Page 82 of Colton's Last Resort

“Why did you go into that bungalow?” he asked. He’d needed to ask from the moment he’d found out she’d gone. “You thought Dayton Ferraday killed Allison, and you went to confront him and his father? Why?”

“It’s my fault,” she said. “He could only assault Bella because I didn’t warn Housekeeping or others that he was a predator. I should’ve told them to steer clear of Bungalow Three. I went because I wanted to be the one to tell Dayton Ferraday that he will spend the rest of his life paying for what he’s done.”

“Ferraday didn’t kill Allison,” Noah told her.

She stopped. “What?”

“Father and son gave their real alibis,” Noah explained weightily. “They check out.”

“But the date rape...the fentanyl...his attack on Bella... It all fits.”

“Small traces of Ecstasy were recovered from Bungalow Three,” Noah went on. “There’s no sign of fentanyl.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means CJ Knight is now the chief suspect in this investigation. But that’s for me to worry about. You can’t do this to me again. You can’t go charging into a suspect’s bungalow and try to take matters into your own hands. Whoever killed Allison will most likely kill you.”

“I am not Allison!” she said, raising her voice.

“The man had you in a choke hold.”

“I was doing my job.”

“So was my sister,” he reminded her. Unable to stop himself, he reached out to feather his touch across the first stain of bruising. “It’s starting to hurt. Isn’t it? And he scared you. That’s the reason you were doing laps out there. Because you were alone long enough to feel the fear again.” He pressed his cheek to hers, felt the shaking in her limbs and pulled her close, not caring that she was wet and he wasn’t.

When he lifted her into his arms, she protested. He quieted her by touching his mouth to the rim of her jaw. “It’s a soak in the tub for you. Then bed.”

“You sound like Tallulah.”

“Do you listen to her?”

“Sometimes.” She pillowed her head on his shoulder, giving in as he sidestepped through the door to the bedroom so she wouldn’t catch her toes on the jamb. There, he set her on the wingback chair.

“Take off your suit.”

“Do you want me to dance for you when I’m done?” she drawled.

He ignored that and went into the bathroom to draw her a bath, throwing in some Epsom salts. When he came back for her, she was naked and shivering still. He bundled her up again, took her into the bathroom and lowered her into the water.

She let out a sharp breath as she sank in.

“Too hot?” he asked.

“No.” She tipped her head back against the lip. “No. It’s perfect.” She flicked a glance at him when he lingered. “I’m not going to drown.”

Reaching into his back pocket, he took out the little bag he’d brought to her door. “I bought this while I was in town.”

She eyed the box he held with mixed levels of curiosity. “For me?”

When she didn’t reach out, he opened it himself. “I found it while I was in Sedona.” On a small cushion, a delicate strand of gold held a single pearl teardrop.

Her eyes rushed up to meet his. “You bought this—for me?”

He bit his tongue, trying to come up with the right thing to say. “It’s not flowers.”

“No,” she said.

“Or dinner. But it looked...right.”

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