Watching poor Reese try to help me out of my pants again was enough to make me giggle. Between Reese’s startling admission, my sore body, and the stress of everything that had happened in the last few days, I felt like I was going to lose it. But admittedly, it also felt really good to just pretend everything was okay and my only challenge was to try to make sense of the man kneeling at my feet.

The gorgeous as sin, thirty-something virgin who also carried a big-ass gun.

And was once again struggling to get my pants off.

“I’m sorry,” I said after snorting.

His eyes shot up to mine. “Why are you laughing? Am I tickling you?”

I snorted again and covered my mouth, trying to apologize with my eyes. “No. It’s just… you’re so uncomfortable. I hate being this helpless.”

“I’m only uncomfortable because I’m having inappropriate thoughts about you,” he said, then quickly dropped his eyes as color flooded his cheeks.

What? Was that… was he flirting with me? Or trying to, anyway?

I found myself tipping his face up again because I really wanted him to be looking me in the eye when I said my next words. “It’s not inappropriate,” I assured him with a wink. “If things weren’t so messed up, I’d be on you like Mario on a mushroom.”

Reese’s eyes widened and his cheeks flushed deeper red and I felt a little flash of warmth when I realized he knew what fictional couple I was talking about.

“I wouldn’t anyway. It’s not right. I’m…” He stopped himself before continuing again.

I felt my stomach drop out at his obvious reluctance. “Oh, of course. You’re probably seeing someone. I’m not sur—”

“No! I mean, no, I’m not seeing anyone. That’s not it.”

Realization dawned. He wasn’t interested in actually getting together with me. It was just a reaction to a guy in his underwear. Any guy.

Reese finished pulling the jeans off again and set them aside before reaching for the bottom buttons of my shirt. I put my hand out to stop him. No way I could stand to have him touch me now… it was just way too humiliating.

“Okay. Well, I appreciate the help but I think I can get the rest by myself,” I lied. It came out more woodenly than I’d hoped.

Reese’s eyes met mine and then he was gently pushing my hand away. He dropped his eyes and focused on the buttons of my shirt as he spoke.

“I’m very attracted to you, Ben. But even if either of us was in a position to do so, I’m not… not the kind of guy you’d want to be with.”

He looked so serious, and I noticed his hands had begun shaking. I covered one of his hands with mine. My body began reacting violently to the feel of his big palm pressed flat against my chest. There were still two layers of fabric separating our skin, but my dick didn’t care. Neither did my heart. It was pounding so hard he had to be feeling it.

“Not so sure about that,” I murmured as I considered him. I didn’t really have a “type” when it came to men, but I usually shied away from big guys like Reese. For some reason, though, everything about the man in front of me was ticking off all my boxes. “I know I’m probably not the kind of guy you picture yourself being with, and god knows I’m not relationship material, but if things were different and you just wanted to try some things…”

Good lord, what was I doing? Was I really trying to sell him on being someone he could mess around with in the future if and when things got back to normal for me? Was I that fucking desperate? I opened my mouth to tell him never mind when he spoke first.

“You’re worth way more than a quick fuck, Ben. And whoever told you that you aren’t relationship material is a lying motherfucker.” Reese’s voice came out in harsh bursts like bullets from a gun but his touch on my chest remained gentle. I had a sudden flash of him as a drill sergeant barking orders at a new influx of soldiers. Maybe that’s why he had the gun. Maybe he’d been a military man. It would explain his upright posture and his bizarre habit of checking to make sure his clothes were just so.

As if thinking it made it so, Reese tugged the cuffs of his sleeves again. “Anyway, let’s get you cleaned up so we can make a plan for getting Georgie back.”

I wanted to remind him that I hadn’t agreed to let him help me with any of that, but I couldn’t seem to find my tongue when his warm hands finished unbuttoning my shirt and slid it across my chest to move it off my shoulders before setting it on top of my jeans. I actually held my breath and willed my excited dick not to respond when Reese leaned forward to reach around behind my neck for the ties to the hospital gown. Warm breath tickled my ear, and I could almost feel the prickle of his scruff against my jaw.

The cotton-candy smell hit my nose again, causing me to inhale. It was so at odds with his stiff bearing, but the story of his stepsister picking it out made my heart squeeze. He may have come off as rigid and distant, but he clearly had a sweet side too.

His fingers brushed one of my shoulder blades as he pulled open the back of the gown. A thousand goosebumps surfaced along my skin. It felt like he was moving in slow motion. I wanted to lean into him and fall asleep on his shoulder, give up all of my burdens to him and rest. But Georgie was out there waiting, and I was the only person who had a chance in hell of saving her. By my count, I only had twenty-four hours left until my next shot at finding her. I debated whether or not to tell Reese about the next meet-up with Georgie’s abductors because once I told him, I couldn’t take it back.

Reese left the gown on but open. He cleared his throat. “I, um… do you need me to remove your underwear?”

Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!

I was about to tell him “hell, no” when I realized I probably wouldn’t be able to get the underwear off by myself.

“I’ll shower in them,” I blurted.

Reese stared at me for a long beat, then actually smiled.

Genuinely smiled.

And laughed.

A real, goddamn laugh.

And it was every bit as perfect as I’d suspected it would be.

Fuck.

“Stand up,” Reese urged. “I can do this,” he added, though I wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince me or himself.

Thankfully, the hospital gown fell to just above my knees when Reese helped me stand. But with Reese still on his knees in front of me and his face practically right there, I knew there was no way I was going to manage this. I was already on the outskirts of Boner City as it was.

“Reese—”

“I’ll just whip them off—like a Band-Aid.”

“Gee, what every guy likes to hear,” I cracked. It earned me another soft laugh.

True to his word, Reese quickly divested me of my underwear, but there was no mistaking what exactly it was the skimpy fabric got hung up on as he was pulling them down. Reese let out a strangled sound as he tried not to look at my groin. “So, I’m going to help you to the bathroom and start the water in the shower. The bathroom is pretty tight, so hopefully,” —he cleared his throat again— “you can handle it from there on your own.”

I nodded, too afraid my voice would squeak if I said anything. The alternative to me showering with no help was Reese in there with me, washing me while I stood naked under the water. And that could not happen.

As promised, he helped me to the bathroom and started the water. His arm around my waist to support me was both heaven and hell. When he turned to move past me out of the small space, our chests brushed together.

So did our groins.

“I’m going to be right outside the door. Yell if you need me, okay?” Reese said as he practically bolted for the door. I didn’t even get a chance to respond before he was pulling it closed behind him.

Surprisingly, my body pains seemed to ease considerably under the warm water. I went slowly but was able to wash myself completely before turning off the water and reaching for the towel Reese had left for me.

Once I had the towel wrapped around me, I took a look in the mirror and gasped at my black and blue reflection. Half a second later, the door slammed open and Reese rushed in, almost bowling me over in his haste to get to the shower.

“What? What happened? I heard you gasp,” he cried.

“I’m fine. I just saw myself in the mirror. Relax.”

My eyes remained on my reflection, understanding at least one of the reasons Reese wouldn’t be interested in me. I looked exactly like who I was: a small, weak man who couldn’t stand up for himself long enough to rescue his baby sister. How in the hell did I ever expect to try again? And even if I tried, what chance did I have of succeeding? None.

“You look tough,” Reese murmured from behind me.

I looked up to catch his eyes in the mirror. “Ha, ha.”

“I’m serious. You look like a survivor, Ben.”

“I look like a pound and a half of ground beef,” I corrected.

That smile of his came out again, transforming his face from attractive to butterflies-in-belly.

“You look like a filet mignon.”

I gawped at him. “You sound like a psychopath.”

His grin grew wider, involving dimples and shit. “A hungry psychopath, maybe.”

The size difference between us was obvious. His reflection dwarfed mine. The man was muscled and most likely ex-military. He carried a gun. Now that was a man who could save my sister.

I turned around to face him, forgetting about the flirting for the moment. “Did you mean it when you said you could help me?”

His grin dropped in an instant. “Yes.”

After one last minute to consider the repercussions of my decision, I looked back up at him. “Okay. Then order us some dinner, hungry psychopath. I have some questions… and conditions.”

By the time the pizza arrived, Reese had found me a soft pair of workout pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt to wear. I’d had to steal a safety pin out of the sewing kit in the bathroom to help make the waistband of the pants small enough not to fall off. And the shirt hung down like a dress on me, but I was so much more comfortable than when I’d had on too-tight jeans and my stinky button-down shirt.

The pain had stayed away enough for me to dress myself as long as I moved slowly. When I made my way back out into the main room, I spotted the duffel bag Reese’s clothes had come out of.

“Wait. Are you staying here? Is this your hotel room?” I asked. “I don’t understand.”

Reese looked up from where he was setting out pizza slices onto paper towels on the small desk in the corner of the room. “Oh. Ah, yes. I’m… I don’t live here.”

“Where do you live?”

“Seattle.”

I blinked at him. “And? Why are you here?”

“Work.”

I felt my jaw tighten. It was one thing to be stiff and distant but quite another to be obtuse. “Dude, seriously? What kind of work?” I moved past him to take a seat in the only desk chair, grabbing the pizza and taking too big a bite. It was amazing, surely made even better because I was beyond starving. When Reese didn’t respond right away, I said, “Questions and conditions, remember?” No way I was going to risk Georgie’s life with a guy who wouldn’t tell me shit about himself. And I absolutely had to be sure he’d do things my way.

Reese looked away. “Private security. It’s really very boring.” He propped his butt on the counter next to the desk and began eating his own slice. It was clear to me he was downplaying his job for some reason. I assumed he didn’t want anyone to think he was a hero.

“Like a bodyguard? That doesn’t sound boring to me.”

He shrugged. “Sometimes bodyguard. Sometimes just investigation. Now you know why I offered to help you. I understand discretion. I’m trained for things like this.”

I watched him while he ate. Was he putting me on or was it possible he really did work for a private security company?

“Were you in the military?”

“Mm-hm.”

“Stop. You’ll lose your voice at this rate,” I drawled. “It’s talk, talk, talk with you. Do you ever shut up?”

Reese stopped chewing mid-bite and stared at me. “Army. And what the hell’s your problem?”

“You’re like a robot over there. Do you ever cut up? Joke? Laugh?” I knew I was overreacting, but I couldn’t deal with the man’s one-eighty. I wanted that damn laugh back. I wanted the man who’d kissed my cheek and promised he’d get my sister back for me. I wanted him to promise me everything would be okay.

But it wasn’t about me. It was about Georgie. And maybe an emotionless robot was exactly what she needed. I dropped my eyes and studied the greasy pizza slice. The food tasted like sandpaper all of a sudden.

I actually jumped when Reese suddenly spoke a few seconds later.

“Did you know that if you look very closely, all mirrors look like eyeballs?”

As the joke registered, I could only stare at him dumbfounded. He looked a little stiff and way too serious considering what he’d just said. Then he took another bite of pizza like he hadn’t spoken at all.

“That’s terrible,” I finally said. I felt some of the tension in my belly ease, and I made myself take another bite of food.

“True, though. Think about it.”

“No. No, I refuse to think about it. That’s gross. Eyeballs are disgusting,” I said.

He shrugged and reached for another piece of pizza. “If you say so. But before we change the topic, what do you call a doe with no eyes?”

“No,” I repeated. “No way.”

“Close. No eye deer.”

It wasn’t until I smiled that Reese’s face split into a shit-eating grin, and it was fucking adorable. I barked out a laugh and immediately clutched my hurt side. Within seconds, Reese was at my side, taking the slice of pizza from my hand and rubbing my back while making comforting noises. After I caught my breath, I looked over at him with a smile.

“You’re so funny, you had me in stitches.”

His groan filled the hotel room.

I peppered him with a few more questions about his work as we ate but none of his answers really helped me get a clearer picture of who he was. After we finished our dinner and Reese took care of the trash, he helped me sit on the remade bed, which was back on its frame, with a pile of pillows supporting me. He pulled the desk chair up to the side of the bed and eyed me intently, all business. It was oddly comforting.

“Tell me what happened to your sister. And start from the beginning.”