“I’m sorry.” He was willing to say anything to make her stop crying.
Her hands came up across her chest as though she couldn’t stand to be so close to him. He would call Max. She only wanted Max. His heart hurt. And then her arms wound around his waist, and she sobbed into his chest. A great sigh of relief left Rye’s lungs. He let his head sink down against her hair. His hands soothed over her back. “I’m sorry.” He said it over and over. He wasn’t even sure who he was saying it to. He was sorry something bad had happened to her. He was sorry he’d done something to piss her off. He was so, so sorry she wasn’t his. He wanted nothing more than to call Max and take her home where they could take care of her. She would be their princess, their partner, their perfect lover. God, he was so sorry she didn’t want that.
After a long while her head came up, and she pulled away slightly. “I apologize for yelling at you, Sheriff.”
A veil had come down over her eyes. Rye’s chest constricted. She was shutting down the intimacy between them. It was good one of them had a lick of sense, but he wished she was still in his arms. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”
She shook her head. “It’s best I just leave.”
“Baby…Rachel, I know something’s wrong. I’m not stupid. I also know none of it’s your fault.”
“How can you possibly know that?”
He sighed and brushed back a piece of hair that had fallen out of her previously perfect ponytail. “I just know. And even if it was your fault, I would take care of it.” He cleared his throat. “You’re my brother’s girl. I would take care of you. If someone’s after you, I’ll move heaven and earth to stop him. If you got caught up in something bad, I’ll take care of that, too.”
Her face contorted and, for a moment, he worried she would start crying all over again. Then she shook it off, and that wall of mulish strength she had came down between them. “No, I’m fine. But stay out of my business.”
Shit, she had found out about the trace he’d run on her. Damn Callie’s big mouth. And Rachel’s reaction did nothing but make him even more suspicious. “I don’t know if I can do that, Rachel.”
Her chin came up stubbornly. “All right. Then I’m leaving, and there’s nothing you can do. Unless you intend to put me in jail, I suggest you let me move on.”
He wanted to punch something. His gut rolled with anger, need. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling anymore. “God damn it, Rachel. You really want to put me in a corner, don’t you? I know something’s wrong, but if I pursue it, you’ll leave, and then my brother will hate the very sight of me.”
Her shoulders slumped. “It would be best if I left, Rye. I’ll let Max know you didn’t have anything to do with it.”
He forced her chin up to look into those green eyes. He couldn’t help but touch her. “Don’t go. I’ll stop looking. I’ll leave it alone. I promise.” He wouldn’t promise not to protect her. He wouldn’t promise not to come between her and anything that came her way.
Her lips trembled. They were close. All he had to do was lean down, and he could press his mouth to hers.
There was a loud bang as the door to the station house opened.
“Hey, Bro, you here?” Max’s voice rang through the building.
Rye and Rachel jumped apart like there was a blazing fire between them. Rachel’s back was against the wall when Max opened the door to the office. “Hey, what’s Rachel’s Jeep doing parked in front of a stop light?” Max’s face lit up when he saw Rachel. “Hey, baby.”
Rachel shouldered her way past both of them. “Your brother’s an asshole. I have to go back to work.”
Max watched her stalk out. There was a dippy grin on his face when he looked back at Rye. “Damn, you pissed her off but good. Glad it wasn’t me for a change. She should watch that language, though. I just had the most insane urge to spank her. You want to go get lunch?”
It took everything he had not to scream. “Yeah, sure. Anywhere but Stella’s. I don’t think I would like what Rachel would do to my food.” Rye forced himself to follow his brother out the door.
Chapter Seven
Rachel woke up smiling. There were lines of early morning sunlight cascading through the curtains. Rachel turned over and reached out for Max.
The last week had been damn near perfect. Since her near miss with Rye in his office, she’d managed to avoid him for the most part. She’d spent her days working and her nights with Max. Rye had worked the night shift or stayed with friends. She knew Max missed him, but it was for the best. It was still a worry in the back of her mind that she was coming between them, but she wasn’t sure how to fix it. Max seemed so happy. Rachel had decided, for once in her life, to live in the moment. Everything went bad eventually. She should enjoy Max while she could.
Rachel rubbed her eyes and sat up as she realized she was all alone in the huge bed. She could hear the water running in the bathroom and stretched languorously, deciding Max must be in the shower. Every muscle hummed with satisfaction as she really looked around the bedroom. They hadn’t spent much time in the big bedroom. There were five bedrooms in the house. Both Max and Rye had their own bedrooms, and, until last night, she and Max had stayed in his room. Max had made the decision to move them into the big bedroom the night before. He’d been very serious when he told her to get her stuff, as though moving into this room meant something to him.
The bed was enormous. It had to have been custom-made. It was bigger and longer than a king and would easily fit three people. She sat up and got out of bed to look around. The large dresser across from the bed was very telling. There was a small dish where Max placed his keys and his watch. There was a second, matching dish that was empty on the other side of the dresser, and in the middle, an empty jewelry box. Rye and Max had shared this room with a woman at least once. She remembered someone mentioning a woman named Nina. Rachel wondered how long she’d stayed with the brothers as their shared woman. She tried to imagine what would cause a woman to leave.
The dresser seemed sad and lonely with just Max’s watch and keys sitting there. She wondered where Rye had spent the previous evening. She’d heard him come in after midnight, but he’d made himself scarce. He’d given them space for the last several days, just as he’d said he would.
Rachel shook off unsettling thoughts of her boyfriend’s twin brother. Grinning, she realized that Max really was her boyfriend. She couldn’t deny it. A woman didn’t get intimate and emotional over a short-term affair or a booty call. The mirror in front of her revealed something shocking. There was a lovely woman in the glass, and she was practically glowing. She wasn’t scared or worried. She just looked well loved.
She looked like a woman who knew what she wanted. Rachel winked at the woman she barely recognized as herself and decided that it was time to go get what she wanted. Without bothering with her clothes, she strode into the bathroom. It was a gorgeous monstrosity. There were three sinks before the long mirror and an oversized jetted tub, but what caught her attention was the man in the large glass shower. The heat from the water had steamed up the entire bathroom, but she could see his shadowy form through the opaque glass. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t see him clearly. She’d memorized every inch of that hot body of his, from his broad shoulders to his strong legs. Now it was time to greet the day properly, Rachel thought, her body heating up.
She quietly opened the shower door and slid in behind Max. He was facing away from her, his arms carefully soaping his muscular body. Rachel took in the sight of his toned backside for a moment before cuddling up behind him. She pressed her breasts against his back and wound her arms around his waist.