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Natches nodded sharply "I’ll be around the houseboat later tonight and let you kno things are going"

Dawg nodded again as he watched the crowd One of his employees had to be involved; there was no doubt But which one? And why?

He watched the, filled with curiosity One of them had betrayed him and threatened Crista Which ht years before, Crista had lived for thehad turned her heart over, filled her with a wild, reckless joy, andin his arms

She had ached for him even before she knehat the ache was His charm, his lazy humor, and that shadow of pain that haunted his eyes drew her And in her deepest fantasies she eased that shadoay and saw his odd, light green eyes fill with joy

When she had first realized she was pregnant, she had been furious, resentful Then the knowledge of that life she held stilled the anger His child would never know loneliness, never lack for love She would never see that shadow of hurt in their baby’s eyes She would love it, protect it Their baby

The day she had lost that child so inside her had died, only to be reborn when she returned and realized that that silent draeen her and Daas still there

She had fought it She had thought she could protect her heart and live on the periphery of his attention, warmed yet protected from the heat she knew could destroy her

What a fool she had been

Crista watched Dawg as they finished the office arrange for a reason why his office had been breached

He was silent, angry Deter hie aura that turned her onthe furniture and sliding it into place as Crista cleaned He helped go through files, helped pack them to the new cabinets and load them, his celadon eyes sharp and intent as he went over every inch of the office to track anything that had been bothered or searched

As he h the wide office s on the other side of the room worshipped his raven black hair and sun-kissed flesh It slid over his broad shoulders and emphasized his muscular arms as the short sleeves of his black T-shirt stretched over thehs, and those boots he wore s even sexier

Not to ly cupped his irl’s breath, and Crista ad a lot of breathlessbefore when she thought he hadn’t matured from the self-centered detered over the years after all He was harder Still just as sexy, but erous than he had been before he joined the Marines and definitely more mature

He had proven that today Crista had watched as he h the office after the sheriff’sfor prints, and the state police had finished their questions

They could find nothingbothered The only proof there was that therewith the security cameras and the lock on the office door

And Crista felt sorry for the culprit, because Dawg looked h to draw blood hours later

He had sent the employees home after the police left and locked up behind Layla before leading Crista back into the office

She stared at hihtened the lamp on the table by the couch and he stored the last of the files His eyes were narrowed, his expression brooding as he turned to her

"Do you realize you just destroyed years of deliberate chaos?" Dawg asked as the last of the files were stored away and she gave the furniture a final buffing with the polish she used Everything gleamed, even the hardwood floor beneath their feet

She turned and looked around, realizing how large the office was There was plenty of room for the other file cabinets she wanted as well as the extra desk Dawg had ordered one of the stock floor boys to put together for her in the e walnut desk he was using himself

Deliberate chaos he called it A slap at the father that would have taken even this fro like the ged "Organization can raise productivity and profits The way it is, the chain lu ahead of you in profits and customers We want to pull those custoainst the file cabinet and regarded her quizzically "It h ed against me those first years, I cah for you?" She kneg better than that

"It’s ain, the one that encouraged the person he was talking to, to go straight to hell

Crista shook her head "It’s not enough for you, Dawg"

"Says who?" He threw hie leather chair behind his desk and stared back at her broodingly

Crista rolled her eyes as she stored the polish and rag in the botto to face him

The look on his face was sexy and scary at the sa, do an ass," she chided him "You know you love this store You pretend you don’t You want people to think you don’t But I know better"

He folded his fingers together over his tight abs as he leaned back and let his gaze rake over her

"And how do you know so er "It’s not like you try to get close toEven in the past year, Crista had soaked up every hint of gossip she could about him She had watched hi for excuses to be in places where she kneould be

She knew the lawsuit that his aunt had brought against hinited a fury of controversy through the town at the ti--had been in the service, leaving no one in Somerset to protect his interests other than his uncle Ray Ray Mackay had held that front line like a bulldog holding onto a bone, though<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>