Page 92 of Stripping Bare
Micki leaned over the front seat, “Whoa, what’re those?” Her voice was hoarse from the smoke, but her curiosity verified that she wasn’t hurt toobadly.
“Don’t stop at Mom’s,” Jonah directed Tessa, rubbing at the fiery red spots where the sensors had been attached. “Get off the property. Once we’re on the main road, we’llcall.”
“You’reblistered.”
“Based on the fact that these things didn’t do more than warm up until we got close to my house, I should’ve known those other locations were justdecoys.”
“They looked like they burned the shit outta you.” Micki poked at a spot on Jonah’s shoulder. “That’scool.”
“Mikayla Steele!” Miss Joanexclaimed.
“I don’t mean cool that he looks like he’s contracted some kind of exotic disease. I meant cool technology. Do they hurt?” she askedJonah.
“Like abitch.”
Once Tessa drove the car off the Steele property, she swung it around by doing a less-than-elegant U-turn on the grassy shoulder so they had a view of the ridge where smoke was still rising from Jonah’s beautiful home. She reached for his hand and squeezed before releasing it so he could call for emergencyservices.
Quickly, he gave all the pertinent details, ones Tessa wasn’t sure she could’ve been half as calm about. His home—his uniquely beautiful home—was on fire. “They’re on their way,” hesaid.
“I was involved in backtracking through that network, and I didn’t smell the smoke as fast as I should’ve,” Micki said. “Actually, I didn’t smell it until Badger started barking like a maniac. He jumped off my lap and ran to the cave’s door. Did three frantic laps before I figured out what he was trying to tell me. God, Jonah, I’m so sorry about yourhouse.”
He patted her hand. “It’s just ahouse.”
“Your dreamhouse.”
“Which can be rebuilt. You, on the other hand, are one of a freakingkind.”
If his mom and sister hadn’t been in the car, Tessa would’ve grabbed for Jonah and given him a soul kiss. He might not believe it, but he was a hero in all the ways thatcounted.
“The builder put in a few extras,” he said. “I was able to close off the metal door between the kitchen and the hallway that connects it to the tech cave, game room, and garage. Hopefully, the rest of the house should be okay except for a little smoke damage here andthere.”
“But yourcars.”
He reached for Tessa’s hand, a crooked grin on his streaked face. “At least we savedClementine.”
Oh, to hell with their audience. Tessa threw her arms around Jonah’s neck and practically climbed into his lap. Badger gave an indignant yip and jumped in the back toward Micki. Later, Tessa would make it up to him and reward his heroism with his favorite sweet potato and peanut butter treats. “I was soscared.”
“Sweet Tess,” he said, pulling her close and wrapping his arms securely around her. “I may have failed you once, but neveragain.”
That evening,once his mom’s house had been cleared by the fire marshal, Jonah’s family was gathered there. After the fire and the threats on other Steele properties, everyone’s state could only be described as what his mom would call atizzy.
With his siblings, their significant others, and Grif’s daughter, the living room was crowded with people all talking over one another. If Reid stomp-paced across the rug one more time, Jonah would knock him to the ground and sit on hisass.
It had taken hours for the emergency personnel crews to carefully pick through Randi’s place, Brynne’s boutique, and the farmhouse for any type of incendiary device. Come to find out, the modder had planned to target Jonah’s house all along because the others had been completelyclean.
It hadn’t been declared arson yet, especially since a couple of gas cans had been stored in Jonah’s garage, but he knew this was no accident. He’d been lucky that only the one-story wing was destroyed and that he’d gotten Micki the hell out of there. If something had happened toher…
Gage was obviously harboring the same gut-shredding feeling, since he’d had Micki wrapped in his arms pretty much nonstop since meeting them at the hospitalearlier.
Jonah had to find this dickwad and bring him down. For Micki. For his family. ForTessa.
Her expression tired and shell-shocked, she sat in a chair in the corner, petting Badger one stroke after another. He went to her and hunkered down to still her hand on Badger’s back. The tremor he felt came from her, not thedog.
He needed to get her out of here soon, because he couldn’t stand to see that blankness on herface.
If his family’s racket hadn’t been enough to make Jonah’s head ache, the smoke that had irritated his sinuses would be. Although he knew it would make the brain pain worse, he put his fingers in his mouth and produced a whistle that cut through the chatter andspeculation.
“We aren’t going to solve this thing tonight.”Theyweren’t, at least. But he’d slipped away earlier and talked with the Charlotte bartender and his nerves were still vibrating from what he’d discovered. Martini dude was none other than one Charles Cartwright. At first glance, a boring banker. But Jonah knew the truth. He was a bastard and arapist.
