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‘I’ll explain later’ He turned to the ets better soon’

The man shifted his bulky body inside his coat like a bantaht with a rival who had out, who subsequently licked his hand and looked up at hiht button eyes ‘Colish are mad?’

Aiesha bit her lip as she watched theto a block of flats ‘I guess that’s where he lives’

‘Yes, with his wife’ James looked down at her with a concerned expression ‘Are you OK?’

‘I’m fine’

‘No, you’re not You’re shaking’

‘Can we go back to the hotel?’ She gave a long shuddery sigh ‘I’m cold and wet andand I need a drink’

He took her hand and led her out of the alley ‘I think I could do with one, too’

James kept his arm around her on the way back to their hotel She was still shivering and shaking but he wanted to get her warm and safe before he pressed her about the incident with the dog He had thought her little tantruht was bad but this was so much worse He had never seen her so hysterical So eer Seeing her in that alleyway confronting an angry-looking ht of her being attacked or harmed in any way had been like a knockout punch to his solar plexus He tried to convince hier but he kneasn’t true It physically hurt to see her in danger His chest still felt tight, restricted Painful

He wondered as behind her reaction She didn’t even like dogsor so she said What was she doing trying to rescue one that didn’t even need rescuing? Did it have so to do with her past? Would she tell hiive him that hard, steely look and tell him to mind his own business? He could only push her so far He had learnt that the hard way When would she finally let him in? He wanted to knohat put those dark shadows in her eyes He wanted to knohat gave her that sharp tongue and don’t-mess-with-me air He wanted to knohat had made her so prickly and defensive that she pushed away anyone who showed the least bit of care for her

‘How did you knohere I was?’ she asked when they got back to their suite

James took her coat off her ‘I was in a cab on my way back to the hotel and I saw you run into the alley At first I thought you were trying to hide froot to you just as you were about to floor that poor s?’