He sat in the chair across the room instead, his back straight, and his eyes on the front door. For some reason, what he felt for Ruby was more than just attraction. He felt this strange responsibility toward her. The man in the parking lot had crossed a line Ant recognized all too well—the kind that turned entitlement into violence. Ant had seen how it had ended for other women in Ruby’s position. He had cleaned up the aftermath more times than he cared to remember. But not this time. Ant wasn’t going to allow that to happen to Ruby—not on his watch.
His phone buzzed softly with a text from Bolt.
Bolt: You good?
Ant typed back without hesitation.
Ant: Got eyes on the situation. She’s safe. Any news about who the guy is?
Bolt’s response wasn’t immediate, and he worried that his partner was going to protest his doing this on his own, but he didn’t want anyone else involved in this mess.
Bolt: No, we’re still running his prints. He’s sitting in a cell downtown for the night. His alcohol levels were off the charts. You sure you’re the right guy to handle this?
Ant stared at the message longer than he should have.
Ant: No
His answer was the most honest he had been with himself in a long time. But he also knew that giving the case to Bolt would be taking the easy way out.
Ant: But I’m the one here. I want to do this.
He slipped the phone back into his pocket, not wanting to answer any more of Bolt’s questions. Nothing about this situation was cut and dry, and he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but there with Ruby.
Sometime near dawn, Ruby stirred. She sat up slowly, eyes unfocused, panic flickering across her face until she took in the room and remembered where she was. “Ant?” she whispered.
“I’m here,” he said immediately.
Her shoulders seemed to relax a fraction. “I thought I heard something.”
“It’s just the house,” he replied. “You’re safe.”
She nodded, rubbing her arms like she was cold. “Why aren’t you sleeping?” she asked.
“Can’t,” he said simply.
“You need sleep too,” Ruby insisted. “Without sleep, you’ll make mistakes, and I don’t want you getting hurt because of me.”
He stood then, closing the distance but stopping well short of her space. “You didn’t ask for any of this, Ruby. And I’m not doing this because I feel obligated.”
She studied him, seeming to search for answers. “Then why are you doing this, Ant?”
Ant exhaled slowly. Truth pressed hard against his ribs. “Because I’ve seen what happens when women don’t take their stalkers seriously,” he said quietly. “And because that guy thinks money buys him access to your body. That makes him my problem.” Silence stretched between them—heavy, intimate, and dangerous in a way neither of them acknowledged.
“I should go back to my apartment after work today,” she said finally. “I need to check my place and make sure he’s gone.”
“You won’t be alone when you do,” Ant replied. “I’ll drive you. Or Bolt will. You don’t walk into that situation solo again.”
A faint smile tugged at her mouth. “You sound like you’re used to giving orders.” He almost smiled back—almost.
“I’m used to keeping people alive,” he said.
She pulled the blanket tighter around herself. “Thank you. For not making me feel bad about all this.”
Ant’s voice was low. “You have nothing to feel bad about, honey.” That hit a nerve. He saw it in the way her chin trembled before she caught herself.
“You should get some sleep,” he added. “I’ll stay up.”
She hesitated, then lay back down. “Okay.” As her breathing evened out again, Ant returned to his post by the door, eyes never leaving it.
