Shaken by the thought and my impending reality, I grabbed my sweatshirt from the chair. “I’m free to go?” I asked, pulling on the light jacket.
“You are,” his brother said. “Stay out of trouble, Miss Masters.”
I would, I thought, once I escaped his brother. I held out my hand, and Decklan handed me back my money.
“Thanks,” I said and winced.
What was next? Gratitude for arresting me?
At least I hadn’t gotten as far as the booking process and mug shot. I ran a hand through my wild curls, suddenly aware of how I might look.
“See you guys around,” I said on a wave and a forced laugh.
“Wait!” Gabriel’s deep pitch almost had me melting toward him again.
“What?”
“Do you have someplace to go?” he asked, too kind for me not to be embarrassed, and I refused to look him in the eye.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Isabelle—” Gabe’s voice deepened.
“Oh no,” his brother said. “Absolutely not.”
“Shut up, Decklan.”
I narrowed my eyes, wondering what conclusion the cop had arrived at that I wasn’t privy to. My gaze swung back to Gabe, who merely nodded at his sibling, as if all had been decided.
“You’ll come home with me,” Gabe said, his tone definitive.
“What?” I hadn’t seen that coming, nor could I begin to process the words.
He braced one hand on the wall beside his brother’s desk. “You’ll come home with me. I have plenty of room, and you can stay till you get back on your feet.” His words sounded confident, sure, and obviously made sense, at least to him.
Panic spiraled through me at the thought of going from one controlling man to another.
“Are you insane?” Decklan asked. Loudly.
I nodded, agreeing with him. “Listen to your brother. I’m not going anywhere with you. You’re practically a stranger.”
Gabe frowned at that comment.
“And she’s a stray,” Decklan added.
“Hey!” I turned to him and scowled. “That’s just insulting.”
“You have a thing for strays,” Decklan said to Gabe, ignoring me. Giving me more reason than just my arrest to dislike Officer Decklan Dare.
“Shut the f**k up,” Gabe muttered, his jaw set as he glared at his brother.
Decklan had hit a hot button, I noted, and wondered who the stray woman was to Gabe. What she’d meant to him.
I couldn’t afford to find out. “It’s been interesting,” I said on a rush. “Later, boys.”
And while the two brothers remained locked in a silent, combative stare, I turned and strode out of the station house without looking back.
Chapter Two
Isabelle: Into the Fire
I’d barely escaped the door of the police station and hit the night air when rain assaulted me, soaking through my clothes almost instantly.
I dove back beneath the awning, where it was dry. Plan, I thought. I needed a plan. I’d left my cell phone at Lance’s house, and even if I hadn’t, Lance would shut off my service as soon as he realized I wasn’t coming back.
I hadn’t yet made it into Manhattan, where a taxi would drive by, light on, waiting to be hailed, and I had no ride to the nearest bus or train. I ran a trembling hand through my damp hair, wondering why I’d bolted out of the station when I really had nowhere to go. Even if the rain miraculously stopped, I was all alone.
“Hey.”
I turned. Gabe had followed me outside. From the tips of his black shoes up the dark denim jeans that molded to his hard thighs and the white collared shirt open enough to reveal his tanned chest and dark hair, he looked delicious enough to eat. And I wanted a long, thorough taste. I might be panicked and needing to get out of here, but I couldn’t deny his appeal.
At the sight of him, a rush of relief washed over me, though I couldn’t say why. “You’re leaving alone? Did your brother decide the nightclub scene wasn’t for him?” I hugged my arms tighter around me. It might be summer, but I was growing colder and more chilled.
He studied me as if he knew exactly how uncomfortable I was, both in my clothes and with myself. He didn’t answer my question, merely waited for me to come around to the inevitable—I might not want to be beholden to him, but he was my only option.
I swallowed the little that was left of my pride and met his gaze. “Can you take me to the nearest bus station?” I asked through chattering teeth.
He shoved his hands into his front pants pockets. “So you can go where?”
I swallowed hard. “I’ll figure it out when I get away from here, and I need to do that before Lance arrives.” I stuck my head into the rain and looked up and down the quiet street, afraid the sound of a car motor would break the silence and ruin my escape.
Gabe grabbed me by the waist and pulled me back under the awning before spinning me around, turning me to face him. My terry cloth jacket hung open, and my ni**les, hardened from cold, grew tighter beneath his hot stare. If I peeked, no doubt I would see them poking through my thin shirt.
He looked there, saw what I was too embarrassed to do more than imagine, and a vein throbbed in his temple.
“Let’s go.” He grasped my hand and steered me out into the rain, to the parking lot on the side of the building where a black Porsche 911 Turbo waited.
He unlocked the door, opened it for me, and helped me inside. To my surprise, he popped the front trunk and returned, covering me with a blanket before closing me inside the small car.
He strode around to the driver’s side, climbed in, and started the ignition before hitting a series of buttons, turning the heater on, including the one in my seat. I didn’t relax until he pulled away from the small police station, leaving any possibility of a confrontation with Lance behind.
I wrapped the quilted covering around me for warmth, and as more distance passed, it slowly dawned on me I was safe. The feeling was so at odds with my normal tense state I almost didn’t recognize it. I also understood a big part of that relief stemmed from being with Gabe, something I didn’t want to question too strongly at the moment.
Once on the highway heading back to Manhattan, Gabe broke the charged silence. “Is there anyone you want to call?”
I clutched the blanket more tightly. “I have old friends in the city, but I’m not sure they’re still living where they used to. It’s been a long time.” I stared out into the dark night.