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When it rang a third time in less than a minute and remained buzzing for a full thirty seconds, he shoved to his feet and didn’t stop cussing until he reached the great room. If it was such a frickin’ emergency, why not use the damn phone?
At the last minute, he noticed the security alarm was set and swore under his breath again. Without even bothering with a glance through the glass panel on the side, he keyed in the code and yanked open the door.
The last person he expected to see was Gina, a duffle bag slung over her shoulder as she shivered in the night air without a jacket.
“You thought I was working with Jackson? Well he thinks I’m working with you. I’d rather be on your side.”
Taking in the furious expression that went with her angry greeting, he wordlessly stood aside for her to enter.
Whatever had happened to piss her off—
Dean spotted a fresh bruise on her cheek as she passed beneath the recessed lighting inside the foyer. He gave the door a reactive shove and caught her arm. As he spun her to face him, she gasped loud enough to be heard over the explosive echo of the slamming door. He immediately let go as she pulled away, her shoulder hunched. She lifted her other arm to rub the spot where he’d grabbed her and started to walk away.
“Hold on.” He grasped the short sleeve of her T-shirt and pushed it up onto her shoulder. The distinct finger marks marring her light skin made his heart constrict in his chest. That gol-damn sonofabitch.
“What the hell did he do?” His gaze flew to hers. He was almost afraid to ask. “Did he…?”
“No,” she denied with a shake of her head. Hard to tell if the color that flooded her face was embarrassment or anger. The shadow that darkened her eyes made Dean think the bastard had probably tried.
“He threatened me about keeping my mouth shut,” she said, her voice as furious as before. “Well, guess what? Suddenly, I don’t feel like being quiet anymore.”
Her cheek drew his attention again. She’d tried to cover it with make-up, but if it looked that bad with some camouflage, he could just imagine when she washed her face. Fury barreled through him, balling his hands into fists. If Jack was in front of him right now he was pretty sure he’d beat him to death.
Forcing his hands to unclench, he gently slipped the duffle bag from her shoulder. “You staying?”
She nodded. The fact that she trusted him enough to come to him struck on a whole other level. The base instinct to protect her resurfaced stronger than ever.
“Just tonight, though,” she quickly said. “My friends own JBM Ranch not far from here, so tomorrow I’ll talk to Britt about staying with them. I didn’t go there tonight because they’ve got a three month old baby, and I didn’t want to bother them this late at night.”
“No problem.” He lightly tossed her bag in the direction of the guest bedrooms she’d been working on the past two days. “Tonight, tomorrow, stay as long as you need.”
“Thank you.”
He jerked his head toward the kitchen. “Come on. I bet you could use a drink.”
She hesitated. “That might not be a good idea on an empty stomach.”
“Are you hungry?”
“Not really.”
His anger surged again at what Jack had put her through. Somehow he’d make Brady pay. “How about some tea? I think Liz keeps some here.”
He led her into the kitchen and snuck glances while he filled the tea kettle and turned on the burner. Her composure was commendable, though he realized, now that she’d voiced her anger, she looked exhausted.
Pretty much on cue, she reached up to cover a yawn.
“Did you report this to the police?” he asked.
“No.”
“You should.”
“I have no proof. Specifically against him,” she amended when he flicked a frown toward her bruised face. “No one saw what happened. A neighbor stepped out into the hall, but he didn’t actually see Jackson’s face.”
If he’d have been there, he’d have chased the sonofabitch down and given him a taste of his own medicine.
“You said he thinks we’re working together,” he mused, taking a mug and a glass from the cupboard. “Maybe he’s the one who broke into your office.”
