Page 116 of Steel

I nodded against his chest, gulping for air. How long had it been since I’d been so close to being this hysterical? I lifted my head, my eyes darting back and forth across his. “How am I supposed to get through this? How is Damon?”

“Together. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.” As he cupped my face, an entirely different feeling of warmth slipped into my system.

The sensations weren’t about the passion we shared, desire that usually overshadowed everything else. It wasn’t about the combative nature of our relationship, banter that fueled our interactions. What I felt was much stronger, much more alive.

For a few seconds, I couldn’t put my finger on what that was.

Yet as soon as he brushed his lips across mine, capturing them seconds later, I realized what I was searching for.

Home.

Being with him felt like home.

CHAPTER 26

Steel

A man could only take so much before he broke.

That’s the way I was feeling now two days after being forced to take Zorro back to the breeder. In truth, and something I wouldn’t share with Violet, I hadn’t been particularly nice to the woman.

Zorro had been way too skinny for a pup at six weeks old. That meant he hadn’t been given adequate care. While uncharacteristic of me, I’d raised my voice, not paying any attention to the fact I had an audience.

The couple coming to adopt Zorro had arrived early and had managed to hear the entire tirade. Or as most would call it, my childish tantrum. You bet I was frustrated with hearing about Kenneth calling her as well as being forced to give back the dog that Damon adored so much.

My berating had taken on a life of its own and I was a little surprised the breeder hadn’t contacted the police. I’d evenbeen devious, contacting Grace and asking for her veterinary expertise in if Zorro was malnourished. I’d also encouraged her to look into the organization and see if there were any red flags.

I’d yet to hear back from her, but that hadn’t meant I hadn’t been loaded for bear the moment I’d stepped from the truck with Zorro in my arms.

And the couple coming all the way from Colorado had heard everything. Violet had done such a good job of allowing Damon to feel like a hero to a little pup. The icing on the cake had been finding out the couple was retired and had no children or grandchildren. So much for that.

The beautiful woman with a heart of gold had moped around for two days. She’d been completely perfunctory, going about daily tasks with work, saying almost nothing.

From what I’d been able to tell, she hadn’t eaten a damn thing. She’d kept Damon close, which I understood and the two of them were like zombies.

This man had experienced enough. So I called Josie and asked for a huge favor. She’d arrived at the rental cabin with two flavors of ice cream, brownies, popcorn, Doritos, and two types of soft drinks. Along with a selection of movies that any kid should like.

Even one who’d had his heart broken.

I was whisking Violet away for a couple of hours so I could have a talk with her.

I’d thought a lot about how I felt about Violet over the last few days, maybe more than I should have. But with nothing but a fewpictures being taken for the calendar and training exercises with the team, I’d had a lot of time on my hands.

Too much so.

The two of us needed to have a conversation. I was worried about what Kenneth had on his mind, even asking a buddy of mine who was an attorney to see if he could find out if Kenneth had filed any custody papers. That way we could get a heads up as to what was coming.

Unfortunately, my buddy had mentioned that might take a little time.

I needed to confess how far I’d taken my research to her as well.

“I don’t think I should leave him.” Violet spun around, heading for the front door.

Without second guessing myself, I swept her off her feet and into my arms, carrying her to the truck. “Nope. We are going out. Just for a couple hours.”

“What if Damon needs me?”

“He’s in good hands with Josie. You can trust her.” I struggled but managed to open the truck door, easing her onto the seat. Where she promptly tried to climb out as expected. “Oh, no, you don’t. Are you trying to say you don’t trust my sister?”