Bodie by Nyssa Kathryn

Chapter 16

Maya was driving Bodie crazy.

It had been three days of her barely uttering a word to him. Of quick nods in the hall. Short conversations that he initiated…

The woman was still living with him, but in his guest room. With the potential danger, there was no way she could go back to her own place. Not to mention the house was ridiculously cold.

Living with her, and not having her, was hell.

“What did you do, son?”

Bodie dragged his gaze from Maya to Roe, who sat on a stool across the bar. Roe’s eyes were narrowed at Bodie in accusation.

“Would you be believe me if I said nothing?”

Roe scoffed. “Not for a second. You two are usually disgustingly obsessed with each other and terrible at hiding it. For the last few nights, she’s barely spared you a glance.”

The old man was right, and it was eating Bodie up. He missed having her eyes on him. “You’re very observant.”

Roe took a sip of his beer. “I was the chief of police for twenty years. You don’t get there by letting things escape your notice.”

Bodie knew all about the other man’s past. Wyatt had done a thorough background check on everyone at Inwood Bar, Roe included. Even if Bodie didn’t have that information, he probably would have picked out Roe’s employment history on his own. It was obvious he saw more than most. Probably more than most wanted him to.

“Let’s say I did screw up.” Not that he had. He’d just run out of time. Their relationship had progressed quickly, and he hadn’t wanted there to be secrets between them. “How would you fix it?”

Roe leaned back in his seat, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Without knowing what you did, it’s hard to say. But I will tell you that women are complex creatures. Sometimes they require gentleness. Other times, a more direct approach. The trick is knowing which one she needs.”

Immediately, Bodie’s eyes swung across the room, back to Maya. The bar wasn’t busy tonight, so it wasn’t hard to find her. She was wiping down tables. Strands of her golden-brown hair had broken free and were falling over her cheeks.

The only time he ever felt short of breath was when his eyes landed on her. His feet itched to go to her even now.

“You’d think she’d be more inclined to the gentle approach,” Roe continued. “But my gut tells me it’s the opposite.”

Direct. That’s basically what he’d already done. What got him into this mess. “And if I get it wrong?”

“You’re screwed.”

If it wasn’t so true, Bodie would have laughed. “How did you get so wise?”

A knowing smile came over Roe’s face. “See these lines around my eyes? That’s wisdom. You get it from years of making mistakes, then picking yourself back up and learning from them.”

“I’ve got a few of those lines myself. But I don’t know that I have a lick of wisdom in me.”

“Your skin is crystal clear, boy. You got a lot of mistakes yet to make.”

This time Bodie did throw his head back and laugh. The man was right about one thing; he had many mistakes yet to make.

He heard Trish coming his way before he saw her.

“Bodie, are you able to do the close tonight with Maya? My damn cat got out. Neighbor has a fit whenever it happens. Thinks Kerny’s going to eat his precious chickens.”

Bodie kept a straight face. He sure wished his biggest problem was a cat escaping. “Not a problem, Trish.”

“Good. And do me a favor, make the woman smile. She’s been moping around the place for days and it’s bumming me out. The customers are going to get so depressed, they’ll stop coming.”

Roe grunted his agreement from across the bar.

Bodie tried not to flinch. Everyone could see it. She was miserable. Miserable because of what she’d learned about him.

He nodded. He would do his best. But when he didn’t know what the hell the woman was thinking, it felt near impossible.

Moving down the bar, Bodie served the next customer, still lost in thought.

He’d hoped that once he told her the truth, she’d be shocked, but quickly get used to the idea. She’d lean on him for support and allow him to protect her. He’d also wanted her to talk to him about the break-in and any missing details she might not have told Quinn.

That certainly hadn’t happened. Would it change after a few days? A few weeks?

Bodie didn’t have weeks. He needed to get back to Marble Falls. They were still fighting a war against Hylar and his program.

One thing Bodie regretted was sleeping with her before telling her the truth. He almost cringed at his own poor judgment. Well, less poor judgment and more low self-restraint. But there was no part of him that had slept with her just to get closer. Even the thought had his stomach clenching in revulsion.

Bodie had told her as much, but he wasn’t sure if she completely believed him. He also knew that her bubble of safety had been popped. She’d thought she was safely hidden. His being here told her that she was findable.

He started making the next customer a drink, his mind never far from Maya.

From everything she’d told him, it seemed that she wasn’t used to being cared for. She’d gone through life alone, without anyone to stand by her side. Allowing someone in, allowing someone to know you, wasn’t always automatic or easy.

He had no idea how the families who’d cared for her hadn’t fallen in love with her on the spot. She was caring, smart, empathic…and the fact that she’d turned out the way she had, after facing such adversity in life, showed how damn strong she was.

Bodie was just holding the EFTPOS machine out to a customer when he noticed Maya slipping out of the room. Her brow was furrowed and her lips pressed together. She didn’t look okay.

* * *

Maya needed air.She felt like she was suffocating.

There weren’t even that many people in the bar tonight, yet it felt crowded. The need to get out was clawing up her neck.

Walking down the hall, she headed toward the staff room before remembering Shayna was on break. She continued to the storage room instead and closed the door firmly behind her. The moment she was alone, she let the quiet steady her. It wasn’t silent. Far from it. The sound of people and music still snuck into the room. But it was nowhere near as loud as out there.

She sucked in some deep breaths, blowing each one out slowly.

It had been three days since Bodie had told her his truth. That he’d tracked her down. Put surveillance cameras on the exit points of her home. He’d even admitted to placing a tracking device on her phone.

She almost wanted to cry, she felt so stupid. Stupid for thinking she could stay out of sight. That she could just stop in a town, get a job and no one would find her.

Stupid in thinking that Bodie, this amazing man, just happened to walk into her life. God, for the first time ever, she’d actually thought that someone might want her…she should have known better.

Embarrassment heated her cheeks. She was an obligation to him. No matter which way you spun it, that’s what Bodie’s presence in her life boiled down to.

Maya didn’t have many options though. He was her best chance of staying alive. She had to trust him to protect her. If anyone could, it was him.

She wouldn’t be leaving him once she had enough money. He wanted her to go to Marble Falls with him. Meet his friends. The idea was almost scarier than a man chasing her across the country, wanting her dead.

What happened once his obligation to protect her ended? Once her feelings had deepened?

Everything in her life thus far had taught her that people leave. No matter how much you want them to stay, no matter how much faith you have in them, they leave.

Every family she’d ever been placed with had seen her as temporary. Her whole life had been a carousel of rotating homes. Foster parents that never lasted. Siblings she’d grown to like, then had to leave behind. Hell, even friendships had been short-lived.

At every turn, her main life lesson had been that relationships are impermanent. The only person she could truly rely on was herself.

What if she fell in love with the guy…and he left?

Trusting him felt scary. Actually, no, trusting him felt absolutely terrifying.

Disappearing felt safe.

Shaking her head, Maya turned toward the door just as the one behind her opened. The one that led to the street behind the bar and was used for deliveries. A man stepped inside—but he was no deliveryman. There was a smile on his lips. A smile that in no way reached his eyes. One side of his face was yellow with what looked to be old bruising.

He looked familiar, but she couldn’t quite figure out where she’d seen him before.

“Remember me, sweetheart? You were having some fun on my lap before that boyfriend of yours interrupted us the other night?”

Recognition hit hard. He was the drunk guy from the bar. The man Bodie had thrown out when he’d grabbed her. She took a small step back. “Bodie told you not to come back.”

She actually wasn’t sure exactly what Bodie had told the man, but she was almost certain it was something like that.

The man tilted his head. Even though he was nowhere near as big as Bodie, he still looked a whole lot more capable than her. “You think I’d actually listen to the asshole?”

“I need to get back.”

Before he could respond, three more men stepped through the same open door. The three who had been with the guy that night.

Fear stabbed at her chest and rendered her motionless. “Wh-what do you guys want?” She only just got the words out, icy terror now freezing her insides.

Maya inched toward the door. Before she could anticipate his actions, the man in front leaped forward, grabbing her arm. “Your boy punched me right in the face. Then he almost choked me to death.”

Maya’s gaze flicked down. Sure enough, she saw the bruises that remained on his neck. “I don’t see how that has to do with me—”

“Oh, it has everything to do with you. What better way to get payback than to mess with his woman—the bitch he clearly wants no other man to touch—while he’s in the very next room?” The man tightened his grip on her arm, causing her to whimper in pain. “We’re going to have some fun…and piss that asshole off.”

His friends moved forward, causing Maya’s stomach to cramp in alarm.

She opened her mouth to scream, but before she could utter a sound, the door behind her flew open, slamming against the wall. In the next moment, Bodie was by her side.

She almost flinched when she saw the expression on his face. Deadly rage. He was almost unrecognizable.

This time, Bodie didn’t ask the man to remove his hand. He reached out and grabbed it. The fingers around her arm immediately released as the man howled in pain.

Bodie stepped in front of Maya, pulling her behind him. “I told you not to come back.” He still didn’t release the man’s wrist. The guy was almost crying. “I don’t like people disobeying direct orders. And I certainly don’t like people touching my woman.”

One of the other three stepped forward. “Get your hand off him!”

Maya took a hurried step back, hitting the door behind her. A large part of her wanted to run out of the room, but she couldn’t tear her eyes off Bodie and the scene in front of her.

Were these men really so stupid as to pick a fight with someone Bodie’s size?

Almost in unison, the three men lunged.

Maya gasped as violence broke out around her. One of the men threw a punch, while another kicked out. One even attempted to head butt Bodie.

He deflected each attack easily, even as he threw a punch. A loud crunch echoed through the room. A man fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

Bodie aimed for the next guy. The same thing.

“You come anywhere near her again…and I’ll kill you.” Bodie said the words with such quiet fury, the men went still.

Then the two men still standing took off toward the back door. Bodie didn’t chase after them. Instead, he stood watching while the injured men peeled themselves off the floor before following them out.

Maya remained where she was, the room suddenly feeling silent and empty. She didn’t know how long she stood like that.

Bodie closed both doors before moving toward her. His eyes remained hard for a moment before they finally gentled. “Are you okay?”

He stood so close, she could feel warmth radiating off his body. “I’m okay. I…they didn’t do anything.”

Reaching out, his fingers grazed her arm. The exact spot where the man had grabbed her. She looked down to see that her skin was already bruising.

Bodie cursed under his breath. “I’m sorry he touched you.”

“I’m really okay, Bodie.”

It had frightened her. Of course it had. And she didn’t want to think about what would have happened had Bodie not entered the room when he had. But she’d been through worse. She’d seen worse.

He watched her for another beat before pulling her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her body.

For a moment, Maya remained rigid in his hold. Then she succumbed to his warmth. To his huge protective body. She melted into him. And god, but he felt good. Like he was holding together every little part of her that threatened to break.

“Thank you,” she whispered.