“And now he’s out. I found it when I was filing the report last night and did a quick search on her.”
Every muscle in Cody’s body felt tight. No wonder she struggled to trust anyone. She’d been hurt by one of the few people who were supposed to protect and love her.
He dropped the news report before it was crushed in his hand under the weight of his fury.
Eastern leaned forward. “I know she implied that the people who might want to hurt her don’t know she’s here, but information is easier to get than we think.”
“He may have found her.”
“Yeah. And while her mother and brother chose not to testify against him,shedid. And it was her scream that got the police to their door that night. I’m sure that’s something he’s thought about for the last decade.”
His mind flicked to Harper, alone in that cabin. Suddenly, all he wanted to do was go to her. Make sure she was safe and protected. “Thanks for looking into it.” Cody was about to rise, but he paused. “Can I do anything to help with Avery?”
Eastern shook his head. “Not right now, but I’ll let you know if that changes.”
Harper groanedas she rolled onto her belly. The dull throb from her head beat into her eyes. It felt like a hangover, but worse.
Gently, she prodded her forehead, only to wince at the shot of pain. Nope. No drunken night here. Just an ordinary, got-thrown-into-a-wall kind of evening.
She rolled to her side and lifted her phone, noticing a missed call from Cody.
Thank God he’d been there last night. If he hadn’t walked out when he had…
No. She couldn’t think about that. She didn’t know what that guy had wanted—maybe to attack her, maybe to rob her. Either way, it hadn’t been friendly.
Slowly, she pushed up and set her feet on the floor. At least her cabin was warm. It was just one of the things she loved about this place. Ali always came in and lit a fire for her while she was at work, and it kept the cabin warm all night. That lady was an angel.
When she stepped into the bathroom and saw her reflection in the mirror, she cringed. Just when the bruise from her brother had faded, this happened. Great.
Leaning forward, she inspected the blue-and-purple bruising that bordered a small cut. Memories of Cody’s gentle touch last night skittered through her mind and had her breath catching. The way he’d cleaned the wound with such care. Looked at her like he was going to tear down the world to protect her.
She wanted to let him in. She wanted to trust him, trust that this thing between them could become permanent. But God, it was too hard. Everyone she’d trusted before had hurt her. Her father had been an angry, aggressive drug abuser. Her mother had been a drunk who’d never protected her a day in her life, then stole from her. And her brother was quickly turning into another version of their dad.
She still remembered the days immediately after testifying against her father. Her mother’s drinking had worsened, and she’d cried like Harper had taken something precious from her. And Ross…he’d become a monster. Just like her father. He’d looked at her with so much hate, likeshe’dbeen the one to beat all of them, not him.
No one saw the fifteen-year-old who was hurting and in need of comfort and love and support. Or if they did, they didn’t care. They just blamed her for her father being sent away.
She took a deep breath. That was why she’d cleaned offices until the full-time assistant job had come up in the same building. And the second she’d been able to afford it, she’dgotten an apartment one town over and started working toward her goal of saving for the home she’d always dreamed about.
That was her mistake though, wasn’t it? One town over hadn’t been far enough. Because they’d always wanted something from her. Another piece. To drag her down to exactly wheretheywere. Her mother had constantly gone to her for alcohol money. And when she said no or tried to block her mother’s calls, her brother took over, harassing her with calls and texts and ultimately showing up at her door until they got what they wanted.
The knock at her cabin door had her jolting in fear, almost thinking she’d brought her bad memories to life. She took a deep breath and calmed her racing heart.
Ali, she assumed. Had to be Ali. No matter how many times Harper told her she didn’t need to, the woman often came with a tray of breakfast in the morning.
Harper stepped out of the bathroom and crossed the cabin. She didn’t bother to change out of her cat nightgown or brush her hair. The woman had seen it all before.
She opened the door—and the ready smile for her landlord dropped from her face.
“Cody!”
He held the tray that Ali usually brought, his eyes narrowing slightly at the bruise on her temple before he covered the frown with a smile. “Good morning, Storm. I hope you don’t mind, I intercepted the breakfast tray from Ali on my way here. If you’re wondering how, I just dazzled her with my smile and wit.”
She opened and closed her mouth. “I…I’m not changed.”
His gaze shifted to her spaghetti-strap sleep shirt, which was so short he’d almost be able to see her ass when she turned.
Shit.Why couldn’t she wear nana pajamas, with big baggy shirts and pants that reached past her ankles?
