Free The Seven: A Taste for Jazz: Book 3 of The Seven series by Ciana Stone

exactly do you do with all this stuff?"
    "You know, just the usual mad scientist stuff."
    "In other words, none of my business." She took no offense at his disinclination to discuss his work.
    "Not at all. It's just...well, what I do is hard to explain to a layman, and probably pretty uninteresting."
    She reached out to put her hand on his arm. "I'm interested."
    His smile faded and he stepped back from her touch. "Because it's part of the job."
    His words stung. "You know better than that."
    "Do I? How? You told me yourself you'd do whatever you had to, to protect the man you're assigned to safeguard. How do I know this isn't all just part of your job? Which, by the way, you never did fully explain. Just who exactly hired you and what are you protecting me from?"
    His questions were hard ones, and not something she wanted to answer. He might think she was nuts and kick her out. Then not only would she fail her mission, but she'd lose him. And even though it'd only been a few weeks, she'd developed a strong attachment to Rock that went beyond sexual attraction or friendship. She feared she was falling in love with him, something that was more frightening to her than facing down a dozen armed men.
    "Well?" he asked.
    Her movement was one of a fighter loosening, head tilting to one side, then the other, while shoulders rose and fell, one at a time. She gave her shoulders one more roll as she turned away from him and wandered over to the door.
    "Those aren't easy answers, Rock."
    "I'm a smart guy. I think I can follow the gist of almost anything."
    She barked a laugh. "I have no doubt. And that's not the problem."
    "Then what is?"
    She cut a look over her shoulder at him. "You believing me. Or getting really pissed."
    He studied her for a long time. Her posture spoke of tension that was mirrored in the set of her jaw. Her eyes told another tale. One of fear. Rock couldn't imagine Jazz fearing anything. She seemed unshakable and fearless.
    Her uncertainty and fear touched him in an unexpected way. Tenderness rose to the forefront. "Jazz." He hurried to put his arms around her and pull her close. "I'll believe you. And I won't be pissed."
    "You say that now," she murmured against his shoulder.
    "Trust me."
    She pulled back and stared into his eyes. "Trust isn't all that easy for me."
    "Me either. But I'll try if you will."
    Rock saying he'd try meant more to her than a sweet lie. Knowing that trust was a difficult issue for him brought a common element to the table. They were alike in so many ways and so different in others. In this they seemed to share a common bond.
    "Could we go outside?"
    He nodded and released her. Together they left the lab. Once outside, Rock took her hand and led her to a large pergola, overlooking a dark lake. "Have a seat," he offered, gesturing to one of the padded lounges.
    "I need to stand." She walked over to the railing, looking out at the lake and watching the light play on the water.
    He stood beside her, silent and waiting. Jazz stared at the water for a long time before speaking, trying to formulate her thoughts.
    "Like I said before, by trade I'm a bounty hunter and part-time bodyguard if the money is right. I've been doing it for a while. I've seen the best and worst in people, been forced to fight and to run. I've been hurt, and I've hurt people. Shot them. I always try to wound. But I won't hesitate to pull the trigger. And I have — more times than I care to remember.
    "I've never done drugs. Not a big drinker and I'm not much of the imaginative type." She paused to look at him. "I'm saying this because... I guess to let you know that I'm not the kind of person taken to flights of fancy and I've never been into the whole New-Age mumbo-jumbo stuff. I'm just a regular gal with her feet on the ground.
    "But...before I came to Florida, something happened. I'd been tracking this bail jumper and caught up with him in Fresno, holed up in a house with two other guys. At least I thought there were