Page 20 of Lone Star Target

“No,” Summers was quick to say. “But the ambulance is here, and when I called up to tell Angel, he mentioned you and Miss Barclay were on your way down to the bottom level. I got worried when I didn’t see you.”

“We’re fine,” Jace assured him, “and I need for you to take this into evidence. Brandon Barclay will explain how and where he found it.”

“He found it because someone planted it,” Kit heard her brother shout, and she looked over the cop’s shoulder to see Trevor storming toward them.

Her father and Deanna were right behind him. Angel and Brandon, too, and as Jace had done to her, Angel had Brandon positioned near the wall and was protecting her nephew with his body.

“I’m sorry,” Brandon said, looking and sounding plenty distressed. “I let it slip about the phones.”

“Phones that you planted,” Trevor snarled, aiming the accusation at Kit. He reached out to snatch the bag from the cop, but both Jace and Summers blocked him.

“I’m taking these into evidence,” Officer Summers insisted.

“You’re taking lies and deceit into evidence,” Trevor snapped. He flung an accusing finger at Kit. “She did this. She’s setting me up.”

“I haven’t been to your office in months,” Kit reminded him.

“Then, you paid someone to put them there. Someone like him,” Now, Trevor shifted his hard stare to Jace.

“Yes, Malley would have done this,” Ramsey piped up. “He would do anything to get back at my family. He was nothing but a gold-digging lowlife nineteen years ago, and that hasn’t changed.”

Jace didn’t appear to give in to the anger.

Kit did.

“You scumbag, piece of shit,” she fired back, stepping toward her father. “I let you beat me down back then but not now. Jace is a far better man than you’ll ever be.”

The rage shot through Ramsey’s eyes, and he actually lunged at her. Jace moved in front of her and gripped onto her father’s shoulders. “Lay one hand on her, and she’ll be the last person you ever touch.”

Jace hadn’t shouted. And unlike her father, there wasn’t that tight rage in his tone. It was dangerously calm. Ramsey stepped back. No calmness for him though. But he did manage a smirk.

“You’ll always be a lowlife,” Ramsey muttered under his breath.

Something snapped inside Kit. All those years of pent-up anger. All those years of loathing her father for what he’d done to Jace and her. Instead of punching Ramsey to wipe that smirk off his face, she went in another direction.

She kissed Jace.

Her mouth landed on his, and she pressed hard, hard and way too deep considering the kiss wasn’t, well, real.

Kit wasn’t sure who was more surprised by what she’d done—Jace or her father. She didn’t wait around to find out either. She came out of the elevator, threading her way past her family and Angel. Of course, Jace didn’t let her leave alone. He was right behind her as Angel motioned for them to step to the side with him.

With the anger still fueling pretty much everything about her, Kit had to force herself to throttle back, and she braced herself for some kind of remark from Angel or Jace about that kiss.

But the remarks didn’t come.

“I’ve worked it out so we can all give our statements to the cops later today,” Angel said. He looked at Jace. “And considering the shooting, I suggest you skip going to Kit’s home and office and go straight to your place.”

“I agree,” Jace said darn fast.

Kit nearly questioned the “your place” part of that, but Angel continued.

“Slade just arrived to take over bodyguard duty for Brandon so the three of us can leave right now.” He motioned to the beefy man who was now standing next to Brandon.

“Slade?” Kit asked.

“One of the team,” Jace supplied. “He’s good.” He tipped his head in greeting to Slade and then glanced back at Officer Summers, who was in the process of leaving with the bag of phones.

Trevor was trailing along behind him, protesting his innocence, but thankfully Summers wasn’t stopping. He looked like a cop on a mission.

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