Her entire body did a happy dance. She was lost in his blue eyes and the heady sensation of being held tight to his glorious body. She was in trouble. She was in a whole lot of trouble. She had no idea how to respond to his glorious proclamation, and her body was so hot she feared she’d combust.
Chandler turned and strode across the field and toward the locker rooms. Kylee wrapped her arms around his neck to hang on and was rewarded with one of his brilliant, irresistible smiles.
“I can’t believe you came for me,” he said. “Like a vision from heaven. Let me remedy the sweaty problem and then we can really get reacquainted.”
Kylee had no clue if he was intoning what she thought he was intoning. Would he kiss her again? It was probably wrong to indulge in such deliciousness when she needed to get the message sent and be back to running for her life, but kissing Chandler as full-grown adults would be a memory she could take to the grave. Her superhero. Holding her in his arms. It was surreal.
She felt sadly that she had to set him straight about why she was here and get the information out as quickly as possible so she didn’t spend too much time with him and put a target on his back. He was a Delta, her grandpa had told her each family member had years of training and an understanding of fighting, weapons, and subterfuge that was completely beyond her, but still… Creepy Eyes could shoot him in the back or something. She doubted her grandmother’s flunky had any more idea of moral conduct than Mimi herself. Even worse if the man had been sent by King Frederick. The awful dictator was trying to take over Europe and blustering that if China or America tried to intervene, it would be nuclear winter for their countries. Well, she’d thought he was blustering until last night.
“Chandler,” she whispered urgently.
“Yes, love?” He looked down at her with a beguiling smile as he strode across the field.
She tried valiantly to ignore the endearment. He was a flirt, and she would be smart not to lose her head. If only he wasn’t her dream man and far too charming for anybody’s good.
“You know about the situation with my grandpa and the Delta secret?”
His gaze got serious. He walked to an overhang that was sheltered from view of the fans and relatively quiet, but he kept on holding her in his arms as if she weighed nothing. Impressive strength these lacrosse players had.
“Yes,” he said. “Do you have information for me?”
She nodded. “I overheard something terrifying. Now someone’s following me, and my grandfather told me there’s a price on my head.”
“What? Kylee.” He held her even closer. “Let’s get you somewhere safe.”
She shook her head. “I’ll disappear after I give you the info.”
He gave her a challenging look that made her even warmer than his flirtatious ones. “I am not letting you out of my sight if you’re in danger.”
“Chandler…”
“Don’t,” he warned. “I’ll keep you safe. Where’s your tail?”
She pushed out an exasperated breath. Her safety was not the most important thing at the moment, but she couldn’t help but savor his protective nature. She answered his question. “I saw him as I was entering the stadium. He followed me from Chicago.”
“Do you have a tracker on you?”
“I don’t know.” Her eyes widened. Could Mimi have put a tracker on her phone at some point, or dropped something in her purse when she wasn’t looking? Her small purse was strapped across her chest. Should she ditch it?
“Okay. It’ll all work out. Let’s get inside. I’ll hide you in the manager’s office and we’ll check your purse and phone for trackers before we sneak out of here.” He gave her a smile that said he would enjoy the challenge of ditching her shadow. She only cared that he could accomplish such a deed. Was it wrong to let him protect her? To rely on him? Maybe, but she had no one else and no matter how she kidded herself, she’d probably end up dead if she tried it on her own. Then she’d never see St. Lucia—or have Chandler’s blue eyes focus in on her again as he gave her that appealing grin. Even the Caribbean blue waters paled compared to Chandler’s alluring gaze.
He started walking again as if it was all settled. She should’ve insisted she could stand on her own two feet, but with as shaky and exhausted as she was, Chandler carrying her was very, very nice.
Just like that, she was lying to herself again. Like when she claimed she was five-two or she hadn’t gained weight recently or she only ate ice cream on special occasions. Was it really wrong to claim every day was a special occasion? Being in Chandler Delta’s arms was definitely a special occasion, especially with his shirt off, even if he was sweaty and still had his chest protector on.
Chandler entered through a door. Suddenly, there was a cacophony of noise and the shocking sight of men in various stages of undress.
“Oh!” Kylee cried out, burying her face in Chandler’s warm skin.
“Sorry,” he mumbled. “It’s the only way to the office where you’ll be safe. I didn’t dare go through the stadium and have your tail follow or intercept us. Guys!” he called. “I’ve got an innocent beauty here. Cover up.”
The men started whooping and yelling at them. Kylee heard all kinds of offers, many of which made her think she was much more innocent than Chandler could understand if he hung out with these men daily. She didn’t understand men at all, though, so maybe their language was normal for a men’s locker room.
“Muchachos locos,” she muttered.
“What was that?”
“Crazy boys,” she translated.