The other reason stemmed from his offer of a guard to watch over her boys. It wasn’t that she worried they’d see him. Seth and Levi would never even know Rafe’s brother sat in the woods. Mr. Wilkins had postponed their campout due to the threat of rain overnight. They planned on camping in the living room with sleeping bags and microwaved s’mores, along with more westerns on the television. It was just that Rafe’s offer seemed a little…odd.
She lived in the middle of nowhere, and their crime rate was nonexistent. She felt safe. More importantly, she was comfortable leaving her boys to play outside and go to preschool. They looked human, and with the heavy-scented soaps they used, she didn’t fear some stray shifter would smell them. The trick had been one of the few tips their mother had hurriedly given before Jazz had taken off with Seth and Levi.
There was absolutely no reason for Rafe to hire his brother to watch over her boys—kids Rafe had never even met. Unless of course, his motive was to protect Seth and Levi from trouble Rafe might’ve brought with him. Would a security guard make enemies?
“Tell me about your job. What’s it like bring a security guard?”
“I wouldn’t exactly call myself a security guard.”
“You work as an undercover cop, then?” That would explain his concern for her kids.
Rafe cut her a glance. “Not exactly. I help out with government work and private sector jobs. Some security, some investigations. Wherever my skills are needed.”
She turned slightly in her seat. “What kind of skills?”
He slid his fisted hand over the steering wheel. “Tracking missing persons. Gathering intel. Boring stuff, mostly.”
A job he no doubt got involved in because of the disappearance of his sister. “Is it dangerous?”
He shrugged. “It could be. Usually not, though.”
“What brought you here?” She sat up straighter. “It wasn’t anything dangerous, was it? Is that the real reason for sending your brother to watch over Seth and Levi?”
“No. We came following a paper trail, and I told you why I sent Kade to your boys. I guess in the back of my mind I did it for protection. I hope you don’t mind.” He focused his intense gaze on her for a long moment before turning his attention to the road. “I know how easily kids can disappear. It would kill me to know something happened to your boys while you were with me.”
“Oh.”
A warm feeling spread through her. She could almost pretend Rafe was more than a lover. It was a dangerous dream to let grow, but it was hard to stop. He not only anticipated her needs, both physically and emotionally, but he thought about her kids. Worried about them.
She glanced away before he saw the goofy grin on her face. Rafe might just be the world’s most perfect man, and she’d snagged him, at least for tonight. She peeked at Rafe’s profile. Gorgeous. Not in a pretty-boy way. He was strong, charismatic, and being with him felt…right, as if he’d always been a part of her life.
Rafe parked the car and got out. She watched as he walked around the hood of the vehicle. Taking her eyes off him was proving impossible.
He opened her door and held a hand out. She stared at it but couldn’t move. Her legs felt shaky.
“Are you okay?”
Jazz nodded. She was fine—better than fine—but her nerves were kicking in. She hadn’t had sex in so long. What if she didn’t please him?
“I can’t wait to be with you. No female has ever excited me the way you do.” He dropped his hands to her thighs and slowly inched them up her legs, leaving a burning path in their wake. “You just might be the one I never knew I was looking for.”
With that cryptic comment, he lifted her out of the vehicle. His hands lingered on her waist a moment before he led her across the lot.
Her stomach did a little flip. She couldn’t believe she was going to have sex with a near stranger, but she needed him inside her. Jazz focused on the lust, the way he made her feel, and pushed away the anxiety. She’d please him. Whenever he touched her, she went wild.
He brushed his thumb over her wrist. “Keep looking at me like that and we won’t make it to our room.”
She let out a shaky breath. “I can’t help it. You make me hot.”
He pulled her in for another kiss that left her panting, but he eased back before she lost all reason. “Five minutes. Then I’m all yours. You can wait that long, can’t you?”
Jazz gave him a teasing smile. “Four, I can do. Five is pushing it.”
His deep chuckle made her grin widen.
“Come on.” He tugged her hand and ushered her into the hotel lobby.
The cool air and the sound of voices pulled her out of the trance. She forced herself to stop staring at Rafe and scanned the generic space while she waited for him to get them a room. A giggling laugh yanked her attention back to Rafe.
The young, pretty girl at the desk gazed at him with desire stamped on her face. She leaned over the counter, offering a good view of her cleavage, and let her hand linger on his when she handed him a pen to sign the slip. Jazz took it all in, and the first stirrings of jealousy ignited within her. Anger came next. The nerve of the woman, to flirt with Rafe while his date stood only a few feet away. It was obvious they were together, getting a room for the night.
She narrowed her eyes and glared at the desk clerk. The girl didn’t notice. Or care. The woman scribbled on a piece of paper and slipped it to Rafe along with the room key.
She
