gun on her lap. “Thanks, but I don’t need your permission.”
“Still feisty, I see. Not a big surprise. People rarely change. I remember you when you were a little girl. Big eyes and ragged clothes. I never understood why you and Lexi became friends.”
Her clothes hadn’t been ragged, but she knew he was simply making a point.
She kept her breathing steady, her body relaxed. She wanted to be on alert, but not hyper-vigilant. No need to wear herself out. Jed could be planning a long conversation.
Even as she watched him, she was aware of her surroundings. While she suspected he was alone, as he’d claimed, she didn’t want to be caught unawares.
“There’s a lot you don’t understand,” she told him. “Like how to make a point. What was with the car chase? It was practically a cartoon. I would have expected better.”
“Don’t worry,” he said calmly. “You’ll get it.”
She gave him a faint smile. “Let me guess-you’re here to warn me about something. I’m to do exactly what you say or there will be dire consequences. If only there was some movie music to fill out the moment.”
“I’m here to tell you to back off or you’ll be sorry.”
Not a surprise, she thought. “And here I was hoping for more.”
“Look at you, Dana. Always the lost puppy, on the fringe of everything. Lexi was good to you, helping you fit in, making you feel like you belonged. Later Skye and Izzy joined her. But you’ll never be one of them. You know that, right? They’re sisters. You’re just someone they know.”
He was good, she thought, doing her best not to react. If he’d talked about her lack of money, she would have been able to laugh him off. But talking about belonging was much smarter.
“I’m a big girl now,” she said easily. “I can take care of myself.”
“Keep telling yourself that. Maybe it will be true. How’s Garth?”
She blinked. “I have no idea.”
“But you were with him earlier. I saw you in front of Kathy’s pet store. Holding hands.” He gave her a knowing smile. “So romantic. It’s really funny when you think about it. All your life you’ve been trying to be equal with my girls and now you’re dating my son. I should warn you, it didn’t work with them and it won’t work with him. You’ll never be a Titan, Dana. You’re not one of us. You know that. You try to pretend it doesn’t matter, but we both know differently. After all, your father hit you for a reason.”
It took every ounce of control she had, but she was determined not to react. At the same time she sat there, completely still, a voice screamed in her head. What the hell? Had everyone in town known she was being beaten on a regular basis and no one had thought to ask a couple of questions or turn in her old man? Had everyone looked the other way?
Stupid question and she already knew the answer.
“You’re trash, Dana,” Jed said, almost kindly. “In my day we would call someone like you poor white trash. My girls know that and so does Garth. I’m not saying he doesn’t enjoy fucking you. You’re athletic. I’m sure you can keep him happy in bed for a couple of months. But it’s not going to last. I’m saying that with a full heart.”
He actually put his hand on his chest as he spoke, as if to convince her of his sincerity.
“I’m beyond touched,” she said dryly. “And officially bored with this conversation. Was there anything else?” She glanced at her watch. “Because otherwise, I need to get going.”
Jed rose. She did, as well, keeping distance between them and a firm hold on her gun.
“You’ll back off,” he said flatly.
“Or I’ll find a horse’s head in my bed?”
“Nothing that abstract. I prefer to be more direct. If you don’t back off, all of you, I’ll start hurting the people you love most.”
Her mouth went dry. “You already tried that once.”
“Next time I won’t leave anything to chance. Next time the consequences will be a lot more serious. Lexi or Izzy or Skye might not get out alive.”
“YOU OKAY?” Garth asked.
Dana shook her head. She was sure she would never be okay again. “He was so cold,” she said, folding her arms over herself and doing her best not to shake. “So casual, the way he talked about hurting his own daughters. Who does that? He’s become a monster. When did that happen?”
After Jed had left, Dana had checked the place to make sure no one else was there, then had driven to Garth’s office.
He sat next to her on the sofa by the window and slowly rubbed her back. “Do you want me to get you something to calm you down? Tea? Something stronger?”
She glared at him. “I’m not hysterical. I don’t need to be sedated.”
“I’m just offering.”
“Don’t. We need to figure out a plan. We need to stop him.”
“We have a plan.”
“It’s not working,” she snapped, then shook her head. “Sorry. I’m a little on edge.”
“I hadn’t noticed.”
She managed a slight smile, then took a deep breath. “Okay. What are we going to do?”
“I’ll let Mitch, Cruz and Nick know what happened and what Jed said.” He hesitated. “If I tell you something, you have to keep it to yourself.”
“What are we, in high school?”
“I’m serious.”
He looked serious. Determined and a little intimidating. Not that she would tell him that.
“Fine. I won’t say anything.”
“The guys have hired bodyguards.”
He didn’t say any more than that, but Dana could fill in the rest. She sprang to her feet, put her hands on her hips and glared at him.
“Are you serious?” she yelled. “My friends are being watched and they don’t know it?”
He stood. “Protected. There’s a difference and you know it. It’s a precaution. Based on what Jed said, do you think it’s such a bad idea?”
She opened her mouth then closed it. “No,” she grumbled, sinking back onto the sofa.
She bounced back to her feet, then poked him in the chest with her index finger. “You better not have anyone following me or I swear I’ll disembowel you.”
“There’s a visual.”
“I mean it, Garth.”
He sighed heavily. “I don’t have anyone on you. With your professional training I knew you’d be better prepared. I’d like to have you protected…”
“And I’d like to win a megalottery. We all have unfulfilled dreams. You’ll have to get over this one.”
“That’s what I thought you’d say. But with Jed making overt threats, I want you to be really careful.”
The man had sent people to run her off the road and then had shown up in her house. She was going to be the poster child for careful.
If only the license plate numbers had helped, but as she’d suspected, they’d been stolen.
“I’m not the only one who has to watch herself,” she said. “Jed could just as easily come after you. That’s the most direct road to success.”
“Are you worried about me?”
Garth put his hands on her waist and drew her against him. She didn’t really want to go, but the second he touched her, she didn’t seem to have much will to resist. There was something about the heat of his body or the strength of it. It made her want to melt. And she was not the melting kind.
She managed to push his hands off her waist and take a step back. “Worried is too strong a word. I know Izzy would be upset if something happened to you. She’s determined to see you as one of the family.”
He pulled her close again and kissed her jaw. “What do you see me as?”
“Trouble,” she said, trying not to sound breathless. Which was really hard because tingles followed everywhere his mouth touched. Even as he kissed his way down her neck, she felt heat flaring in her breasts and between her legs.
He paused at the edge of her sweatshirt. For a second she thought about just ripping it off, but stopped herself.
