Free Dangerous Grounds by Shelli Stevens

didn’t eat anything.”
    “And you jumped on my ass for trying to skip it?” she demanded as she climbed into the car.
    Gabe held back a groan. He had a fantastic view of her ass while it disappeared into his vehicle. Jumping it sounded pretty good to him right now.
    He climbed in on his side, and then drove them out of the parking lot. She turned to him and he awaited a reprimand for his own hypocrisy about breakfast.
    “Gabe.” She sounded more vulnerable than accusing, and he knew she was dropping the breakfast subject. “They’ll catch this guy, right?”
    “Most likely. These guys don’t stay on the run for very long.” He didn’t add that he hoped it would be soon. Because the longer the guy stayed out there, the more time he had to locate Maddie. Even if they had a sketch of the Espresso Bandit, they would still need her to identify him if he was caught. When he was caught , he corrected himself.
    Her hands clenched in her lap. “I hope so.”
    The sound of a cell phone ringing broke the silence, and Madison dug in her purse to find it.
    She answered, and Gabe listened to her side of the conversation. Whoever it was must have seen the news and gotten pretty upset. Madison tried to reassure them she was fine and she glanced up at him and mouthed the word Mom to him. He nodded.
    “Today?” She sighed. “I don’t know. We’ve been out all day. I think we’re both kind of tired.”
    He raised an eyebrow at her in a silent question.
    She covered the phone with her hand and hissed, “They want us to come to lunch today at one.”
    “Tell them we’ll go.”
    “Are you sure?” Her brows knitted into a frown.
    “Yes.”
    Madison removed her hand and accepted the invitation, then clicked off her phone.
    “That’s sweet of you, Gabe.”
    He gave her a quick glance, surprised when her hand closed over his forearm.
    She stared at him through lowered lashes, her voice sincere when she spoke. “I don’t know if I’ve thanked you for taking this—or me—on. It means a lot to me.” She tightened her grip. “And I’m not saying this just because I’m trying to convince you to go to bed with me. You make me feel safe, Gabe, and I’m not sure I would have with anyone else.”
    Warmth rushed through him at her words, and he hated himself for it. He didn’t want to be put on a damn pedestal. Sure, he thought he could protect her. But what if he couldn’t?
    No, he told himself. He couldn’t afford to think that way. She’d be safe with him. She would . Nothing would happen to Madison Phillips while she was under his protection. Nothing. Unfortunately, that included sex.
     
    Madison could see her mother watching out the window for them when they pulled up to the house a little while later.
    Before they had even parked, Lillian Phillips came running down the driveway to meet them. She threw her arms around Madison and dragged her into a tight embrace.
    “My poor little girl.” Her mom pushed away a bit so she could look at her through watery eyes. “I just had to hold you, to know that you’re alive and okay. And your face…look at that bruise!”
    “I’m fine, Mom,” Madison protested even as her own eyes filled with tears.
    Lillian released her and reached for Gabe, drawing him into a tight hug.
    “Gabriel, how can I ever thank you enough. You saved my daughter’s life.” She kissed each of his cheeks and heaved an unsteady sigh. “Bless you.”
    Gabe’s face turned just the tiniest bit red, and he seemed uncomfortable with her mother’s praise.
    “Eric was with me,” he replied. “I can’t take all the credit. We were just fortunate to have gotten there in time.”
    It wasn’t the best thing to say, because Lillian’s shoulders shook and fat tears again ran down her cheeks.
    “But the point is he did, Mom,” Madison reminded her and drew her mother gently away from Gabe, offering him an apologetic smile.
    “Yes, yes. I’m sorry I’m so emotional.” Lillian brushed her