Theirs to Protect - Julia Sykes Page 0,3

Ashlyn—automatically, but his lips turned down in a slight frown.

“I meant to get something sweet for Ashlyn,” I offered in explanation, jerking my thumb to indicate the street behind us. “I just need to go a couple blocks back. You two head to the bus stop. I’ll catch up with you.”

“You don’t have to get me anything,” she insisted breathily, obviously still hot and bothered from our conversation in the café. “I’m ready to go home.”

“Are you telling me you don’t want a Belgian waffle?” I drawled. “Maybe you don’t deserve a reward, after how you teased us.”

“No!” she insisted quickly. “No, I’d love one. Please?”

I made the mistake of glancing down into her gorgeous eyes, and I was instantly entranced by the glittering sapphire hue I loved so much. I reached out and caressed her cheek, testing the warmth of her blush.

“Anything for you, babygirl,” I promised. “You want the strawberry glamour waffle, right?”

“Yes, please.” She beamed at me and bounced up onto her tiptoes. Without thinking, I bent down to meet her lips in a doting kiss. “Thank you, Daddy,” she murmured against my mouth as I pulled away.

I pressed one final kiss to her forehead before reluctantly releasing her. Her stalker was still too close, loitering in front of the nearby bookshop window while the three of us paused to discuss waffles.

“I’ll have the Oreo freakin’ party.” Joseph added his favorite waffle to Ashlyn’s order, oblivious to the threat. “You sure you don’t need help carrying these? If you’re getting your usual berries insanity, that’s going to be awkward to balance.”

“I can manage.” I dismissed him in a tone that was a bit too clipped, and his frown returned.

“Our girl is chilly.” I nodded in her direction to call Joseph’s attention to her needs instead of my tension. “You take her to the bus and get some shelter from the wind. I’ll just be a few minutes behind you.”

She shivered again, and his full focus riveted to her. He tucked her closer against his side, and she released a happy hum as she nestled in his warmth.

A fist squeezed my heart as I watched them walk away, following my orders. They looked almost painfully perfect together, as though they’d stepped out of a J. Crew ad. His navy wool coat was the masculine match to her softer pink style, and the wind-kissed blush on their defined cheekbones seemed cheery rather than miserably frigid. Joseph’s six-foot-three physique made Ashlyn’s slender shoulders appear even more delicate beneath the sheltering embrace of his strong arm.

They made a picture-perfect couple. Just the two of them.

Good. That’s a good thing. Joseph would always be able to keep her safe and happy. And sweetly oblivious to any darker shit I might have to do to protect them both.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and forced my feet to carry me in the opposite direction, heading toward the waffle house as promised.

Chapter Two

Marco

It only took a handful of seconds to stride down half a block before tucking myself in a brick alcove. It provided a few feet of shelter between the sidewalk and the glass door to a small boutique, and the vantage point allowed a clear view of the cross street where I’d left Ashlyn and Joseph. In a few more heartbeats, I’d be able to confirm if the stalker chose to follow them.

I pulled out my phone and thumbed the screen, pretending to check a text; just a guy taking a quick respite from the chill wind. My fingers tightened around the cool metal case when the fucker appeared in my line of sight. The brim of his too-crisp baseball cap swiveled left as he checked the street I’d walked down. When he didn’t see me, he pulled the cap low and turned his attention forward again, trailing after Ashlyn.

It took less than two seconds for me to scan my mental map of the area and determine the best route to confront the fucker. When we’d first moved to Boston, I’d made sure to memorize the layout of Cambridge as well as our neighborhood in the South End. I knew every shadowy corner and the blind spots in CCTV feeds. During the blissfully peaceful months of our new life, my paranoia had begun to fade. Now, I was grateful that I’d taken such precautions.

I would cut around the block and intercept the bastard from a side street. There was an alley he’d have to pass if he stayed on his current