Her gaze ran down his thick shoulders and a nice hum of appreciation of how he filled out his shirt spread heat throughout her body. Peeking out of one of his sleeves looked like a graphic inked into his skin. Unable to stop herself, she reached over and lifted his short sleeve to see a tattoo wrapped around his biceps. “From your military days?”

He glanced at his arm. “This one is.”

“You have more than one?” She never wanted a tattoo of her own but was always intrigued about the draw for those who had them.

“A couple.”

The desire to lift his shirt to see them herself was strong. “Not going to tell me where and what?”

He shoveled more food in, swallowed. “If you want to see me naked, Utah, all you have to do is ask.”

She gave his shoulder a playful slap.

“I’m serious,” he told her.

“I’m sure you are.” Behind his laughing eyes was a thin layer of heat that if blown on, would probably blossom into a ball of fire. “Can I join you on your workout? Meg and I used to do an organized workout in Seattle that was called Boot Camp. There are programs here, but they’re so expensive.”

“Are you up to working out again?” His gaze softened.

Her bruises were gone, all the soreness of the attack nothing more than a nightmare. “I’m ready.”

“You can join me on one condition.”

“Oh, I’m given conditions now am I? OK, Mr. Negotiator . . . what’s my condition?”

“You bring Meg and let me teach you both some self-defensive moves.”

His request took her back a notch and removed some of her smile.

“I want you safe and I can’t be at your side every second of every day.” It was more than that. He was worried about when and if the police were going to pin the crimes of another man on him. Yeah, Judy had met Russell and Dennis, both “colleagues” and both watching her anytime Rick wasn’t. But Rick was invested.

“I think that’s a great idea.”

“I work out early.”

She narrowed her gaze. “Trying to talk me out of it?”

“I’m like a drill sergeant.”

“Hello, Mr. Marine . . . I’d expect nothing less. If I get to call you my boyfriend, I can’t go getting all soft.”

His dimples put fire in her belly.

Suddenly the restaurant was entirely too busy and home felt too far away.

Chapter Seventeen

The conversation back to Beverly Hills was as platonic as it came, though Rick had a hard time concentrating on anything other than the image of Judy in skintight workout shorts and a skimpy shirt. The date had been everything he wanted. Easy conversation, no secrets, heat, and promise. It killed him not knowing when the world was going to crash down. Killed him not to know how much time they’d have before the detectives either took him away or placed doubt into Judy’s mind.

There didn’t seem to be any doubt now. Not in the tiny glances she offered when she didn’t think he watched her. Not in the way she fanned her skin in a car that was cooled to sixty-seven degrees. Not in the disappointed sigh when she mentioned Meg being home.

A gentleman would thank her with a kiss for the perfect date and promise to call.

Only Rick never thought he was soft enough to be labeled a gentleman. He carried her design plans into the house and set the alarm behind them.

“How was the pasta?”

“I’m stuffed,” Judy told her friend while Meg turned down the volume on the TV.

“What? No leftovers? You must have been hungry.”

Judy nodded his way. “Leftovers aren’t possible with this one.”

Meg laughed. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

The girls chatted briefly about her first day back and Rick took the opportunity to do a sweep of the house.

With everything clear, he glanced at the clock on Michael’s side of the house. In two hours, Dennis would begin his shift of watching the house. Even if Rick stayed on the inside, the new rules were clear. If Rick left the house at nine, the night patrol would come inside the gates and keep watch from the inside. If Rick stayed . . . which he sincerely hoped he would, even if it was across the hall, then the night team would watch from afar. At least for now.

He clicked off the light and moved into the main living area of the huge home. With Rick’s presence, Meg abruptly ended her conversation with Judy and jumped from the couch. “Wow . . . would you look at the time.”

Judy growled at her friend and Rick hid a smile. It was early . . . really early.

“I’m in the middle of a good book?”

“Meg!”

“Whatever! You two kids have fun.” She grabbed not one, but two beers from the refrigerator, and moved down the hall to her bedroom. Just when it appeared Judy was about to regain her composure, Meg yelled, “The walls in this house are really thick.”

“Margaret Catherine!”

Meg laughed until Rick heard a door shut.

“Margaret Catherine? Really?”

Judy hid her face behind her hand, her pink cheeks a testimony to her embarrassment. “Sorry about that.”

“The only roommates I ever had were in the Marines. I think Meg would make a good Marine.”

“Fit right in, would she?”

“Probably.” Rick removed the space between them and ran the backs of his fingers across her cheek. “Did you ask her to leave?”

She studied the buttons on his shirt. “I-I . . . yes.”

He didn’t even try to hide his grin. “It’s the ink, isn’t it?”

“You’ve figured me out,” she said with a giggle.

He cupped the back of her head, careful with the tender parts left over from the abuse she’d gone through. When she met his eyes, his smiled slipped into something more serious. “Not worried about plan A any longer?”

The gold flecks in her brown eyes seemed to glow in the dim light of the room. “Most guys would freak if a woman they hadn’t even started dating told them what I told you. But you’re still here.”

“Well, we’re now officially dating, and plan A doesn’t scare me at all.” He wasn’t even sure why.

“Would you tell me if it did?”

“I see no reason we can’t be completely honest with each other, do you?”

She placed her hand on his chest and lifted her lips closer to his. “Honesty is a good thing.”

He molded his body to hers and offered a grin. “What do you want to do with the rest of the evening, Judy?”