Page 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Preacher wasn’t sure this was a good idea. Helping Maggie get a job? Yes. Getting involved in her life? No.

But he couldn’t stop himself. There was just something about her that made him reluctant to stay away. Flash had offered to take her to My Sister’s Closet for her interview with Julie, but it had only taken Preacher one-point-two seconds to decline.

He wanted to spend time with Maggie. Get to know her better. She’d gotten under his skin in less than twenty-four hours, and even though he knew he was setting himself up for heartbreak, Preacher was going out of his way to see her again anyway.

The woman had said herself that she was getting out of California as soon as she could. She’d been burned by a man—not just burned, incinerated. But the fact that Remi had texted him during lunch because she was concerned about Maggie told Preacher that she was special. Remi had a tender heart, so if she didn’t like Maggie, there was no way she’d get him involved.

There was also a lot about the situation with Maggie’s ex that concerned him. The most important was not knowing his name. He could always contact Tex and see what the computer genius could dig up about the man. If he was willing to throw his girlfriend under the bus and have her convicted for transporting drugs, there was no telling what else the man had done…or might still do.

But first things first. Maggie needed a job and Julie was eager to meet her. Both donations and customers had picked up for her secondhand clothing boutique, and she said she’d welcome an extra set of hands to help out.

After pulling into the parking lot of Maggie’s apartment, he sent her a text letting her know he was there. Preacher would’ve preferred to go to her door and walk her down, but her trust issues prevented her from giving him the apartment number. Which was smart.

Compromising, he stood at the passenger door, waiting for Maggie to arrive. It didn’t take long.

The day before, he’d been too concerned about finding out who she was and why she was using Adina’s car and information to give people rides to take in much else. Today, his gaze traveled over Maggie from head to toe, studying her carefully. She was quite a bit shorter than his six foot three, maybe around five-five or five-six. Was probably in her mid-thirties, like him. She had shiny black hair that, like yesterday, was pulled into a long ponytail at the back of her head. It swung back and forth as she walked toward him.

She wore a pair of jeans that hugged her shapely legs…and as much as he hated himself for noticing, her tits were more than a handful. The T-shirt she had on accentuated her shape even as it fully covered her. Others might describe her as having an average figure, but in Preacher’s eyes, there was nothing average about her. She looked healthy.

And at present, she seemed as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Which made the old saying about how you couldn’t tell what someone was going through by their outward appearance all the more true.

“Hey,” Preacher said as she approached. He struggled to push away his thoughts about her figure…and how badly he suddenly wanted to see what was under all her clothes.

“Hi,” Maggie returned. She stopped a good six feet away and simply stared at him.

“What?” he asked, confused at the way she was looking at him.

“Nothing. You just…you look different without your uniform on.”

Preacher relaxed and chuckled. “I don’t mind the camo, but since I wear it twenty-four-seven when we’re on a mission, I try to wear civilian clothes when I can. You ready?”

She nodded, but said, “No.”

Preacher had reached for the door handle of his car but hesitated at her response. “You change your mind?” he asked.

“No. Yes. I don’t know.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle a little. “That was as clear as mud.”

She gave him a sheepish look. “It’s just…I need a job. I don’t like using Adina’s account for Uber because it could send me straight back to jail, but all of this seems…I don’t know…too good to be true?”

Preacher did his best to look relaxed. The thought of this woman being locked up again felt wrong . “This isn’t a pity job,” he told her. “You’ll earn the money you make. Julie is an angel, but she works extremely hard and expects anyone who works for her to do the same. From what I understand, it’s extremely rewarding to see women and girls find the perfect dress or outfit for whatever function they’re going to, or to provide a family that’s lost everything in a fire what they need clothes-wise in the short term, or to attend fundraising events and come away with buttloads of cash…but it’s hard work. If you accept this job, you won’t be sitting on your ass every day. You’ll be sorting through donated clothes, going to high schools to give presentations, and dealing with the random customers who come into the shop.”

“Wow, way to make the job sound appealing,” Maggie said with a laugh.

But Preacher didn’t even crack a smile. “I’m sure some days it’s a shitshow. But it’s the days when you see a girl who’s never been able to afford something as simple as new clothes feel pretty, when she tries on a designer dress for the first time, that are the real reward.”

Maggie tilted her head as she met his gaze. “Is that how you feel? With your job? I mean, I know it’s not designer dresses, but I’m sure some days are horrible, yet the satisfaction you must feel when you rescue innocent people or take out a horrible terrorist who wants to kill as many people as he can has to be overwhelming.”

Preacher blinked in surprise. She wasn’t wrong. Not at all. “Yeah,” he said with a small nod.

“Okay. Let’s do this. I still don’t know how good I’ll be at this clothes thing. I have no fashion sense at all, couldn’t tell a Walmart dress from a Louis Vuitton, but I’m not afraid of hard work.”

Preacher was proud of this woman. She didn’t seem the hysterical type or prone to drama. She did what needed to be done and didn’t expect a pat on the head for it. He opened the door to the car and gestured to the seat. “Your chariot, my lady.”

She chuckled and stepped forward.

Something clicked within Preacher right then. A yearning to do the same thing for this woman years from now. Holding open her door right before they set out for one adventure or another.

It was improbable as hell, but suddenly he knew—Maggie was the woman he’d been looking for his entire life.

Just as suddenly, he also knew that convincing her to give him a chance would be the most difficult thing he’d ever done. But she’d be worth the effort.

He wasn’t an idiot. He knew without a doubt that the chances she’d lower her guards enough to let him in were extremely slim. And why would she choose him when there were so many other men out there who were more experienced, had safer jobs, and were better-looking?

Even though there was a very small percent of a chance that she’d even consider going out with him—forget about deciding to spend the rest of her life with him—Preacher would do whatever he could to make her see that he was one of the good guys. He wasn’t like her coward of an ex. He’d never let her take the blame for something he did. She needed someone to stand up for her, and next to her, and even in front of her sometimes.

And he wanted to be that man.

Instinctively, Preacher knew he was meant to be hers.

Shutting the door, he closed his eyes for a moment. The overwhelming thought of the journey he had ahead of him almost made him change his mind. But he’d never backed down from a challenge. From something that scared him. And Maggie Lionetti terrified the crap out of him. She might just be everything he’d ever wanted, and one wrong move could result in him losing her before he even had her.

Opening his eyes, he strode around his dark blue, sensible Chevy Malibu and hoped like hell everything with Julie would go all right today. Helping Maggie become more self-sufficient, shore up her self-esteem, was the first step in helping her get back on her feet. He could wait to court her until she felt stronger on her own. Maybe.

Maggie shook Julie’s hand and returned her wide smile. This was happening. She’d been skeptical about the job…until she talked with the owner of the adorable boutique. From the front, the store looked high-end, fancy, like nowhere Maggie would ever want to work. But beggars couldn’t be choosers, and she’d pretty much already decided she had no other choice but to take the job.

Then Julie had taken her into the back of the store, and Maggie had gotten a look at the chaos back there…and she’d understood a little more about why Julie needed help. There were bags of clothes everywhere . And still more were hung up on racks in every nook and cranny of the space. Even as Julie explained how things worked—incoming donations, requests for clothes from the Red Cross and other organizations, weekly donations to homeless shelters, and the visits to high schools with dresses for the girls to choose from—the bell over the front door tinkled regularly, and she had to go greet whoever had come in looking to browse or shop.

The woman definitely needed help.

But the thing that impressed Maggie the most was how unruffled Julie seemed. She needed and wanted the help, but she also made it clear that working here wouldn’t be an all-consuming thing. She herself went home at five o’clock every day. Spending time with her husband was more important than anything else. And from the little Maggie knew about the woman’s story, she wasn’t surprised. Like Remi, Wren, and Josie, Julie had been through her own trauma and had found out the hard way what was important in life. Friends and family. Not working a hundred hours a week.

By the time they were done talking, an hour and a half had gone by. It felt more like she’d just spent time with a good friend rather than being in an interview. Maggie found herself eager to start. The pay was quite a bit lower than what she’d been making before she’d been arrested, but definitely more than she’d been earning driving people around. And the good thing was, it was one hundred percent legal, which was a relief.

When Maggie had brought up the fact that she was a convicted felon, Julie hadn’t seemed concerned. She’d simply asked, “Are you going to steal from me?”

Maggie had answered with a firm no, and that was that.

It seemed too good to be true, but she tried to push that negative thought to the back of her mind.

“You want to text Preacher and tell him we’re done?” Julie asked when they walked back into the main part of the store after shaking hands and agreeing that Maggie would start work in a few days, when she’d gotten her car back and had reliable transportation.

“Oh, I don’t want to bother him at home. I can get an Uber. ”

“He’s not at home,” Julie said, looking confused. “I’m pretty sure he’s down the street in the small bookstore.”

“I told him that he could leave though,” Maggie said.

Julie chuckled. “One thing you’ll learn about a Navy SEAL…they pretty much never do what you think they should. They’ll do what they think is right. Every time.”

Maggie couldn’t wrap her mind around that. Obviously she’d been around the wrong kind of people for way too long. She took her phone out of her purse and sent Shawn a text.

She and Julie made small talk and the next thing Maggie knew, Shawn was walking through the door, the tiny bell tinkling as he entered.

“So?” he asked, looking anxious.

“Preacher, meet the newest employee of My Sister’s Closet,” Julie said with a huge smile.

“Awesome!” he said, and Maggie could see his shoulders visibly relax.

Had he really been that worried? And was his concern that Julie wouldn’t want to hire her, or because of something else?

She didn’t have to wonder about that for long, because Julie said, “Jeez, do you look so relieved because I hired her or because she accepted?”

Shawn shrugged. “I had no doubt that Maggie would be an awesome interview or that you’d be happy for the help. But sometimes people don’t click.”

“We clicked,” Julie reassured him. “Right, Maggie?”

“Right,” she said. And she was surprised to find that she wasn’t lying. She liked Julie. She was no-nonsense, and what she was doing with her store to help others was inspiring.

“It’s late. You’re going to take her to get something to eat, right?” Julie asked.

She opened her mouth to protest, but Shawn beat her to it. “Of course.” Then he walked over and bent down to kiss the other woman on the cheek. “Thanks, Julie. You’re the best.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’m the one who should be thanking you for bringing Maggie in.”

“And I think I’m the one who should be thanking both of you ,” Maggie countered.

“We’ll see if you’re still feeling that way after your first shift,” Julie said with a smile. “Now get. I’ll see you later. Text me if anything changes and you need to start later than we decided. Regardless of how things look around here, I’m really flexible. If you need to change your hours or anything, we can work it out.”

Things really did seem too good to be true. “I appreciate it.”

“And I appreciate your willingness to work hard. We’ll talk later.”

Maggie waved at Julie as Shawn put his fingertips on the small of her back and they headed for the door.

If anyone else had dared touch her after only meeting the day before, Maggie would’ve told them to keep their damn hands to themselves. But for some reason, Shawn’s touch didn’t make her cringe. Even the memory of how the guards at the prison would grab her arm and sometimes shove her from behind when she walked didn’t make her change her mind about Shawn being at her back.

When they were on the sidewalk, he moved so he was on the side closest to the street as they headed toward the lot, where he’d parked earlier.

“Were you really at the bookstore that whole time?” Maggie asked.

Shawn shrugged. “Pretty much. I did stop into a few other stores to browse before going to the bookstore.”

“Did you get anything?”

To her surprise, Maggie could’ve sworn she saw a blush make its way up the back of his neck into his cheeks.

“It’s a bookstore. Of course I did. You can’t go in one and not end up buying at least a book or two.”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve splurged on something like that, but I used to go to the library all the time. I need to go back. I miss reading.” It wasn’t something Maggie would’ve admitted to many people. But again, Shawn made her feel comfortable sharing things she normally wouldn’t. It was disconcerting but also felt…good.

“You want to go after we eat? I think there’s a branch not too far from your apartment.”

Maggie stopped in her tracks and stared up at the man next to her. Coming from any other guy, she would’ve thought the offer was a precursor to something else. But she was pretty sure Shawn was being genuine.

“What? What’s wrong?” he asked, looking around as if searching for some kind of danger that had her stopping on the sidewalk so abruptly.

“I’m not sleeping with you,” Maggie blurted. She’d already told him that, but she felt the need to repeat it…just in case she was wrong about his intentions.

Shawn’s worried look morphed into something else. Irritation. Disappointment.

It was the latter that made Maggie feel ashamed of her outburst.

“I know. We’ve already been over this, but okay. I’ll go there again. The thought didn’t even cross my mind. I offered to take you to the library because I thought you might enjoy doing something you hadn’t done in a while—get a new book. I would’ve brought you to the bookstore and bought you something, but I figured that might offend you. Believe it or not, I’ve been where you are, Maggie. Not exactly, of course, but broke enough that all I could afford was noodles and, if I was lucky, gas in my car. The last thing I’d do right now is try to seduce you. And honestly, I wouldn’t have the foggiest idea of how to go about it anyway.”

“Right,” Maggie said sarcastically. She was trying hard not to feel horrible for how she was treating this man. He’d been nothing but amazing to her, and she was being a bitch. But she couldn’t seem to stop herself. Her shields had been crumbling, and she desperately needed to shore them back up to prevent herself from getting hurt once more. “You’re a Navy SEAL. I’m sure women throw themselves at you all the time. But if that’s what you think you’re going to get out of helping me, you need to think again. I’m not going to be one more notch on your bedpost.”

“There are no notches,” Shawn said.

Maggie stared at him, unsure what he meant. “Uh-huh. Whatever.”

“You want to know why I’m called Preacher?” he said.

It was weird that they were standing in the middle of a sidewalk having this conversation, but now that she’d started it, Maggie didn’t know how to stop.

He didn’t give her a chance to respond. “In boot camp, when we had breaks, all the guys would go to the bars to pick up women. I never went. Not even once. That’s not my thing. They started calling me Preacher to make fun of me. But I didn’t care. Not then, and even less now. When I sleep with a woman, it’ll be because she’s the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. Not because she’s drunk and wants to brag about sleeping with a SEAL. Call me old fashioned, it doesn’t bother me. I know what I want—and that’s to wait until I find the right woman.”

Maggie gaped at Shawn. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? “How old are you?”

He smiled. “Thirty-three.”

“And you…” Her voice trailed off.

She wasn’t going to ask. Nope, it wasn’t her place and it was rude.

But he answered the question she was too chicken to ask anyway. “I told you, I’m waiting. So you have nothing to fear from me in regard to forcing you or pressuring you for sex.”

This man was a virgin ? It was unbelievable. He was… gorgeous . Stacked. Handsome. Beautiful, in fact. But more importantly, he was kind. Generous. Nice. A great friend. Loyal. All the adjectives .

How in the world could he be a virgin?

Shawn sighed. “Your reaction is exactly why I don’t share that with many people. I just don’t see the appeal in having sex simply for the sake of having sex. I’ve got some toys, so I’m not ignorant about how it all works. And I have a healthy sex drive. I just usually take care of it myself. I don’t rely on women to satisfy my needs. I want a connection with someone before we share something as intimate as sex.”

The more he spoke, the more flabbergasted Maggie became. And the more interested. It was somewhat ironic that him admitting he was a virgin made her more attracted to him, not less.

“So…you want to go to the library or not?”

He sounded so calm. Not at all worried that he’d told her something extremely personal and private about himself. Yes, he was trying to reassure her that he wasn’t out to get into her pants, but still. “Yes,” she found herself saying.

“Great. How’s Italian sound for dinner? There’s an awesome little mom-and-pop place not too far from here. I know the owners. They’re amazing. And I guarantee you won’t leave hungry. ”

“Is it possible to leave an Italian restaurant hungry?” she asked.

Shawn smirked. “You’d be surprised.”

They started walking again, and as they did, her hand accidentally brushed against his.

“Sorry,” he said with a small shrug as he looked down at her.

In that moment, Maggie realized she was seeing Shawn in a brand-new light.

She’d painted him with the same brush as her ex. They were both in the Navy, were very alpha, were comfortable in their skin. But Shawn and Roman were so different, it wasn’t even funny. Yes, if they were lined up side by side, they’d seem very similar. But now that she was getting to know Shawn, she could see that they were like night and day.

Roman was the dark night and Shawn was the light of day. And she actually enjoyed being around Shawn. Wanted to get to know him better.

“What do you like to read?” she asked as they walked.

The smile he gifted her with made tingles shoot up the back of her neck. She liked when he looked at her like that. Liked it a lot.

Preacher’s heart felt as if it was beating out of his chest. He couldn’t believe he’d admitted that he’d never been with a woman to Maggie. She had to be thinking he was the most pathetic man she’d ever met. Who was a virgin at thirty-three? But he’d needed to do something to reassure her that he wasn’t being nice simply to get her into bed.

Thankfully, his admission did seem to make her relax, which was his goal. But he was still second-guessing himself. His offer to take her to dinner and to the library truly came with no strings. He simply wanted to prolong their time together.

And it seemed as if she wanted that too. Their conversation flowed and they hadn’t had one moment of awkwardness where they didn’t know what to say to each other. He’d told her about his family in Maine, how he became interested in the SEALs, and even about some of his less top-secret missions.

In return, he’d heard about her adoption as an infant, and how she’d later found her birth mother, who’d died about a decade ago, before Maggie actually had a chance to get to know her. She had no siblings, adopted or biological. She told him stories about some of the things she’d done in college, and he couldn’t remember laughing so much.

After eating too much, and rolling out of the restaurant, they spent over an hour at the library. He could’ve spent at least another hour but Maggie was looking tired, and she didn’t protest when he asked if she was ready to go. She had a stack of books in her arms when they left, which for some reason made Preacher feel proud.

The only dark moment to their evening was when her phone rang. She’d answered it, and then, without saying a word, ended the connection with whoever was on the other end. She refused to tell him who it was, but it was obvious to Preacher that she was rattled by the call. He hated that she didn’t trust him enough to talk to him, but it had only been a day since they’d met, even though it seemed way longer than that.

“I’m sorry I don’t know anything about your car yet,” he told her when he’d pulled into her parking lot.

“It’s okay. I’ll call tomorrow.”

He made a mental note to make sure to get a hold of the mechanic first thing in the morning. He had no idea what was wrong with the car, but he wanted to make sure Maggie could afford whatever it was. He’d already worked out a deal with the guy that he’d charge half of whatever the cost was to Preacher, but he also wanted to make sure the fifty percent that was left was something Maggie could swing.

He hadn’t lied when he’d told her earlier that he knew what it was like to have money issues. He was in a good place now, but he wanted to pay forward the favors he’d gotten back then to Maggie.

“I had a good time today,” Preacher said…and immediately felt stupid. This hadn’t been a date. Not even close. And yet it was still the best time he’d had with a woman in years.

“Me too,” Maggie told him.

He wanted to prolong the moment, see if she wanted to do something with him again. But he wasn’t sure how to bring it up. He just wasn’t very good at this kind of thing. Dating .

“Thanks for introducing me to Julie. And for giving the others my number. Since I’ve been out, I hadn’t realized how isolated I’ve become.”

Her words made Preacher feel good. “You’re welcome.”

“So…” she said, drawing the word out.

“Right. I need to get going. Got PT in the morning,” Preacher said, feeling as awkward as a teenager. “Do you want to go to dinner again with me sometime?” he blurted.

To his relief, Maggie nodded. “Yeah. I think I would.”

“Great! I’ll call you.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.” Preacher knew he was smiling like a fool, but he couldn’t stop. He stepped toward her impulsively and leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. She stiffened but didn’t back away from him. “Sleep well.”

“I will. You too.”

“Call if you need anything.”

She scrunched her nose at that. “I’m not going to need anything.”

She was probably right, but Preacher couldn’t help saying, “You never know. Talk to you later, Maggie.”

“Bye, Shawn.”

Preacher smiled all the way home.