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Chapter Twenty-One

LILY

I AM NOT a damsel in distress.

Payton lives in some mysterious romantic fantasy he’s devised from his dalliances with romance books. After tossing and turning most of the night, that’s the only explanation I could come up with for his behavior. And he’s mistaken me for his love interest in this make-believe world.

I admit, part of me wants to live and dwell in this mysterious place, too. A big part of me.

Okay, ALL of me.

But I can’t entertain thoughts like this. Too much is riding on the line for me. Yet once again, Del gave the all clear. And when I questioned it, because this is way out of protocol, she reiterated there was no imminent threat or danger.

That’s what she thinks. I’m the one in danger, and the threat is Payton.

I skim my conversation with Del again, convinced something is off. I’ve never seen her act so unprofessional. But since she’s cleared our excursion to the aquarium, who am I to argue? That’s subtle speak for, I don’t want to argue, although I should.

She even had the nerve to suggest I wear that sundress she insisted I bring. I shot that one down, reminding her this isn’t a vacation. It’s an ASSIGNMENT. I used all caps, too.

I am so going to rip one on Del when I get home later.

Again, acting as if this were a date, Payton purchased both our tickets, ignoring me when I tried to argue.

He hands me mine. “Shall we give it a go?”

I plaster a smile on my face. He seems so intent on showing me the nuances of Sarabella that I don’t have the heart to tell him that living sea life interests me about as much as the cooked variety.

Although, he proved me wrong with that grilled mahi-mahi sandwich. My mouth waters just thinking about it.

“Ready if you are.”

As we walk toward the first display—a school of fish swimming round and round in a circular aquarium—Payton puts his arm around me, resting his hand on my hip.

Even through my jeans, the warmth of his palm radiates through the fabric and sears my skin, making me want to press closer to him.

Instead, I move out of his reach, using the ruse of wanting to see the jellyfish to our right.

We do this dance at almost every aquatic feature in the place. And the more he does it, the less I want to run away. It’s so tempting to just lean in…give in to these feelings swirling my insides into goo. Much like that iridescent jellyfish I saw earlier.

So jelly. So pretty. Yet painful when stung.

That’s what I’m afraid of. Whenever I allowed myself to get attached to someone or someplace, I wound up hurt.

Things never seemed to work out for me, so I kept a certain amount of separation as a protective measure.

So far, it’s served me well, but Payton is the unexpected threat I never saw coming.

“Let’s take a break before we finish the rest.” He points toward a concession area. “Fancy some ice cream? ”

In what world can a guy eat as much ice cream as he does and still look so ripped? “Sure, why not.”

Payton gets a chocolate milkshake, which tempts me at first. Until I see they have soft serve, which is my favorite and often hard to find.

As we sit down at a small parlor table, he leans over and takes a large bite of my ice cream. His blue eyes dance with mischief, and there’s a smear of chocolate on the corner of his mouth that I’m tempted to wipe away with my thumb.

Or my mouth… “Thief! Who bites ice cream?” I point to the teeth marks.

He laughs, then holds his shake toward me. “All’s fair in love and war.”

I don’t like the implication of his raised brow. What exactly is he implying?

To get even, I nab the shake from him and take a long drink, all the while watching the fascinating shift in his expression as he watches me before handing it back. “Fair enough for you?”

“More than fair.” Mischief sparkles in his blue eyes that mirror the ocean themes surrounding us. Then he wraps his lips around the straw, deliberately reminding me that mine were there just moments ago.

My insides combust.

I need a dousing of cold water more than the fish we’re observing. How much more of his flirtations can I take before he wears me down? And Sophie thought he was shy? I’m mentally shaking my head at that one.

“Maybe we should leave now.”

He sobers quickly. “If I promise to behave, will you let me take you to one more exhibit? I think you’ll love it the most.”

I don’t see how another exhibit could rival the one he’s been displaying, but I’m curious about what he thinks I’ll love . Is it me, or is he using that word a lot?

“Fine. But no more of this.” I wag my finger at his face.

“Of what? I’m simply drinking my shake.”

“Sure you are, big guy.” I finish my cone on the way to the trash can and dump the wrapper and napkin.

Payton drops his cup in the receptacle, then grabs my hand and drags me along at a quick pace. I’m tall, but he’s taller and has a wider gate. Still, I manage to keep up.

“And here we are.” He sweeps his hand toward a display resembling a miniature playland made of rock-like structures. Built-in slides lead to the water pooling below. I sweep my eyes over the twenty-foot expanse and stop when I notice a ball of fur rolling around the upper level.

No, two balls of fur.

Otters.

My gaze leaps to his, and then I realize my mouth is hanging open. He laughs, but not at me. More like he’s delighted that I’m surprised—that he surprised me.

I step closer to the glass, mesmerized. I’ve only ever seen these adorable creatures in videos. Three more join the others in their frolic. One slides down and swims over to a small platform near the glass to my left. He sticks his paws out two holes I didn’t notice before.

Payton brings his face close to my ear, flooding my senses with his woodsy scent. “He wants you to hold his paws.”

Riddled with disbelief, I look at him for confirmation. “We’re allowed to touch them?”

“They love it. See?” He bends over and rubs the otter’s paws between his thumbs and forefingers. The little guy lifts his head, squealing with delight.

I nudge Payton over. “Let me!”

His chuckle fades into the background as I crouch down to eye level with this adorable furry animal and rub his paws. He mews his cute plaintive noises again, making me grin so big my cheeks hurt.

The otter darts away, only to be replaced by another sticking her paws through the openings. I say ‘she’ only because of the way she’s batting her eyes at me. She lets out a high-pitched squeal, then pushes her nose against the glass and licks it.

“I think she likes you.” Payton’s still smiling at me as if this were the best day of his life.

It just may well be mine.

The thought makes my eyes burn with unshed tears. Payton did this for me. He took my simple pastime of watching otters and turned it into something special and meaningful to me. No one’s ever done anything like that for me before.

Otter-girl wiggles away to join the others in the pool, splashing and playing with a ball while I keep my face toward the glass, giving me time to compose myself.

Payton crouches down next to me. “You all right?”

“Yeah, sure.” I pretend to be fascinated by the otters tumbling and holding onto each other in the water, which I am. But I just need a few more seconds to get myself together. I’m supposed to be on the job here, not bawling over furry critters and kind gestures.

The most thoughtful and generous I’ve ever experienced…

Observation #9: Payton undoes me with his charm and thoughtfulness.

“Lily.” He takes my shoulders and turns me to face him, then tips my chin up with his forefinger, which forces me to look at him. “You don’t have to hide yourself from me.”

I swallow. The concern in his expression hardly compares to what I see in his eyes. Something more than attraction. Something deeper. Something I’ve never seen before. “This…I…thank you.”

He slides his hand from my chin up my jawline to cup my face. “My pleasure, luv.”

Is this what being his girlfriend would be like?

Not that I’ve had any experience in that department.

A few dates here and there, but I couldn’t really cultivate anything serious because my job takes me out of the city or country for weeks at a time.

When I’m on the job, I’m all in. There’s no room for distractions or things like maintaining a relationship.

Besides, I’ve never met anyone before that made me want to pursue something serious or even long for it. Until Payton…

A toddler squeals next to us as the otters swim close to the glass, startling me back to the fact that he’s still touching my cheek and staring at me with sparkling blue eyes that threaten to drown me with his charm.

“Guess I should let others have some otter time.” I stand up, feeling more like a shy schoolgirl around Payton than his bodyguard. No one’s ever unsettled me to the degree that he does.

He remains close, studying me with quick glances he thinks I won’t notice, but I do.

What I find most disconcerting is how he sees me. I’m so used to staying in the background, making myself as unnoticeable as possible, because that’s what I learned to do to survive in the system. And I’ve used that skill well as a bodyguard.

But Payton doesn’t let me stay hidden. It’s like he wants to make sure I see the world and that it sees me out front and center.

And I haven’t a clue what to do with that.