Convincing Lina: A Bachelor of Shell Cove Novel (The Bachelors of Shell Cove Romance Book 2) by Siera London

that sledgehammer coming. What other surprises did Estrella have in store for him?

    Two hours later, she stripped and changed the sheets in the master bedroom. Gideon was right, the mattress wasn’t stained. But she wasn’t going to lay down on anything the intruder had touched.  
    Meanwhile she took comfort in the fact that she wasn’t alone.  
    When the police asked if she knew of anyone that would break into her home, she remained quiet. Jace was a pest, but she couldn’t envision him violating her home like this. Gideon hadn’t mentioned Jace’s name to the police. So, he wasn’t keen on hanging the incident tag around Jace’s neck, either. After handling the majority of the police report, she decided to be safe and let Gideon stay. So there he was, under the same roof. Something Jace never would have done.  
    Though Gideon tried to camouflage the warrior side of his nature, his Marine Corps training was inherent in everything he did. Case in point, the man had a duffle bag in his car with a complete set of business clothes. Who does that?
    “Lina?” Startled she jumped, knocking over the bedside clock. She righted herself, holding out a hand, as if to stop Gideon. It was futile to become accustomed to his help when he wouldn’t be around.  
    He leaned against the door frame, all country swagger. Her eyes slid to half mast, her nostrils flared, and her lips parted. A little tension relief was in order after tonight’s events. She was man fasting, but for the life of her, looking at his non-classical features framed by long ebony lashes, a square jaw, and a shadow well past midnight, she could not recall one logical reason why any woman would willingly deprive herself of Gideon Rice.  
    Her mother’s warning came to mind as she stood facing off with Gideon. No boys allowed in the house . But a take charge psychiatrist with a dangerous edge was an acceptable exception to the rule. Doctors were allowed to make house calls, right? No. Boys. Allowed.  
    “Do you need something, Gideon?” He pushed away from the wall, he stood in the center of the doorway, a sliver of light outlining his large frame. He’d lost the dress shirt, a sleeveless T-shirt clung to his chest. Hands in his pockets of his slacks, he remained motionless in the doorway. Silently, his body language requested permission before entering her bedroom. She gave him a nod to enter. His eyes slid over her body in pure male appreciation. That’s when she heard the tribal chant in her head; man fast, man fast, man fast. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she hoped it would squash the butterflies fluttering in her stomach.
    “What can I do for you, Gideon?” He moved towards her and his scent made her all too aware that there was no barrier between them. He must have a sexy man camera slow play feature, every ripple, every flex, and every bulge of muscle was on ESPN replay. Breaking the focus on his body movements, she let her eyes drift downward, noting the carpet fibers sinking low with the shift of his weight. Now he stood in front of her.  
      His facial features were chiseled with just the right amount of refinement to avoid a harsh profile. His was built more for the open range than the calm surroundings of a psychiatric office. Total eye candy. She loved his Appalachian accent that he tried hard to conceal. She had noticed during dinner that he spoke with deliberate inflection on each syllable.  
    “I need to know that you are okay.”  
    “Fine,” came her quick response. “I don’t understand what happened here tonight.” She sounded stilted, even to her own ears. It would be a lie to say she wasn’t upset by tonight’s break-in, but the physical damage was minimal. The toll to her emotional state was still being tallied. Shoring up her spine, “I can handle it. But it’s unnerving.” The more she thought about it, the more she was convinced someone other than Jace had delivered the roses. Jace hated the sight of