Page 62 of Lay Down the Law

Steeling himself against the sight of her, he said, “I’ve got to go.”

“Nick…”

Spurred by the knowledge that if she touched him again, he wouldn’t have the strength to walk away, he started for the door. “Effective immediately, you’re on administrative leave.”

“Administrative leave?” she echoed incredulously. “Wait a minute!”

He didn’t stop. “In the interim, one of my deputies or I will take turns watching your apartment.”

“Watching my apartment?”

“Someone has declared open season on you, or have you forgotten about that?”

“No, but—”

“You’ll still receive full pay. I’ll notify you when you can come back to work.”

“I don’t accept those terms!”

He prayed she wouldn’t come after him. He wasn’t sure what he would do if she touched him. Pull her against him and kiss her until they were both senseless, probably. Or maybe ease her down to the floor and make wild, passionate love to her until neither of them could move.

Quickening his pace, he flung open the door. The urge to glance back at her was strong, but he didn’t do it. He didn’t want to see the hurt in her eyes. He didn’t want to know he was the one who’d put it there. He stepped into the hall. She called out his name. He slammed the door behind him.

* * *

“Chief?”

Nick jerked at the sound of Hector’s voice. He looked up from the paperwork on his desk to see his deputy standing in the doorway of his office, staring at him as if he’d shaved his head and put a ring in his nose.

“Didn’t you hear your line buzzing?” Hector asked.

Nick frowned at the phone on his desk, noticing the blinking light. It wasn’t the first time in the twenty-four hours since he’d last seen Erin that he’d zoned out. “Who is it?” he growled.

“Frank Rossi returning your call.”

Waiting until Hector retreated into the main reception area, Nick punched the line. “It’s about time you called, Frank. I was starting to think you were avoiding me.”

“Now, why would I do that, partner?” the other man asked.

“Maybe it has something to do with Erin McNeal.”

“My favorite niece,” Frank said easily. “Good cop, too. How’s she working out?”

“Just fine, if I didn’t mind my deputies getting run off the road and shot at. Any idea what that might be about?”

Tense silence buzzed through one hundred miles of fiberoptic cable.

“I figured you might be able to fill me in, since you didn’t bother when you sent her down here,” Nick snapped. “Who’s after her, Frank?”

A curse broke the silence, then Frank sighed. “Is she all right?”

“She’s fine. I put her on admin leave. I’m still waiting for an answer.”

“I don’t have all the answers, Nick.”

“Since you obviously know more than I do, let’s start with what you do have.”

Frank sighed. “You’re aware of the shooting she was involved in six months back? The perp she took out in that warehouse the night Danny Perrine was shot?”