My muscles tighten. I clutch my fists behind my back. Just seeing his eyes on her has my protective instincts surging. “It was just a tow, Captain—”
“I know what it was,” he snaps. “You’re under IA investigation,OfficerRawls. You think I don’t know what you’re up to?”
I’m burning. Steam’s coming out of my ears. I’m about to boil over. But there’s something else in the look he’s giving me. Something he’s trying to hide back, but the longer I look at him, the less disguised it becomes.
And then I get it.
Captain Felch is the one holding up my investigation. He’s the one behind the charges of excessive force being brought on me. And it’s because I scare him. Because there’s been talk of me being promoted to captain.
He thinks I’m coming after his job. And that makes me a threat.
“And whatamI up to, Captain?”
He stares back at me with cold, calculating eyes. “I’m adding misuse of departmental property and departmental funds to the investigation.” He turns again to Briar, and I have to fight the urge to lay him out. “And if your girlfriend here was in the cruiser without a booking number, I’ll be adding unlawful detention, and she can be subpoenaed.”
I’m two seconds from snapping and shattering this prick’s face with my fist. Briar must see this and steps up beside me, gently touching the back of my arm with her hand.
And that’s all it takes.
My heartrate drops, and I’m able to take a breath as Felch turns his back on me. I watch as he walks out, leaving the door open behind him. I close my eyes, ready to punch a hole in my wall.
“He’s gone,” Briar says, closing and locking the door. “Now take a breath before you add a murder charge on to…whatever it was he’s talking about.”
I take her advice and draw a long, deep breath, then slowly exhale. “Yeah…”
“Whatwashe talking about, Gareth?” she asks.
I’m shaking with adrenaline. I’m about to crack, but her touch is grounding me. Pulling me back from the edge.
Such a tiny thing with so much power over me…
I look down at her innocent eyes, gazing up expectantly at me. I didn’t want to lay my baggage on her this early, but what choice do I have after what just happened?
No. Briar ismine. And I trust her.
“There was a home invasion at my mother’s house,” I say slowly. “She’s ill, and a man came in, grabbed her, and threatened her with a knife. The other officers told me to back off and talk him down.”
I shake my head, replaying the incident in my mind.
“This is my mom we’re talking about. And I wasn’t taking any chances.” I see recognition in Briar’s eyes. Understanding. Acceptance. “I broke the guy’s jaw. Shattered a few ribs. His lawyers are claiming excessive force, and I was busted down from detective while they investigate.”
“Gareth…” Her voice is like a bell on the wind. So soft, yet so strong, anchoring me to the here and now.
“And I know now that Captain Felch is the one behind it.” I swallow hard, lift Briar into my arms, and carry her to the couch. I sit, holding her in my lap. “I’m a threat to his job, and he wants to ruin me.”
She doesn’t speak for a long time. Just runs her fingers up and down my left arm, tracing the lines of my muscles. Then she looks up at me. “Well, why don’t you just kill him?”
I’m so shocked by her response that my body stiffens. I frown down at her, and she just looks back up at me, her face as flat as freshly paved concrete. Then the crack appears. Her lip twists up, and her eyes begin to glitter.
“Oh, you…” I smirk, twisting my thumb into her side, causing her to giggle.
“Just kill him, Mr. Big, Bad Corrupt Cop!” she laughs, twisting in my arms as I pin her down beneath me.
Her body’s warmth radiates up, filling me with something more than physical. Something that goes straight through me, right into my soul.
I pin her arms over her head and lean in, enveloping her lips in mine. My kiss is passionate, loving, possessive. And she knows it. She kisses me back, locking lips with me in an embrace that goes beyond what we’ve done before.
When I pull back, I see honesty in her eyes. A trust I haven’t seen yet.
