Page 39 of Treat Her Right

“That was the closest I’ve ever seen him come to losing it.” Josh turned to face her. “That bullet wound he’s got? Well, he knew he’d get shot when he went after that woman. I don’t mean that he thought the odds would be good, I mean that he knew some of the rioters were firingather, determined not to let her be saved, just to prove some fanatical point. Zack put himself between her and those bullets. He willingly risked his life for a person he didn’t know from Adam. That’s just how he is. He can’t bear to see anyone hurt.”

He drew a breath, then finished. “You can imagine what it did to him that he wasn’t there for Rebecca.”

“He blamed himself?”

“Yeah, he did. For a while. Then Dani got to him. For almost two weeks she was a perfect baby. Cooing when she was hungry, sleeping sound, and then bam, right out of the blue she became a tiny demon.” Josh laughed. “Man, she put Zack through hell. He’d come in off a long shift and the sitter would say that Dani had slept and had been happy. Then she’d hear Zack and start making demands. When he was around, she wanted him to hold her. She wouldn’t let him give her only half his attention.”

Wynn considered all that. “You’re saying he ignored her at first?”

“Hell, no. He made sure she was taken care of and he kissed her goodbye and hugged her hello, but he wasn’t yet attached to her. He felt a responsibility for her, but he had so much grief, so much remorse, there wasn’t much room for anything else, much less love. Till Dani took over.”

“He’s a good father.”

“He’s agreatfather. The absolute best. And he’d make a helluva husband, too.”

Wynn was just digesting that not so subtle hint when Zack growled from the doorway, “I appreciate the accolades, Josh, but you’reway out of line.”

Josh said, “Uh, you didn’t leave any dead bodies outside, did you?”

“Knock it off.” He walked farther into the room. “You know I’m a pacifist.”

“Right. Whatever you say.” He skirted around Zack with theatrical fanfare, and said, “I think I’ll talk to your friends, Wynn. They seem like very nice fellows.”

The screen door fell shut a second later. Wynn slowly came to her feet to face Zack. “Nice fellows,” he mimicked. “They seemed like possessive, jealous fellows to me.”

“Protective, not possessive. I told you I haven’t dated any of them.”

“Did you? I don’t seem to recall that conversation.”

She cleared her throat. “Everything okay outside?”

He advanced on her, his gaze locked on hers. “If you mean has everyone played nice, yes. But your bully boys gave me the third degree.”

“They didn’t!” Dismay filled her. How could she make a good impression on a man like Zack if Bo kept behaving like an ass?

“They did.”

As he reached her, she stepped behind her chair. She wasn’t afraid of Zack, but she didn’t understand his mood either. He seemed on edge, yet also sort of…accepting. But accepting of what? Something was definitely different, of that she was certain. “I’m sorry.”

“They seem to think you have your ‘sights set on me,’ as they put it.”

Oh God, oh God, oh God…She just knew her face was flaming. She only had one brother, and he was enough to contend with without his friends trying to take over the role, too. Hoping to excuse their bizarre behavior, she said, “I, ah, don’t show a lot of interest in the opposite sex.”

Zack cocked a brow. “What are you telling me?Malesdon’t interest you?”

“No! That is, I meant that I don’t show a lot of interest inanysex.”

One side of Zack’s mouth curled in an amused, mocking smile.

She bit her tongue, then took two long breaths. “Imean,” she stated, “that I don’t usually chase a guy. I’ve got friends, and that’s it.” And so she didn’t sound pathetic, she added, “That’s as much as I want.”

His voice was oddly gentle when he quipped, “Glad to hear it.”

He was now so close she felt his breath when he spoke. Just two inches and she could be kissing him again. She considered it, but held back because she didn’t know if he’d be receptive to the idea. So far he’d acted really put out over their mutual attraction—even to the point of denying it was mutual.

Which, she realized, meant he was so close because he wanted to intimidate her. She frowned. “That was before meeting you, Zack. I want you. I haven’t made a secret of that. But you should understand that what happened in the yard the other day was an aberration for me, too. I don’t regret it, but no way has it ever happened before.”

His mouth twisted, and she got the awful suspicion he didn’t believe her.

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