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They’d driven here last night, but honestly, they could have walked. They’d gone farther that night that Zack couldn’t sleep.
“We don’t know what shape your car is in,” Zack warned. “It could be damaged as well.”
“I’ve already called Tate and asked him if we can borrow his car,” Cooper said. “He gave the go-ahead so I’m going to walk over there and get the key. I’ll be back in a few minutes, and we can go see Lloyd Daniels.”
Cooper strode out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him.
“Did you call Finn to let him know?”
“Cooper did. He said that he’ll send over Blake later to take our statements. We’re going to need a police report for insurance and the rental company also.”
Needing police reports was becoming a bad habit.
“I’m not sure what to even say. I’m so sorry this has happened to you. To both of you.”
“I’m just angry and frustrated,” Zack said. “But I’m with Cooper on this. No one is going to scare me away. If they think that scratching up a rental is going to spook me, they’re dead wrong.”
“Funny that you used that word…dead. Has it occurred to you that this someone you’re referring to might go that route? After all, Ethan is fighting for his life in the hospital right this minute.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Zack agreed. “That’s why I think that you should go in to the bookstore today. Cooper and I will seek out Lloyd Daniels. I want you firmly out of the firing line.”
That would be fine, except…
“But you’d still be in danger,” she said. “And just because I’m not with you, doesn’t mean I won’t be. We’re a team here. We work together.”
“Until now, I would have agreed, but I won’t let you get hurt. I can’t tell you what to do. I realize that. But I can’t concentrate on what I need to do if I’m worried about your safety, too.”
“What does that mean?”
She knew what it meant, but he needed to say it.
“It means I’m asking you to step aside and stay safe. Go to the bookstore. Have people around you all day. I don’t think anyone is going to try anything in a crowd. Don’t be alone. If I can’t be there to protect you, then we need to make sure that you aren’t in a position to be hurt.”
Lucy wanted to be there with him. She wanted to see Lloyd Daniels.
She had, however, been spending a great deal of time with Zack, and that meant she wasn’t in her own bookstore, leaving the running of it to Jane. Her friend did an amazing job, but it wasn’t fair to dump it all on her. She had other priorities. Lucy was the owner, and that meant that her business had to come first. She had employees that depended on her for their livelihood. Running off and playing private investigator was fun, but in the end, Zack didn’t need her to do it.
“I’ll go to the bookstore,” she replied. “Will you keep me apprised of what’s going on? Let me know if you learn anything?”
“You’ll be the first one I call,” he assured her. “I promise you. Thank you, Lucy. I appreciate your understanding. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“I don’t want anything to happen to you either.”
“You mean a lot to me.”
“You mean a lot to me, too.”
There was something in his expression that she couldn’t quite decipher. He wasn’t smiling but his anger had dissolved, leaving him serious and sober.
“What I’m trying to say—”
He broke off, his gaze on his shoes as he struggled to find the words. A little voice was in her ear urging her to fill the silence and smooth it all over. Awkward moments were…well…awkward, but she forced herself to stay quiet and let him gather his thoughts.
After a long moment, he lifted his head and spoke.
“What I’m trying to say is that I’m not going to take that job on Wall Street. I don’t want to go back. I’m not sure what I want to do, but I do know that I want to give this relationship - you and me - a try. I hope that you feel the same. If you don’t—”
She didn’t let him get any farther, launching herself into his arms as her heart pounded against her ribcage. This wonderful man had come into her life and turned it upside down. She’d been living a quiet existence, content with her day-to-day, but now it all seemed better just because she could share it with him. She wanted to do that every single day.
