Page 65 of Westin

She gestured toward Clint. “You were the one who put the idea in my mind.”

“Your partner?”

“Wait! What are the two of you talking about?” Westin demanded.

Lee turned to him even as she made a wild gesture toward Clint. “He suggested that my partner sent me up here intentionally. That he wanted me stuck in the middle of freaking nowhere when Fang caught up with me.”

“Why would he do that?”

Lee snorted. “Good gosh-darn question!” She twisted her hands together, wringing them mercilessly until the pain in her bones made her stop. “I hacked his computer.”

“Will’s?”

“Will who?”

She groaned. Too many damn questions!

“I can’t breathe,” she muttered, suddenly doubling over. “I need to get the hell out of here!”

Westin was immediately there, sweeping her up into his arms and cradling her head against his shoulder. Tears began to fall, humiliatingly enough. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d shed a tear, let alone in front of two men she so deeply respected. They’d taken her in when she was desperate, no questions asked, and here she was, delivering a shitload of trouble on their doorstep! What the hell was she going to do?

Clint had jumped to his feet, too, and without her asking, he gathered up the computer and the memory chip she’d left sitting beside it. Westin carried her downstairs, not setting her on her feet until they reached Clint’s truck and she had nowhere to go but into the passenger seat.

“Westin!”

A girl, too old to be a child but still too young to be an adult, came rushing toward them, her eyes filled with the same sort of tears Lee had cried upstairs. She threw her arms around Westin, burying her face against his shoulder even as a gleam of fear entered his dark-blue eyes.

“Rena?”

“I’ve been so worried! When father came out of the study and started ranting about finding you, about the things he was going to do when he did…!”

Westin’s eyes jumped to Lee’s face even as he gently pushed the girl back, holding her jaw so that she was forced to slow down, to look up at him.

“What are you talking about?”

“Last night! I’m so ashamed of his behavior! How dare he throw you out like that?”

“What did your father tell you about what happened last night?”

“That you attacked him—but don’t worry, darling; I know you wouldn’t do that.”

“Darling?” Lee asked, an ironic twist to the word.

“Who are you?” the girl asked, suddenly noticing Lee for the first time.

“I could ask you that, too.” She focused on Westin. “Is this who you dressed up for last night?”

Westin’s expression was priceless. He knew he was caught, and he wasn’t sure what to say. But the girl in his arms didn’t notice. All she saw was green, the color of jealousy. She pulled away from Westin and stepped into Lee, pushing her back against the side of Clint’s truck like she thought she was tough.

“You need to back off. This is none of your business!”

“Yeah? Is that why he spent the night in my bed last night?” She shot a look at Westin. “Is this the game you were talking about last night? You’re carrying on with this girl, too?” She shook her head even as she gave the girl a once-over and found her less than impressive. “If that’s how he wants to play, you can have him, sweetheart.”

But the strength had gone out of the girl. She stepped back, shaking her head like the mere act would make Lee take her words back. “Westin?” she asked softly, turning her big, sad eyes on him. Lee almost felt bad. She clearly thought he was the moon and the stars.

But, again, so had Lee. For a while, anyway.

“You don’t understand.” Westin reached for Lee’s arm as she turned to get into the truck. The girl cried out and turned, running off into the open space beyond the house, her slight body already shivering with cold and the heartbreak Lee had just delivered.

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