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“I’d be very okay with that,” André said. But they had to get through this shitstorm first.
Dante’s dark hair was plastered to his forehead, a streak of mud ran from temple to chin, and he was wet to the skin. But the grin broadened, his teeth gleamed, and his blue eyes sparkled. He was the sexiest man André had ever known, and the only man André wanted in his life.
“Damn, I want to get started now. Let’s get this situation wrapped up so we can figure the rest out. Still no hospital. I want to get naked, take a shower, and spend the night in your bed. That’s a life goal in case you’re curious. I’m always going to want to spend the night with you.”
The rain continued to bucket down. They were both soaking and covered with mud, rotten leaves, and god knew what else, and all André wanted to do was grab Dante and hold him tight. To prove to himself that Dante was alive and well.
Fifty feet away, the smoldering wreckage of the Honda sedan’s engine sparked again, sending up a tiny display of fireworks. The torrent of water falling from the sky kept the fire from spreading and, thanks to Deputy Cooper, the county’s volunteer fire crew was on the way.
André was not going to ask what Morrison had done.
“Where’s Dani?” Dante demanded, looking around as if someone had snatched Dani right out from under their noses. His query was followed by a loud groan as he started to stand up.
“Let me give you a hand. She and the dog are sitting with Morrison for now.”
Aware that Dani had witnessed her mother’s murder, André had been hesitant about exposing her to more trauma. He’d had Lani escort her to Morrison’s car before they knew for certain that the vest had done its job protecting her uncle.
“I want to see her.”
“If you’re in such good shape, how about you get your ass over to the car instead of making your niece get soaked to the skin all over again?”
André was soaked too. They all were. He’d grabbed a second plastic slicker for himself out of Lani’s trunk, but all it did was make his wet clothes feel cold and oddly sweaty.
He’d been closing in on the first intruder, but when they reached the street, the coward had seen the sedan in flames and kept running, putting on more speed and distance between them. Legs pumping, André had kept after him, but the wet clothing and water-soaked shoes slowed him down. When the intruder vaulted over a fence and disappeared, André had known it was a lost cause. After glaring at the fence, André had turned back, calling Deputy Cooper with an update as he slogged back to the scene.
Hands on his hips and lips pressed tightly together, Dante straightened to his full height.
“Stubborn.”
“I’m fine.”
Gingerly, Dante began slowly to make his way to the Taurus.
Shaking his head again, André moved to catch up with him. The least he could do was make sure Dante didn’t fall over. That would hurt.
“Just to reiterate. I never want to go through something like that again.”
When he’d returned to Dante’s house, having given up the chase for perp number two, Morrison had been nowhere in sight, just the flaming car illuminated the street. Trusting that the absolute sheeting rain would keep anything else from catching fire, he’d slipped and slid his way through the churned-up grass and moss to the backyard, only to see Morrison heaving Dante up off the cold, wet ground—after he’d clocked the second intruder on the back of the head.
For a too-long horrible second, André had thought Dante was dead.
Looking up, Morrison had seen the expression on his face. “He’s just stunned.”
“Fucking,fucking, hurts,” Dante had managed, confirming that he was, indeed, alive.
By the time they got back to the front of the house, Deputy Cooper had arrived, helped Dani out of the basement, and called in the emergency services. She deserved a raise.
Morrison’s blow had dazed the shooter enough that André had easily been able to slap cuffs on him. He’d enjoyed it, and if they were a bit tight, so be it. The fucker had shot Dante almost point-blank, obviously intending to kill him. With one hand, Morrison had heaved him a few inches off the ground and basically dragged him face-first through the mud, around the house, and to the street while André pretended not to notice.
“Let go of me! Who the fuck do you think you are? I know my rights! My lawyer will have your badge taken away! I have friends you can’t touch.”
“Good luck with that seeing as how I’m not a police officer. Just a citizen lending a hand. Deputy Cooper here might be willing to listen to your complaints though,” Morrison said as he effortlessly tossed the creep into the backseat of Lani’s cruiser.
André had found Morrison’s move impressive. The perp did not, and the mention of Lani Cooper incensed him further.
“Fuck you and fuck bitch cops,” he spat, finishing up with, “They’re only good for one thing.” The asshole probably would’ve grabbed his crotch if he wasn’t handcuffed. As it was, he settled for sticking his tongue out and dragging it across his lips.
Silence swirled around them. Even the rain drops seemed to fall with quiet hesitation. Lani Cooper, all five foot six inches of her, sauntered menacingly toward the three men and their handcuffed prisoner sitting in the back of her car.
