Free Saved by Sin [Paladin Protection Agency 1] (Siren Publishing Classic) by Susan Hayes Page A

resolve. “But if he wants to be with you, then that means he won’t hurt you. That’s a good thing.”
    “He hurt me when he was alive. I’m not sure he won’t do it again now. Especially if I don’t give him what he wants.” Memories of an invisible hand caressing her while she couldn’t move filled her mind, and she bit back the sob that threatened to choke her.
    “Michelle, I promise you that I won’t let that happen. I’m not exactly a ghost expert, but I am supposed to be a professional bodyguard, and I can’t think of any body in the world I want to guard more than yours. If it’s all right with you, I’m going to call in a favor from my boss and see if we can’t find someone who knows how to deal with this sort of weirdness, okay?”
    “Okay.” Relief warred with worry that no one else would believe them. That they’d end up laughed at or worse, that someone would decide she was mentally unstable.
    “I’m not going to let you out of my sight, I promise. It’s going to be all right.” He leaned in and sealed his promise with a kiss that made her insides quiver and her toes curl until her bruised feet gave a twinge in protest.
    “I trust you,” she breathed into his mouth as she kissed him back.
    “Let’s get you settled on the couch, and then I’ll tackle the dishes. After that we’ll head over to your place and see if we can’t find you something to wear that doesn’t make me keep thinking of dragging you back off to bed for the rest of the day.”

Chapter 7
     
    By midafternoon, the summer sun had draped the entire valley in a cocoon of heat without even the faintest of breezes to stir the sweltering air. They lay in the shade, sprawled comfortably on top of her family’s ancient picnic blanket, and watched the sunlight dance and shimmer across the mirror-flat surface of the lake.
    “I vote we go for a swim.” Sinjin’s suggestion caught Michelle by surprise, her mind immediately flashing back to the previous night’s attack.
    “I’m not sure that’s safe.”
    His handsome face moved into her field of vision, a reassuring smile curving over his lips. “We haven’t seen a single sign of him all day. Maybe he can only manifest at night. Or maybe whatever he did last night took so much energy he isn’t strong enough to do anything. You can’t live your life scared of him. If you do, he wins.”
    “Easy for you to say, you’re not the one getting haunted here,” she grumbled back at him. But her eyes went back to the cool promise of the lake, and she knew he was right. She could sit here and bake in the heat, afraid of something that may not even happen. Or she could go cool off with a swim. “Shallow water only. If anything happens, I want to be nice and close to the shore, and to you.” She stuck her tongue out at him as his expression turned smug.
    “I have no intention of letting you get that far away from me.”
    She caught the undertones of desire in his voice and shook her head, laughing. “You’re insatiable.”
    “Only for you.” Sinjin rose to his knees and picked her up, tucking her head under his chin as he stood up carefully. “I’m going to miss getting to do this when you feet are all healed.”
    “Yeah, me, too.” She waved airily toward her cabin. “Let’s go find us both swimsuits.”
    As they floated in the sun-warmed shallows, Michelle was glad she’d agreed to Sinjin’s suggestion to go swimming. The water was the perfect temperature, and there was something almost Zen-like about just drifting in companionable silence. The sky overhead was a flawless summer blue, and there wasn’t a cloud to be seen. Sinjin’s fingers were lightly interwoven with hers, keeping her close to him. She liked the feeling of having someone looking out for her. It wasn’t something she was used to, but it might just be something she could come to enjoy. Especially if the person protecting me is a smoking-hot bodyguard named Sinjin.
    Thoughts of Sinjin made her