Under Pressure (Body Armor #1)(139)

“Houses around here stayed empty until the city decided to revamp things.”

“Are you new to the neighborhood?”

“Grew up here, actually.” He found another empty box, and another after that, breaking each one down so the cardboard made a nice flat stack. “The house used to be our dad’s. When the area deteriorated, he saw no reason to keep maintaining the property. About eight years ago he decided he’d enjoy Florida, so I bought it from him.”

“Wow. You must’ve been pretty young.”

“Twenty-four. Old enough to know what I wanted.” He’d always loved the house and the memories that came with it. Before his mom died, it was a home. After that...both his dad and the house fell apart. “It needed some work, so I got a good deal, and Dad got the cash he needed to relocate.” These days, his father rarely visited any memories that reminded him of his deceased wife—including his sons and grandson.

“Win-win,” Honor said.

“Right.” Leaning back on the counter, he watched her close one drawer, then begin filling another with place mats, oven mitts and such. “So...no man in your life to help you get moved in?” Her friend Lexie had already announced neither of them was married, but a woman Honor’s age, looking the way she looked, surely had a guy or two hanging around.

As if the question threw her, she paused, searched for what to say and in the end just shook her head.

Unbelievable. Was that a recent occurrence? A divorce, or a breakup of another kind? Or maybe she was more like the other blonde, Lexie, than he’d first thought. “What about a brother? Your dad?”

She concentrated on the drawer. “No.”

That didn’t feel right. “No one but your friend Lexie?”

Her face flushed, but this time it was with uncertainty. “Why do you ask?”

She thought he was being nosy. Or maybe she thought he was hitting on her.

The truth was probably a mix of both. “You being here alone...it’s not a great idea.”

Like a challenge, she said, “I already had new locks put on the doors.”

His mouth quirked, but he didn’t want her to think he was laughing at her, so he tipped up his chin, scratched the beard stubble underneath and decided on a few facts. “Last week, two blocks from here, some punks broke into an older man’s house. Beat him up, robbed him. Less than a month before that a woman got jumped in her own front yard, middle of the day. Luckily Nathan was around and he stopped them before she was seriously hurt.”

“Nathan, your neighbor?”

That was the part she found interesting? “Yeah, he’s the sheriff.” Continuing, he told her, “In the past two months people around here have had their cars jacked, been robbed, assaulted—”

“Your neighbor—our neighbor—is the sheriff?”

Jason stared at her. “You’re not listening to the important part.”

She waved a hand. “I get it. There are still some criminal activities. But the area is on the upswing, right? They’re fixing up the park, new businesses are moving in and they’re even going to reopen the old neighborhood pool—”

“Which is right across from a cemetery.”

That slowed her down, but only for a heartbeat. “That’s just because the cemetery expanded, right? And now it’d be too expensive to move the pool. I’m sure it won’t bother most people. Definitely won’t bother me.”

She’d done her research. Or maybe Realtors had their pitches down. “The key point here is that it’s a work in progress. They’re still fixing up the park, too many businesses are pending and the pool probably won’t be ready until mid-July, if then.” He took a step closer. “Right now, this week, the area is not safe for a woman alone.”

Agitated, she glared at him. “So I should what? Not stay in my own house? My first house? Should I put it right back on the market? Lose the opportunity of a lifetime?” She took a step closer, too. “Rhetorical questions, because I can assure you, I’m here to stay.”

Jason stared at her earnest face, taking in each appealing feature. On top of soulful eyes, a lush mouth and a fine body, she had guts. And damn it, he liked that, too. “Get a dog. And a shotgun.” He reached into his back pocket, pulled out his wallet, then found a business card. “And if anything spooks you, anything at all, call.”

“I’m not helpless. I can take care of myself.”

She said that so defiantly that he almost smiled. “Sure. But if you just need a hand with something, any heavy lifting, we’re right next door.”

“Muscle for hire?”

The smile cracked, and from that came a laugh. “You do seem to pick and choose what you hear and don’t hear.”

She looked at his mouth, and sighed. “I heard all of it. I’ll consider the dog once I have the yard ready. I don’t know enough about guns to get one.”

“I imagine Nathan could teach you.”

“Three guys right next door, and a sheriff next door to them. How much safer could it get?”

She was cute when she teased. Maybe he should tell her about Sullivan across the street. Talk about a badass...but no. He wasn’t going to do Sullivan’s work for him.

“The other side of your property butts up to woods. No lights. Wild animals.”