Page 4 of Tice’s Kind of Trouble (Obsessive Protectors #2)
FOUR
Bethany
I’m so dazed, I don’t even realize where we are going because I’m caught in some kind of hazy spell from the earthy, warm scent of the man next to me.
Then, there’s the way his hand lays on my knee, his thumb circling a gentle pattern.
I’m a chaotic whirlwind of electrical signals that are zooming past one another like fireflies.
“Is this your place?”
Tice glances at me, locking dark brown lasers on me. “Just bought it.”
Wow. Him and the house. I stare in disbelief at the gorgeous property. A long driveway winds up a green hillside. At the top sits a gigantic modern house with deeply tinted windows. Beyond the home is a palatial patio that surrounds a huge swimming pool.
I’m breathy when I speak. “It’s incredible.”
“It’s…” Tice glances at me, this time a tension between his brows. “It’s nice, but it’s not a home.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll see.” He scrubs his hand over his face. “I don’t mean to be cryptic—you’ll understand.”
As we climb the hill, his truck—capable and steady—roars along, and a warm feeling sweeps over me again.
Tice brought me to his home because he wanted me safe.
Fatigue and relief make me lean back into the seat, with dried tears caking my eyelashes. “I’m wiped out, and it’s not even nine o’clock in the morning.”
“You can nap by the pool while I talk to the police about your B&E report.”
I sit up in the seat, the belt biting into my shoulder. “What report?”
Tice stops in front of the triple garage at the side of his house. He reaches over, tapping the garage opener on my visor. As the door rises, he slowly looks over at me. “I hope you called the police.”
Oh my god. I cover my mouth. “I was so upset, I just called Kane.”
Shaking my head, I cover my cheeks with my hands.
His expression softens. “I’ll take care of it. I’ll file the report. They can come out to speak to you later.”
“I’m not ready to go back there or talk about it right now.” I shudder. “Thank you for making the call. I’ll put my address in your phone’s notes app.”
The garage door rolls all the way up and he pulls into the pristine place. “No need for you to give me the address. I’ve already got it—from your file.”
Wait, what? My headache grows more arms. “You have a file on me?”
“Technically on your brother. But the kind of work we’re going to be doing means I know everything.”
“Everything,” I murmur. “Is it weird I find that oddly sexy?”
He grins—slow, hot, and utterly mind-bending. “I won’t judge that if you won’t judge me for starting to fantasize about you when I saw your photo in your brother’s background check.”
Oh. Wow.
Tice fantasized about me?
With that, he flings open his door and gets out of the truck.
I might clench my legs together, but no one has to know that, right?