Guardian Alien: OtherWorldly Men # 1 by Grant Susan

Author:Grant, Susan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Susan Grant
Published: 2020-05-03T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

AFTER RETURNING to the Safeway and exchanging the Chevy for her Jeep—where the only evidence of the halved SUV was a charred stain and some broken glass in the parking lot surrounded by yellow crime scene ribbon—Jana sped up Evie’s quiet street and into her empty garage before anyone who happened to be up could see the man in body armor sitting in her passenger seat.

She parked and shut off the engine. The garage door rolled down, sealing them off from the street. And then it was quiet. Jana was acutely aware of his presence next to her in the car—his quiet breathing, his body heat, his scent. The memory of that explosive kiss. He, too, sat silently, and she knew he was thinking the same thing. Her. Cavin. Alone together. Ay yi yi. What about that man-vacation? Hadn’t she sworn off men for a while?

No, you swore off dating.

Same thing, Jana thought. Or did childhood imaginary friends count?

You already kissed him once, almost twice. You’re on the downhill slide.

She shook her head. No. She’d made a promise to her family, and she’d stick to it. Cavin was a friend. If he came with benefits, well, she didn’t want to know about them.

“Let’s go inside,” she said and limped to the interior garage door that led into the house.

“I go first.” Cavin slid past her, his body in a protective stance. Muffled yipping echoed from the other side. Yarp. Yarp, yarp. Cavin tipped his head, his hand going to his weapons belt. “What is that noise?”

“Don’t shoot. That’s Sadie. Well, sometimes we feel like shooting her, but really, she grows on you.” Jana unlocked the house. “After you, sir. You’re the one packing heat.”

“Heat?” He glanced down at his body.

The man had good instincts, if not perfect translation. “Heat as in a weapon. If REEF is waiting for us, I might fare better if you’re the one to say hello first.”

He gave her a slightly dismayed, trust-me-not-to-lead-you-into-danger look. “The REEF is not here.”

“Not yet. But the way my night is going…” At the entry panel, Jana flipped on all the lights until the house was blazing bright. “There, I feel safer now. Even if it’s an illusion, I’ll take it. My nerves are shot.”

But Evie’s house was the perfect antidote for stress.

Just for a moment, Jana let herself breathe it all in, the photos everywhere, the houseplants and flowers; the candles in scents like vanilla and pumpkin pie, cinnamon and apple, which, in Evie’s absence, replaced the usual sweet aroma of her baking. A pair of old tennis shoes sat by the door leading to the garage. A dust bunny took up space in another corner. On the railing by the stairs, someone had tossed a Stanford sweatshirt. It all cried out that a family lived here, one held together with love.

“When my sister’s not here, it’s like the house is missing its heart,” she said, turning around.

Cavin’s green eyes had gone very dark and soft. He’d never looked at her that way before, and especially not as a boy.

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