Flash Point

by Brooke Blaine

  Her blood ran cold as she watched the news story playing on the television in the corner of the room, the faces of her father and two other dark-haired men filling the screen. She’d seen those men mentioned many times, but they’d never been formally connected to her mother’s murder, and neither looked familiar to her. Still, she hated them, just as she hated that her father’s cases were always in the news and that they never stopped talking about the past.

  No wonder she’d had to leave the country for a year—a few months back here and it was like she’d never even left.

  She could feel Jason watching her, and then his hand lifted from her arm and he went over to the hostess. The girl nodded at something he’d said and clicked a button on the remote to change the channel to sports.

  “Thank you,” she said when he sat down again.

  “Too heavy for a Friday night crowd, anyway.”

  Nodding absently, she picked at her pizza, her appetite gone.

  “So what’s the dessert menu like here?” he asked.

  Sighing, she wiped her fingers on her napkin and leaned back. She appreciated that he was trying to lighten the mood, but it was like an ice bucket had been dumped over her head and she couldn’t think of anything other than how fucking cold she was.

  Cold and alone and trying not to panic.

  “Okay. You wanna talk about it? Not talk about it? What’s the correct response here?”

  His warm hazel eyes were concerned and intently watching her. Though he was too gorgeous for his own good, up close she could see the flaws that somehow equaled perfection as a whole—the scar above his left eyebrow, another faint line along his jaw. Nothing you’d notice if you weren’t looking too close. She decided then that he had what she’d call an honest face. Not to mention he called her out on her bullshit. Constantly. While that annoyed her to no end, she respected it. He’d gained her trust without her even realizing it, and wasn’t that what she so desperately needed right then? Someone to confide in, someone to take the pressure off having to hold it all inside?

  “I don’t like him much,” she blurted out.

  He rested his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers under his chin. “The Grahams?”

  “My father. Though I don’t see anything redeemable about that family either.”

  “You were close before?”

  Biting the edge of her bottom lip, she nodded once. “I was the typical daddy’s girl. I thought he hung the moon, and I couldn’t wait to be just like him. Follow in his footsteps, go to law school…” She looked up at him. “Shocking, right? Me, a lawyer.”

  “Not really. You’re smart. You’re outspoken. Not a big stretch.”

  “Outspoken…that’s one way to put it,” she said with a small smile.

  “I was being nice.”

  “I know.” Her smile faded. “Before it all happened, he’d started working a lot more…taking on more cases, and then he was appointed to the Georgia Supreme Court. You can imagine we stopped seeing him as much. And then after Mom…it was like I didn’t exist. He threw himself into work all day. All night. Leaving me in a big, empty, bloodstained house when I needed him. I was alone, I was scared, and I couldn’t stop the nightmares. And where was my father?” She scoffed. “Trying to play catch a killer. Trying to be a hero and put away those he had some control over.”

  Jason nodded at the television. “The news seems to point a few fingers.”

  “Yeah, right. It’s been five years. I get it, my dad was the one who didn’t stop his kid from getting sentenced to death, so, theoretically, retaliation makes sense. Pain for pain. No doubt there are probably so many eyes on him right now that if he tried something, they’d know. Which means the threats now…well, if it’s all tied together somehow, past and present, then I just don’t think he’s that stupid.”

  Jason snorted. “The guy deals drugs for a living. I doubt there are many brain cells left up there.”

  “Good point.” She cracked a smile before asking, “And what about you?”

  “I’ve never touched the white stuff, so my brain cells should be pretty intact.”

  She rolled her eyes. “No, what’s your story? You know every last detail about me, and I can’t get anything out of you.”

  After tipping back the rest of his water, he dug into his pizza, pointedly ignoring her question.

  Groaning, she tried again. “Kirkpatrick mentioned you were a Navy SEAL.”

  “No, he didn’t.”

  “Okay, fine, he didn’t.”

  “But you wouldn’t be wrong.”

  Her eyes widened. “Hot damn. That was a wild guess.”

  He grinned at her and tore off another bite, and she took the opportunity to grab a sausage off his plate. Again, he grabbed her wrist before she could get close.

  Chuckling, she pulled her hand out of his grasp and asked, “So, how’d you end up doing that?”

  “It was better than the alternative.”

  “Which was…?”

  His lips tipped up wryly. “Dealing with family drama.”

  “I knew you were a rebel. Sounds familiar.” Leaning forward, she propped her chin on her fist. “So…I’m not keeping you away from a wife and ten kids, am I?”

  Please say no. Please say no.

  Holding up his left hand, he looked at his empty ring finger and then back at her. Relief swept through her.

  Well that settles that, thank God.

  “Where’s home?”

  “Don’t have one,” he said. “Don’t need one.”

  “No family, no home base, jumping from place to place…doesn’t that get kinda lonely?”

  He shrugged and swirled the remaining ice in his cup. “I’ve been on my own so long I don’t know any other way.”

  His tone indicated that the time for questioning was over, so, after clearing her throat, she teased, “You’d just rather bask in my fabulous presence, don’t lie.”

  A contemplative expression came over his face. “Something like that.”

  The way he was looking at her had her heart beginning to beat faster, and she swallowed. “Care to explain?”

  “No.”

  When her face fell, he opened his mouth and then closed it again, shaking his head. “You are…unexpected,” he said, finally.

  With those three words, the burn in her chest exploded, filling her cheeks with heat and spreading through her body.

  Unexpected. She could work with that.

  UNABLE TO SLEEP after waking from a steamy dream featuring her favorite bodyguard, Katherine got up the next morning as the sun was beginning to rise. Jason always went for a run before he and Kirkpatrick switched off for the day, and she’d made a decision while lying there to find any opportunity to get close to him.

  After tying her hair up and shimmying into her workout clothes, she made her way out to the kitchen to see Kirkpatrick sitting at the bar sipping a coffee.

  “You’re up early,” he said, and then took in what she was wearing. “Are we going to the gym today?”

  “Actually, I was hoping to catch Garrett and join him on his run.”

  He stopped mid-sip. “You do know the man is a beast?”

  “Do I look like I can’t handle a jog?” she asked, her hands on her hips.

  “A jog, yes. Garrett’s marathon morning run, no.”

  “Care to wager?”

  “Maybe.” He glanced down at her legs again. “You a runner?”

  She let out a growl. “Why does everyone keep asking me that?”

  “Okay, okay,” he said, heading to the door. “If you insist on dying today, I can’t stop you.”

  “Oh ye of little faith.”

  “You’re damn right,” he said as they bounded down the stairs. “All right, how about this. When I win, you owe me a big-ass breakfast, but for dinner. I want waffles, I want eggs with the picante sauce, I want hash browns. Throw in some grits. And then a beer to wash it all down with.”

  “That’s disgusting. Okay, w
hen I win, I want…” She tapped her finger on her chin and then whispered her wager in his ear.

  “Oh, come on!” Kirkpatrick complained.

  With a devilish grin, she said, “Nope, that’s what I want or no deal.”

  His gaze drifted over to Jason, who was doing a series of stretches. Kirkpatrick began to nod, and a Cheshire smile stretched across his face.

  “Yeah, you’re going down, Kitty Kat.”

  “Like hell I am, Kirkwad.” Best idea ever.

  “Hey, Garrett, she wants to come with,” Kirkpatrick called out as she crossed the street.

  Jason looked up from his stretch, and his lips quirked. “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah,” she told him, and let her eyes rove over his workout attire. He wore a black hoodie, hood pulled up, and his shorts highlighted his muscular legs. Yum.

  “Try for an extra mile this time. I’ve got a bet riding on this,” Kirkpatrick yelled before bounding back up the stairs.

  “A bet?” Jason asked.

  “He doesn’t think I can hang.”

  The way Jason pressed his lips together had her wondering if he agreed and she’d just made the stupidest decision ever.

  No, not stupid. This was quality time together and a chance to have him sweaty and panting next to her, to hopefully make him think of other sweaty and panting activities they could participate in. Of the horizontal kind.

  Shrugging, she said, “Someone forced almost a whole pizza down my throat this week, so yeah. Plus, you said try to outrun your attacker if you can, right? Better get back in shape if I’m gonna do that.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest and smirked. “You do know I run a five-minute mile.”

  Uh…that’s normal, right? “Yeah, okay.”

  “Six miles.”

  Oh shit.

  “Overachiever,” she joked, trying to push back her panic. She’d thought maybe a couple of miles, but six? Sweet Jesus. She cleared her throat and smiled. “I’m game if you are.”

  Seriously, it’s not too late to turn around.

  He cocked his head, considering her offer. “All right then. We’ll go down Reynolds Street, past the river, and around the park before heading back. You sure about this?”

  Please, God, don’t let me do anything embarrassing like die in front of him. “Hell yeah, let’s do it.”

  His lips tipped up, and his eyes twinkled amusement. She kept a smile plastered on her face until he bent down to tighten his laces.

  Pride. It was an awful, awful thing.

  * * *

  OH GOD, I’M out of shape for this. Don’t let him see you sweat. Oh, hell, too late for that. Don’t let him see you pass out in the middle of the road.

  After running around what felt like the entire damn city, they were finally back to where they’d started. She slowed to a walk, clutching the stitch at her waist, and willed her legs not to give out beneath her.

  Instead of feeling empowered and strong, she felt like one of those huge inflatable air dancer balloons with the flimsy arms that flail all over the place. Something Jason would find sexy for sure.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah, of course,” she wheezed out. “Perfect. That was nothin’.”

  When his lips twitched in amusement, she fell over with her hands on her knees. “Yeah, okay, so maybe I’m a little rusty.”

  He laughed. “You did great. Kept up with me.”

  “Oh please, those were not five-minute miles, and it sure as hell wasn’t six miles. I know you took it easy on me.”

  He laughed again. “Not by much.”

  She shook her head. “I still call bullshit, but thank you. I think I left my hip somewhere back there.”

  “Should we go back and check?” he asked, starting a slow jog in the direction they’d come.

  “No!” she shouted. “I mean, nah. I don’t need it much.”

  Grinning, he jogged back over to her. “If you say so.”

  “Oh, I say so.”

  “Does this mean you won the bet?”

  “The bet?” she repeated before the light bulb went off. “Ohhhh, the bet. You’re damn right I did. He is gonna freak.”

  “What were the terms?”

  Shaking her head, she said, “Trust me when I say this is something you’ll want to see for yourself.”

  “That bad?”

  “Beyond. Poor guy.”

  She joined him on the grass and made it a point to bend over in front of him as she eased into a stretch. When she sneaked a glance behind her, his eyes were exactly where she wanted them to be. Not so immune now, is he? As she turned around, he looked away and moved into a series of arm stretches.

  “I got a text from your friend late last night,” he said.

  “Who? Steven?”

  “He asked to come by and see you.”

  “He texted you to come see me?” When Jason nodded, she said, “This is so weird. He’s having to call you to set up appointments now. He’s my best fucking friend, but I feel like I don’t know him at all anymore.”

  “So this doesn’t happen a lot?”

  “This happens never. Everyone knows we’re attached at the hip. I don’t know what’s going on.”

  Jason wiped the sweat from his brow with the edge of his hoodie, revealing the ripped abs beneath. “Didn’t he say he had a lot on his mind? Maybe he wants to fill you in now.”

  “Huh?” she asked, her gaze still on his taut stomach.

  Smirking, he covered himself again. “You’ve been friends for a while, huh?”

  “Yeah. Even our families were close. Our moms volunteered a lot with our school, and they became friends, and from then on…we were all inseparable. His family was mine and vice versa.”

  “You said were. Not anymore?” he asked.

  “No.” She shook her head. “His mom left not long before mine passed away. No reason why, just packed her stuff and was gone.”

  “So you both lost your moms…and your second moms.”

  “Didn’t you memorize my file?” she teased.

  “I’d rather hear it from you.”

  A slow smile spread across her face, and she looked down at her feet. “We’ve been through a lot. It’s strange not to have him around right now, but maybe…maybe it’s too much. Maybe he doesn’t want to handle another bad thing. If I were in his position, I’d be scared to lose him and his dad too. I can’t blame him for wanting to stay away if that’s the case.”

  Jason was quiet by her side as he listened. He was good at that. Never making any assumptions, asking just enough to show that he was interested, but never pressing. She appreciated that about him.

  “So,” she said brightly, attempting to lighten the mood. “When do you wanna go over some more self-defense mo—”

  She hadn’t even gotten the sentence out, when his foot kicked out to trip hers, causing her to stumble and lurch forward, not quite falling fully over.

  “Are you serious right no—” she said as she stood up straight, but Jason was behind her, wrapping his arms tight around her body. For a moment, she forgot she was supposed to escape. His hold made her feel secure, not frightened, the tension draining from her body. He felt it, and squeezed tighter, this time cutting off her air. Her adrenaline finally kicked in and she squirmed in his hold, stomping on his foot and jabbing him in the stomach with her elbows. When he let go of her, she turned around, out of breath, and looked at him in disbelief.

  “I didn’t mean right now,” she said, rolling her shoulders.

  “You’re right. Bad timing. Truce?” he asked, and stuck his hand out for her to shake on it.

  Sighing, she shook it. “Yeah, truce.”

  When his grip tightened and he didn’t let go, she tried to shake him off, but quick as a flash, he jerked her forward, both of his hands wrapping around her wrists, and only inches separating them. “The thing about self-defense is there’s never good timing. You’ll need it when you’re not prepared, when you’ve run an exhausting six
miles, when your hands are full of bags after shopping. You can never be too careful. Never let your guard down.”

  Too stunned by the proximity of his lips so close to hers, she stood there frozen, staring up at him and daring him to close the gap.

  “You’re supposed to get away,” he said, his voice low.

  I don’t want to.

  “Katherine,” he said, but this time his eyes dropped to her mouth. “Push me away.”

  Her chest heaved, both from exhaustion and from the shots of lust running through her. She looked into his eyes. “I can’t.”

  His eyes darkened, his grip on her wrists becoming painful. They stood there, staring at each other, the rest of the world fading away.

  This. He always asked her what she wanted, but it was never clearer than now. This. Him. That was what she wanted. For him to move three inches closer and press his lips against hers. To take her under the pine tree right there, right now, with no mind to who was watching.

  But he wouldn’t do it. She knew he wouldn’t, so she decided to make a move for him—she kneed him within inches of his groin.

  Releasing her instantly, he cursed, his jaw clenching as he stepped away from her. He took a deep breath and blew it out before turning back to face her. Shaking his head, he gave her a half-smile. “Now that’s how you do it. I appreciate you not going full force, but trust me when I say, if and when you ever use that move, it will be effective.”

  Grinning, she mentally patted herself on the back for not succumbing to her lustful inclinations. Well, not right then, anyway. She had a gut feeling there was something bigger coming. It was just a matter of time.

  “I learned from the best,” she said with a wink. “You play dirty too.”

  HE’D JUST SETTLED into his favored armchair when Katherine leaned over him, looking as impatient as ever. Impatient and alluring and…mischievous.

  What is she up to?

  “Up. Come on. Grab your keys.”

  His eyes inadvertently dropped down to the skintight top she wore before looking away. Having ditched the sweaters, she’d taken to wearing outfits that showcased her body over the last few days, and damn if he didn’t find himself looking at her whenever she wasn’t watching. It wasn’t enough that when he was alone he found himself reflecting on the dual sides of her, the sensitive soul she let him glimpse when her guard was down, and the daring flirt who was coming out to play more and more with each passing day. Now she had to blatantly throw herself in his face.