Rage made Quin’s vision blur.
CHAPTER 7
Josie bit thetip of her thumbnail.Oh, god.She’d almost forgotten about Frasier’s creepy crush.It was something she’d put out of her mind eighteen months ago.Except on the rare occasion she walked alone, then the biting fear of that night came back to haunt her.
“He followed you?What does that mean?”
Her ankle pounded in rhythm with her temples.Sitting down, she stared at the early-afternoon storm.The rain came down in sheets.Lightning flickered.There was no way it was letting up anytime soon.
Quin sat on the edge of his seat, his position putting him directly in her personal space.He rested his hand on the back of her chair, and his other elbow rested on the table.His silence poked her resolve.She didn’t want to talk about what had happened with Frasier—gosh it was embarrassing—but if there was even the slightest chance that he’d hurt Liam...
The gentle brush of Quin’s knuckles on the sleeve of her still-wet jacket made her shiver.“You should get into dry clothes,” he said.“But I really want to know what happened.”
She knotted her hands on her lap.“I was out with the girls for drinks and appetizers.I had too much to drink so I called Liam to pick me up.I started walking away from the bar, heading toward home so Liam wouldn’t have to drive so far, and—”
Her throat seized at the memory.She remembered the sinking sensation of being watched, the terror of being followed in the shadows.His hands on her body.
Quin didn’t make a sound, but his body vibrated.The soft hiss of his breath through his nose reminded her that he had a temper similar to Liam’s.God help Frasier if he was involved in killing Liam and stalking her now.
She rolled her lips in.“He’d tried to buy me a drink at the bar.Of course I refused.”
“What happened, honey?”His hand moved to her ponytail, and he gently wound it into her hair.
She let out a breath.The endearment made the wiry angst inside her crumble.The gentleness of his voice was something she’d been missing in her life.The soft coaxing.The comfort of having someone just listen.
“I knew he was behind me.I sensed him approaching...He grabbed my elbow and said I was too drunk to walk home.I told him Liam was picking me up, but he pulled me toward his car, trying to force me inside.I screamed and he pinned me against the door—” The words tumbled out of her mouth like the vomit had later that night.
“Then Liam was there.I’d seen him furious before,” she said, smiling at the memory of his ire.“But nothing like that.He beat Frasier to a pulp.I had to pull him off Frasier.I tried to call an ambulance but Frasier somehow made it into his car and drove off.Probably when I was trying to calm Liam—well, at that point he was calming me because I was so worried he was going to end up in jail.”She moved some wayward strands of her hair behind her ear.Quin’s movement on her ponytail stopped, and she ached for him to continue.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” Quin said, his voice thick with fondness.“Liam was always crazy when it came to you.”
She chuckled.“Maybe it was a bad thing.”
“Nah.He loved you.I never saw him hurt a fly.Yeah, he gave people a piece of his mind when he was mad, but to beat up a dude...he must have been scared.”
She turned to him and lifted her eyebrows.“You mean mad.”
“No, scared.If he let go of his control that quickly it was out of fear of losing you.Or you getting hurt.”
Pressure built behind her eyes.She wouldn’t cry again.She bit the insides of her cheeks to stop the trapped emotion that wanted to pour out.
“I think that gives Frasier a damn good motive, don’t you?”he asked.
She nodded slowly.“It honestly never crossed my mind.It happened a year and a half ago.For him to come after Liam six months later...”
“That’s what happens, though.Frasier was obsessed with you.He was humiliated by Liam and he probably hated him even more after that night.Did you guys call the police?”
“No.I didn’t want Liam to get into trouble.And Frasier didn’t report it either.”
“So he’s been stewing on this since then.”He straightened in his seat.“There’s just one thing that doesn’t fit.”
She shifted so she faced him.
“Frasier doesn’t drive a blue Dodge.”
Josie fought the urge to pace the room.Doing so would only inflame her ankle even more.She shivered and sat on her hands to keep herself still.“If his intention was to kill me, he wouldn’t have used his own vehicle.”
Quin folded his arms across his chest.“True.He would need to have access to another vehicle.Hopefully the sheriff can find out who in the area owns a blue Dodge.”
