Page 139 of Hard Pass

Don’t, Valor.

The second you swing and knock the fucker out, this becomes a whole different kind of story. The kind that will drag Dublin down even further.

So I swallow it—barely—and focus on getting Dublin into the back seat of my SUV where she’ll be protected by the blacked-out windows from the cameras.

“Get in the car,” I say, voice tight as I open the door for her. She hesitates for a second, no doubt the fury in my voice evident, but she slides in.

I shut the door and turn with every intent to get to the driver’s side without another word.

But somewhere between rounding the hood to walking in front of the car, I realize that I refuse to stay silent. I’m sick of disengaging. Keeping my mouth shut is going to hurt her more, right? That’s all I’ve done when it comes to my dad and it’s fucked me up, so why the hell would I want to do the same to her?

Fuck it.

“Hey!” I shout, the words cutting through the noise. My voice is controlled and that makes them all pause. Not silence, but close.

“You can say whatever you want about me,” I start, my voice steady despite my blood boiling under my skin. “That’s part of the job. Comes with the territory.” A few cameras shift. Phones lift higher. “But you don’t get to tear her down like that.” I scan the crowd, find the fucker who said it, and hold his stare. “She didn’t compromise anything. She didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Then why were you involved with her during the investigation—”

“Because I pursued her. I didn’t take no for an answer,” I say bluntly with a shrug. “And no, it wasn’t because I was trying to get my name cleared. Sometimes you meet someone and walking away isn’t an option you’re willing to take.” Silence creeps in now, curiosity replacing the noise. “That woman is one of the most intelligent, ethical, and relentless people I’ve ever met. She did her job, better than anyone else could have, and the fact that this”—I gesture around us—“is how you choose to frame her tells me a hell of a lot more about you than it does about her.”

A few glances shift. They’ve gone from being bold to uneasy. Perfect.

“If you’re looking for someone to blame, then look at me.” I take a step forward. “I’m right here. I crossed the line. I pushed. I didn’t take no for an answer—and that’s on me. You don’t get to drag her name through the mud to make a better headline.”

“Valor—”

I hold my hand up to stop the question. “You want a headline? Fine. Here it is. You wanted to break her with this slanderous abuse,” I say quieter now, but I know it will carry more. “Congratulations. All you did was prove exactly how strong she is.” I pause and run my eyes over the people standing there. “Keep following us. Don’t follow us. I don’t give a damn.”

Done, I turn, walk to the car, and slide into the driver’s seat, the noise fading the second it shuts.

I draw in a deep, even breath as a heavy, charged silence fills the car. I don’t even turn to look at Dublin right away but start the engine and pull out of the parking lot.

I don’t look back at them.

I don’t need to.

“Cole. You didn’t have to do that.”

“Just give me a minute, yeah?”

And it’s in that moment—right there, hands tight on the wheel, adrenaline still humming through me, the assholes growing smaller in my rearview mirror—that I know.

Fuck.

This woman has done what no one else ever has. She didn’t just get under my skin. She pushed and challenged. She agreed to fight.

And somewhere in the middle of all that, I fucking fell for her.

Motherfucking hell.

Is that what this is? This feeling beneath my breastbone that aches every time she’s upset? The need to protect her when I know it’s futile? The want to be with her instead of doing fucking anything else? Hanging my hat on a scandal that I could have walked away from?

I start laughing. It’s deep and loud and long and draws an odd look from Dublin in the rearview mirror.

Here I thought I was just being a good guy. Just making sure all the blame didn’t fall on her.

And yeah, that’s part of it, but the other part? The part that just blindsided me like a three-hundred-pound linebacker?