“I’m leaving. And she’s coming with me.”
“The hell she is,” Kyle replies.
The female officer at Amalie’s side speaks up. “And why would we allow that?” Her tone is careful, probing.
I glance over my shoulder at my small entourage. Among the guards is a slender, middle-aged man in a sharp suit. A member of my legal counsel. I nod toward him and he steps forward at once.
“My name is Daniel Hargrove,” he says. “I’m one of the lawyers who represents Mr. Barinov. Ms. Denning is an adult. She’s not under arrest and not a minor. She’s free to leave whenever she chooses and with whomever she chooses.”
Kyle’s jaw works. He knows Hargrove is right. “She’s shaken. She was attacked. She needs?—”
“Safety,” I say. “And I can provide it.”
Kyle laughs once, sharp and mocking. “Safety? Fromyou? Listen, Barinov, I don’t know what the hell happened to my sister just now, but it’s a pretty goddamn safe bet you’ve got something to do with it.”
Amalie flinches. I don’t know precisely what happened either, but Kyle could very well be right. Either way, I need to keep her safe. And that means getting her out of here.
I hold out my hand. “Amalie,” I say, my tone softer. “Come with me.”
Kyle looks at her, and I can see the instant his mind finishes assembling the picture. His gaze moves from her eyes to my hand. It’s not just that she works for me, he’s realizing. It’s not just that she’s staying in my house.
It’s the way my eyes stay on her, the way I’m reaching out to her. The way she’s reacting to my orders like I’m more than her boss.
Because I am.
Her expression changes as she makes the same realization I do—Kyle now knows.
“No,” Kyle says, shaking his head. “No. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me this isn’t what I think it is.”
Amalie says nothing. She swallows hard. I see in her eyes the war inside her. Part of her wants to take my hand and step into my arms because she knows I’d wrap her up, pull her close, make her safe. The other part of her knows her brother is a cop, and she’s involved with a man as far on the other side of the thin blue line as one can be.
Kyle turns to the other officers and nods. They depart, leaving him alone with Amalie, me, and my lawyer.
“It’s okay,” she says to her brother, though there’s not a chance in hell Kyle would consider this madness okay. “I’m here. I’m safe.”
Kyle’s eyes flick to me again. “You’re with him. That’s not okay and it sure as fuck isn’t safe.”
She doesn’t deny it. An intolerable silence falls.
I want to reach for her, to just take her. But I don’t. The officers have left us alone, but they’re watching out of the corner of their eyes, waiting for me to make a move they can throw cuffs on me for. I’m not going to give them the satisfaction.
Hargrove steps forward. “Ms. Denning, do you wish to leave with Mr. Barinov?”
She hesitates just a beat too long. My stomach clenches, because as much as I want to simply take her, I can’t. I have no control over what she says or does. And it kills me.
Conflict returns to her eyes. Part of her wants to leave, I can tell, but another part doesn’t. Her gaze meets mine, and I see an apology blended with frustration.
“I need to stay with my brother,” she says softly.
The words hit hard.
Kyle exhales with relief.
“And tomorrow?” I ask. I’m pushing it, but I don’t care.
Her brows knit. “Roman?—”
“Tomorrow,” I say again, not asking this time. “Tomorrow you come back.”
