Killian (Hope City #8) - Kris Michaels Page 0,43

some information on what is going on, then taking the chance may be worth it.”

Nope, that wasn’t going to happen. He drew a deep breath. How in the hell to phrase this so she didn’t think he was limiting her? He decided to lay it out as sensibly as he could. “Let me come with you.” He stopped her immediate objection by plowing over it. “Look, I can arrive before you, but be there to make sure nothing gets… what’s that word you use?”

“Hinkey.”

“Right. Hinkey. I wouldn’t do a damn thing unless you needed my help. Just keep the conversation at the bar.” He’d be able to watch her and make sure she was safe, and she’d be able to get the information she needed.

“Yeah, leaving the bar with a stranger would never happen. I know better than that. If I felt it was unsafe, I’d call and ask one of my brothers to come get me.” She crossed her arms and leaned forward, burying her toes under Duke.

“Wrong.” The word was out before he could stop it.

Her head snapped his direction again. “Excuse me?”

“You could call me now.”

A smile spread across her face. “True. Okay. We take different cars. I’ll watch you go in and ten minutes later, I’ll come in. But no interruptions because of some macho savior syndrome, got it?”

He laughed. “I have no syndrome.” Which was a lie. When it came to this woman, he damn well had a predilection toward keeping her safe, especially after watching her get manhandled by Councilman Davis.

“Uh-huh, and I’m the Queen of Sheba.” She snorted and grabbed a cracker and cheese and halved it, giving a portion to Duke, who took it daintily from her fingers instead of nearly consuming her hand as he normally did. She ate the remainder and sighed, “This is nice.”

A warm summer breeze floated off the water and the lights on the far side of the Harbor seemed a world away. He laid back on his elbow and she leaned over, putting her head on his stomach. With his free hand, he ran his fingers through her silky hair. “I was serious, by the way, when I called you my woman. I’d like us to be exclusive,” he spoke as he stroked through her hair.

She stiffened a bit before she whispered, “I don’t sleep around, Killian.”

“I don’t doubt that. I didn’t say it because I thought you did. I said it because I’d like a committed relationship with you.”

She rolled so she was facing him. “You would?”

There was no doubt he was firmly on that square, and against all his preconceived prejudices against her ‘type,’ he’d somehow tangled himself up in the passionate woman he was laying with in the middle of the night on a build site. Would he? God, yes. “Definitely.”

“All right, we are exclusive.” She leaned up and kissed him. “But we don’t tell my mother until I’m ready.” She dropped her head to his shoulder. “She’s going to be unbearable.”

He laughed and pulled her down for another kiss. “I’m sure I’ll survive.”

She shook her head. “Yeah, but will I?”

Chapter 11

Killian pushed the Tipsy Tavern’s door open and smiled. Not a damn thing had changed. The dark wood bar still had a polished copper top and a rail that ran along the outside. The bar stretched the entire length of the establishment. The booths ran along the other side and the tables were clustered around dart boards, pool tables, and televisions that ran through the center. For a Friday night at ten, most would say the bar was deserted, but the truth was the main crush of clientele arrived when the shifts changed at the docks. Four in the afternoon day shift ended, and by five there was standing room only. That crowd thinned out as the workers made their way home, but by one o’clock, the place would be rocking when the swing shift ended at midnight.

Taggart Jacobson was behind the bar, one of the three brothers who owned the Tavern. The man did a double take in his direction. “Well, I’ll be damned. What drags you out here on a Friday night?” He extended a hand and Killian shook it.

“Need a nightcap.” He sat down and glanced at the beers on tap. “How about a tall glass of the Salty Dog Ale?”

“Coming right up.” Taggart pulled him a glass and deposited it on a coaster in front of him. “Been a couple years since you were building around here. Are