hugged Shelby. “I’m going to take a shower and then I want to speak with Kate. Don’t worry about coming down. Take a nap or a long soak in the bath. After all you’ve been through, I’m sure it’ll feel great.”
When she didn’t let go right away, he pushed her gently to arm’s length. “Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be downstairs should you need me for anything.”
She let go of her grandfather, not wanting him out of her sight for even a second. “I missed you,” she whispered.
He nodded. “I know. And I missed you, too.” He turned and left, his eyes suspiciously bright.
Daniel stood inside the room. “I’m not leaving until I check out the room.”
Maddie frowned. “Oh, yes. Of course. One cannot be too careful.”
Shelby watched as Daniel checked the huge walk-in closet and the bathroom where the water ran in the bathtub and bubbles formed on its surface. Back in the bedroom, he dropped to his haunches and checked beneath the bed.
“Looking for the boogeyman?” Shelby taunted.
He straightened, his broad shoulders making the room seem so much smaller. “It’s my job.”
A twang of regret tugged at her belly. She was just a job to him. Not that she cared. When she left the Winston Estate, she’d forget about him before she drove off the grounds.
Liar.
How could she forget looking into his face when he’d carried her from the burning home? She’d thought he was her guardian angel.
Now he was just another reminder of the threat to her and of her need to be aware and ready should someone try to kidnap her again.
“Are you finished?” she asked.
“No.” He nodded toward the door on the other side of her room. “You need to leave that door unlocked.”
Shelby frowned. “I would think you’d want me to lock all doors. Why not this one?” She walked toward it. “Is it another closet? Because if it is, I don’t have enough shoes in my entire collection to fill it.”
She jerked open the door to another bedroom. The walls were painted a rich cream with white crown molding. A king-size bed stood on one side of the room with a simple ebony headboard and matching nightstand. In a corner near a floor-to-ceiling window, a black lounge chair sat beneath a wrought iron floor lamp. The artwork on the walls showed black-and-white images of river and lake scenes.
Shelby frowned and turned back toward Maddie. “I don’t need two rooms, you know. There’s only one of me.”
Daniel’s lips twitched unmistakably this time. “That’s not another room for you.”
“Then who is it for?” Even as she said the words, a warm shiver rippled across Shelby’s body and her pulse beat a rapid staccato against her eardrums.
Maddie answered, “Mrs. Winston asked Daniel to move his things from the guest house into the main house to be closer to you. He’ll be staying in the room adjoining yours.”
Shelby’s heart flipped and slammed into her ribs. How could she sleep knowing Daniel would be in the room next to her? The man exuded testosterone the way flowers gave off fragrance.
She opened her mouth to protest, but Maddie had turned her back and was headed out the door. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to check on supper.” Maddie left the room, hurrying down the hallway.
Shelby was left alone with her bodyguard.
Daniel fought the grin threatening to overtake his entire face. He found that he liked tormenting the young woman. The color rising in her cheeks and her flashing blue eyes made him want to grab her and kiss her before she walked away.
Shelby’s mouth sagged open and then snapped shut. “I’m sorry, but this arrangement is not acceptable.”
“I normally stay in the guest house at night. Mrs. Winston thinks it would be better for me to stay closer, especially since the bombing this afternoon.” Daniel crossed his arms over his chest. “Trust me, I’m no happier about the arrangement than you are. I much prefer solving crimes than babysitting spoiled heiresses.”
The pink in her cheeks deepened and she glared at him. “I’m not an heiress, and I’m not spoiled.”
Daniel raised his eyebrows challengingly without saying a word.
“I’m not.” Shelby stamped her foot and stared down at it, her eyes widening. “I’m not,” she repeated. This time, she didn’t stamp her foot. “I work hard, I support myself financially and I’m trying to further my education so that I can improve my skillset and my life.”
With her shoulders thrown back and her chest pushed out, she was a fiery goddess and far too attractive. Straightening his spine, he dismissed her with a soft snort. “Nice speech.” He turned away. “There are no monsters under your bed at this time. Please, enjoy your bath.” He walked to the connecting door and turned in the threshold. “If you need me, all you have to do is call out my name.” His lips quirked up at the corners as he pulled the door closed behind him.
“Jerk,” she said to the closed door.
“I heard that,” came his muffled response.
“I’d say it to your face,” she said, louder.
“I know.”
Alone and fuming over the bodyguard’s low opinion of her, Shelby considered throwing something at the door. One glance around frustrated her even more. She’d feel guilty if she broke any of the fine porcelain statues or if she ruined the pretty white lacy pillows.
The sound of running water reminded her of the bath. Shelby turned away from the connecting door and hurried to shut off the water before it overflowed the enormous gleaming white bathtub. For the moment, she ignored the bath, stripped out of her clothing and stepped into the granite-lined shower that was big enough for two people.
As soon as that thought crossed her mind, she envisioned a naked Daniel standing beside her under the second showerhead, water running over broad muscles and down tight abs. Her body heated and she switched the handle back toward cold.
What was it about him that made her feel off-balance and out of whack? Then again, everything about her current situation did that. But Daniel’s insistence on being close had her more on edge than anything else. She could put up with living in the mansion for the short-term, and even wanted to get to know her uncles. But the bodyguard made her skin twitch and places low in her belly ache for something she had never ached for in the past.
Sure, she’d had her share of experimenting with sex with men her own age, but none of them seemed as raw and dangerous as Daniel.
After she’d cleaned her body with scented soap, she scrubbed her hair with herbal-scented shampoo, applied conditioner, rinsed and climbed out of the shower.
The tub full of water and bubbles called to her, the
