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“Woman . . .”
She stood and pulled the covers off me. The cold air was motivation to get out of bed.
She paused in the doorway. “I always tried to take on everything myself, but it was the darnedest thing. Whenever I worked with my Hastings, the outcome was better.”
She disappeared, but I got her message loud and clear.
Talk to Teague.
Chapter Eight
Teague
“Hey, sleepyheads.”
Was I dreaming? Pepper sounded normal. Happy.
Ash’s body wiggled against mine.
I opened my eyes.
Pepper petted Ash’s head with a secretive smile on her face. “Think she’s trying to make sure you don’t go anywhere?”
I looked at the dog in my lap. The last thing I remembered was sitting in the chair and her jumping up with me. It was awkward, but she was content.
“I wish she wasn’t the only one.”
Pepper winced.
I snapped my mouth shut. It was too forward, even if it was the truth. And I was almost past the point of caring. But I didn’t want to push Pepper away.
“I don’t want to tell you about last night.” She propped on the edge of the desk.
“Did he hurt you?”
She shook her head. “No.”
My worst fears were confirmed when part of me had hoped I was wrong.
Hewas responsible.
My father.
“What does he want?”
If it was my attention, he had it. I tapped my foot in rapid succession. He’d gone too far. Again. Bothering me was one thing. Harassing Pepper? Completely another.
He was quickly dismantling her life.
I didn’t know how to stop him, only that I had to.
She reached down and placed a hand on my knee to still me.
“I’m sorry,” I said hoarsely. For dragging her into my mess. For disrupting her normal. For not being there to protect her.
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” And she sounded as if she genuinely meant that. Even if it wasn’t the truth.
“He could’ve killed you.”
