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I nod. “Yeah. Just here for the summer. Then I’ll be gone. Only here for a few months. Weeks, really, if you?—”
“Shut up.”
“K.” My hand goes to cover my mouth. “Oops. I mean…”
For the love of God, Kitt. SHUT. UP.
He almost smiles, the corner of his perfectly formed lips tilting upward ever so slightly. The break in his hard face gives me tiny butterfly wings of hope, fluttering in my belly. He might let me go.
“Now tell me, lassie. You’re not looking for any trouble, are ye?”
“No—” His stern gaze hits me. I shut up, shake my head, vigorously, so he gets the point. No.
“Good. Seeing as you’re a girl, such a pretty one at that?—”
Me? Pretty?
“And seeing as you’re not from around here, I think I can make an exception. For you. American girl. This one time. As long as you can keep your mouth shut.”
“Oh, thank God! I—of course I can!”
I think of the flames licking at the side of the building and realize the longer we’re here, the longer it will take me to call the police, and the more damage will happen to the research center. I need to make him leave. “You go on and I’ll be on my way. Mouth shut.” I zip my lips.
“You talk a lot.” He cups his chin, running his hand over his beard as he stares out over the ocean for a moment. He turns his tractor-beam blue eyes back onto me. “How can I be sure you won’t talk about this?”
I lie there on my back, looking up at him from the ditch. My hands move as I speak. “Do I chatter a bit too much when I get nervous? Sure. Am I a snitch? Absolutely not. I mean, we’re only talking about a little property damage.” Property damage that seriously needs to be dealt with RIGHT NOW. “Nothing that needs reporting.”
He stands, his head turning toward the truck. Seeing no movement, he takes a few steps, closing in on me. I feel like my heart bangs against my chest each time his boot sole lands on the ground.
When he’s only a foot from me, he crouches down again, bending his knees, resting on his haunches. He reaches out to touch my face.
It takes every ounce of bravery in my body to not flinch away as he cups my chin in his hand.
He shakes his head, the corner of those perfect lips tilting to one side. He just stares at me a moment, holding my trembling face, his skin warm and rough from working.
“No, sweetheart. What you witnessed.” His blue eyes pierce mine. “Was much worse.”
Chapter Three
Kitt
I stand beside Fiona, praying to God no one notices how badly I’m shaking. Keeping my hands hidden deep in the pockets of my blue fleece pullover, I keep my eyes glued to the tops of my boots.
Fiona shakes her head, saying, “I cannot believe this,” for what feels like the hundredth time. Only, the “cannot” sounds more like it’s spelled the way they say it here, cannae. I love the Scottish accent and I try to dwell on the cadence of his speech as the inspector addresses our small, gathered crowd.
I look up at the man who’s speaking, arranging my face in a mask of calm.
“Again. My name is Detective Inspector Collins and if you have any—” He pauses for a moment, his dark eyes scanning the crowd. They land right on me. I swallow hard and clear my throat, looking away as he continues. “Any information at all, please contact me day or night. My number will be on the board in the big room. Any fact, no matter how trivial it may seem, could help us figure out who committed this horrific act, leaving one man dead and a building destroyed.”
Oh God. Oh God. Oh God.
I make eye contact with Detective Inspector Collins, or DI as they say, here. My stomach flips upside down. I’m going to be sick. Or pee my pants. Maybe both. I feel like he’s looking right in my direction and only in my direction, like he has some sixth sense telling him that I am the only witness to this heinous crime.
When I first agreed with the sexy dangerous man to keep my mouth shut, I didn’t know that a man’s life had been taken.
The tips of my fingers brush over my chin, thinking of his touch. Warmth creeps up the back of my neck, remembering his piercing eyes, his gravelly voice, his rough hand. Shame fills my chest as that heat seems to find its way between my thighs.
“Stop it,” I hiss.
