Page 27 of Cautious Love

I watch her eat it, and I can tell she’s surprised she likes it. It’s a weird combination, but it’s high in protein and low carb, plus it’s easy to make.

“This is tasty.”

“Thanks, and you can stay as long as you need to,” I tell her.

Her fork clatters on the table, and she looks up. “I don’t — no, I couldn’t do that,” she says.

I take a bite, chewing slowly. This is a gentle way to open her up to the idea of getting married. “Yes, you can. I meant to give you a key today.”

Her eyes widen and I’m not sure what to make of it.

“Did you find somewhere else to stay?” I ask her. I’m sure she has friends. Maybe she talked to one of them about it today. If that’s the case, then there’s no way we could see the happily married thing, which in turn still puts us at risk.

“No, I … thank you. I can pay you, just tell me how much.”

I sigh, leaning back in my chair. “Shiloh, if you could pay, then you wouldn’t have been trying to sleep in your car last night. So why would I think you could pay me now, even if I wanted to charge you? I don’t, by the way.”

“Look, Ledger, I’m no freeloader. I don’t take anything if I didn’t earn it.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” I sigh.

She snorts. “Nice. But I mean it, what would you like from me?” she asks, and her cheeks turn pink, and my mind goes to a lot of things, none of them I’ll suggest, except the one most important.

“I don’t want anything from you, not like that,” I tell her. There’s a small part of me that wants to press her for information about Grey. She could know something about thefamily drug operation and not even know it. But now doesn’t feel like the time.

“Okay, thank you, but I can keep the house clean or do your grocery shopping. I don’t know, but if you think of something, let me know.”

“Okay. There is one thing, no, two things. First, no guests.”

She huffs. “I have no guests to invite. What’s the second?”

I hum and take a bite. The silence between us stretches as I work up the nerve. “So I’ve been thinking. Last night could … create issues. People might see things here and start assuming, so I think we need some kind of explanation. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I’m going to walk around town announcing anything, but this is Paxton, and I am the sheriff.”

Shiloh nods and chews her food. “We need to have our stories straight.”

“Yeah, I don’t mean to sound like a jerk, but-”

Shiloh shakes her head. “No, no, I totally get it, and I agree.”

“Okay, great,” I say, stumbling over my words. Then again, it’s not like I’ve asked a woman to marry me, let alone one I’mnotin love with.

“Sooo, what’s the second thing?” she asks again.

“As you said, we need a story. And with the events of last night, we need to be buttoned up tight.” What I don’t say is I don’t trust Grey, and I’d rather her be here where I can intervene, though I doubt he would push it this far. It doesn’t help that I didn’t report what happened, which threatens my job. So this is a win-win for everyone.

Shiloh tilts her head, giving me a funny look. “Okay, I won’t say anything. You saved my ass.”

“So then you’ll understand this.” I stand from my seat and drop to my knee.

“What the hell are you doing?” she asks, tilting so far out of her chair she might fall off.

“Shiloh, marry me to save both our asses.”

She huffs. “This is a joke, right?” she asks and pushes her chair back.

“You have a terrible sense of humor.”

I shrug. “That’s accurate. But I’m dead serious. There’s this thing called spousal privilege, and if Grey talks, then at minimum they’ll only get half the truth, and it’s my word against his.”