Desperate Girls (Wolfe Security #1)(55)

Brynn thought that was a shame. She’d always wished for a big, traditional family, and so many people who had them let the relationships go. Brynn was close to her mom and sister, but she wouldn’t recognize her father in a lineup. He’d walked out when she was three, and she hadn’t seen him since.

“So your mom was a teacher,” she said. “Sounds like you guys are all about public service.”

He didn’t comment.

“You ever miss it? Being part of something big like that?”

“What, you mean the Corps?”

“And the Secret Service.”

He got quiet, and the only sound was the rhythm of their breathing and the distant pop of gunfire. Brynn waited. Was he finally going to tell her why he’d left that job?

“There are a lot of downsides,” he said. “The politics, the bureaucracy, the bullshit. I like working for Liam. Wolfe Sec is lean and agile. Any operation can turn on a dime in response to a threat. It allows us to be creative.”

Brynn had never thought about personal security as creative. Her work was creative, too, although most people didn’t realize it.

“Is working with Liam your dream job?”

“There are some negatives. I’m on the road a lot. My hours are crazy. I’m hardly ever home.”

“Now, there’s an interesting point. Where do you live, anyway?”

“I’ve got an apartment near headquarters. It’s basically a crash pad. There’s nothing to it.”

“Hmm.”

He cut a glance at her. “What’s that mean?”

“You don’t see your family. You’re rarely home. Do you ever get lonely?”

“That’s not something I think about.”

Which was different from a no. Maybe he dealt with it the same way she did—by doubling down on work.

He glanced at her. “You want your music? Might pass the time easier.”

“What, you don’t like to converse while you run?”

“Not usually.”

“Figures.”

“What?”

“You don’t like to talk about yourself.”

“Yeah, well. Not everyone’s as extroverted as you.”

“Actually, I’m a natural introvert. I used to be painfully shy.”

He laughed.

“You don’t believe me?”

“If you say so.”

“Really,” she said. “I was always the quietest kid in the class. Until I hit fourth grade.”

“What happened in fourth grade?”

“Kids started teasing me about my red hair. I don’t know what prompted it, but it kind of caught on.” She blew out a breath. “There was this one kid, Shannon Snyder. He was merciless. He came up behind me in the lunch line once, pulled my hair, and called me fire crotch. I didn’t even know what he meant. But the way he said it, I could tell it was something bad, and it made me really mad.”

“What’d you do?”

“I turned around and stomped his foot as hard as I could.”

“Excellent.” Erik smiled.

“Yeah, not so excellent when I got sent to the principal’s office.”

“Let me guess. Detention?”

“I got off with a stern warning.” She glanced at him. “I discovered the benefit of having a clean record. But that’s how my shy phase came to an end.”

Erik smiled again, and Brynn tried not to get distracted and miss a step. He was so handsome when he smiled, and he didn’t do it much. But he seemed relaxed out here with the grass and trees and distant gunfire.

Brynn imagined what it would be like if they could be this way all the time.

They rounded a curve, and finally the five-mile marker came into view. Brynn sprinted ahead to reach it first, then halted and bent over, gasping for air.

“Five miles,” she wheezed. “I haven’t done that in ages.”

Erik’s big running shoes appeared in her field of vision. She stood up to face him, dismayed by his easygoing expression while she gasped for oxygen. His face was slick, but he wasn’t even winded.

“You good?” he asked.

“Good? No. But you don’t need to get the paddles, if that’s what you’re worried about.” She staggered over to a water fountain and slurped some down.

When she stood up, he was watching her calmly, hands on hips. He eased closer, towering over her, and her stomach fluttered as he reached up and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, the same hair that had brought her so much grief in fourth grade but was now a socially acceptable shade of auburn.

“I’m glad you’re not shy anymore,” he said. “And I’m sorry people tormented you in school.”

“I’m over it.”

“If I had to guess, this Shannon guy probably took some crap for having a girl’s name, and he was looking for someone to pick on.”

“Hmm. You might be right about that.”

“I’m also guessing he had a secret thing for you.”

Her heart sped up as he gazed down at her. His eyes were a warm brown, and she wondered what he was thinking. She wanted him to kiss her. She wanted to kiss him, but she’d already done that. The next move was his.