Page 5 of Deception and New Direction (Ranger Shield Security #3)

RUTHIE

I think I needed to find friends who didn’t get kidnapped.

First, it was Jack’s sister Ellie . Then , last night, it was Cat . Who was I kidding? These were my only friends I’d made since moving here, and I loved them dearly.

I didn’t want new friends. I just needed to make it so that none of them were kidnapped.

I’d woken this morning to pain in my foot and leg from my injury and pain in my arm from Dash , who was currently lying on top of it. Sometimes he slept with me in my bed, but usually he would get too hot and eventually move down to his bed on the floor. Not last night.

I wondered if he could sense I was hurt and wanted to be near me or if he was just nervous about a man being in my apartment. Either way, I wasn’t about to complain. He was the best emotional support oven mitt I’d ever had.

It made me smile because I had never really had anyone in my life who truly loved me affectionately and unconditionally like Dash . It felt weird to have someone’s undeniable trust like that, even if that someone was just a dog.

I was awake and had been awake for a little while, but I was avoiding leaving my bedroom.

Part of me wanted to avoid seeing Jack .

The other part of me wanted to avoid the inevitable move to Jack’s place that I knew was on our agenda today.

I hated that I didn’t have any other viable options, mostly because I didn’t trust myself to be alone with him.

As much as I wished I could stay in bed all day and just avoid it altogether, my bladder won out—and Dash’s bladder likely couldn’t go much longer either.

I grabbed my crutches leaning up against my nightstand and carefully made my way out of bed and started to the bedroom door, where Dash , having jumped from the bed, was now eagerly waiting for me.

Dash sprinted out right away, but instead of heading for the main door, he made a beeline for Jack on the couch. I decided to let Dash annoy him for a bit while I went to the bathroom.

I heard the scratches of Dash’s nails on my floor and the sound of my door closing, so I knew Jack had taken him out to do his business.

Thankfully this would buy me some extra time, since these new crutches would not allow me to be fast at doing anything anymore.

I grabbed some clothes and headed into the bathroom.

As I moved to wash my hands, I looked up at the mirror and caught my reflection—wild hair and a dark bruise forming on my right jaw where the man who attacked me had clocked me.

Not much I could do about the bruise, but I took my comb out and tried to fix my hair then brushed my teeth and made my way out to the living room just in time for Jack and Dash to return.

“That was fast,” I said as Dash tried to charge over to me. Jack still had the leash on, so he held him back so he didn’t knock me over.

“I don’t think he liked being away from you,” Jack responded. “ He did his business and bolted right back up the stairs.”

I lowered myself onto the chair so that Dash could come to me without knocking me over.

I looked up at Jack , who was staring at me.

He looked good. His hair was getting a little longer, and he had that fresh rumpled look.

He had on a T -shirt and athletic shorts.

God , he was too handsome for his own good.

Cocky bastard knew it too, judging by the face he was giving me after he caught me checking him out.

“Dane and Archer will be here soon to help us grab whatever you want to take over to my house,” he said. “ My guest room has a bed, nightstand, and small dresser, but if you want your bookshelf or a chair or anything from here, we can take that too. Ellie and Wade will meet us later at my house.”

“I’d like to take my desk and a few other things if you don’t mind.”

Sure, I didn’t need a physical desk for the occasions that I worked weekends, but I wanted it because then it would also give me an excuse to hide away in the room if I wanted to avoid him.

“No problem. Why don’t we grab a bite to eat, and then you can start packing up clothes and whatever you want to bring while the guys and I load it up?”

I nodded at his suggestion and made my way into the kitchen.

* * *

I felt guilty that I wasn’t able to help move anything. I was mostly just in the way. I wanted to help. I needed to help. I hated letting other people take care of me and do all the work.

My father reminded me a lot that I required too much of people. He told me, “ No one likes a leech,” and I didn’t want that to be me. Yet , that was exactly what I felt like today as everyone but me carried boxes and furniture back and forth.

When we finally made it to Jack’s house, I figured I could at least unpack stuff and move things where they needed to be.

Jack set me up in his spare bedroom, which was actually quite large.

It had a queen-size bed, a small three-drawer chest, and a nightstand.

But there was empty space in the corner, so Jack , Dane , and Archer put the desk and chair from my apartment there.

The guys had already carried in some boxes of clothes and shoes. I figured those would be light and easy to unpack.

My plan was to get on my left knee, with my right leg extended outward to keep from putting too much weight on my cast, and push the boxes forward by sliding them on the carpet.

Big mistake. When I pushed them forward, they moved, but the box on top kept moving from the momentum and toppled over, spilling all the contents inside all over the floor.

“Holy nutsack of Satan !” I cried out into the empty room around me as I tried to clean up all the spilled contents, while also not hurting myself.

I’d taken some pain meds this morning, but the over-the-counter stuff wasn’t nearly as strong as the meds they gave you at the hospital.

I didn’t need the constant dull pain to get worse by twisting funny or moving in an awkward way.

“What did you just yell?” Jack’s voice sounded from the doorway. I glanced up to see a grin on his face, likely amused by what I had just said. “ Here . Let me help.”

“I’ve got it,” I told him, trying to shove his hands away as he reached down to pick stuff up.

“Ruthie, it’s not a crime to let people help you,” he replied.

I knew he was right, but it was also the contents inside. I really didn’t want him picking up my bras and underwear.

“Ruthie!” I heard Ellie yell from somewhere else in the house.

Perfect timing. I’d use her as my distraction.

“Go meet your sister while I clean this up,” I ordered him.

He grinned at me, knowing this was a tactic I was using to not only change the subject but remove him from my space. Thankfully , he relented and walked out the door.

After everything was moved into place and unpacked and everyone had left, I found a nice bench in Jack’s backyard to sit on. It faced a small pond with a beautiful backdrop of the small woods beyond it. The sun was low in the sky, but it was sixty degrees out, so it felt nice with a light jacket.

I sat there while Dash roamed the fenced in backyard. He was getting used to the new yard and being off his leash but still liked to be able to see me and would come over to sit next to me from time to time—until a squirrel or something more exciting came along.

“I’m not much of a cook, but I’m a food delivery pro,” Jack said as he made his way over to the bench.

“You don’t need to cook for me, Jack ,” I told him. “ I’m capable of getting food for myself. I don’t want you treating me like a patient while I’m here. Think of me more as a temporary roommate— I can do my own laundry and cook my own meals.”

He sat down, leaned back into the bench, and stretched his right arm over my head and behind me. “ Understood , but I figured since we moved, unpacked, and stayed busy today, it would just be easier to have someone else make the food.”

I sighed, realizing I definitely didn’t have the energy to cook. “ Okay . What did you have in mind for food?” I asked.

“Whatever you want.”

I turned to face him and smiled. “ Remember that answer. It’ll suit you well in life.”

He laughed, and I enjoyed watching the lines around his eyes crinkle as he chuckled freely. Ellie mentioned he didn’t do it often anymore—not since coming back from his deployment. For whatever reason, he seemed to feel comfortable laughing around me.

“Normally my go-to is Mexican food, because there’s never a bad time for Mexican food,” I informed him. “ However , not all restaurants will include the free chips and salsa when you order take out or delivery, and that’s just sacrilege.”

“Well, we can’t have that.” His lip twitch told me he was teasing me, but I chose to ignore it.

“No, so let’s just stick with some burgers and fries maybe. Is that okay with you?”

“A woman after my own heart.” He grinned at me and put in our order on his phone.

I turned away from him, pretending to look at Dash so he couldn’t see my face, which had warmed and was likely turning red. That grin should come with a warning label—and maybe a fire extinguisher. I was sure many women had fallen victim to that grin. I didn’t want to be one of them.

Obviously, feeling like he was missing out on the fun, Dash came over and sat between our feet, looking back and forth between us.

“I think he’s wondering which one of us is going to feed him,” I said, grabbing my crutches so I could make my way back into the house.

The walkway to the bench was covered in mulch and stones, which was easier than grass when you had crutches but also not as nice as pavement would be, so I had to be careful.

Slowly but surely, I was getting the hang of this whole crutches thing.

No more near-faceplants. By tomorrow, I might even look like I knew what I was doing.

I hated slowing other people down, so I told Jack to go ahead of me and follow Dash . He struggled with this because I knew he wanted to stay close in case I fell, but I needed this. I didn’t want people always helping me. I wanted to do as much as I could by myself.

By the time I made it back inside, Dash was already sitting by his bowl, tail wagging rapidly as Jack hoisted a massive bag of dog food like it weighed nothing.

His biceps flexed, his navy Henley pulling taut across his broad chest, and for a brief moment, I was convinced the seams were about to burst. It was like watching a live-action thirst trap.

I might have been staring a little too hard, because Jack smirked as he caught my eyes lingering.

“I don’t have a dining table yet,” he said, shaking me from my muscle-induced trance. “ I usually just eat on the couch and watch TV . That cool with you?”

I forced myself to focus on his words and not his arms. Or his shoulders. Or his chest.

“Yeah, sure,” I said, hobbling toward the couch. “ It’ll be easier for me to prop my leg up anyway.”

I grabbed a pillow to put on the coffee table in front of me so it was propped up and also more comfortable than just the hard table.

When the food arrived, we settled onto the couch, balancing our plates on our laps while the TV played some crime drama in the background. Conversation flowed easily—light, effortless, and surprisingly comfortable. We discussed work, a recommendation for a physical therapist Jack knew, and Dash .

Speak of the devil—at one point, Dash found his way onto the couch between us and was snuggled up with half his body in Jack’s lap, demanding belly rubs.

“Traitor,” I mumbled at Dash , who had clearly chosen his favorite human of the night.

The night was…nice. Too nice. The kind of nice that made me hyper-aware of how un-nice things could get if I let my guard slip. Before that thought could settle too deep, I stretched and faked a yawn.

“Well, this has been fun,” I said, grabbing my crutches. “ But I should probably turn in before I get too tired to remember how to use these things properly.”

Jack chuckled, but something flickered behind his eyes—like he knew I was making a tactical retreat. He didn’t call me out on it, though, just nodded.

“Get some rest, Ruthie .”

I hobbled to my room with Dash in tow, shutting the door behind me, and exhaled. I could handle this. This was only temporary. Living with Jack wouldn’t be weird or complicated at all. Nope . Not at all.

Except for the tiny, insignificant fact that he looked way too good. and had an annoyingly charming way of making me feel… safe.