With a little lift of her chin that he should have realized spelled trouble, she leaned over his shoulder and pointed at his pad of paper as she spelled out “E-l-l-i-o-t-t.”

TEASING ELI WAS probably a little like poking a lion with a stick, but Kay couldn’t help herself. Especially since he was interrogating her like a criminal. How convenient for him to want a list of her lovers and not consider the fact that their kiss was the closest she’d come to intimacy in ages.

“This is serious, Kay.”

“I know it is, Eli,” she drawled in her best imitation of his deep voice. “When do you think I have the time to go out with a bunch of men? I am a single mother. I barely have time to take a shower and brush my teeth every day.”

Eli looked chagrined. Maybe it was finally sinking in just how ridiculous his assumptions were. Although, she couldn’t really fault him for assuming that she’d have had at least one other boyfriend since the summer. Most girls her age were out dancing and drinking on the weekends, picking up men at clubs, and having one-night stands they’d regret in the morning. There were times when Kay wondered what it would be like to have that much free time and be able to go out with her friends.

Then she’d look over at Hope and realize that she was exactly where she was supposed to be.

“I apologize if I’ve offended you. That wasn’t my intention.” Eli closed his notepad and tucked it in the interior pocket of his coat. “I’m just trying to figure things out. Like I said, your security system hasn’t been tampered with and we went through this place, room by room. Whoever it was didn’t break in.” He turned to look at her directly. “It was someone you know. Someone you trusted enough to invite in.”

Kay shivered. “I don’t invite many people over. Just my family and a few close friends.”

“Does anyone have a key to the apartment?”

Kay thought back to when she’d first moved in. She didn’t know anyone who lived close by except her parents. She’d thought about giving a key to Sasha, but she lived too far away for it to be helpful if she got locked out.

“Just my parents.”

Eli made a disgruntled sound. “Okay. I’m going to see if Matt remembers anything from when he was guarding you then. Maybe someone hanging around when you moved in or anything out of the ordinary. Whoever this is, they’re smart. They’re leaving no evidence of their entry, so we can’t really go to the police until we have proof that a crime has been committed. They’d probably consider sending a cat trinket to be nothing more than a childish prank.”

“But you don’t think it is,” Kay commented.

“No. I don’t think it is.” In typical Elliott fashion, he didn’t offer any additional thoughts on the matter.

Kay got up and brought back a comforter and several pillows. “I appreciate you staying here with me. I don’t think I could have stayed here alone knowing this guy has been in here.”

Eli accepted the pillows with a nod. “You’ll never be alone, Kay. Remember that.”

His words warmed her as surely as a touch. Kay had figured any chance they’d had was gone when he disappeared after Christmas, but maybe he’d had a legitimate reason to leave town. Maybe his leaving hadn’t had anything to do with her or their kiss.

“My mom considers you one of hers now. She’d kill me if I didn’t take proper care of you.”

Kay’s heart sank. His mother. Of course.

She was just an obligation. She wasn’t sure if it was better or worse than when he’d only been helping her because Jackson had hired him to.

“Of course. Good night, Eli.” Kay didn’t wait for him to acknowledge it, just walked down the hall to her room and closed the door.

KAY WOKE EARLIER than usual the next morning. The knowledge that Eli was in her living room had contributed to a long night of tossing and turning. At first, she’d just been on alert in case he needed anything. She’d heard him moving around, drawers and cabinets opening and closing and the hum of the pipes as he’d used the small bathroom off the hall.

Luckily, her room had its own connected bathroom so she didn’t have to worry about any awkwardness there. She’d taken her shower before bed and changed into her favorite tank-and-shorts pajama set. It wasn’t sexy by any means, but then she wasn’t trying to seduce him. He’d shown less than zero interest when he’d been in her room and hadn’t lingered when examining the “scene of the crime” as she liked to think of her collection of figurines now. He’d looked at the blank space in the collection and nowhere else. Not at the lingerie she’d been mortified to discover was hanging over the chair or at the romance books on her nightstand.

He’d just done his usual tough, gruff routine. It was too bad she found his deep, gravelly voice so sexy. It would be so much easier if she hated him. If she hadn’t spent half the night wondering about what he was doing on her sofa. Whether he’d stripped off all his clothes to sleep or just gone down to his underwear.

Coffee. If she could just get some caffeine in her system, then maybe she could think practically. About anything other than what Eli wore when he was sleeping.

Kay spared a cursory glance at the clock, then decided it was early enough to chance making a run for it. Eli was probably dead to the world, so it didn’t matter if she looked like hell. Turning on the coffeepot should take two minutes, max. She pulled on a short, silky robe and knotted it in the front. Even if he rolled over and caught a glimpse of her, he wouldn’t see much other than a bunch of pink silk.