Free Secret Vows (Hideaway (Kimani)) by Rochelle Alers Page B

plastic bag.
    He stared at her. “Sorry. I didn’t know you...”
    “It’s all right, Danny. We were just coming in.” Jason’s arm circled her waist as the ex-Marine continued to stare at her.
    “Is he your man?”
    A beat passed as she replayed the totally unexpected question in her head. Jason wasn’t her man, and if he was, then what was it to Danny? Something about the way he was looking at her was off-putting, and Greer wondered if he was experiencing a flashback.
    * * *
    Jason didn’t know if Greer and the man she’d called Danny were previously involved with each other, then remembered Chase’s comment about her going through a nasty divorce; he doubted whether she would continue to work with a man to whom she’d once been married.
    “Yes, I am her man,” he stated firmly.
    The tension-filled moment passed as a half smile lifted a corner of Danny’s mouth. “That’s good. She needs someone to take care of her.”
    “Thank you,” Jason drawled. “I’ll make certain to always take care of her.”
    Danny extended his free hand. “Danny Poe.”
    Jason had to drop his arm to shake hands. “Jason Cole.”
    Greer rested her hand on Jason’s back, feeling his body’s warmth through the cotton shirt. “I have to get back before Bobby comes looking for me.” The mention of her uncle’s name galvanized Danny into action as he headed for the Dumpsters.
    “Is he all right?” Jason whispered in her ear as they reentered the restaurant.
    Going on tiptoe, Greer pressed her mouth to his ear. “Iraq.”
    He laced their fingers together. “Is he in therapy?”
    She nodded. “I really have to get back. And I promise to call you.”
    Jason leaned against the wall, watching the seductive sway of Greer’s hips in a pair of fitted jeans as she walked away. He didn’t know why he’d admitted to Danny he would take care of Greer because that wasn’t even a remote possibility. She didn’t need a protector when she had Bobby Henry.
    He followed Greer, losing sight of her in the crowded restaurant. People were up on their feet singing and fist pumping to Flo Rida’s megahit “Wild One.” A woman grabbed his hand, leading him to a space where the tables were pushed back. Jason found himself caught up in the infectious rhythm as he danced with the petite buxom blonde. Dancing had reminded Jason of how long it’d been since he’d been to a club. Earlier that year he’d dated a woman living in Miami. She had professed to be a certified party girl, and after two months of nonstop partying, Jason was forced to break it off. Their weekends began Friday nights and didn’t end until Sunday morning. He’d been so sleep deprived it had taken several months for him to reestablish a normal sleep pattern.
    The song ended and he managed to escape the woman’s clutches, making a beeline toward the exit. He left Stella’s, driving to an all-night mini-mart where he bought milk, eggs, butter and bread. As he drove back home, he thought about how his best-laid plans had suddenly changed. He was now a member of a local band, and he hoped Greer would honor her promise and call him.

Chapter 6
    G reer sat on the porch in the cushioned rocker as she stared out at the lake. The cries of a hawk had awakened her and she hadn’t been able to go back to sleep. She had left her bed, showered, washed her hair and pulled on a sweatshirt and pants over her underwear. At dawn the mid-September air was cool and crisp. The smell of pine wafted to her nose as a gentle breeze rustled the branches of massive trees growing around the lake like ramrod-straight soldiers at a military parade.
    She’d forgotten the number of times when she got up early, put on a swimsuit and raced out of the house to the lake as if something in there was calling her. The water was cold enough to make her teeth chatter, but after a while she didn’t feel it. Swimming, boating and fishing had become the highlight of her summers, times filled with childlike