Page 5 of When He Defends
A hard knock sounded at the door to her right. Emerson stopped mid-pace. Step number thirteen. Yes, she’d counted. She still counted when she was stressed, and it had been a very stressful day.
The knock hadn’t come from the door that led outside of her room. Oh, no, it had come from theconnectingdoor—as in, the door that connected her room to Grayson’s.Gray. Gray.She was supposed to call himGray.
Emerson turned. Stared at the door.
He knocked again. More impatient. More demanding. Typical impatience from him.
She’d known this visit would come. Night had fallen. They’d spent hours at the garage, talking with local law enforcement, collecting evidence, and making sure that nothing could be screwed up when it came to Jake Waller’s case. The gleaming lock on the toolbox had been removed, and, inside, they’d found trophies from the victims. Jewelry…and thick locks of hair. Talk about something that would be an easy DNA comparison. The local cops had been shocked to discover the local man they knew was a serial killer. Most of them—and their family members—went to Jake Waller’s garage for vehicle repairs.
Gray had been adamant that they keep eyes on the prisoner. Jake had been transported to a nearby hospital because of the bullet wound in his shoulder, but Gray had arranged for both alocal field agent from the FBI and a police officer to stay with the perp at all times.
Gray knocked again. Even harder. “Emerson, I know you’re in there.” The doorknob jiggled. “Open up, or else I’ll just pick the lock and come inside.”
Would he? Curious, she found herself walking toward the connecting door. The lock was incredibly flimsy. A child could probably pick it.
“Emerson.” A deep, rough rumble.
One that she clearly heard through the door. The doors, the walls—themotelwas paper thin. A shiver slid over her because there was something about Gray’s voice. A dark, dangerous allure that called to her.
Get it together, woman. He’s your training partner. Not your lover.No matter what kind of awesome fantasies and dreams she might have late at night. They were not involved romantically. Physically. Their relationship was just business. Gray was certainly not interested in anything more.
The man had literally called her the bane of his existence. Like that hadn’t stung.
Her hand reached out. Flipped the lock. Yanked open the door.
And, typical Gray, he filled the doorway. Big, powerful. Too tall. Too muscled. Still wearing his white dress shirt, but he’d ditched his suit coat. His sleeves were rolled up, the collar of the dress shirt undone, and he was?—
Barefoot?
She frowned at his feet. Was it weird to think that the man had oddly attractive feet?
“Emerson.”
Her gaze jumped back to his face. “You’re not wearing shoes.” Usually, Gray was perfectly attired. He liked fancy suits. He liked expensive clothes. He liked his gleaming dress shoes.
“They had the perp’s blood on them.”
She nodded. “Because you shoved your foot onto his shoulder and made him scream.”
A muscle flexed along his clenched jaw. His chin tilted down slightly as he stared at her. His eyes—his eyes were a swirling mix that fell somewhere between gold and brown. In the light, they always appeared more golden, but as soon as shadows crept around, his gaze would go so very dark.
Sometimes, she could also almost swear his eye color seemed to change with Gray’s emotions. When he was angry, his gaze went extremely dark.
It was dark right then.
“My shoes were taken as evidence. I have a backup pair, don’t worry, but I didn’t think it mattered what the hell I wore when I paid you this break-up visit.”
Her shoulders stiffened. “We are not breaking up.” First, they weren’t a couple. Since they weren’t a couple, they could not break up. She took a step closer to him. Even without his shoes, he still towered over her. An annoying trait. She’d always wanted to be taller. Since nature had not seen fit to help her out in that department, she wore her heels as often as she could.
“Oh, Emerson, we are, in fact, breaking up.” He also took a step forward. Since they’d already been close, his step pretty much had their bodies brushing. Maybe an inch separated them. She could practically feel the heat from his body reaching out to wrap around her. His scent—rich, masculine, and, dammit,sexy—tempted her.
But, then again, everything about Gray tempted her.
Unfortunately.
She kept her chin up. Kept her spine ramrod straight. “You are not going to intimidate me.”
“I’m not trying to intimidate you.”
