“Too hard,” she whispered.
Damn it. He was tightly wound.
He glanced down into her eyes. “Sorry.”
His eyes swiveled back to Slade and the young woman. He watched as she ordered a drink from the bartender, then excused herself to the ladies’ room,leaving her beverage under the watchful eyes of Senior Constable Myles Slade.
And then it happened.
As inconspicuous as could be, but not nearly as stealthy as he probably hoped, Myles dropped something into her drink, quickly grabbed a stir-stick from the back and began swirling it around with the ice cubes until the tablet dissolved.
“Did he just … ” Krista started.
He did.
Brock was up and halfway across the room, stalking toward Slade like a bull after a red cape. Steam rushed from his ears as tunnel vision set in. Slade was in for a world of hurt.
Krista was by his side seconds later just as he came up nearly nose-to-nose with Slade.
“What did I just see you put in that girl’s drink?” Brock asked, the threads of his self-control snapping as he took in the smarmy look on Myles’s face and was forced to inhale that disgusting cologne he’d apparently bathed in before he came.
Myles rolled his eyes. The man appeared bored, but the tightening of his jaw told Brock otherwise. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, dude. I didn’t do anything. Mind your own business.”
Brock snorted. He could hear his pulse thundering in his ears. A soft, gentle hand rested on his arm, and instinctively, his muscles bunched and tightened.
Myles’s eyes followed the hand before his gaze flew back up to Krista. “Are you with this muscle-bound moron, Matthews?”
Krista went to open her mouth, no doubt to try to diffuse the situation, but Brock cut her off. “She is. And I’ve seen the marks on her arms from your …interests. Leave her alone or you’ll answer to me.”
Myles puffed up his chest and took a step forward. “Are you threatening me? Are you threatening anofficer of the lawin front of other officers of the law? At ourChristmasparty?”
Brock’s eyes shifted just slightly.
Fuck.
He’d forgotten for the briefest of moments where he was and who he was surrounded by. Myles noticed the change and sneered. “You’re just a big dummy. Really, Matthews? I thought you’d go for someone with more brains than this ox.”
Brock’s fists bunched at his sides, and red clouded his vision. Cop or no cop, this fucker was going to pay. One day.
The young woman with the now drugged drink returned, equal parts fear and curiosity on her heart-shaped face. Krista grabbed her drink and then dumped it into Myles’s half-full glass.
Damn, his woman had balls.
Did he just call herhiswoman?
“You might want to watch your beverages around this guy, Ingrid. He’s having a hard time getting laid without a littlehelpthese days.” She shot Myles a smug look before stepping in front of Brock. Could she feel his need to punch, kick and maim? Probably. He wasn’t exactly practicing his poker face. “You going to drink your scotchnow,Myles?” she asked.
Brock wanted to move Krista behind him to protect her and the baby, but the stubborn woman wouldn’t budge.
Myles’s cheeks were on fire. They had him.
Brock felt Krista shiver in front of him. He immediately placed his hands on her shoulders to ground her—to ground himself. Myles just continued to glare at her, his eyes growing fiercer and darker. They knew, and he knew they knew, that this was not his first date-rape attempt.
But Myles Slade wasn’t going to go down without a fight. Call it pride, arrogance, smugness or the true disgusting belief that he didn’t think he was doing anything wrong, the man was going to deny it.
His Adam’s apple bobbed twice in his throat before he threw his shoulders back and adopted a cocky smirk. “I don’t know what you saw, Matthews, butI didn’t put anything in Ingrid’s drink.” Then with a feigned look of boredom and confidence, he picked up his glass and took the smallest of sips. Ingrid, the little civilian worker, had remained quiet and confused during it all and didn’t seem to relax in the slightest when she saw Myles drink. She smelled it, too. The guy was garbage.
“Go find Helen and Cindy,” Krista said quietly, resting her hand on Ingrid’s arm. “They’re sitting over at our table with Allie and her wife.” With fear in her big brown eyes, the young woman nodded and scurried away.
