Page 28 of Built of Second Chances

And that made him feel like he’d won the Calgary Stampede.

Chapter9

Family Business

Tessa worried she was revealing too much to Flynn. He had always owned her heart and losing him the first time had nearly broken her.

Here she was, not even twenty-four hours into their second meeting and spinning fairy tales of love and forever in her mind. She should know better. Shedidknow better. But those fairy tales refused to stop bubbling into existence.

Flynn believed if they could stop the Pavic family, she would be safe and so would the people around her. Was that true?

She didn’t have any actual information to use against them. They shouldn’t have wanted her dead or out of the way in the first place.

Why had her uncle set her up? Why had he wanted her out of the way? She hadn’t known a single thing about whatever they were into.

The cat finished the food, and before she could dart away, Tessa scooped her up and settled her in her lap. An echo of how Flynn had comforted her. To her surprise, the cat kneaded her paws on Tessa’s legs and then curled up into a ball.

Flynn chuckled. “Apparently food and kindness are the keys. Nicely done.”

Tessa stroked the cat as she braced herself. “Your turn. Tell me what you know about the Pavic family.” She didn’t saymy familybecause she didn’t want to claim them.

She wasn’t even sure she wanted to know what he was about to tell her. But if she wanted a chance at keeping Flynn in her life, she had to yank her head out of the sand.

Flynn nodded. “Once I managed to get assigned to the Organized Crime division, I started checking it out. From what we know, Grigor Pavic is the head of a small crime family.”

“Small?”

He nodded. “They’re not national and they stay mostly working around the Houston area. That’s how they’ve stayed off the radar. Most of the division is focused on larger groups that regularly cross state lines.”

“Okay. What kinds of things are they involved in?”

“It seems like they have interests in several areas. Gambling. Money laundering. Drugs. Prostitution. Anything that will bring in cash.”

Tessa couldn’t stop the shudder and the cat jumped off her lap. Ginger dashed toward the stove and bumped into Jetson. The dog licked the cat, making her jump again.

The two animals stared at each other. Finally, Ginger blinked and then plopped to sit near the dog.

Flynn raised an eyebrow. “That was pretty easy. I’d guess your Ginger spent some time with a family before she got lost in the woods. Or abandoned.”

Tessa identified a little too much with the tiny cat. “How could any family be so awful?” Then she shook her head. “My father would never have allowed an animal in the house and wouldn’t have thought twice about abandoning it. There are too many people like him.”

Flynn reached across the table and took her hands. “I’m sorry, Tessa. I can’t imagine how hard this is to hear. But I really believe we have a chance to figure out how to stop them and keep you safe if we pool all our resources.”

All? “You’re thinking more than just you and me, aren’t you?”

Flynn nodded. “If you agree. I think the Midnight Security team could help us. They’re reliable, trustworthy people. Tansy’s brother Joe and foster-brother Nico are two of the best agents in the FBI. Sam was up there with them before he left. We’re surrounded by some really smart people.”

So many people who would know her business. “And they’d all be in danger because of me. They’d all become potential targets.”

“I think it’s a risk they’d be willing to take. These are your friends, Tessa. They’ll want to help.”

Panic galloped through her veins. She hadn’t known them that long. How could she ask them to face this with her? “I don’t know, Flynn. I don’t know if I can take the risk.”

His deep brown eyes warmed. “Your call, Tessa. I’m behind you no matter what you want. Let’s go through the rest of what I know and then make some decisions. Or at least get a good night’s sleep.”

Tessa wanted to turn and look at the bed behind her, wanted to drag Flynn over to it and take another step forward with him. If she did that and then had to go into hiding again, would she survive the heartbreak? Or would the risk be worth it?

As if he was reading her mind, Flynn’s eyes heated and he grinned. “Put on your problem solving hat, Tessa. We’ve got a lot of work to do before we can get to the fun stuff.”

---