Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Dare curled his fingers into tight fists, fighting the urge to walk over and pull her into his arms. He was the last person she wanted right now. He also held back in deference to Sam, who was the cop in charge of the case.
So while Sam spoke to the mechanic and caught Liza up on the situation, Dare hovered nearby, listening.
“What do you mean I had a leak in my brake line? The car was just serviced last week,” Liza said to Sam.
Sam glanced at her. “I’ll need the name of the place that handled it.”
“A BMW service center in Manhattan. I was visiting friends and dropped the car off since I knew I wouldn’t need it in the city.” She gave Sam the name and address before turning back to Mason.
“The line was cut,” the mechanic explained.
“What kind of cut? Slice? Pinprick?” Sam asked.
Mason rubbed his grease-stained hands on his working coveralls. “Small nick. The fluid leaked out over time, so you wouldn’t have noticed it right away.”
“I haven’t moved the car in a few days,” she said. “Not until this morning.”
Mason nodded, his long dark hair falling over his forehead. “There’s probably a puddle in the driveway where your car was parked then.”
Sam made a note, probably to check the driveway, something Dare hadn’t thought to do.
“Could I have driven over something that cut the line?” Liza asked.
“No, ma’am. This was deliberate.”
Liza stiffened. “Wait. You’re saying someone cut a hole in my brake line on purpose?”
“Looks that way.”
She wrapped her arms around herself, a protective gesture Dare recognized as Liza’s means of retreat and defense.
He itched to walk up behind her and pull her into his arms, offer comfort, and promise her he’d make sure no one ever hurt her again. He refrained because his gut told him she needed to handle this on her own. Like she dealt with everything else in her life, Dare thought, disgusted beyond belief with her family but most of all with himself.
He’d already decided to give her the illusion of control for now. There was no way she was alone in this, and she’d understand that shortly.
Which meant that this thing between them was more than just sex. For him, anyway. He’d sensed the possibility from the beginning. He’d even warned her he wasn’t the type to get involved and walk away. But now Dare knew he’d also been warning himself. Because there was no way he could walk away. The pull he felt toward her was too strong.
Every man had a weakness, and apparently, she was his. Because being with her meant dealing with garbage he’d hoped to leave in the past. He only hoped he was strong enough to handle it.
“I have to order the part,” Mason was saying. “Because it’s a foreign vehicle, it might take a couple of days.”
* * *
Liza nodded, feeling numb. “That’s fine. I rented a car. Keep it as long as you need to.”
“I’ll be right back,” Sam said to Liza before following Mason into the smaller office area behind the garage, probably for a more detailed conversation.
Liza didn’t care because she’d heard all she needed to. Someone had cut her brake line. Someone wanted her brakes to fail while she was driving. She blinked in shock, unable to come to terms with the undeniable fact that someone wanted her hurt. Or worse.
Shaking, she turned only to find Dare waiting, arms open wide. She’d sensed his presence as soon as he’d walked into the garage and had managed to ignore him while listening to Mason and Sam, telling herself she didn’t need him. She didn’t need anyone. Knowing too that the words were a big fat lie.
So though she’d hate herself for the weakness later, she stepped into his embrace now. He slid his hands around her waist and held her tight. She wasn’t sure how long she stood there, his strong arms comforting her, breathing in his comforting and, yeah, arousing scent.
“It’s going to be okay,” he promised.
“I know.” She let out a shaky breath and forced herself to step away.
“Any ideas on who would want to hurt you?” Dare asked, his gorgeous brown eyes filled with a combination of concern and fury.
She shook her head. “I keep pretty much to myself.”
“You said you got flowers the other day?” he asked, his jaw tight.
She swallowed hard. “Turns out they were from Jeff Montana.”
Dare’s eyes darkened. Anger? Jealousy? Liza didn’t know, nor did she want to deal with his hot-and-cold routine when it came to his feelings for her.
“He said they were just a get-well gesture from a colleague.”
“I’ll bet. Get flowers from anyone else in the office?” he asked.
She blew out a frustrated breath. “No, but he was there when I got hurt, and you wouldn’t let him anywhere near me to see how I was. The man works for me. He was just being polite.”