“No,” Chief Mendoza said, his voice quiet and yet still conveying the passionate hatred that everyone in their profession held for arsonists. “It’s not okay.”
“So he wanted to burn my office down, didn’t he?” she asked, her back to them as she gazed out the window toward the Gulf of Mexico.
“It appears he’s got a lot of issues,” Penn said. “Resentment, anger…”
Sophie laughed harshly. “You think?” She wrapped her arms around herself, as if protecting herself from memories.
“That guy is overflowing with jealousy. It seems he’s jealous of everything about you, though that’s not quite how he phrased it.”
“I’ve worked my ass off for everything I have. While he was getting suspended from school and picked up for shooting BBs at local businesses’ windows, I was studying. Working. Doing something with my life.”
Nate walked over to her. “There’s no way to make sense of a person like that, Sophie.”
She dragged in a ragged breath.
“He’s in custody now, so he won’t hurt you,” Penn said from behind them.
She nodded vaguely, lost in thought. Nate rubbed a hand back and forth on her back until she turned away from the window and faced the others.
“Is there anything else I need to know right now?” she asked.
Penn stood. “Just that we’ll be doing everything in our power to see that he gets the maximum punishment.” His voice held determination. “And again, he’s behind bars now. You’re safe.”
She bobbed her head again, looking a little more alive, a little less shell-shocked. “I appreciate you coming over to update me,” Sophie said to Penn and the chief. “You too, Nate.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “I’ll find a ride home later.”
The chief sized him up and gave his silent consent, and Sophie didn’t protest.
“We’ll be in touch soon, as we work on the case, Sophie,” Penn said. “I’m sorry to have to deliver such disturbing news.”
“It’s a lot to digest,” she said as she led him and the chief to the door.
“It sounds like this isn’t the first sign of trouble from your brother,” Penn said.
Again, Sophie laughed, but it, too, was far from her normal laugh. “Oh, no. Not the first sign. Thank you, gentlemen. I appreciate your visit.”
Nate narrowed his eyes at the change in her tone. It was like she’d become all business and they were discussing a building remodel or something, not a murderous, sick-in-the-head family member.
They said their good-byes, and Sophie closed the door and leaned against it, allowing the all-business act to fall by the wayside.
Thank God, because that was going to piss him off. Nobody could get news that a sibling had almost killed him or her and not be bothered.
But still, he was walking a fine line between being the support she needed and … too much.
Still slumping against the door, she pressed both her hands to her face, covering her mouth and nose. Nate walked toward her, but she didn’t even notice.
“Come here,” he said, pulling her into his arms.
She came to him willingly. Hands still covering her face, she burrowed into his chest. Nate breathed in her scent and felt centered. Content. The need to give her the same feeling pulsed through him, but he wasn’t sure how.
“It’s gonna be okay,” he whispered. He kissed the top of her head and tightened his arms around her, imagining what he’d do to her brother if he ever laid eyes on him. The bastard was lucky to be locked up, frankly.
Most women he knew would be bawling right about now, but he didn’t feel so much as a shudder of her shoulders … for better or worse. He wasn’t well versed in the art of comforting a crying woman, but with the news she’d just gotten, she should be doing something besides standing there frozen. Shouldn’t she?
“Sophie? Talk to me, darlin’. You breathing?”
A few seconds later, he felt her nod. She removed her hands from her face and wound them around him. Held on for all she was worth. Which was just fine by him. He was glad to have any kind of response, especially one that wasn’t pushing him away.
