Page 64 of Noel Secrets

Lifting her hands to his mouth, he blew warm air on them. She visibly quivered and her face softened. Her blue eyes filled with longing for him, and he could barely keep his head on straight. Addie was in danger and the police were investigating the matter. Instead of wanting to focus on security or danger like he normally would, he wanted to keep holding her hands and staring into her blue eyes.

She pulled her hands back and disappointment shot through him.

He tilted his head to a nearby vendor. “Can I buy you a pair of gloves?”

She shook her head. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out thick gloves and put them on.

Price shouldn’t be thinking that he wanted to warm her hands up. He looked at the picture and his eyes widened. It was a shot of the two of them eating banana pudding in the market they were standing in the shadow of. His face was obscured, but Addie’s happy smile beamed at him.

He glanced at Addie’s beautiful face and read the strain there. Looking around, he couldn’t see any obvious danger or anyone paying them extra attention.

“Scroll to the right,” Addie said.

He did and his stomach dropped.

I hope you enjoyed the banana pudding.

It may be you and your new toy’s last treat.

“Addie.” His gaze lifted to hers and he was sickened by the fear in her blue eyes. He ushered her closer to the brick building and instinctively wrapped an arm around her to shield her.

She leaned into him, gazed up at him, and he reveled in the look in her eyes. He could and would protect her. Would she allow him to?

Just as quickly, a shield went up over her blue gaze and she stepped away.

“What did the police say?” he asked.

She shrugged. “No fingerprints. The few names I could give them … they questioned each of them, but nothing.” She looked at him suspiciously. “You work for the security guru Aiden Porter?”

“Yes. You gave them my name?” That was the only way she’d know who he worked for.

“Not after the first note and picture that came the second night we had banana pudding. When you were in the picture last night, I told them your name and about our two … interactions.”

He nodded. Interactions. Not dates. The last thing Addie needed right now was a date. Did she need his help as a security guru?

“The police say you’re clean. They promised to keep an eye on you.”

“Okay.” He almost laughed at the police promising to keep an eye on him. If he wanted to, he could disappear in an instant and Aiden might be the only person who had a hope of finding him. “They haven’t contacted me.”

“Maybe they don’t think it’s that big of a deal.” She hugged herself and looked absolutely forlorn.

He pointed to her phone. “They should. That was an obvious threat. Was the other note similar?”

“It was a picture of me at home eating banana pudding. It said I like to break hearts and they’ll stop my heart.”

His own heart thumped irregularly in his chest. “I hope the police are taking this seriously.” But he knew the police were busy and loaded down with cases. It was one of the reasons Aiden’s people had so many jobs. “These are ugly threats. It sounds like an old boyfriend who’s jealous, or maybe some kind of stalker.” He clenched his fist. “Have you hired protection?”

She stared at him. “Is that your angle? Try to get me to ‘hire’ you?”

“What? No. If you’d accept protection I’d offer it, but I don’t need you to hire me.”

“What are you after, Price?”

His stomach turned over. Any hope he’d had of dating Addie was gone. It was rough to let that dream go. “I hoped to get to know you, take you to dinner.”

She looked discouraged and uncertain. “Did you orchestrate our first meeting? The mom with a stroller getting in my way so I’d trip and you could catch me?”

He grunted in disbelief. “No.”