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She nods. “That part gets a little fuzzy. He was plying me with drinks for most of the night and I was very drunk by then. He took advantage of that.”

“Do you remember anything else?” Rowan asks. “Anything that might help us find out who this guy is?”

“Well…”

I arch a brow. “What is it?”

“I don’t really know if it will help but I clearly remember thinking that right before he hit me, his face changed and he hit me way harder than he needed to…”

Rowan scowls. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, he hit me so fucking hard that he fractured my cheekbone and he seemed so angry in that moment but the rest of the night, he was perfectly charming and nice… I don’t know... It was like he became a different person,” she sighs and shakes her head. “I’m sorry I can’t be more help.”

I stand up and grab my phone off of the coffee table as I shake my head. “No, it’s okay. We’re all kind of spinning our wheels here but I knew this was a long shot. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me, though.”

“If I think of anything else, I’ll let you know. I want to help.”

“That would be great,” I tell her, pulling one of the club’s business cards out of my back pocket and writing my cell number on the back before handing it to her. “You can reach me at that number.”

She takes it and nods, before frowning. “I am sorry about all of this… and I’m sorry again that I couldn’t be more help. If I could fix what I did, I would.”

“Look,” I say, sighing. “What you did was fucked up but you were also a pawn in this guy’s game and I don’t really think you would have done this if he hadn’t been buying you alcohol all night and coercing you into it.”

“Thank you for saying that,” she whispers and I nod as Rowan stands. Tawny hops off of the bar stool and walks us to the door, promising again to call if she thinks of anything before we leave. As soon as we’re outside, Rowan slips her hand into mine again and I glance down at her.

“You okay?”

I nod. “Yeah… just fucking frustrated.”

“Let’s go get some food. I always think better after I eat something,” she says and there is no room for argument in her tone but oddly, I don’t give a shit.

“Yes, ma’am.” I laugh as I release her hand and throw my arm over her shoulders, pulling her into my body. My stomach growls, as if on cue, but even if I wasn’t starving, there is no way in hell I would turn down an opportunity to spend a little more time with her. Not when she makes me feel like maybe I actually have a chance of solving this and saving my club.