Part 44 (1/2)

At that, I felt and saw his casual shrug before, ”Not my favorite pastime, baby, not even in the top hundred and fifty but it's happened and you deal.”

Okay, well...

Yikes!

I'd pulled my s.h.i.+t together but frankly I'd dealt with enough that night and enough the last however many years. I would deal with the fact my man was a man who got shot at later.

Like, in my next life.

Moving on.

”You said if that was Damian, do you not think it is?”

”He'd be my prime suspect. Or he was until I saw him with you. Probably not his brightest move to admit to calling a hit on a cop ever but definitely not right in front of the cop he called the hit on but when you were shoutin' at him, he seemed genuinely surprised and started to deny it though he didn't get to finish considering you were still shoutin'.”

”I had things to get off my chest,” I told him quietly and he grinned as his hand at my neck as well as his arm around my back gave me a squeeze.

Then he dipped his head, touched his mouth to mine and then lifted it away before he whispered, ”Yeah, and I'm f.u.c.kin' glad you did. You were magnificent, sweetness. f.u.c.kin'

phenomenal. ”

It was nice he thought that and all.

But...

”I lost it again,” I whispered, pressing in closer.

”No, you're finding it,” he contradicted.

”What?”

”Babe, he took your power. Tonight, you took it back. And it...” his arm gave me a squeeze, ”was,” his hand gave me a squeeze, ”f.u.c.kin',” his forehead dropped to rest on mine, ”beautiful. ”

I closed my eyes and pulled in a deep breath.

Then I opened them and said, ”You had my back.”

”I always have your back.”

Warm gus.h.i.+ness flooded through me, one of my hands slid from around his back, up his chest, his neck to cup his cheek.

”Thank you,” I whispered.

”You're welcome, Tess,” he whispered back.

He lifted his forehead and his thumb swept my jaw as my fingers slid from his cheek into his hair.

Then he declared, ”s.h.i.+t that went down tonight, get it outta your head.”

I blinked.

Then I asked, ”Sorry?”

”It happened, it's reported, the phone call prior is bein' looked into. You live your life.

You bake your cakes. You spend time with your friends. You already tell me where you are and where you're goin', you intensify that. I'll send someone to look at the security at your bakery and also look into setting something up here.”

”Brock ”

”Vance is good at that s.h.i.+t, stellar. I'll talk to him.”

”Brock ”

”Units are gonna drive by regular, keep a look out. And your bakery is now on radar.”

”Hon ”

”They got sh.e.l.l casings. Those might have prints. Guy was wearin' a ski mask but I got his build, make and model on the car, a partial plate and he wasn't wearin' gloves so we know he's white.”

”Can I ?”

His thumb stopped stroking and his fingers gave me a squeeze.

”You be smart, you be vigilant but I have your back, Tess, I always do. You do not need to worry about this.”

I stared at him thinking now maybe Brock was high.

Then I reminded him, ”You got shot at tonight.”

”Yeah, babe, and it's happened before. I hope it won't happen again but in my line of work that's a possibility. I deal and you bein' my woman, you deal.”

”But ”

His hand s.h.i.+fted so his thumb could press on my lips.

”This is the job you have now, Tess. You're with me, you deal and you're with me. And the woman I saw tonight shrieking in the face of the monster who violated her, she won't have a problem with that. The only way you beat motherf.u.c.kers who try to f.u.c.k with you is not to let them beat you. So you deal.”

d.a.m.n, I freaking hated it when he made sense.

”Yeah?” he prompted when I said nothing.

I didn't answer. Instead I asked, ”Did Martha ask your Riviera order?”

”Yeah she did, now did you get me?”