Shay found him in the garage standing next to a workbench, tinkering with what looked like a small motor.

“Lunch is ready,” she said.

He dropped the thing he was working on with a clatter and turned to her, a look of annoyance on his face. “You startled me.”

“Sorry.” Although she really wasn’t. Instead, she was worried. Worried that he was used to being alone and that he would quickly tire of having her around.

Better step up your game. What little game you’ve got.

He wiped his hands on a rag, then walked past her with barely a glance. She followed him into the house.

“Do you want something to drink?” she asked, eager to please.

He sat at the table. “A cold beer would be great.”

At least he was talking to her. Scurrying to the fridge, she pulled out a beer for him and poured cold water for herself—she’d never cared much for beer. “Here you go,” she said as she set the bottle in front of him.

“Thanks.”

She nodded, but sat at her place without saying another word.

He picked up the sandwich and took a large bite. On pins and needles to see if he would like it, she didn’t touch her sandwich.

“Not bad,” he said, his blue eyes meeting hers. Then he smiled ever so slightly.

“Thank you.” She began eating, and wondered—not for the first time—if he had a girlfriend. But with the way he lived—in the middle of nowhere, isolated and alone—she didn’t really think so. Then again, where had he been when he’d come home and found her in his bed the night before? It had been kind of late. Maybe he’d been with a woman.

A streak of jealousy slammed into her, but she shoved it down and focused on eating.

They ate in silence for a while, and then she couldn’t take it anymore. “Why are you doing this?” she asked. “Why are you letting me stay?”

He shook his head. “Heck if I know.”

That didn’t sound too promising. Sounded more like he could change his mind on a whim.

She took another bite. She had to convince him that he wanted her around.

Smiling brightly, she said, “Can I get you anything else?”

His mouth turned up in a smile. “No. But thanks.” He pushed back from the table. “I’ll be in the…” He paused, like he had to check what he was going to say before speaking. “The barn.”

“Okay.” She smiled. “I’ll be in here. Cleaning.”

He nodded, then he walked out of the kitchen and she heard the front door open and close.

She began cleaning up from lunch, which is when she realized that there was no dishwasher. Great. She just loved washing dishes by hand. Not.

Putting aside her irritation at the extra work she’d volunteered for, she finished her task, then got to work tidying up the main floor. As she worked, she thought about her motives for wanting to stay.

What was the worst that would happen if Josh made her leave? She could go home and stay with her mother and her boyfriend of the moment. But that would be a special kind of torture, although she could make herself scarce as much as possible. Or she could stay with Megan. She couldn’t forget about that.

In all reality, that was the last thing she wanted to do. Shay loved her big sister, but Megan had too much advice for her—advice she didn’t want to hear. At least at her mother’s house she wouldn’t have to listen to unwanted advice about how to live her life, but that was only because her mother was too wrapped up in her own messy life.

To be honest, neither option was appealing. Besides, when Will discovered she’d fled, her mother’s house would probably be the first place he’d look.

The thought of him finding her sent a shiver of fear down her spine.

No. Going anywhere he would think to find her was out of the question.

She finished cleaning the main floor, then she headed upstairs. She poked her head into Josh’s room and briefly considered cleaning in there first, but then she decided to focus on her little slice of heaven. After tidying up her room—neatly stacking all of his magazines on the desk—she thoroughly dusted the room, then transformed the couch into a bed and put the bedding on it.

Maybe if Josh saw this room as her bedroom he’d be less likely to send her on her way.

She hung her few outfits in the closet, then sat on the edge of her bed and looked around. Not bad. She could see this as home. Which was a good thing since for the moment it was the only home she had.

Pleased with the progress she’d made, she cleaned the hall bathroom. Then she went into Josh’s room to clean. How would he feel about her cleaning in there? He’d never said not to. Besides, she’d already slept in his bed. He probably wouldn’t mind if she tidied up in there.

When she’d gotten up that morning she’d made the bed, so she vacuumed the carpet and dusted the top of the dresser, then she put away the cleaning supplies and headed downstairs to figure out what she was going to make for dinner.

With her limited cooking abilities, she figured it would be a good idea to get a jump start on the big meal. After digging around in Josh’s kitchen cupboards, she found some old cookbooks that she took out and set on the counter. Opening the first one, she looked through the well-used pages and found some recipes that had notes scrawled beside them—use an additional cup of broth, cut salt in half. Figuring those were recipes Josh had used and liked, she chose one that didn’t seem too complicated and made sure all the ingredients were available.

As she was busily gathering the necessary supplies so she’d be ready to start later, Josh walked in.

His hair was damp and he smelled like he’d just showered.

He had a shower in the barn? That was weird.

Picturing him in the shower was probably a bad idea, but she couldn’t seem to stop the image from filling her mind and she had to look away.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

She met his gaze and tried not to swoon. “Good. I cleaned the house and now I’m getting dinner figured out.”

One of his eyebrows lifted like he was impressed, and she hoped that put a check in the Keep Shay Around column. “Great.”

“Do you need me to do any laundry or anything?” Because she could do laundry. She was actually quite useful to have around.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

Tomorrow? Hoping that meant she would be welcome for at least another day, she smiled. “Okay.”

* * *

Josh had had a good workout in his state of the art gym. What looked like a barn to anyone who happened to notice was actually his custom-built gym. When he’d signed his first NFL contract he’d bought the cabin and the twenty acres surrounding it. His very first place. He loved it.

Though he could afford to renovate the house, to make it large and luxurious, he had no desire to. He loved it just the way it was. It represented his very first accomplishment, and in a way it kept him humble. No one would see it and think he was anything special.

The gym, on the other hand, would give a whole different impression. Built to look like a barn, inside it had everything he needed to work out to his heart’s content. Not to mention a sauna and a really sweet bathroom, including an oversized shower and a jacuzzi tub. He also had an office out there where he conducted all of his business. That was where he had his Internet access set up, although with the wifi username and password he could get online on his phone in the cabin.

Now that he thought about it, Shay hadn’t asked about contacting anyone. It was almost like she wanted to be isolated.

Another mystery to be solved.

Speaking of Shay, he’d seen the questioning look on her face when he’d walked into the kitchen looking like he’d just showered. That was okay. He didn’t owe her an explanation. She could wonder all she wanted. He wasn’t going to let her in on his little secret, and there was no way for her to get inside the barn. Not without knowing the code for the keypad.

He found he really liked the idea that she had no clue what he did for a living. He remembered her guesses as they’d driven to town. An assassin? Hardly. But if she knew he was a star quarterback in the NFL, would she look at him differently?

Well, yeah. Of course she would. He had to protect his secret at all costs.

Wait. Why did he make it sound like she would be around for a while? Why not just give her some cash, call an Uber, and send her on her way? Yeah, he was concerned about her safety, and he felt bad for her, but he didn’t owe her anything. There was no reason to keep her around.

So why was he?

Shaking his head in confusion, he settled onto the living room couch and scanned through the latest issue of Sports Illustrated on his tablet. Though he liked print magazines, lately he’d found it more convenient to get the digital version.

He could hear Shay working in the kitchen. The chop chop chop of a knife, and then a sizzling sound, filled him with an unexpected warmth. Maybe he liked having her around after all.

* * *

“I’m so sorry,” Shay said once again, feeling terrible for burning dinner.

“It’s okay,” Josh said. “Eggs are actually a good source of protein.” He scooped up another forkful of the eggs she’d scrambled in an attempt to give them something to eat—despite the fact that they’d had the same thing to eat when he’d made brunch earlier.

He was being way too nice about this, which worried her. It had to mean he was planning on kicking her out first thing in the morning. She had to pre-empt that. “I’ll do better tomorrow. I promise.”

His fork froze halfway to his mouth, and she was sure she’d nailed his plan. A half smile turned up one corner of his mouth. “Right.” Then he continued eating, cleaning his plate within sixty seconds.

Was he really that hungry? Or was he trying to hurry through dinner so he could stop looking at her pitiful face in an attempt to ease his guilt?

“No, really,” she said. “I’m good at making pancakes. What time do you want breakfast?”

He set his napkin on his plate and stood, but paused to look at her. “I can make my own breakfast.”

That sealed it. At the crack of dawn she would be in the kitchen making the most mouth-watering pancakes on the planet.

Josh carried his dishes to the sink and began rinsing them off. Leaping from her seat, she rushed over to him.

“Let me take care of that,” she said, her voice carrying a note of desperation.

He looked at her with a frown, but he stepped away from the sink. “Have at it.”

She hadn’t eaten her food yet, and though it was growing cold, she turned her full attention to cleaning the kitchen. As she’d been slaving over dinner she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Will and what he would do if he found her. That may have had something to do with the fact that she’d forgotten to turn on the timer and ended up burning the casserole that would have been so delicious if she hadn’t screwed it up.

That failure was an exclamation point on why she needed to stay right where she was. If she’d burned Will’s dinner, she would have felt it. Right in her gut. He never hit her in the face, never anywhere obvious, but her ribs were often tender from his reminders to never displease him.

When she’d told Josh that she’d burned his dinner, she’d braced herself for what was to come next. When he’d simply suggested they have eggs instead, she’d nearly wept with relief.

His reaction had clinched it. She had to stay. At least until she could figure out her next move.