Page 69 of Cornered

“Did you get a ticket?”

“Why does everyone assume I’m going to get a ticket tonight?” She threw her hands up in exasperation. “No. I didn’t get a ticket. I didn’t wreck. I wasn’t speeding. Look, I’ll explain it all when I get home. Right now, I’m confirming that you’re home for the night. Donovan doesn’t want me to be by myself.”

“Yeah. I’m home. So is Meredith. We’re out here by the firepit. Cal and Landry just left. But I can get them back if you need me to.”

“No. I’ll be home in a few minutes.”

“I’ll be following her. Don’t shoot.” Donovan’s words had a hint of military command in them.

“Then I guess we’ll see you both. Be careful.” Mo’s tone matched Donovan’s.

Lovely.

She disconnected. “Please don’t pick a fight with my cousins.”

“I’m not trying to pick a fight. But I’m not going to step aside and let your cousins bully me into staying away from you.” He checked his weapon, keys, phone, and hat. “Let’s go.”

“Donovan?” She paused at the door.

“Yes?”

She’d wanted nothing more than to get away from him just a few minutes ago. So why was she suddenly compelled to hash everything out now? She had no idea, but she couldn’t fight it. “Should we, you know, maybe, talk? Before I go home?”

“No.”

His abrupt response cut her more deeply than she’d thoughtpossible. She didn’t know what her face looked like, but whatever he saw made him close his eyes for a brief moment and shake his head. Then he reached for her.

And like the total pushover that she was, she let him pull her against him. “We can talk all night if you wantafterwe get you safely home. Part of my job is to think of the worst-case scenarios and not to make assumptions. It’s possible that the deer was bad timing and some teenagers are out there thinking they are funny when they aren’t. But I don’t like the timing. So I’m following you home. When we get you on Quinn land, we automatically make you safer.” He ran a thumb across her cheek. “When you’re safe, I’ll be able to think straight. And then we can talk. Yeah?”

Her body was reacting to his proximity. Her mind was screaming reminders of how he’d hurt her. And her heart was telling her mind to shut up because no one else made her feel this way.

DONOVAN STEPPED AWAYfrom Cassie. “Let’s get you home.”

He didn’t think it was his imagination that she didn’t want to move out of his embrace. Good.

He stayed close, one hand on her lower back, as they locked up his house and walked back to her car. He opened her door. She climbed in. “Please stay close.”

She rolled her eyes. “What do you think I’m going to do? Floor it and force you to give me a ticket?”

He couldn’t stop himself from grinning. “Might be fun.”

“For you maybe. My insurance is already sky high.” Cassie was still grumbling as he closed her door and left to climb into his own vehicle.

He flashed his lights at her when he was ready, and to hercredit, she kept it in the vicinity of the speed limit as they maneuvered through town and toward Quinn land.

His phone rang. Stu again.

He didn’t bother with a greeting. “I’m still not sure what I’m going to do with the deer. I’m working on it.”

“Yeah. I don’t care about the deer. It’s fine for now. Listen, I need to ask you something.” Stu’s voice was low, as if he was trying to keep anyone from overhearing.

“What do you want to know?”

“Do you think the deer being in the road right when Cassie drove by was random? Because I don’t.”

“What makes you say that?”

“That mess at The Haven is all over the county. Everyone knows the kitchen was trashed and Cassie and Bronwyn found it.”

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