She took pity on him and leaned in closer, letting her lips skim over his. “Honestly, you could use a clue or two.”
“I’m sorry,” he said when they broke apart again.
“For?” And this was a test. If he didn’t get it right...well, she wasn’t going anywhere. But she didn’t want to fight with him, either. “And do not say putting me in danger or anything like that.”
“How about for trying to push you away?”
She kissed him again. Short and sweet but enough for the desired connection. “Better.”
“I want you safe and am willing to do whatever that takes.” His hand brushed up and down her thigh. “But I’m also not stupid. When a woman like you throws around the L word, a man listens.”
The words knocked down the rest of her protective wall. This man, this amazing man who carried a gun and could probably scale buildings if he wanted to, meant everything. “Are you sure?”
“That falling thing.” He toyed with the end of her hair. “The love—”
She put her thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “Little bit and at the beginning.”
He pushed those fingers farther apart. “Me, too.”
Her heart jumped. “Really?”
“Why do you think I’m so desperate to lock you away where my job and this life can’t touch you?”
“I lived for months and months being afraid.” Talking about her life back then stole something from her, but she needed him to understand. “I’m not afraid of you.”
“After what happened to you and how you had to fight...all the attacks over the last week...how is that possible?”
Hearing him rendered almost speechless was just about the most flattering, attractive thing ever. The idea she could knock this controlled man off his game made her smile. “I think it had something to do with seeing a policeman step up and do the right thing.”
“Willoughby?”
She still had to figure out a way to apologize to the guy. He had even come to the hospital to check on Ben, Sharon and Kent and never once threatened or suggested the crimes rolled out any way other than the way they actually did. No blame. “He came through, but that wasn’t all.”
“Meaning?”
“Your team thrives on the challenge of the job without enjoying the violence. That makes a difference. You view danger as a necessary evil but don’t seek it out, and that matters to me.” The words spilled out of her. She needed him to know she didn’t lump him in with the law-enforcement types she’d known before. “With you guys, danger and gunfire are normal, and I don’t fully understand that, but I’ve seen you all handle it without turning into the scary people you hunt.”
He lifted their joined hands and placed a kiss against her skin. “Thank you.”
“Your dad is wrong, you know.” Now, there was a man she wanted to shake.
Ben’s eyes closed. When they opened again, they were heavy and a bit sad. “He’s set in his ways.”
“No, Ben. He’s wrong. You’re a hero.” She balanced a hand against his pillow and leaned in real close. “My hero.”