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And he hated himself for lying about that. For making it seem as if he didn’t know it.
But there was no time for his crap.
Blue knew he was a dick, full of mixed messages and deserving of every last accusation she’d thrown at him, but he couldn’t help himself. He leaned over and pressed a hard, swift kiss to Everly’s mouth anyway, because she’d called him a liar and she’d been right.
And if he died out there, he didn’t care if she knew it.
Everly made a small sound in the back of her throat that Blue thought he’d carry with him forever, and he’d never wanted anything more, in all his life, than to stay right where he was.
But his time was up.
He forced himself to roll away from her, then up and onto his feet. And he didn’t look back.
Blue heard her scrambling out of her bed behind him as he headed back into the living room, keeping his ears pricked for the sound of her locking that door the way he’d told her to do. When he heard it a few seconds later, he went over to his bag and grabbed his gun, then moved quietly and quickly across the living room floor to the kitchen. Thanks to the apartment’s open floor plan, he could wait in the shadows and position himself behind whoever came in as soon as the intruder crossed the foyer.
He heard the front doorknob rattle. He controlled his breathing and got his heart rate down, plastering himself to the wall.
He heard a louder noise and knew the dead bolt had been breached.
And he waited.
For a moment or two, nothing happened. Blue knew that whoever was at the door was doing the same thing he was. Waiting. Listening. Trying to figure out if anyone inside had heard them pick that lock.
Everything was quiet.
That they didn’t come thundering in told Blue a few things about their operation. The choice of stealth over force was interesting, given what he’d seen of the goon squad so far. But he filed it away to think about later, once the current threat was neutralized.
He heard the door swing open. He watched the light from the hall outside sweep over the floor, then disappear.
It was go time.
Blue tossed aside everything careening around inside him. The taste of Everly’s mouth beneath his. The look on her face when she’d tried to confront him about it. The way her green eyes had flashed when she’d called him a liar. And how soft and sleepy she’d been when he’d climbed into that bed beside her.
He had to let it all go.
Along with everything that could go wrong in the next few minutes, leaving her exposed and vulnerable. He would not put her at risk. He would not let her down.
But he had to shove that aside, too.
His adrenaline kicked in hard. But Blue waited for the next beat, and that cool, deep calm that washed over him as sure as night followed day. It focused his attention. It made him who he was.
A lethal weapon, courtesy of the United States Navy.
Aimed straight at whoever was foolish enough to bust into this apartment tonight.
He heard the faint brush of a foot against the wood floor in the foyer. It was tempting to jump out and handle the situation there and then, before this animal got any closer to Everly, but he held back. There was no point rushing in until he had all the information.
Until he knew how many asswipes had come to this little party, for example.
There was almost no light in the apartment with the front door shut, but Blue’s eyes had long since adjusted. He stayed where he was as the intruder eased farther in. Then waited to see if there was anyone else with the one bulky figure who crept into the open living room. Concealed in the shadows of the kitchen, Blue didn’t move when the man threw a look this way, then that. He even held his breath on the off chance the guy was sharper than he looked.
Blue could tell the second the asswipe’s eyes adjusted to the dark, because he picked up his pace. And he didn’t even glance toward Rebecca’s room, which seemed like a pretty good indication that he’d been in the apartment before. He knew Rebecca’s room was empty because he’d helped make it that way.
He headed straight for Everly’s door. No hesitation.
And still Blue waited.
The intruder was the man who had been in Everly’s office lobby earlier this evening. Blue could tell by the set of his shoulders, the way he walked, and the fact that he was still wearing the same suit that didn’t quite fit him. As if it was an old one that the guy had pulled outfor the express purpose of stalking a woman he’d expected to find scared, alone, and defenseless.