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I was tempted to tell him to fuck right off, but I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of having something to print. Your words could be used against you, but your silence couldn’t be misquoted.
“We can talk in public.” Lennie pointed at Chrome Canvas Bar. “I’ll go inside and wait for you there. Okay?” Adjusting his collar, he strode off.
“He’s heading into the bar on the off-chance that I’ll follow,” I informed Dax. “I’d love to go in there and rip him a new one.”
“It’s best not to give him anything worth publishing.”
“Yeah, I get that. I’m still tempted.” Spotting a familiar person walking toward the car, I felt my insides relax. “Maverick’s here.” I wound down my window and smiled at the newcomer. “It turns out he’s a reporter by the name of Lennie Fowler. He’s in the bar.”
His expression hard, Maverick studied my face. “You all right?”
“No, because I can’t punch him in the dick. And I really, really want to.”
Maverick’s lips twitched. “Stay here.” He then walked away and went into the bar.
I closed my window and let my head tip back.
“I’m almost there,” said Dax. “You can go home now. I’ll deal with this.”
I snorted. “Go home while you handle a situation I pulled you into? Oh, you’re funny.”
“Addison.”
“Hey, I’d understand if something was about to happen that you wouldn’t want me to see. I get that you don’t want … certain things … to touch me. But all you’re going to do is talk to him.” Dax couldn’t exactly physically let loose on someone in public. “And anyway, it’s not like …” I trailed off as something caught my attention. “Ugh, he’s tearing across the lot. Lennie, I mean. I’m guessing he’s running from Maverick.”
Dax let out a sound that was something between a grunt and a snort. “He won’t get far.”
I watched as Maverick followed the reporter at a slower pace, smirking when Lennie cursed at the sight of the Chevy. “Let me guess. Maverick slashed one or more of his tires as a precaution.” Dax must have told him I was being tailed by a bronze Chevy—there was only one of those parked here, so Maverick would have known which vehicle to target.
My gaze darted away from the spectacle as another vehicle entered the lot. One I knew well. My pulse spiked. “I see you.”
“I’m hanging up now. Wait in the car.” He rang off.
I angled myself a little to get a better view as Dax parked near the Chevy. He unfolded from the car in that fluid way he had and crossed to Lennie, who instantly took a step back, the anger slipping from his expression to be replaced by dread. Ha.
Dax began to speak, but I couldn’t make out the words. I lowered my window enough that his voice could filter into my car.
“I’m a reporter, interviewing people is what I do,” the asshole defended. “It ain’t personal.”
“Addison is my wife, Fowler, so I consider this very personal,” said Dax, his voice hard as stone.
“You shouldn’t. It’s just business. You’re both high profile people for different reasons. The public will want a glance at the inside of your marriage, and the press are going to want to provide it. Don’t think you can tell me what I can or can’t write.” Brave words, but there was a shake to his voice that betrayed his nerves.
Dax gave him a superior look. “I don’t care what you print, Fowler. That’s the thing—nobody does anymore. Not after it was proven that you have a tendency to fake and embellish stories.”
Lennie’s face set into a mask of resentment. “It was you who exposed that, wasn’t it? You cost me my job.”
“Your actions cost you your job. Now, as I said before, I don’t care what you choose to print. But I do care that you’re tailing my wife.”
“It’s not like I’m stalking her. I just wanted an opportunity to talk to her.”
“She doesn’t want to speak to you. I think you received that message when she didn’t leave her vehicle, but you pushed anyway.”
Lennie sighed. “Like it or not, you make good clickbait, and the women in your life have a habit of talking to the media. I won’t be the only reporter to approach your wife hoping she’ll do the same.”
“Maybe not. But, like you, they’ll achieve nothing.” Dax pinned him with a menacing glare. “In future, keep your distance from Addison.”
Lennie swallowed hard. “Or what?”
