“Okay then. Thank you.”
He didn’t realize, until she agreed, just how much he didn’t want to say goodbye to her.
“Keys?” he asked, holding out his hand.
“On top of the front wheel.”
“You’re kidding me, right?”
She gestured to the tight-fitting running pants she was wearing. “No pockets.”
“Those things usually have a pocket at the back, don’t they?”
“Budget version,” she said with a light shrug of her shoulders.
“As a security consultant, I can’t begin to tell you how risky this is,” he grumbled, retrieving the keys from their not-so-hidden spot. “You’re lucky your car is still here.”
“I know, but I figure it’s so old, it’s hardly likely to attract trouble.”
He opened the passenger door for her and it gave a loud creak of protest. “I can see why,” he commented wryly.
She laughed again, and the sound made something begin to unravel at the center of his chest. He closed the door once she was inside the car and got in on the other side.
“I guess your mother told you never to get into a car with a stranger when you were little, right?”
“She did. Are you suggesting I’m not safe here with you?”
Her words made every protective instinct bloom from deep inside of him.
“I want to reassure you that you are completely safe with me.”
“Good to know,” she said before awkwardly fastening her seatbelt. “I’d hate to have to hurt you.”
His lips tweaked into a smile. “Hurt me?”
“My mother also sent me to self-defense classes. You’d be amazed at what I can do with one good hand.”
He nodded slowly and turned on the ignition. “Good to know.”
After he drove to the nearest urgent care center and parked the car, Chloe turned to face him.
“Look, I really don’t want to take up too much of your time. You don’t need to stay with me. I’m sure once my wrist is bandaged up, I’ll be okay to drive.”
“No problem, and, as to your wrist, we’ll let the doctor decide. Okay?”
Two hours later they were back at the car with Chloe protesting every step of the way.
“You didn’t need to pay for me, Mr. Wingate. I have insurance.”
“Miles.”
“What?”
“Call me Miles,” he said with a smile. “And, yes, I did have to pay. If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have been hurt in the first place.”
“It was my own silly fault,” she reminded him half-heartedly.
She was looking pale. The examination of her wrist had been painful, but they’d both been relieved when the X-ray had shown nothing was broken. But clearly she was tired now.