dark green down vest.
Feeling a little more secure, he glanced around, checking for a possible sniper or anyone who might have managed to figure out where Jessie was. He made his own brief check of the car, looking for anyplace a tracker could be easily hidden, but didn’t find anything.
He stuck out a hand. “I need the keys.”
One of her rusty-gold eyebrows went up. “It’s my car. I should be the one to drive.”
“No way I’m letting you drive,” he said.
Jessie huffed out a breath. “Fine. If it’s that much of a threat to your masculinity, you can drive.” She tossed him the keys and flounced around to the passenger side, jerked open the door, and climbed in. She looked so cute he couldn’t stop a grin.
Still smiling, he slid in behind the wheel, having to move the seat all the way back to fit. “Where are we going?”
“If you’d let me drive, you wouldn’t have to ask. We’ve got an appointment with General Holloway. He wants to ask you some questions.”
He slanted her a look. “Long as you promise he’s not going to throw me in the brig.”
“If he does, he’ll probably arrest me, too.”
He smiled. “At least this time I’d have company.”
She stopped just short of a return smile and pointedly wrinkled her nose. “We’ve got some time. Our suitcases are in the trunk. I washed everything so at least it’s all clean. I figured since you’ve been busy playing bodyguard I owed you that much.”
“Great,” he said. “Thanks.”
“Don’t get used to it.”
He laughed. “Wouldn’t think of it.” He pulled onto the road. “Why don’t you find us a room so I can shower and change. No way I’m talking to a general smelling like I spent the night in a gutter.”
She laughed.
He changed lanes, then turned the corner. “The weather is getting colder. We need some warmer clothes. You know a place we can buy some?”
“I remember passing an REI on Woodman Road.” A smug smile curved her lips. “If I were driving—”
“Okay, I get it. Just tell me where to go.”
It took less than thirty minutes to pick up some Under Armour, a couple of sweaters, two superlightweight puffy jackets, and whatever else struck their fancy. Since they’d never made it to Jessie’s apartment, Bran insisted she buy thick socks and a pair of winter boots.
From there, they pulled into an IHOP for a quick breakfast. While they ate, Bran phoned Ty to let him know he was out of jail.
“Glad to hear it,” Ty said. “I called Colt after I got back from the airport and told him you’d been arrested.”
“I’ll call him, let him know I’m not still cooling it in a cell. Thanks for taking care of Jessie.”
“She’s a keeper, dude.”
“I know,” Bran said softly, wishing he was the kind of guy who could make her happy, knowing he wasn’t. He shoved the dark thought away, phoned Colt and asked him to bring his weapons.
“Didn’t figure I’d end up back here—at least not last night. Sorry to put you to the extra trouble, but I don’t like being here without my gear.”
“No problem,” Colt said.
“We’ve got an appointment on the base. How about later this afternoon?”
“I’ll be there.”
Bran gave him the location of the Homewood Suites that Jessie had booked, nothing fancy and no pool, but with a living room and bedroom, it was spacious, the way he liked. Once he’d showered off the grime of the jail cell, he felt a helluva lot better.
Towel-drying his hair as he walked out of the bathroom, his gaze shot to the king-size bed. He thought of Jessie and his groin tightened, his mind sliding right back into the gutter.
“What time’s our appointment with Holloway?” he asked, walking into the living room wearing nothing but a towel around his waist.
Jessie rose from where she sat in front of her laptop, her gaze moving over his bare chest and suddenly sparking with heat. He was already aroused. When she moistened those full pink lips, he went rock hard.
“I wasn’t sure how long it would take to get you released from jail. I told him I thought we could be there by 1:00 p.m.”
He didn’t miss the pulse fluttering at the base of her throat or the flush in her cheeks. “That doesn’t give us much time.”
Her eyes locked with his. “No...it doesn’t. Especially since I’m...I’m already dressed. We’d...um...have to be creative.”
“Yeah.” He moved toward her. She’d put on makeup, pulled her hair into a thick twist behind