Someone who was depending on him to keep her safe.
Someone he was sure who wasn’t looking for her bodyguard to make a move on her.
The power dynamics alone made the situation nearly untenable.
On top of that, there was the whole Navy SEAL thing. He’d dated lots of women who were intrigued at the idea of being with a SEAL. They liked the visual of having a boyfriend in a dangerous line of work. But in his experience, that thrill rarely kept them around for long. Having a boyfriend disappear without notice, missing dates, birthdays, dinners with friends and family without ever being told where he’d gone was stuff few women could put up with for long. He doubted Peyton would be any different.
Noah leaned forward, dropping the book on the table and reaching for his mug of coffee, shaking his head when he realized it was empty. He’d been so busy thinking about Peyton, he didn’t even remember drinking it.
He was heading for the kitchen when he heard a thud from upstairs. He stopped in mid-stride, tensing. Then he relaxed again. There was no way someone could get in the house without him knowing. Even if they could, he doubted they’d be ballsy enough to do it in the middle of the afternoon. Peyton had probably dropped something.
He made it all the way to the fridge this time before he heard another thud, louder this time. Okay, maybe he should go check on her.
Noah jogged up the stairs, taking them two at a time until he felt a little twinge in his knee, which made him slow down. But he still moved as quickly as he could, making his way silently down the hall to her office. For the second time that day, he stopped in the doorway and stared transfixed.
Peyton was dancing around the room in shorts and a tank top, her feet bare, her iPhone in her hand, buds in her ears, and her back to him. Noah thought the yoga pose he’d seen her in that morning was sexy, but watching her hips wiggle to whatever music she was listening to was hot enough to make him go hard in his jeans.
Noah knew he should go back downstairs. Peyton wasn’t in danger. If anything, he was the one at risk here. Watching her shake that cute little butt was damn near killing him.
Besides, if he left now, she’d never know he was standing here like some kinky voyeur.
But then Peyton twirled around to face him. She jumped, her eyes going wide. Color crept into her cheeks as she yanked the buds from her ears.
“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said. “I heard noise and came up to check on you.”
“Oh.”
She transferred her phone and buds to one hand, then reached up with the other to tuck her long hair behind her ear. Noah wondered if it felt as silky as it looked. The urge to find out was so strong he had to shove his hands in the front pockets of his jeans so he wouldn’t do something crazy.
Peyton gave him an embarrassed look. “Sometimes when the words aren’t coming as fast as I’d like, I get up and dance. Sorry I worried you by making so much noise.”
“Don’t be sorry,” he said. “You dance great.”
She blushed again, deeper this time. “Now you’re making fun of me.”
He shook his head. “No, I’m not. You have some serious moves.”
She ducked her head a little “Thank you.”
With the apologies and compliments out of the way, Noah told himself he should go downstairs, but he couldn’t make himself move. That probably had something to do with the way Peyton was standing there gazing into his eyes, her lips slightly parted, her face still flushed.
He wasn’t even sure how many times his phone rang before he realized what the hell was making so much noise.
Shit.
Noah dug his phone out of his pocket and put it to his ear without even checking to see who it was. “Bradley.”
“Noah, thank God you answered!”
His hand tightened reflexively on the phone, his heart beginning to speed up at the anxiety in his mother’s voice. “Mom, calm down. What’s wrong?”
“The sink in the kitchen started leaking and I’m afraid it’s going to flood the whole house,” his mother said in a panicked voice. “Can you come over and fix it? And don’t say you’re working because I know you’re still on medical leave.”
Noah glanced at Peyton with a frown. She was regarding him curiously, concern in her blue eyes. “Yeah, I’m on medical leave, but that doesn’t mean I’m not working. I’m doing something important right now and I can’t just up and leave. You’re going to have to call a plumber.”
“A plumber?” His mother sighed. “You know how long it takes to get anyone to show up in this town. What am I supposed to do until they get here? Why can’t you come over? What are you doing that’s so important?”
“I’m doing some work on the side while my knee heals up and I can’t get away right now,” he said again, kind of shocked Laurissa hadn’t already told their mom about the bodyguard gig. “If you’re worried about the house flooding, turn off the water.”
“You know I don’t know how to do that.” Another sigh. “Fine. If it floods the house, it floods the house. But if I drown, it will be your fault.”
It was Noah’s turn to sigh. Sometimes his mother was a complete drama llama. “Mom, it’s not going to flood the house and you’re not going to drown. Now, I have to go. I’ll call to check on you later, okay?”
“What was all that about?” Peyton asked as he hung up.
Noah quickly filled in the parts of the conversation she
