?” Connie asked. The request shocked the hell out of him.

Trace studied her for a moment until she lowered her head and stared down at the keys in her hand.

“Of course I don’t mind. Connie, you have an open invitation, you know that. But I have to ask. Why don’t you want to stay here? Did something else happen after I left last night...or this morning?”

He set her laptop bag in one of the kitchen chairs and glanced around the open space. The house was as neat as usual, nothing out of place. For the second time tonight, though, his mind was bombarded with questions. This was a woman who’d been adamant about boundaries. Now she wanted to spend the night at his place? Something wasn’t right, even though he did want her in his home. But not like this.

“Did something happen?” he repeated.

“No, I just don’t want to sleep here tonight.” She started down the hallway that led to the bedrooms. “Give me twenty minutes to get cleaned up and to pack a bag. Then we can leave.”

“Wait,” he called out in confusion. He followed behind her, then slowed when she stopped and turned to him.

“Trace, just give me a few minutes, okay?”

The exhaustion in her expression forced him to keep his mouth shut. Instead of questioning her request, he nodded, but he couldn’t help wondering what she wasn’t telling him.

“I’ll never understand women,” he mumbled under his breath and went to the living room. Trace didn’t bother turning on more lights. Instead, he dropped down on the comfortable sofa and rested his head back. Closing his eyes, he played the last couple of hours around in his mind.

Having had the day off from work, he had lounged around his condo for much of the morning. The afternoon consisted of running errands, doing laundry and tidying up his place. All was going well until he was eating dinner and watching the news. That was when he saw the latest report on the bank robbery.

He hadn’t been surprised to find out the robbery was an inside job. His issue now, though, had everything to do with Connie. As long as the crooks were at large, he couldn’t relax with her traipsing around the city alone. It didn’t help that she thought the criminal that she had made eye contact with seemed familiar, or at least his eyes had.

Trace knew he was being paranoid, but he couldn’t shake the gnawing going on inside him. A number of what-ifs continued to torture him whenever he saw or heard anything new about the robbery. Nope. He wouldn’t be comfortable with Connie going about her business as usual until the robbers were caught. Since he couldn’t shake his unease, he’d have to figure out how to become a fixture in her life until the perps were apprehended. Based on how unyielding she’d been for the last half hour, that wasn’t going to be easy.

“I think I’m ready,” Connie said, stopping between the living and dining rooms.

She had pulled her hair into a ponytail at her nape and changed into a red T-shirt and skinny jeans, with a pair of navy blue Chucks on her feet. She was already cute, but the casual outfit made her even more adorable.

He didn’t know what all she had done while in her bedroom, but she seemed more refreshed. Still, that certain spark that usually shone in her eyes wasn’t there.

“Oh, and I hope you don’t have Vinnie Montell stuffed in that bag. He’s not welcome at my house.”

She sputtered a laugh and shook her head. “I’m never going to live that down, am I?”

“Probably not.”

“Figures. Just let me grab a bottle of water. Then we can leave. Do you want one?”

Trace strolled into the kitchen. “No, thanks. I’m good.” He watched as she struggled to open the bottle before she handed it to him.

“Did you take any pain meds?” he asked, then handed the bottle back once he’d opened it.

Connie leaned her back against the kitchen counter and took a swig. “I must have run out of ibuprofen. Do you have some at your place? Or, if you don’t mind, maybe we can stop by the store on the way.”

“I have some.” He moved closer and braced his hands on the counter on either side of her, locking her in place. Her beautiful hazel eyes met his, but she didn’t try to move away. “I’m going to ask you again,” Trace said. “Why do you want to go to my place?”

Considering how long it took her to answer his question, Trace thought she wasn’t going to respond.

“I didn’t sleep well, and now I’m thinking that maybe in a different environment...” Her words trailed off.

When she lowered her gaze, Trace lifted her chin with the pad of his finger, forcing her to meet his eyes. In that moment, he wanted to kiss her tempting lips, but he resisted. Their relationship was already complicated enough, with him wanting more of her than she was willing to give. Not to mention criminals who might be after her. No, he needed to tamp down his desire for her and not make things any more awkward.

“I told you before I left last night that if you needed anything, you should call me. Why didn’t you? I would’ve come back.”

“Trace, I can’t ask