Guarding Raine Part 4

"You won't notice much difference in the windows,"

he a.s.sured her.

"The gla.s.s will be thicker, but the wires will be almost invisible."

She frowned slightly as she thought of her haven being turned into a

welter of activity, with workers wielding hammers and power drills.

Not for the first time, she cursed the weirdo who had targeted her for a special brand of hara.s.sment.

It had taken her years to reach the point when she felt comfortable

living alone.

And until the calls and letters had started, her home had been her refuge.

She was no longer able to feel completely safe here, and she resented

that fiercely.

Peace of mind was something most people took for granted, but reaching that state had been a milestone in her life.

She only hoped that the measures Mac O'Neill implemented would be enough to restore it.

"All right,"

she said.

She turned to face him resolutely.

"I'd like you to go ahead with your suggestions, and as quickly as possible.

How long do you think I'll have to put up with your crew?"

Mac frowned slightly.

He was getting a real bad feeling about this job.

Or, considering what it had cost him so far, an even worse feeling.

Something told him that Simon had left a g~at deal out in his last call

to his daughter, and Mac mentally cursed the man.

"You'll be rid of my crew in a few days,"

he said deliberalely.

"But I'll be around a bit longer."

Raine lost her breath at his next words.

"I'm going to be living with you."

Chapter 2 Raine felt as though she'd had the wind knocked out of her.

"Living with me?"

she echoed faintly.

"Here?"

For the first time since he'd left Simon Michaels's office, Mac felt a

glimmer of satisfaction.

At least he wasn't the only one unhappy with this situation.

"You're very astute,"

he drawled.

"Since you're the one in need of protection, and you live here, this is

where I'll be. Until I've a.s.sured myself and your father of your safety, that is."

"No!"

Raine set the broiler in the sink with more force than necessary.

Grasping the edge of the sink tightly with both hands, she closed her eyes and took a calming breath.

What he was suggesting was impossible.

In a quieter tone, she said, "I do not need~, to be protected. Not this way. And certainly not by..."

A man.

this man.

"By one of my father's hired flunkies,"

she finished.

"I'm n.o.body's flunky,"

he replied sotto voce.

She looked up and was surprised to find him close, very close.

It was his unexpected nearness that had her taking an involuntary step back, not the underlying steel in his voice.

But his eyes tracked her movement, and she knew he'd drawn his ownconclusion about it. Caught in the beam of those ice blue eyes, Raine was momentarily transfixed.

They were really the most amazing color.

The artist in her couldn't help but be fascinated.

And the woman in her.

well, it had been so long since she'd listened to the woman inside that

she wasn't certain she'd recognize the voice.

But something in her responded to him.

She was too honest with herself to admit otherwise.

The realization only complicated the situation.

He reached toward her, and her head jerked wildly, another unconscious

action she d.a.m.ned immediately, another one seen and noted by that

all-observant gaze.

His arm continued its journey toward the sink, turned on the faucet and allowed the hot water to run over the dirty broiler she'd slammed down there.

Raine turned away, shaken by her reaction to the man.

Belatedly she attempted to pick up their conversation.

"I apologize if I offended you with my choice of words, But I live

alone.

Your staying here is out of the question."

He misread her trepidation.

"Concerned about appearances?"

he mocked.

"Somehow, in light of your troubles, I think that's a little foolish,

don't you?"

He watched her with a slight furrow still etched in his brow, wondering not for the first time, just exactly what Simon had told her.