He caught her gaze in the rearview mirror. “Olivia, I need you to please trust me on this.”
Her gaze pleaded with him to reconsider, and it was the hardest thing in the world to ignore it.
The kiss they’d shared still haunted him. He longed to kiss her again, and again.
Yep, he was in way over his head.
And the way things were going, he didn’t think a life preserver would be tossed his way anytime soon.
TEN
Swallowing her frustration wasn’t easy. Liv didn’t want Ryker to leave her and Aaron with Duncan, so that he could confront Seth on his own. And for what? The slim chance of getting information?
It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Duncan’s abilities to keep them safe. Without him and Mike covering for them in the field, they wouldn’t have been able to escape. She owed both men a deep debt of gratitude.
Yet what she felt toward Ryker was different. She was in tune to him in a way that she didn’t feel toward Duncan and Mike. She cared about him on a personal level. The very idea of him being harmed by Seth made her sick to her stomach.
The motel in Cambridge that Ryker identified for their next stop was in rough shape, a stark contrast to the pretty scenery. The neon vacancy sign had more letters burned out than lit. The paint on the building was faded and peeling, the shingles on the roof curling beneath the heat. She frowned, hoping the ceiling of their room didn’t leak.
Duncan slid out of the passenger seat, then closed the door behind him with a solid thunk.
“Are we home?” Aaron asked.
Home. Her heart squeezed in her chest. It was a sad testament that she had no place to call home. “No, sweetie, we’re staying in a motel. Won’t that be fun?”
Her son wasn’t buying her fake enthusiasm. “I don’t wanna go to a motel. I wanna go home!”
“Aaron.” Ryker’s firm yet gentle tone caught her son’s attention. Ryker turned in his seat so he could see the boy. “We can’t go home until we’re safe. No more complaining, okay? I’m sure there’s a TV for you to watch, if your mom says it’s okay.”
Aaron eyed Ryker with a hint of confusion, as if he vaguely remembered what it was like to have a father, then surprised her by giving in. “Can I take my toys with me?”
“Of course.” She sent Ryker a grateful smile. “And we’ll find a movie for you to watch, too.”
“With cars?” Her son’s fascination with cars had made him badger her incessantly to play certain movies at home. She’d enjoyed watching it with him, although that seemed like a time in their lives that was far removed from where they were now.
“We’ll see.” She had no idea what sorts of movies were available and didn’t want to make a promise she couldn’t keep.
Duncan returned, getting back in the passenger seat. “We’re all set. I have two connecting rooms at the end of the row. No suites here, I’m afraid.”
“Thanks.” Ryker put the car in gear and swung around toward the designated rooms. He pulled in and parked. “I don’t like leaving the SUV out in the open like this. I’m going to park it behind the building.”
“Good idea,” Duncan agreed. He jumped out of the vehicle and quickly used the key to unlock the motel-room door.
Liv gathered Aaron’s things from the SUV, tucking them in her diaper bag before she slid out. Ryker was already on the other side, extracting Aaron from his car seat.
The way he took on the fatherly tasks of caring for Aaron caused a lump to lodge in the back of her throat. It wasn’t just that he didn’t seem to mind, but more so that he took control of what needed to be done without being asked.
Almost as if he knew what it was like to have a child of his own.
She followed Ryker and Aaron into the motel room, wrinkling her nose at the musty smell. She didn’t say anything, but Ryker flipped a switch on the air-conditioning unit as if reading her mind.
“It will air out soon.” He set Aaron on the floor.
“It’s fine.” In those first few nights she’d been on the run she’d stayed in worse places. No use complaining.
Being safe was all that mattered.
“Excuse me.” She ducked into the bathroom for what seemed like the fiftieth time. The muted sounds of the television reached her ears, and she knew Ryker was getting Aaron settled. When she emerged a few minutes later, Aaron was watching Cars and Ryker was hovering near the connecting door between the rooms. She noticed his laptop was open and a picture of Seth Willis was up on the screen.
“I’ll be back as soon as possible.” Ryker met her gaze straight on. “If anything happens, Duncan will get you safely to the authorities.”
“Please don’t go.” She wasn’t proud of how pathetically desperate she sounded. “Duncan can question Seth just as easily as you can.”
“No, Olivia. I’m the one responsible for getting to the bottom of this. Duncan has done more than enough for me.”
By the stubborn glint in his eye she knew Ryker wasn’t budging. She bit her lip. “Okay, but please be careful. Worrying about you will only add to my stress level.”
Ryker’s gaze dropped to her belly, then shifted away. She felt a pang of guilt at using her pregnancy as a way to convince him not to go. “This won’t take long.”
Ryker turned to leave. She rushed over and grasped his arm. “I’ll pray for you.”
He paused, then surprised her by nodding. “Thanks. At this point, I’ll take all the prayers I can get.”
He would? Surprised, she dropped her hand, and he swiftly moved through the connecting door and out to the SUV. Pushing away the edge of the curtain, she watched as he slid behind the wheel and drove away.
The SUV was nothing but a black speck on the horizon when she finally let the curtain
