Free Dangerous Attraction: Part Two (Aegis Group) by Sidney Bristol Page B

paper. The scent of leather clung to the wrappings. What the hell? And where had she found the time? He peered at the black lump at the bottom of the bag.
    “I have a receipt around here if you want to take them back,” Bliss said.
    Travis reached in and pulled out a pair of black leather gloves. Not the cheap kind that would flake and peel with a little use, but the real deal.
    “You said your hands were cold yesterday, and I just thought it might be something you could use.” She kept rambling on, tearing the candy wrapper into little pieces. “I’m sure you have gloves, but whatever.”
    “Thank you.” He slipped his left hand into a glove. They were snug, just the way they were supposed to be. “I don’t think anyone has ever given me something this thoughtful.”
    “You don’t have to—”
    “I’m serious. I usually spend Christmas on the job or by myself. This is nice. You didn’t have to do this, Bliss.”
    “I wanted to.” She wrapped her arms around her legs.
    “Thank you.” He gestured to the bags. “What’s all this?”
    “Jade got me a few things.”
    “I got it all wrong, didn’t I?” He sighed and took the glove off, setting them carefully on the night stand.
    “No, but you got a bunch of my dirty clothes.” She chuckled. “There’s a washer and dryer, but no detergent downstairs.”
    “Figures.” He sighed and stretched out next to her, his back to the headboard.
    “I kind of want to know how you decided what to pack.” She chuckled.
    “There wasn’t a lot of thought to it. I grabbed things, threw them on the bed. I know I knocked some stuff over and just tossed it in, too.”
    “Ah, that makes sense then.”
    “What?”
    “The bags.”
    The way her smile made her eyes light up, he wanted to capture that memory for all time. He reached out and cupped her cheek, relishing her warmth, the kindness she showed him. Except now he was staring, and she’d said something.
    “Sorry, what?”
    “Nothing. Doesn’t matter.”
    “It does. What did you say?”
    “I was just saying that it made sense why you shoved some of my, ah, bags into the duffle.”
    “Bags?” He had to think that one over for a moment. “The bags.”
    Those bags.
    “Yeah, that was kind of funny to find last night.”
    “I just thought you might need them? I’m not that thoughtful. It was really an accident.”
    “Why would I need a vibrator with you around?” She smirked, and he was reminded all over again why he’d first found her so intriguing. It wasn’t often people argued with him, and she hadn’t backed down one bit.
    “I thought you liked the variety?”
    “I do.” She rested her head on her steepled knees. A bit of hair swept across her cheek, pointing at her mouth he wanted to kiss. “What’s next?”
    He rested his head against the wall and blew out a breath.
    Way to kill the mood.
    “Depends if they find Daniel.”
    “If they don’t?”
    “Protective custody of some kind.”
    “Just me or my family?”
    “Not sure, but you and Wendy are the main concerns.”
    “How long will you be around?”
    “I’ve got a job that starts end of next week.” It was a short gig. Any other guy could take his place if it came down to that, but he’d volunteered, knowing many would still be packing in the quality family time. Screw it. “I’ll stick around as long as I can, if that’s what you want.”
    “I’d like that, but I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me. I know this is just a job and whatever.” She shrugged.
    He stared at her. The words he needed abandoned him. How did he make her understand how special she was to him?
    “Or not. You don’t have to.”
    “Bliss, I want to. It’s just hard to use the right words.”
    “Oh. Can you use some of the wrong ones and see if I can figure it out?”
    “I can’t help but think this is my fault, and you’d be a lot better off without me.”
    “I’m going to disagree with you. Without you I’d never have found