Page 35 of Texas Scandal

Looking at Tiernan now, she realized Prescott was right. If she took off now, Tiernan wouldn’t stop until he found the person or persons responsible for the fire and for hurting his beloved Loki. Her leaving would only make matters worse. Tiernan might take more risks, as the lawyer had pointed out.

Seeing how protective his nature was didn’t help her keep an emotional distance from the man. She would have to try harder or risk losing her heart.

Prescott finished with the sheriff, then headed straight toward them. Tiernan reached for her hand but she moved it in time to avoid contact. The less their skin touched, the better as far as she was concerned.

The hurt look on his face almost gutted her. The serious expression on the lawyer’s face said bad news was coming their way.

Chapter Fourteen

“The sheriff is off his rocker,” Prescott started in while Tiernan double-checked Loki’s wound. The bleeding had stopped. A good sign. Still, he needed to get to the vet as soon as possible.

“What does that mean exactly?” Tiernan asked. Melody’s rejection from a minute ago had bruised his ego. He told himself it was for the best. As it was, he was falling down a slippery slope when it came to how he felt about her. The wall she’d put up between them was a good reminder not to get too close.

“This is clearly an arson case,” Prescott said. “There’s no way either of you would do this on purpose to detract attention from Melody as a possible murder suspect.”

“He said that?” Tiernan asked, furious. “Because that means he’s questioning my honor.”

“Not in exactly those words,” Prescott stated. “I told him that I expect a copy of his report on my desk by morning or that I’d be calling in experts to review the evidence on my own.”

“What did he say to that?” Melody chimed in.

“That I wasn’t allowed to tamper with his crime scene,” Prescott said.

“What right does he have to insinuate something like that?” she continued.

“None,” Prescott said. “But this is a small town and he probably has Sunday night poker with the local judge. Which is why I’d file for a change in venue for a trial if he does a stupid thing and arrests you.”

Melody gasped and her eyes widened.

“They’d have to take me in, too,” Tiernan said, meaning every word.

“I think he’s prepared to do that if he goes down that route,” Prescott said. “Make arrangements for Loki just in case. Okay?”

Tiernan nodded.

“Does that mean I’d spend time in jail?” Melody asked, clearly mortified.

“Not more than a couple of hours,” Prescott said. “I would immediately file a motion to relocate the case to Austin where you’d get a fair jury pull and trial. If the sheriff is making a move like this with me, his confidence tells me something. He must think he has this thing in the bag.”

“That doesn’t sound good,” Melody continued, staring up at the vast evening sky. There was a chill in the air and she’d started shivering. His shirt was bloody or he’d hand it over.

“Can we move this inside?” he asked Prescott. “Loki will do better indoors. Plus, your client is cold.”

Prescott nodded. “Of course. My apologies.”

Tiernan scooped up the seventy-five-pound Lab and carried him to his bed on the floor in the dining room. “I need to get a vet over here now. Mind if I make a quick call?”

“Go right ahead,” Prescott said. He palmed his cell phone and started firing off a bunch of texts, no doubt to the investigators he’d already hired to look into the case.

“I’ll put on coffee,” Melody said, looking like she needed something to do more so than a caffeine boost. Her hands already trembled. Then again, she might want the warmth.

While on the call to his vet, Tiernan retrieved one of his jackets from the closet and brought it over to her as she stood at the coffee machine. He draped it around her shoulders.

She thanked him without making eye contact. The shivering stopped, though, so he’d take the win.

Prescott tucked his phone inside his pocket as he joined them in the kitchen. “Is there another place you can stay besides here?”

“My apartment is a terrible idea,” Melody said. Her ringtone sounded. She fished her cell out of her back pocket. “My mother?”

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