Page 67 of Return of the Bad Girl (Rock Canyon, Idaho 4)

He took her by the shoulders, gently shaking her. “Caroline . . .”

She thrashed harder, whimpering, “Stop . . . please.”

“Caroline, it’s me. It’s Gabe,” he said. “Come on, baby, stop. Wake up. It’s just a dream.”

She came to slowly, blinking up at him and then throwing her hands over her eyes to block the light. “Gabe?”

“Yeah, you okay?” he asked.

“Can you turn off the light?”

“Sure,” he said, getting up to flip the switch before coming back to her side. Taking her hand, he added, “Seemed like some dream.”

“Yeah,” she whispered. “It was.”

Neither one of them said anything for a minute or two, and Gabe released her hand, figuring she’d fallen back asleep. But when he started to rise from the bed, she grabbed his hand.

“Stay with me . . . please?”

He sat back d

own and said, “Are you sure?”

“Not for . . . I don’t want that,” she said softly. “I just don’t want to be alone.”

Climbing in with her, he lay down on his back and smiled as she snuggled into him, her cheek pressing against his chest. As he stroked her back, he waited for her to say more, and when she didn’t, he said, “I know you say you don’t need anybody, and I believe you. You are one tough woman, and I respect that. But I’m here if you change your mind. Okay?”

Seconds ticked by before she answered him.

“Thanks, Gabe.”

Gabe brushed her hair back with one hand as he pulled her closer with the other. After several minutes of quiet, Caroline’s breathing evened out, and her body relaxed. Once he was sure she was asleep, Gabe slipped out of her bed and headed for his own, a volcano of thoughts erupting inside: Caroline’s anger at him for having Kirsten stay over, how she’d accused him of taking advantage of her, Caroline’s reaction after his kiss. The nightmare . . .

Gabe didn’t want to even think it, but it made a lot of sense. Especially her fear of that bastard, Kyle. But if Caroline had been raped by him—when had it happened? And why hadn’t she reported it?

She’d said the man who’d assaulted her in the alley had worked for her father. Is that why she hadn’t told? Because she’d thought her dad wouldn’t believe her? But then why was Kyle stalking her now? Had she finally threatened to expose him after all this time?

So many unanswered questions, but one thought outweighed all the worries. Despite her protests, Caroline did need someone. And Gabe was determined to show her that someone was him.

Chapter Nineteen

“Anyone who says he or she has never experienced the walk of shame was just never caught sneaking out.”

—Miss Know It All

GABE WAS STILL kicking his own ass on Friday as he closed up the shop. He had received the last of the tools he needed and would be ready to open in a couple of weeks, as long as he had customers. So far, things were looking pretty slow for custom bikes in Rock Canyon.

But it wasn’t the lack of orders that was eating at him—it was Caroline.

Slamming his helmet into the front door of the shop, he cursed. There were too many unanswered questions, and he wasn’t even sure he had a right to ask them. Since Sunday, Caroline had been pleasant with him, but that was as far as it went. They hadn’t talked about the sex or the fight with Kyle, and it had put Gabe in a fucked-up mood all week.

Chase had given him hell on Wednesday for being a dick, telling him he needed to get laid, and he’d just about thrown his friend across the room, he’d been so on edge.

Damn it, it was bad enough that he couldn’t get the feel and taste of her out of his head, but the knowledge that she slept down the hall had him in a constant state of arousal. The smell of the bathroom after her shower, the sound of her sweet-talking the kittens, and fuck, even the brief glance she’d given him when she came home last night had kept him up, imagining those dark eyes lit with pleasure as he rose above her, riding her body.

God, he needed a drink and something to get his mind off of her.

He headed over to where his bike was parked, and after securing his helmet, he took off toward Buck’s, hoping to engage someone in a not-so-friendly game of pool. It took him less than ten minutes to travel across town, but when he pulled into the parking lot, there wasn’t a spot left, the place was so packed. Pulling up alongside the wood building, he took off his helmet and called out to a couple of women walking past.

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