AllFreeNovel
Share Us
FIFTEEN
Eight years before, Crista had lived for the moments she could bask in Dawg’s smile.
His flirting had turned her heart over, filled her with a wild, reckless joy, and made her dream of being in his arms.
She had ached for him even before she knew what the ache was. His charm, his lazy humor, and that shadow of pain that haunted his eyes drew her. And in her deepest fantasies she eased that shadow away and saw his odd, light green eyes fill with joy.
When she had first realized she was pregnant, she had been furious, resentful. Then the knowledge of that life she held stilled the anger. His child would never know loneliness, never lack for love. She would never see that shadow of hurt in their baby’s eyes. She would love it, protect it. Their baby.
The day she had lost that child something inside her had died, only to be reborn when she returned and realized that that silent draw between her and Dawg was still there.
She had fought it. She had thought she could protect her heart and live on the periphery of his attention, warmed yet protected from the heat she knew could destroy her.
What a fool she had been.
Crista watched Dawg as they finished the office arrangement, going through files, searching for a reason why his office had been breached.
He was silent, angry. Determination sharpened the lines and angles of his face, giving him a warrior
’s appearance, a savage aura that turned her on more than it had a right to. He made quick work of hefting the furniture and sliding it into place as Crista cleaned. He helped go through files, helped pack them to the new cabinets and load them, his celadon eyes sharp and intent as he went over every inch of the office to track anything that had been bothered or searched.
As he moved, the sunlight spearing through the wide office windows on the other side of the room worshipped his raven black hair and sun-kissed flesh. It slid over his broad shoulders and emphasized his muscular arms as the short sleeves of his black T-shirt stretched over them.
Jeans molded to his powerful hips and thighs, and those boots he wore made his legs even sexier.
Not to mention how the denim of his jeans lovingly
cupped his muscular ass.
He was enough to steal a girl’s breath, and Crista admitted to having a lot of breathless moments.
And perhaps she had been wrong before when she thought he hadn’t matured from the self-centered determination he had possessed in those days.
Dawg had changed over the years after all. He was harder. Still just as sexy, but more dangerous than he had been before he joined the Marines and definitely more mature.
He had proven that today. Crista had watched as he moved through the office after the sheriff’s men had finished dusting for prints, and the state police had finished their questions.
They could find nothing moved, nothing bothered. The only proof there was that there might have been a break-in was the suspected tampering with the security cameras and the lock on the office door.
And Crista felt sorry for the culprit, because Dawg looked mad enough to draw blood hours later.
He had sent the employees home after the police left and locked up behind Layla before leading Crista back into the office.
She stared at him from the other end of the large room as she straightened the lamp on the table by the couch and he stored the last of the files. His eyes were narrowed, his expression brooding as he turned to her.
“Do you realize you just destroyed years of deliberate chaos?” Dawg asked as the last of the files were stored away and she gave the furniture a final buffing with the polish she used. Everything gleamed, even the hardwood floor beneath their feet.
She turned and looked around, realizing how large the office was. There was plenty of room for the other file cabinets she wanted as well as the extra desk Dawg had ordered one of the stock floor boys to put together for her in the morning. A nice miniature version of the huge walnut desk he was using himself.
Deliberate chaos he called it. A slap at the father that would have taken even this from him, if he could have managed to do it without looking like the monster he had been.
“Chaos doesn’t beat success. ” She shrugged. “Organization can raise productivity and profits. The way it is, the chain lumber stores are still running ahead of you in profits and customers. We want to pull those customers to Mackay’s. ”
He leaned against the file cabinet and regarded her quizzically. “It makes enough money. Even with the court battle Johnny and his mother waged against me those first years, I came out of it a very rich man, Crista. ”
“And that’s enough for you?” She knew Dawg better than that.
“It’s more than most have. ” That irritable frown was on his face again, the one that encouraged the person he was talking to, to go straight to hell.
