Page 49 of Tessa's Trust

“Yep.” I shook my phone, only to watch water drop onto the floor.

“Girl, I’d change my life choices,” Roxy drawled. Then she winked at Eddie. “I don’t know about you, but I need a drink. A big one.”

Eddie gallantly held out an arm covered in wet and curdling corduroy. “It’s on me.” They walked almost gleefully out of the station.

I looked up at Nick’s implacable face. “I don’t—”

“Nope. You’re coming with me, Albertini. I’m done with this.” Without waiting for a reply, he ducked his head, and I flew over his shoulder to land hard, barely keeping my face from smacking his lower back as he started walking toward the outside door. Oh, he did not. Shock kept me immobile for several seconds.

“Hey,” Detective Grant Pierce called from the top of the staircase.

I planted a hand on Nick’s butt and forced my body up to look at Pierce with Nick’s arm banded across my legs to keep me in place. Had I ever been over anybody’s shoulder before?

“What?” Nick asked, not turning around.

Grant’s green eyes scanned us both. “You sure you know what you’re doing?”

“God, I hope so,” Nick growled.

Grant set his stance. “Tessa? Do you want me to interfere?”

Oh, I didn’t need another of these tough guys saving me. “No, but keep this in mind when you find his body later,” I snapped, flopping back down. “This is war, Basanelli.”

“About damn time.” He started moving again. Soon, we were outside in the cold.

“Put me down,” I hissed.

His chuckle rippled through me as if I’d taken a gulp of heated wine. “Oh, no. We’re going to get a couple of things straight, and you’ll stay where I put you until we do.”

Yep. There would definitely be a dead body.

Chapter 18

I gave Nick the silent treatment in the truck, although he gave it right back to me. He’d dumped me in—rather gently, to be honest—and then secured my seat belt. I kept my cool and gave absolutely no indication that he smelled like a god, or that his caveman routine had kind of turned me on. Okay. It totally turned me on.

It shouldn’t have.

We often gave Anna a hard time because she liked Aiden’s bossy side. She’d tried to explain once that she found it sexy and that, somehow, he made her feel safe. I’d figured that was all because he’d saved her from a monster in her childhood.

Now, I wasn’t so sure. I could’ve had Basanelli arrested right then and there at the station for tossing me over his shoulder. Instead, I’d refused help and threatened him. The ease with which he’d carried me was impressive because I was no lightweight. My stomach was all fluttery, and I could relate to Anna. For the first time, I understood.

I did not want to understand.

We were almost to Donna’s house when I deigned to speak. “Your asshole move of carrying me out of the station will be all over town by tomorrow.”

He easily maneuvered the vehicle around an icy bend. “Baby, it’s all over town right now. I can feel the cell phones dinging in every direction, right back to Silverville.”

I groaned. He wasn’t wrong. “What in the world were you thinking?”

He pulled into Donna’s drive and surveyed the quiet Craftsman-style cottage. “I was thinking that I didn’t like you out on a date with Eddie Brando.” He turned and looked at me, switching off the ignition. “I was thinking that I really didn’t like a woman pointing a gun at you.” He cocked his head, his gaze slashing across my face. “And I was thinking that you lied to me.” His irritation swelled in the vehicle, heating the air.

“Oh.” I unbuckled my belt and opened the door, jumping out into the frigid air. As a comeback, it sucked. But I had lied to him.

He followed suit and waited until I crossed in front of the vehicle. “We need to get a couple of things straight.”

I shivered. With my hasty exit, I’d neglected to retrieve my wet clothing from the police. “Not tonight.” I headed past him and moved to the keypad that would open the garage door.

“Huh.” He followed me, blocking the blistering wind with his body. “Where is Donna?”

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