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Right then, he knew He couldn’t put her through this anyone andafter all

But not just yet He hated hi a selfish bastard, but he couldn’t walk today The kids deserved this ho, Rena, too And, damn it all, he couldn’t make himself walk away from the chance to lose himself in her body one , before he left for good

And what a ho it had been, so perfect, and soh the clean light of his house Like now, standing in the hall, wanting to go back up those stairs and wondering if staying aas better for her in the long run

He glanced upstairs, frowning Had he started to understand, then, this deeper love he felt? God knows it confused the hell out of him now, and he’d been too

Holy crap He slu his foot on the banister across from him for support He hadn’t walked away to protect her He’d left because the dawning realization of how much he loved her scared the hell out of him

He couldn’t reconcile it all then Still wasn’t sure he could

Except now, he wanted to

At least he was home Alive He could--and daot his head on straight He needed five o back upstairs for dae control

He opened his office door

To find aat his desk, rifling through drawers What the hell?

The e, raw ely on the surface roared to life JT launched forward

Thenasty-looking 9 JT quicker than a brick wall in the face

The dark eyes blinked fro to finish up here before you cah his head If he called a warning, Rena would co ht keep her safely upstairs

One-on-one odds he could handle Hell, right noelco stuck in a cell with his hands tied behind his back

The man’s attention shifted JT’s un twitched "Well, hello there, ma’am"

Ma’am? Rena? Adrenaline turned to icy heat A trick? Maybe, but with that gun possibly pointed at Rena, JT couldn’t afford to act until … he … looked…

At his wife standing red-eyed and horrified in the doorway

Oh God, babe, I’ed a half turn toward his attacker before…

Everything went dark

Chapter 15

Rena screaround God, he was heavy She crumpled to the floor with hi his head on the desk on the way down

As if he hadn’t already taken a hard enough hit to the skull when the guy loo in dark clothes and a ski un Bile bubbled up, scalding her throat

She cradled her husband’s head in her lap, fear snaking through her, gripping, like poison ivy to fertile ground "Take whatever you want I’ll tell you where everything is in the house, the keys to the car Just take it all and go, but please don’t hurt us"

Don’t hurt JT again

Gun level, the lean man skirted around the corner of the desk "I need your husband’s flight schedule, ht and tomorrow, and then I’m out of here Out of your hair It’s really si under control"

What the hell did this guy ith a flight schedule? His flat accent gave her no hints of his background other than that he sounded educated, not soled at her about his voice, but she couldn’t place him as anyone she kneell

Rena studied his clothes for clues, black pleated pants and T-shirt, nice cut and make on a tall, fit fra out

Her world had gone crazy in a couple of weeks

She didn’t knohy this h to realize this was bad Really bad "And if I find whatever schedule it is you’re looking for, you’ll let us live?"

"You don’t have a choice but to believeyour husband, and then wait for your son to coht all the options sucked Hi she had a son scared her even more Was he someone they knew? Maybe his voice sounded fahtened-as-helltricks on her

That she didn’t have any idea where JT s worse She feared he didn’t have one at all, because hadn’t he talked about taking leave? That his schedule was clear now?

What did this guy need a flight schedule for, anyway? If she was sure she would live, she could give it to hiave it to him and then he killed them… She would have put crewit to him would constitute treason A line neither she nor her husband could cross

Think time Start with the truth, about her only option since what onias? "We don’t have it JT is starting leave now There’s nothing in this house for you"

"Like I believe that Try again, nize truth She burned to take this guy on with a lamp or ashtray upside the head for a chance to protect JT and Chris Too bad she hadn’t pocketed the crystal dish she’d longed to lob at JT