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He carried her bags to her car, waiting while she got settled behind the wheel, raising his eyebrows pointedly when she didn’t immediately fasten her seatbelt

"Geez, Baldwin, you’re like ahappening to you on my watch" He closed her door and sped back to his SUV, then tailed her through the front gate and onto the street

It was a short and uneventful journey back to her house She didn’t live that far away in simple distance It was traffic and street closures for the constant VIP convoys thatBut this late at night, the streets were nearly e on, but not in her part of town, so once they left Duncan’s neighborhood, there wasn’t even that to consider

But when they got to her house, there was nowhere to park With the end of winter, the street sweepers were back and everyone had moved their cars to one side of the street for the nextShe had to park a block over and two blocks down, and even then the space was barely large enough for her car Good thing she was a good parallel parker

Baldwin pulled up next to her and reached across to open the passenger door on his SUV "Get in," he called

Es, tossed the around happily She liked riding in big trucks She would have bought one for herself, but it wasn’t practical in DC Maybe soinia or Maryland, and she’d have two vehicles--a practical sedan for the ride into work, and a big ass SUV like this one for zoo the idea

"What’re you s at?" Baldwin asked

"I like your truck"

"Not my truck I’m only the driver"

"Well, I like it anyway"

"I’d let you drive, but Duncan wouldn’t like it"

"Why not? I’uy? My reflexes are faster than yours"

As it turned out, Baldwin’s reflexes were good foraccidents He drove like a bat out of hell, switching lanes and zoo down to check her seatbeltthere much faster than she would have on her own

Pettry was busy when she arrived--she didn’t want to inquire doing what this late at night--but he’d left a maroon, linen-covered box for her that held a siold-sta to her eyes, and she closed the box quickly This was going to be harder than she thought

"Is that everything, E her voice

"Coet you out of here"

Emma clutched the box to her chest and followed the vah bench seat, not saying anything when she refused to let go of the box

The drive back was just as fast, butall day, and it was nearly one o’clock in the ht even have dozed off a bit, because suddenly they were in front of her house Ehtened and reached for her door handle, still clutching the memory book to her chest

"Wait," Baldwin said He double-parked, turned off the engine and cli around to her side to open her door "Get your keys out," he ordered

Eue She handed him the book, then twisted around to the backseat and shoved a hand into the zipper co out her keys and raised her hand, jingling them in the air where he could see them

"Okay," he said and held out a hand to help her down He gave the book back to her "Give et your other stuff"

He closed her door and had reached for the back door of the SUV when his phone rang He raised a finger, telling her to wait, and answered the phone Emma could only hear his half of the conversation, but it was obviously one of the other va was such a mess there She didn’t kno they kept track of it all Baldwin tucked the phone between his chin and shoulder and opened the truck door Eht wind, and she was cold, despite her war across the backseat, she went ahead and clietting inside and into her warm bed

She slipped the key in the lock and pushed the door open She heard Baldwin call, "Es happened all at once

The shadows of her living roo man, his eyes twin ovals of white in a dark-bearded face, his hands hard as he closed the few feet between therabbed her arm with one hand, while the other closed over her mouth

In the saainst the wall, and Baldas there, twisting her away fro between them so quickly that Emma stumbled and nearly fell The unshot rang out, and then another, startlingly loud in the confines of her sh the open doorway, and literally threw the invader away fro past the SUV and into the street The attacker shrieked, the sound cut off abruptly when he hit the hard paveutter