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His face transforms into a mask of anger. He tosses his pants to the side and stalks over, swinging me through the air to my back, and hovering over me.
“He fucked with your security system. It was a warning how easily he could get to you. The trail back to him was layered and deep. Poor college kid took a payment, thinking he was part of a think tank to intercept security signals and repair any glitches.”
“I—"
“The man who abducted you was a drug runner from Mexico climbing the ranks of his organization. He’s a rapist, murderer, and child molester.”
“But—”
“The bastards that beat us were the same. Rap sheets a mile long. Always a technicality getting them out of the system. Blood money transferring hands, witness statements discarded—you name it, it happened. So those fuckers are working the streets, distributing illegal shit all over the place with a network that webs through the country. And they FUCKING TOUCHED YOU!”
Rage ripples from him, permeating and stifling in the air. “You shot a man because of me.”
“You killed them!” I shout before he can cut me off again.
He jars, and I think fast. “And I’d shoot that man again and again if it meant saving you. Because since the moment we met, you’ve saved me.”
His body goes still.
“You are my hero, Ford. Have been since the night you came to my house last year when Craig hit me.”
A low, deep rumble echoes in his chest. Fury flares in his eyes.
“That night, I was ashamed. One look and my heart was frantic. You were beautiful, strong, and so angry. That anger was for me. Something inside me finally saw my worth.”
His hand cups the back of my head and sifts through my hair. “I failed you.”
“How?”
“That night on the patio, when you told me about your grandmother, I vowed to protect you.”
“Ford, you can’t make those promises. Life is hard. What happened is not your fault.”
“You saw me violently kill a man. Then shoot a man already down. Can you ever forget that?”
“Can you?”
“Do it again without blinking.”
“Good. I wanted to kill them myself. Luckily, you saved me the trouble.”
He studies me, his eyes dimming back to a deep green, turning thoughtful. “The chance of a Security Analyst being kidnapped and beaten are slim.”
“BORING!” I sigh dramatically.
His lips twitch, telling me I may have gotten through.
“I’m really okay, honey.”
“I’ll go with that. But shit like this can fester and take you down in a tailspin. Anytime the lines get blurry, talk to me.”
“Are you in that tailspin?”
“It’ll take some time for me.”
I know he’s not referring to his wounds.
“We’ll get through it together.”
