Page 111 of Nuclear Option (Owens Protective Services)

“I don’t give a damn about the team. I needyou. Don’t make me walk into that courtroom without you. That’s not fair.”

Tears were streaming down my face as he stared at me. It was clear he didn’t want to do this. His face was hard, his jaw ticking in anger, but I didn’t care. This wasn’t the deal we made. He was abandoning me when I needed him most.

“Damnit,” he cursed under his breath. “Rae, I’m taking New Guy’s place beside Eva. Let Eli know we’re rearranging the teams.”

I frowned for a minute before realizing he was talking over his comm system. Rae peeked around the bottom of the stairs with a grin. “Already done, boss. I’m driving.”

“That’s not much better,” Cash muttered.

“We both knew this would happen,” Rae retorted. “I can’t believe you actually thought she would go for it.”

Cash turned back to me, his eyes burning into mine. Then he reached out and took my still shaking hand. Clasping it between his warm hands, I slowly started to calm down. I probably looked a mess now. I could feel the tears drying on my face.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I thought it would be better if I kept my distance. I need to think clearly.”

“And I need you beside me,” I responded quietly.

Sighing, he finally gave in and pulled me into his arms. I melted into his touch, needing him to ground me. If I was going to get through this day, I couldn’t have him putting distance between us.

“We need to get moving,” he said, resting his chin on my head. “Do you want to clean up?”

I nodded and stepped out of his arms, walking to the bathroom. I flicked on the light and winced at how disturbing I looked. It was better to find out now hownotwaterproof my mascara was. I didn’t need to look like this on the stand. I quickly grabbed some makeup remover and cleaned up, then splashed some water on my face to cool off. Hopefully, by the time I reached the courthouse, I would look normal again.

Releasing a shaky breath, I walked out and grabbed Cash’s hand, then headed downstairs to the car. I knew there were more people coming than just Rae, Fox, and Cash, but I couldn’t see them, no matter how hard I looked.

“They’re already en route. I want to make sure our drive is uneventful.”

“By uneventful, I’m guessing you’re talking about someone trying to kill me on the way.”

He cleared his throat, shifting in his seat beside me. “Uneventful, as in anything that may come up, including a traffic jam.”

I did my best not to roll my eyes at him. I loved it when he thought he was hiding things from me, like I couldn’t see through his vague statements. Boxed in between Fox and Cash, it was hard to relax. They were both strung tight as they stared out the windows.

“Big girls don’t cry!” Fox suddenly sang in a high-pitched voice, causing me to jump in my seat. I glanced over at him, an irritated gaze on my face.

“What was that?”

He sucked in a breath like he was about to continue singing, but I slapped a hand over his mouth. He mumbled something behind my hand, so I removed it. “I was just getting in the mood.”

“For what?”

He huffed out a laugh, that goofy grin on his face covering the darker look that spoke volumes of the mood he was in.

“Never mind. I don’t think I want to know.”

“The problem is that you already know,” Cash muttered.

“Nothing’s going to happen,” I said out loud, though mostly to reassure myself. “We’re going to walk into the courthouse and I’m going to testify. That’s it. Right?”

Cash finally turned to look at me. He gave a tight nod, but it wasn’t very reassuring. It was like he knew something I didn’t, and that made me very uneasy. When we pulled up to the side of the courthouse, there was a moment of relief when the door opened ahead of us and Eli stood there, preparing for me to step out. But before Cash even got the door open, reporters were swarming around the car, making it impossible for us to get out. Eli’s team pushed and shoved their way over to the car, clearing a path for me to get out. When Cash finally got the door open, he stepped out and held up his hand, telling me to wait.

My heart thudded in my chest with every moment that passed—every moment that he refused to let me out of the car. I scooted closer to the door, thinking we were going to make a mad dash for the building, but then Cash was shoving me back inside.

“Let’s go! Rae, get us out of here!”

I didn’t even have time to get my seat belt on before I was flung back in my seat as Rae hit the gas, nearly running over journalists and cameramen in her mad dash to leave.

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