Free Yuletide Protector (Love Inspired Suspense) by Lisa Mondello Page B

in the backyard.”
    “I can open the front door easily enough from the inside. It’s only from the outside that I have a hard time.”
    “Are you okay?”
    Taken aback by the sudden concern in his voice, Daria shrugged and said, “I’m fine. I was just having trouble sleeping. The house has a lot of drafts and the wind gets pretty loud at night.”
    Kevin went back to panning the surrounding yardswith his flashlight. “Do the dogs always make this much noise?”
    “Sometimes. We don’t get a lot of stray dogs in this part of the city, but there are cats, and that’s pretty much all Spot needs to see outside to start barking.”
    Kevin turned to her with a weak smile and flicked off the flashlight. “And once one starts, they all join in.” His eyes were glassy from being hit with the cold wind. But the black jacket with the Providence PD emblem on it looked bulky and warm.
    The mist from Kevin’s breath escaped his mouth as he spoke, then evaporated instantly. The collar of his jacket was flipped up to protect his neck from the biting wind. Even with the jacket, he had to be cold, adding to the guilt Daria felt, but he didn’t let on any discomfort.
    “Tonight is a little more frigid than it’s been in the last few days so I brought you a blanket and hot chocolate.” She thrust the blanket and thermos out to him.
    “If you insist on freezing yourself out here like this, it’s the least I can do,” she added when all he did was stare at her.
    “You made me hot chocolate?”
    “Yes. It’s not homemade or anything. Just instant with a little bit of the half-and-half I bought the other day.”
    Kevin let out a slow sigh and reached for the carafe. “Oh, man, I think I love you.”
    Daria blinked, and then laughed. “No wonder Mrs. Hildebrand made you cookies. If you go around saying things like that to sweet-talk women, you’ll be fattened up before Christmas.”
    “No, really. This is great. The coffee I got earlier is long gone. This should keep me warm tonight.”
    “Well, the blanket should keep you a little more comfortable. It’s not electric or anything but it is wool. It kept me warm many nights when I didn’t have any heat. Oh, here. Take it,” she said as she shoved the blanket into his arms.
    Kevin’s smile was so bright it had her heart beating rampantly. It was only a blanket and some hot chocolate, after all. But he was grinning at her as if she’d given him the grand prize at a carnival.
    Her arms were now empty. She crossed them in front of her chest to give them something to do. “It’s just, I won’t be able to sleep at all tonight if I think you’re freezing out here. I don’t know why. It’s your decision to be here like this. Not mine.”
    He adjusted the blanket in his arms and repositioned the flashlight. A slow smile played at the corner of his lips as he gazed down at her.
    “What are you smiling about?”
    Kevin lifted his shoulder in a slight shrug. “Nothing. It was just a really nice thing for you to do, giving me a blanket. And the hot chocolate, too. Thanks.”
    His eyes never left hers and Daria didn’t know what to say to him. He was wearing her down, getting her used to having him around. And that wasn’t good at all. Although she had to admit that she’d been glad Kevin was there when she’d seen that bird on her door, she had to remind herself why Kevin was really there. It had nothing to do with her, he just wanted to catch George. When the danger left, he would, too. She couldn’t let herself get attached, no matter how hard it was to remember to keep her distance when he smiled at her like that.
    She cleared her throat, amazed that the words she was about to say were harder to say than she’d rehearsed in the house. “Then you should note for the record thatI think you’ve made your point and that staying here like this is ridiculous. You’re insane if you think you can possibly keep up for very long working all day and staying up all night