Wrapped Up in You (Heartbreaker Bay, #8)(84)

He gave another nod, this one in approval, and it had her taking a second look at him, at the calm steady gaze that withheld any personal thoughts, at the way he sat at rest, but with a sense of tightly harnessed power. And then there was his build, which suggested he could handle whatever situation arose. “You too,” she said quietly. “You were military too.”

He studied her right back for a long beat, assessing. “Still am.”

When he didn’t say anything else, she arched a brow, waiting for more, but it didn’t come. “Let me guess,” she said. “It’s a secret. If you told me, you’d have to kill me.”

The very corners of his eyes crinkled. Yeah, she was most definitely amusing him. “I’m actually a DEA agent, but also Coast Guard.”

“How do you do both?” she asked.

“I was active duty for twelve years. Been in the Reserve for two. My DEA job schedule allows for the times I’m in training or activated.”

She thought her parents had lived dangerous lives. This guy had them beat. And considering what had happened to her mom and dad, she had less than zero interest in him, no matter how curious she was. Where was a hot easy-going surfer when you needed one? “How often do you train or get activated?”

“My unit trains three days a month. We get activated at will.” He shrugged, like it was no big deal that he put his life on hold at what she assumed was short notice to go off to save the world.

“The DEA doesn’t mind you leaving at the drop of a hat?”

“They knew that when they signed me on.” He shrugged again. “I had the skill sets they needed.”

“What skill sets are those?”

He gave her another of those looks, and she smiled. “Right. Now we’re at the ‘you’d tell me, but then you’d have to kill me’ part.”

With a maybe amused, maybe bemused shake of his head, he lifted his drink in her direction. “Happy birthday.”

She blew out a sigh. “Yeah. Thanks.”

He gave a very small snort. “You’re really not a fan of birthdays.”

“No. Nor parties.”

“I’m getting that.” He was looking at her list and she put a hand on the page to prevent him from flipping to the next page, which was even more revealing. Still, she braced herself for an inevitable comment, probably about the getting laid thing.

But he surprised her. “It’s way too cold in Alaska,” he said. “If that were my list, I’d be aiming for a South Pacific island.”

“Let me guess—preferably deserted?”

He met her gaze. “Maybe not completely deserted.”

Her stomach did a weird flutter, and that scared her. She didn’t want to feel stomach flutters, not for this guy. “If you’re flirting with me,” she said slowly, “you should know I’m not interested.”

“Good thing then that I’m not flirting with you,” he said, completely deadpan.

She didn’t know how to respond to that. Reading social cues was not her strong suit. Feeling awkward, which was nothing new for her, she slid off her barstool and tucked her journal inside her jacket. How was it that they were surrounded by people, her people, and music and talking and laughter and yet . . . for those past few moments it had felt like they were all alone?

“You out?” he asked.

“I think it’s best if I call it a night.”

He rubbed his jaw again, and the sound his stubble made did something to her insides that she refused to name. “I could at least buy you a drink for your birthday.”

“Thanks,” she said. “But there’s a big storm blowing in. So I need keep my wits about me.”

“Doesn’t have to be alcohol.” He glanced around them at the full, rowdy bar. “Are you a first responder like all your friends?”

“Yes. I’m an EMT.”

“Well, I’m the new guy,” he said. “Zero friends. You going to desert me like Jenna deserted you?”

She actually hesitated at that, until she caught that flash of humor in his eyes. “You’re messing with me.”

“I am.”

She wasn’t sure how to respond. It’d been a long time since she’d felt . . . well, anything. Just beyond him, she could see a group of her friends playing pool. CJ, a local cop, was winning. After Jenna, CJ was one of her favorite people. He glanced over at her, caught her eye, and gave her a chin nudge.

Guy speak for “Are you alright?”

She nodded and he went back to pool. Ry was still flirting with two women, and she had to wonder. What was the worst thing that could happen if she let her hair down and enjoyed herself for a few minutes? After all, it was her birthday. “Maybe just one drink,” she said.

Hot Guy nodded to the bartender, who promptly ambled over. “A Shirley Temple for Grandma here on her birthday.”

Piper laughed. She shocked herself with it, making her realize how long it’d been.

Hot Guy took in her smile, and almost gave her a small one of his own. “Or . . . whatever you want.”

She bit her lip. What did she want? That was a very big question she’d tried very hard not to ask herself over the past decade plus, because what she wanted had never applied. In her life, there were need-to-do’s and have-to-do’s . . . and nowhere in there had there ever been time for what-Piper-wanted.