Finn didn’t want her to drive alone, so he left his Tahoe at the campground and rode with her in the Mercedes, sitting on the odd little contraption she’d installed for Molly. He jumped at the chance to question her about what Knight had said.

“You said you’d explain later,” he reminded her.

“It’s only about ten minutes later.” She laughed as she took the turn out of the campground.

“Right. That means it’s later. Why was Knight there? Why is he interested in a vehicle fire at a campground?”

She let out a soft sigh. “Because there’s a chance that it’s not the first time someone has come after me.”

“What?”

“You know that guy with the gun who knocked you out on the trail up to Breton? The one who tried to kidnap Merry?”

He swiveled his head to stare at her. “He was looking for you?” Jesus, that made so much sense. The guy had ranted on about dark hair and the tower. At least, that was what Finn remembered before he’d gotten clocked on the head.

“It’s possible. So far, he hasn’t really explained himself. He pled guilty.”

“I know all that. I followed the whole case. But why you?”

She worried at her bottom lip. She was gripping her steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles showed white. On the road ahead, her headlights shone across a jackrabbit skipping across the center divider. She swerved to miss it, a little more sharply than necessary. Even though she quickly corrected her course, he got the message.

“Let’s talk about this when we’re not in a moving vehicle,” he said.

Relieved, she nodded. They both stayed quiet, lost in their own thoughts, until they reached his guesthouse.

Luckily, he’d done some minimal cleanup that morning, so he spotted only a small pile of sweaty training clothes on the floor. He kicked it under the dining table, hoping she wouldn’t notice.

She pretended not to, anyway.

“I’ll take the couch.” He gestured toward the back of the house, where the bedroom was located. “The bed is all yours. The sheets were just changed, but if you want fresh ones, check the closet in the bathroom. There’s about a hundred variations of pastel-flowered sheets in there. By the way, I have nothing to do with the decor of this place. I think someone’s grandmother lived here.”

She attempted a smile, but he sensed she was still uncomfortable. Time to put her at ease. Make crystal clear his intentions were honorable, at least for tonight. He dropped onto the couch and yawned deeply. “If you want to take a shower, go for it. Lots of hot water, courtesy of Clan Wareham. I promise I’ll be a much better host tomorrow. I’ll even bring you breakfast in bed…” He trailed off, eyes drifting shut.

And then it wasn’t an act. All the stress and exhaustion of a full day’s training and a dramatic fire rescue overwhelmed him. His body felt like one solid throbbing sore spot.

The sound of her soft laughter woke him up a little. He dragged his eyes open as she lifted his legs onto the couch and helped him stretch into a more comfortable position. Her movements were competent, sure, as if she’d assisted many couch-bound patients. She draped a throw blanket over him. It smelled like potpourri, as did everything in this little guesthouse.

“And here I was, worried that this was all a ploy.”

“Definitely a ploy,” he mumbled as he snuggled into the couch pillow. “Worked, too. Don’t tell Nurse Badass.”

She laughed and ran a light hand across his forehead, so quickly he might have imagined it. “I won’t. Sweet dreams.”

And he was out.

When he woke up, sunshine was streaming through the living room window and the smell of rich dark coffee floated from the kitchen. He sat up with a jolt and looked down at his chest. His shirt was missing.

The events of the day before flipped through his brain. Lisa. Fire. Lisa. Here.

He jumped off the couch and strode into the kitchen. Lisa held a mug in both of her hands as she stared out the window at the Pacific Ocean stretching to the hazy horizon. She wore one of his old Fighting Scorpions Hotshots t-shirts over the leggings she’d worn yesterday.

“What the hell is going on here?” He folded his arms across his bare chest as she turned. Steam from her coffee mug made her skin look dewy and fresh. “Someone took my clothes. And made coffee. I’m the host around here, that’s my job.”

“You were indisposed,” she said primly. “And your shirt was sweaty and dirty. That’s not good for your scars. It was a medical intervention.”

Her eyes sparkled as she scanned his torso. He decided he’d take all the medical interventions she cared to offer.

“And the coffee?”

“There might be enough for you. If you hurry.” She winked as she took a sip.

He laughed. He liked her like this, all loose and relaxed and wearing his t-shirt. He walked to the coffee maker and poured himself a cup. “How are you feeling today?”

She made a face. “Besides homeless, motorhome-less and clothing-less? Not too bad.”

He winced. “You’ve still got attitude. That’s a big plus. And you’re not homeless. This is your home. I’m handing it over to you, free and clear. I can stay at the base if it makes you uncomfortable. I’m serious.”

“Finn, I’m not going to chase you out of your home. I’ll find a place.”

“A place in Jupiter Point?”

Her hesitation told him all he needed to know. The fire was the last straw for her. She’d probably be leaving as soon as she finished her coffee.

“Don’t leave, Lisa.” The request came out more seriously than he’d planned. “I mean, don’t leave before you have a solid plan. You still need clothes, and I have to get my Tahoe back, and we should see what’s left of your stuff from the motorhome. And didn’t you say you were going to talk to Deputy Knight today?”

“Right. I guess I did.” Her expression tightened and she looked away. He wanted to ask her a million more questions about the fire and the Breton incident and Knight, but didn’t want to scare her off first thing in the morning. Especially when two minutes ago, she’d been enjoying the sunshine and making herself at home in his kitchen.

He lightened his tone and leaned his hip against the countertop. “Besides, I need you here, remember?”

“Right. That pet you mentioned. Funny thing, I don’t see any sign of a pet. I’ve been looking everywhere.”

Busted. He ran a hand across his jaw. “On a related note, I need to run a quick errand. Can I borrow your car?”

She burst into laughter. “Did you make up a pet to encourage me to stay here?”

“If someone did something like that, how wrong would that be? Asking for a friend.”

She threw back her head and laughed even harder. “You are really something. Actually, I’m touched that you would go to such lengths to get me to come here. And I know your motives were perfectly innocent. You just want to keep me safe. That’s just…really nice.”

He lifted an eyebrow at her. Nice? Was that really the right word? Well, it was better than many other words she could have chosen. He put his empty mug on the counter. “I’m going to take a shower. You’re welcome to—”

“Join you?”

His mouth snapped shut. She batted her eyelashes at him, all sweet cream and innocence. Jesus, now she was playing with him. Or was she serious?

“Uh…sure. You’re also welcome to help yourself to cereal. It’s in that cupboard up there. Somewhere.” He waved a hand at his kitchen cabinets, then turned and pretended to run into the doorjamb.

The sound of her laughter made him grin. As he stepped into the shower, he realized he’d do anything to keep her sounding like that. Not wary and cautious, but joyful, carefree and happy.

* * *

After his shower, they rode together down the long, winding road into town. She drove while he fired off a bunch of texts.

“Swing by Josh and Suzanne’s first, would you?” he asked her.

He directed her to the new house they’d recently bought. It was a sunflower-yellow ranch-style house with a walled-in backyard perfect for kids.

Suzanne opened the door. Her belly seemed to fill the entire doorway. Her hair hung in a long braid over one shoulder.

“Wow,” said Finn. “Won’t be long now, huh?”

“Only about a hundred more years,” she grumbled. “I have a bag here next to me but I can’t bend down to get it.”

“I got it.” Finn reached past her for the giant tote bag filled to the brim with clothes. He handed it to Lisa, who peered at it curiously.

“What is this?”

“This is all the clothes I will never be able to wear again thanks to Buster here.” She patted her belly affectionately. “Even if I could wear them, I wouldn’t want to get spit-up on them. I’m handing them off to a worthy heir.”

“Suzanne, I can’t take this.”

“Take it,” she snapped, making Lisa jump. “You have to, I’m like one entire nerve ending right now. If you don’t, I’ll cry, and once I start I can’t stop. Just ask Josh.”

Meekly, Lisa tucked the handles of the bag over her arm. “Thank you, that’s very nice of you.”

“It’s nothing. Really. You can buy me a margarita at the Orbit someday.”

Finn noticed Lisa didn’t say “no” to that, though she didn’t say “yes” either.

“Was that your idea?” she asked after they’d gotten back in the Mercedes.

“Suzanne has a great sense of style and she loves dressing people. Seemed like a good match.”

“Very thoughtful,” she said neutrally.

After that, they stopped at a discount store, where she picked up a toothbrush and underwear and a few other essentials. Then he directed her to the Frisky Business Pet Store.

“Seriously? You’re actually getting a pet?”

“Yup. Don’t want you to think I’m a liar. Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

Since he’d already made the purchase via text message, it took no time to pick up his new pet and proudly bring it out to the Mercedes.

Lisa burst out laughing again. “A turtle?”

“A painted tortoise, if you don’t mind. They don’t like to be called turtles.”

“Really? How do you know?”

“We’ve already started to bond. We have a lot in common. We both like feisty brunette nurses.”

She peered at the small creature in the carrier. “What’s wrong with his leg?”

“He’s a rescue turtle. His bandages will need changing every couple of days for the next few weeks.”

Her gaze skidded back up to meet his. “Oh, that’s low. You chose an injured turtle on purpose.”

“Of course I did, Nurse Badass with the Soft Heart. I told you I was starting to figure you out.” He grinned at her. “I dare you to walk away from the poor little guy.”

“He’s a turtle. He’s slow. Even slower than slow because he’s injured. He’d never catch up with me.”

“Because you won’t have the heart to leave him.”

“You are going to pay for this.” But her voice had gone soft. She inserted her finger through the wire mesh and touched the turtle’s shell. He cocked his head at her with a bright, inquisitive look.

Finn did a silent air punch of triumph.

After that, they drove back to the campground.

With her hands still clamped onto the steering wheel, she jerked the car to a stop. She stared at the spot where her motorhome had been. What had been an idyllic grove of pines now looked like a bomb had dropped. A scorched skeleton of a picnic table stood to one side of the pile of smoldering metal wreckage. Her whole body started to shake. “Oh my God. It’s real. Someone literally tried to kill me.”

“We don’t know that for sure yet.” Finn extracted his arm from around the tortoise’s cage and touched her shoulder.

“You don’t understand. I do know. And he tried to kill you too, just because you happened to be with me. Holy shit, Finn. This is insane. Oh my God, oh my God!” She reached over and punched the locks on the door, as if that would stop any bad guys nearby. She shrank back into the seat, wrapping her arms around herself.

“He?” Finn stared at her. “You say that like you know who it is.”

“No. I don’t. Not really.” She shuddered, her entire body shaking.

“Lisa. Listen to me.” He put both hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. Her eyes refused to meet his. She scanned the campground, the woods, the backseat. Anything except him. “Take a deep breath. You need some oxygen. Passing out isn’t going to help anything.”

“I’m not going to pass out,” she snapped. “And telling someone to take a deep breath is just so annoying. Why are you so calm? You shouldn’t be calm. He almost killed you too!”

“I’m calm because I have a plan. Several plans, in fact.”

“Plans. Plans? It’s not your job to think of plans for me. I can do that myself. I’ve been doing it since I left Houston. And before that. I’m an independent, self-sufficient woman. Damn it all.”

“Of course you are. You’re amazing. But you don’t have to do everything alone. You have friends here. People you can trust. You have me. Here.” He grabbed a t-shirt from Suzanne’s bag of clothes and handed it to her. She used it to blot the tears on the upper curves of her cheeks.

“This is crazy. I’m usually the calm and collected one. You should see me in the ER. I never lose control. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“I do.” He pushed her hair away from her face. “You’ve been through a traumatic experience. Your home burned down. And now you have a pet tortoise. Of course you’re upset.”

She gave a shaky smile, then rested her head against his hand, giving its entire weight into his keeping. It was such a trusting gesture that his heart skipped several beats.

They stayed like that until his wrist started to cramp. But he’d rather chop it off than make her move.

Finally, she shook herself and sat up. “Let’s go see what’s left of my glamorous life.”