Three Little Words (Fool's Gold #12)(60)

She sipped her soda but didn’t speak. Ford had pretty much moved into the house. He spent every night in her bed and hogged the shower in the morning. The good news was, he was only in it for about fifteen seconds. Apparently the navy taught a seaman how to shower quickly. No doubt it was about the whole being-on-a-boat thing.

“You’re saying I’m more fun than Angel?” she asked.

“You’re a different kind of fun.”

“Thanks.” She picked up her burger. “What about when you were on missions or whatever? Did you have girlfriends there?”

“A girl in every port?” he asked as she took a bite and chewed.

She nodded.

“No. We would go in, do what had to be done and leave.”

“Were you ever stationed in another country?”

“Lots of times. A few years ago, I was invited to be part of a task force. We pooled skills.”

“Any women?”

He raised his eyebrows. “What do you want to know?”

“I’m not sure. Nothing specific. Were you like James Bond, with a woman waiting around every corner, or more like in those war movies where the only women are waitresses?”

“Not a lot of women where I went,” he said. “No women on the team. Consuelo worked with some special forces units, but we never had an assignment together.”

“Then how did you meet?”

He grinned. “She’d been flown in for a secret assignment. My team was there for a different op. Quarters were tight and she had to bunk somewhere. I offered my room.”

Isabel put down her burger. “You slept with her?”

She tried to keep her voice calm, but it was difficult. Knowing Ford loved all women but committed to none was one thing. Thinking about him with beautiful, sexy, dangerous Consuelo was something else.

“Sleep with her?” He shook his head. “No way. Not only did she threaten to cut off my balls if I tried anything, she reminded me of my sisters. That wasn’t very appealing.” He shrugged. “We became friends. She wasn’t with me and Angel when we rescued Gideon, but she was waiting in the village. She’s the one who found Gideon the place in Bali.”

His dark eyes widened. “You’re not worried that I had a thing with her, are you?”

“Not anymore.”

“She’s not my type.” He put his hand on top of hers. “Hey, I’m faithful. I might not marry the girl, but I don’t cheat on her.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Do you believe it?”

She nodded.

They went back to their lunch. Isabel knew that she had to keep her heart safe when it came to Ford. That what had started out as something fun but meaningless had turned into something more. Not just because he’d helped her figure out what it really meant to be physically intimate with a man, but because she liked him. From the flames painted on his Jeep to the records he’d bought for his friend, to how he brought her coffee every morning, she liked him. But he was committed to staying and she was committed to leaving, so anything other than what they already had wasn’t possible.

She would be strong, she told herself. She would hold her heart separate and not let him touch her emotions. It was safer that way.

After lunch, they made a quick pass through the house, but didn’t see any furniture they had to have.

“Just as well,” Ford said. “We don’t have the room.”

“They said they’d hold it. We could have made a second trip.”

“I don’t go backward,” he said. “Move forward or die.”

“That’s a cheerful philosophy.”

He held open the passenger door for her. She started to climb into her seat, only to find a small box there.

“Did you want to put this in the back?” she asked, holding it out to him.

“No. It’s for you.” He shrugged. “It made me think of you, so I got it.”

She opened the box and saw a dragonfly pendant on a delicate gold chain. The dragonfly was made up of different-colored stones. Sapphires and amethysts, garnets and topaz. The small pendant was both beautiful and whimsical.

“I love it,” she whispered, then looked at him. “Thank you.”

“I know pretend-dating me has been hard on you.” One corner of his mouth turned up. “Not the sex. We both know I’m a god in bed. But dealing with my mom and family stuff. You’ve been great and I appreciate it. This is to say thank you.”

She took the necklace out of the box and handed it to him. After turning so her back was to him, she moved her hair out of the way.

He fastened the necklace around her neck and she released her hair.

“What do you think?” she asked.

“Beautiful,” he murmured. “Just like you.”

He lightly kissed her, before stepping back and closing the door.

She touched the small pendant, then reached for her seat belt. Ford got in next to her and started the engine. They discussed the best way back to Fool’s Gold, but her heart wasn’t in the conversation. It was, she realized, shifting loyalty. Her plan of keep it, and her, safe had a flaw she hadn’t noticed before. That flaw was Ford himself. A man it might be impossible not to love.

* * *

FORD LOOKED AT the empty plate on the table. He and Angel had already eaten nearly a dozen cookies between them. Getting more would mean a harder run later. But the price might be worth it. The planning meeting was tough to get through. Sugar and another coffee might help.