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Guy stood behind her and gently rested his hands on her shoulders. “I seriously doubt that Diana sees it as a waste. She obviously cares about you and I know she’s not one to ignore someone important to her when they’re troubled.”

Tori wasn’t sure if she turned on her own or if Guy guided her but suddenly she found herself within inches of a very broad chest. She could feel the warmth where his hands still held her shoulders. Slowly, she raised her chin and met his gaze. He was watching her with an expression that almost looked tender.

“What had Diana so concerned? How long have you had dreams bad enough to keep you awake and why, Ms. Banks, do you think you can provide information on a crime committed over a hundred miles away?”

Without meaning to Tori moved her hands to Guy’s waist and lowered her forehead to his chest. “Could you please call me Tori? I don’t think I can get through this if you keep being so formal.”

Guy pulled her closer and lightly caressed her back. Instead of moving away, Tori let herself relax into the security of his embrace. When she slid her arms around him, Guy tightened his hold on her. The comforting gesture overwhelmed her and Tori couldn’t hold back her tears.

As the sobs shook her body, Guy cupped the back of her head. With one hand, he smoothed her hair. With the other, he rubbed her back. Instinct had him whispering soothing words while he encouraged her to cry herself out.

Diana must have realized what was going on because Guy saw her heading toward the office when he glanced up. With a silent plea and minimal gesture, he waved her away. If Tori let him comfort her, they might form a tentative bond. If Diana came to her rescue, he’d be back to square one.

Diana hesitated and responded with a look that held an unspoken request that he get her if Tori needed her. When he nodded his agreement, she went back to the far end of the desk.

Guy continued his calming attempts until Tori was down to sniffles. Very slowly, she raised her face to see him. Her eyes were huge when he met her gaze with a soft smile. Still holding her, he used one thumb to dry her cheeks before kissing each eyelid. With another smile, he brushed her lips with a butterfly kiss.

“Feel any better?” Guy asked with his mouth close enough that she could feel his breath.

“Wha—um, what, I mean, why…”

“Oh Christ.” He released her and stepped away. “Damn!”

Tori backed up against the wall. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened. I never cry, especially in front of people. I…”

“Tori.” Guy ran his hand over his face. “I’m the one who should be apologizing. Again. Christ.” He scowled before dropping his chin.

Tori reached out and put her hand on his arm. “Why? What did I miss?”

Guy’s head jerked up. “I just kissed you.”

“To get me to stop crying.”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“But what? You wish you hadn’t because I’m repulsive?”

“God, no!”

“Oh. I get it.” Tori blushed with embarrassment. “I forgot about your girlfriend.”

Guy snorted. “If you’re referring to the woman who was so annoyed with me last night, don’t give her another thought.”

“But I thought she was waiting for you.”

“Me too but apparently I took too long. After you left, she pointed out my replacement. Claimed he knew how to give her the proper attention.”

“But I wasn’t even there ten minutes.”

“Her reaction wasn’t really about you at all. You just provided a convenient excuse. Our acquaintance had run its course weeks ago. If she hadn’t ended it, I would have.”

Tori frowned. “All right, then why are you so annoyed?”

Guy looked extremely uncomfortable as he explained. “Because I completely blew it. I lost my mind and did everything wrong again. Yesterday, I treated you with contempt and accused you of being an attention-seeking liar. If you’d actually told me something that hadn’t been reported in the paper, I would have accused you of being involved and probably arrested you.

“Today, you give me the opportunity to show I am capable of doing my job, a job that I’ve always been fairly good at and the instant you’re about to let me prove myself, I toss the most elemental principle of how a decent cop behaves out the window.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I kissed you, Tori.”

“Because I was crying all over you after I asked you to stop being so formal. For comfort, right?”

He sighed. “Not really.”

Tori gasped. Then she scowled. Then she paced in the limited space, glaring at him every time she turned. Finally, she stopped directly in front of him. “And of course you couldn’t just go along with what I thought. No, you have to be too honest for that.”

“I’m sorry.” He looked miserable.

“For what exactly?” Tori challenged him.

Guy held her gaze as he considered his answer. “Several things and most of them inappropriate. The obvious, of course, failing to act as a detective should when offering assistance to an individual who has requested help. Sorry that we didn’t meet at Barry’s where it would have been perfectly acceptable for me to feel attracted to you. Sorry that because of that attraction I am obligated to step aside and ask someone else to take over. Sorry that I’m going to go Alpha male on you and demand that you refuse to confide in anyone other than me. Sorry that as an Alpha male I’m going to go overboard protecting you even if you tell me to go away and I have to become a stalker to do it. Sorry that even though I feel that way and want you to tell me everything since I know essentially nothing other than you see homicides in your sleep, I can still feel the softness of your lips and your body against mine.” He laughed without humor. “Maybe what I should be most sorry for is dumping all this on you now, when you obviously have enough on your mind and the last thing you need is an asshole cop trying to cozy up to you when you’re vulnerable and might let me take advantage of you.”

“I would have sworn you despised me yesterday,” Tori commented when she was sure he’d finished.

“Hardly. I was annoyed at myself for letting Lana rope me into going to a bar I’ve never liked. I was mega-pissed that I had to meet you for Barry instead of going straight to the hospital to wait with him and Carla. Then you showed up, looking lost and gorgeous at the same time. You didn’t notice the leers you were getting, did you?”

“Oh, be real.” She rolled her eyes.

“I’m serious, Tori. That’s the reason I dislike that place so much. It’s a meat market and you were fresh meat.”

“If you say so.”

“Something else I remember hearing Diana say about you is how you keep to yourself to the extent that she wondered that you weren’t lonely.”

Tori groaned.

“Wait. I only said it because I wish I’d remembered it before I accused you of being a drama queen. What I’d like to know is why you’re alone. Why isn’t there someone there to hold you after your nightmares?”

“I’m not comfortable with the idea of letting someone get that close,” she surprised them both by answering.

“That mean you’re not going to talk to me?”

“I want to. I know I should, that it’s the right thing to do. But I’m so scared. If you prove that what I dreamed really happened then that’ll mean that the others were probably real too and then what do I do?”

Guy heard the anguish in her voice and pulled her into his arms without thinking about it. “You let me help figure out what it all means and go on from there. You’re not alone in this anymore, Tori.”

“But I am, Guy. It was nice of you to say all that but what about what you said before? If you’re really attracted to me, isn’t that going to be a problem?”

“Only if you’re equally attracted to me.”

“And if I am? Although I’m not sure attraction is the right word. For either of us. I agree there’s something and, yeah, it started yesterday but I don’t know that it’s not just a reaction to your Alpha male thing.”

“What?”

“Yeah, that’s probably all it is. You said I looked lost and vulnerable. Even though you were less than thrilled with the situation your protective nature probably kicked in anyway. I think I picked up on that in spite of your sneers and jeers because I stopped being uncomfortable with where I was as soon as you introduced yourself. It was like I knew you wouldn’t let anything happen to me even though you clearly didn’t want anything to do with me. And today, you came to apologize and offer to help and I react like the stereotypical weak female by crying all over you.”

“So you’re saying we have a damsel in distress and knight in shining armor thing going on and that’s it?”

“No. Yes. Oh hell, I don’t know.”

Guy pondered her theory. “Tell you what. Let’s ignore it for now and focus on what brought us together in the first place.” He waited but Tori didn’t comment. “Please tell me about your nightmare, Tori. I’ll help any way that I can.”

“I don’t know if I can.”

“Then let me call Barry and have him come talk to you.”

“No, Guy, I didn’t mean I couldn’t tell you. When I was driving home last night I decided that I was done letting a bunch of stupid dreams bother me so much and that I needed to grow up and get over it.”

“Really? If that’s so then why do you still look like a scared rabbit? Why are you shaking? Why were you crying so hard?”

Tori searched his eyes but found only caring. He really was only pushing her to help and not to be mean. That thought made her even more afraid so she said the only thing she could think of. “I better get back to work before Diana fires me.”

“Tori, wait.” Guy caught her at the end of the desk. “When Barry asked me to meet you he explained that you were having nightmares that might be related to the woman in Springfield who was found in the bar. I’m going to find out everything I can about that and I’ll be in the coffee shop across the street when the library closes. Why don’t you and Diana meet me there so you can determine if your dream is just that or something more?”

Tori shook her head and inched away.

“Please don’t say no. Just think about it. Let me help if I can.”

Tori shivered. She glanced at Diana who was being tactful by keeping her distance. She hadn’t told Diana about the end of her dream when the men were talking about their angel, Miss Vicky, guiding them to her. If—no, when—he confirmed the details she already knew, she would have to tell him that part of it too. If Diana heard, she’d be sick with worry and insist that Tori come stay with her and that was the last thing she wanted to do. She’d relied on Diana’s support far too much already for Diana to be worrying at one of her niece’s gatherings. If she refused to meet with Guy, Diana was bound to appoint herself Tori’s guardian and again, that was not what Tori wanted.

“If you ask questions isn’t someone going to wonder why and then show up here?”

“Maybe if I called directly but I’m not going to. I have a brother-in-law in the FBI. I thought I’d ask him to call. He can ask lots of questions without answering any in return.”

“But won’t he want to know why you’re interested?”

“Yes, but Todd is a good guy. If I tell him it’s important he’ll find out whatever he can without an explanation up front.”

Tori sighed and nodded. “Okay.” She saw Diana’s shoulders relax slightly and knew she’d been holding her breath.

“Thank you.” Guy touched her cheek in a brief caress.

Not wanting to face Diana, Tori raced for the steps before Guy even turned to go. She knew Diana would give her time alone before approaching her and was grateful her friend was so understanding.

“She won’t ask me to come with her,” Diana stated softly.

“Excuse me.” Guy pulled his thoughts from Tori’s hasty retreat.

“She won’t have me join you.”

“Why? You’ve already heard about it. I’d think she’d be more comfortable with you there.”

“She might be if she weren’t holding something back. Tori is a very self-reliant young lady. Always has been. She’s a tough little cookie, very difficult to get to know. But don’t let that hard shell fool you. She’s determined to hide it but inside she’s a kind, caring, sensitive little girl. Yes, you’ll find she’s a real sweetheart if you can get past all her defenses. Tori doesn’t trust easily or lightly, Guy. This is extremely hard for her, asking for help. You must have said something right for her to agree to meet you but don’t expect her to just open up and tell you everything. You’re going to have to drag it from her, word by word. I’ll appreciate it if you don’t let her frustrate you to the point where you give up and she closes you off.”

“Not a chance, Diana. I’m in for the duration.”

Something in Guy’s tone caught Diana’s attention. “Ah.”

He couldn’t read anything in her expression. “Pardon me but ah what? What does that mean?”

“It means, young man, that I can see you’ve greatly revised your opinion and your motives for helping aren’t purely professional.”

“Am I that transparent?”

“No, but I was fascinated the first time I met her too. There was just something about the way she marched in here and informed me that if I didn’t hire her in spite of her total lack of qualifications I’d be making a huge mistake. She stood there, all proud and prickly, like it didn’t matter in the least what I decided but I could tell that wasn’t really her. Taking her on was one of the best decisions of my life. It’s been wonderful, watching her grow into herself. I expect it’ll be quite an adventure watching her figure out that she’s as hooked on you as you are on her.”

“She is?”

“Mm, and that’s the last bit of matchmaking I’m going to do.”

“Then I should thank you for the tip. Diana, no matter how we end up personally, I will see this nightmare business through. I’m sure I’ll meet plenty of resistance but I’ll take care of her.”

She nodded. “See that you do. Tori is very special to me. She’s family. I won’t ask you to tell tales behind her back but if there’s something I can do, will you let me know?”

“You have my word.” With that settled, Guy went to collect the information as he’d promised.

Chapter Five

The longer Tori spoke, the more the hair on the back of Guy’s neck stood on end. The scene she described matched the report he’d received to the last detail. But Tori’s knowledge far surpassed the police report. Guy didn’t understand how she knew what she did but there was no doubt in his mind that her information would prove to be accurate.