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Asher felt the slow steady beat of his heart as he stood in the middle of the street. Any pedestrians that were on the street were gone the second he pulled his weapon. But Asher could feel the cell phones trained on him, the watchful eyes of the public making sure they did their job right. He never minded an audience. They did good police work in Stoney Creek. He trained his weapon straight for the windshield, ready to take out the driver if he made a move.
Boone closed in from the back, weapon aimed at the car. Rhett had tackled Lars to the ground when he’d run out of the parking garage, and already had him in cuffs behind Asher. They’d stayed a step ahead of King. Asher had lost Remy once. That wouldn’t happen again.
He kept his weapon aimed at King’s bodyguard in case he hit the gas. “We have no business with you, King,” Asher called. “I want Remy. Let her exit and you can leave.”
A long moment passed as the breeze rushed across the street, swirling the leaves in front of the limo. The door closest to Boone opened and Remy jumped out, then hurried to Asher’s side. Everything that had been wrong was suddenly right again. Asher lowered his weapon, seeing Boone do the same. The limo drove away without further incident, and Asher hoped that was the last time he saw King and his men.
When they moved farther down the road, Asher holstered his weapon and took Remy by the shoulders, scanning her from head to toe. “Are you hurt at all?” he asked.
“You weren’t supposed to get involved!” she snapped, poking his chest. “I didn’t want you involved with King. This was my mess, my problem. You had a gun aimed at him!”
Asher dropped his face into her neck, inhaling the sweet scen
t of her. The one scent he could recognize anywhere. “I didn’t get involved with King. Rhett got Lars. That’s who the DA wanted. That’s who I needed to bring in to keep you out of trouble. As you saw, King drove off without any interference from us.”
“Oh.” She immediately softened and stepped into his arms.
He chuckled and then kissed her forehead. “So, now can we agree that we’re a team? From here on out, we do this together. I won’t get overly protective. And you won’t completely shut me out and jump into the bad guy’s SUV?”
“Okay, I can make that deal.” She laughed softly and then added, “You know, I actually don’t think he’s a bad guy at all.”
Asher leaned away. “What do you mean?”
“He saved my life,” she said, sending Asher reeling, and went on. “After Joaquin said my debt was clear to him, Lars got into the car. That’s when things got weird. He had Lars admit that he planned on killing me tonight after I paid the debt.” She paused to shake her head. “He must still believe that I was in on all this with Damon from the start.”
Asher’s nostrils flared. “Lars would never have gotten close to you before his life ended.”
She gave him a sweet smile. “I have no doubt that’s very much true.”
He wrapped his arms around her, realizing himself how much they’d grown since he left her. Maybe that was the takeaway in all this. They fought for their happiness after coming from pasts that nearly drowned them. “Out of curiosity, what exactly did King say to Lars?”
“Joaquin said I was under his protection and not to be touched.” She stared at him for a long moment, probably at the confusion racking him, and then she shrugged. “Yeah, it surprised me too.”
“Under his protection?” Boone asked, sidling up next to Asher, his eyes wide with the same shock Asher felt rushing through him. “Why would he put you under his protection? That makes no sense.”
Again, she shrugged. “I don’t even know if I can explain it right, but through all this, I kind of got the feeling that he was looking out for me.”
“I think that’s just your kind heart, Remy,” Rhett said, closing in on Remy’s right. “This man is dirty.”
Remy considered that and then shook her head. “I know it seems that way, believe me, but that’s just how it felt. Even his bodyguards were almost…professional with me.” She hesitated, then laughed softly. “I know it sounds insane, but honestly, I felt like he was trying to keep me safe.”
Asher exchanged a long look with the guys. There was more to King, Asher would bet on it, but it also wasn’t his problem. And right now, all he cared about was Remy. Only her.
“And what of Lars?” Boone asked.
“I kind of…sort of…got the feeling that Lars was a giant pain in the ass,” Remy explained. “Like, he brought more annoyance than anything else.”
“That’s not surprising,” Asher muttered. “He’s been a royal pain in my ass and I’ve barely had to deal with him.”
“Good thing we got him into custody, then,” Rhett said. He turned to Asher. “DA confirmed Lars’s fingerprints matched the ones found in Remy’s house after the break-in, and without a doubt, he’ll serve time for harassing Remy. That will give the investigators in Whitby Falls time to get a case together on him for conspiracy and likely the murder of Fanning.”
“Damn glad to hear that.” Asher sighed a breath of relief.
So did Remy. “It’s over, then? All of this? It’s done?”
Asher gathered her in close, noting Boone and Rhett heading toward the awaiting cruiser, where Lars still sat in the back seat. “It’s over. All of this. It’s done.”
Chapter 24
