Page 50 of Dangerous Secret

The door closed behind Cooper, and silence fell between her and Grayson as they stared at each other. Cooper must have told him what little he knew about Anthony being here. There was fury in Grayson’s eyes, and if she were the enemy, she’d be looking for an escape exit because the man standing in her foyer looked lethal.

She should be afraid of a man who by all appearances would be deadly to anyone who got in his way, but she wasn’t. Not at all. This man would offer his body to protect hers, and as cliché as it sounded, she knew in her heart that he would take a bullet for her. That truth hit her with a force that took her breath away. There had never been anyone in her life—including her mother, who’d often neglected the needs of her daughter to march for her latest cause—who made her feel as safe and secure as he did.

“Hey,” he said as he came to her, his gaze never wavering from hers as the eyes that only seconds ago had been hard and filled with rage changed, the hardness in them turning soft, the cold in them turning warm.

She lifted Einstein and set him on the floor. She didn’t want anything between her and Grayson. Of course, Einstein found his voice and let her know his feelings about being dumped, but whatever.

“Hi,” she whispered when he stopped in front of her. When he dropped to a knee, she gasped. “Uh…”He’s not about to propose, silly girl.Right, she wasn’t going to have to refuse an offer of marriage. She was still unsettled by what had almost happened before Grayson arrived, and obviously, her brain wasn’t working so great.

“Uh,” she said again, proving that she really was a silly girl when Grayson was on a knee in front of her because out of nowhere, an image of him actually proposing flashed through her mind. That wasn’t what unsettled her, it was hearing herself say yes that flustered her.

A grin lit his face. “Einstein steal your words?”

He had no clue.

Chapter 23

Grayson’s grin turned to a scowl when he saw the drop of blood on her mouth. He touched his finger to her swollen lip. “Did he do this?” She nodded, and he fiercely regretted that the man wasn’t still here when he’d arrived. Although, it was probably for the best because he’d likely be in handcuffs and on his way to jail.

“He bit me,” she said, her voice trembling.

Not wanting to scare her with his rage, he took a deep breath to calm down. “Why did you open the door to him?” That question had been bugging him. He moved to sit next to her and wrapped his hand around hers. “Start from the beginning and tell me everything.”

“I had no intention of opening the door, but then I heard Tyler’s voice, and when I looked through the peephole, there was my boy. Then I was angry that the woman I’d caught kissing Anthony was holding him. I didn’t even think about it. Tyler was on the other side, and I had to get to him. But by the time I got the door opened, Tyler was gone. It was just Anthony in the hallway.”

The bastard had used their son to trick her. What kind of man used his child like that?

“He wants me back because he’s going to run for mayor, and I’m good for his image.”

“Going to be hard for him to run for mayor from prison.” The goal of this mission had started as a simple one. Help her get her son back. That goal had changed. Now he intended to see Pressley behind bars.

“All he had to do was agree to a reasonable custody arrangement, and I would have been happy.”

“But he didn’t, although in the end, he’s going to wish he had. What happened after he got inside?” When she got to the part where Pressley was dragging her to her bedroom, intending to rape her, he shot up, unable to remain still. What if they hadn’t installed the Ring camera? What if Cooper hadn’t been close enough to arrive in time to stop Pressley’s assault?

“Grayson?”

He stopped his pacing and faced her. “What?” After hearing her story, he wouldn’t have cared if he’d landed in jail if it meant teaching that man a lesson for biting her, for throwing Einstein against the wall, and he could barely bring himself to think about her almost being raped.

“I’m okay.”

Well, he wasn’t. Not even close. He’d been on missions that had gone south in the worst of ways, and he’d kept his calm. He’d been shot at so many times he’d lost count, and he’d kept his calm. He’d sweated off pounds in desert temperatures that threatened to give him heatstroke, and he’d kept his calm. He’d barely avoided dying from hypothermia when the thermometer dropped below zero and his SEAL team was hunkered down in the middle of nowhere, and he’d kept his calm.

Yet, standing here in her living room where no one was shooting at him and there was no chance of the weather killing him, he was not calm. But he had to be…for her. He took a deep breath and crushed the rage burning inside him.

The plan was going to be set in motion this week if Cooper could get Pressley’s driver onboard, and Grayson was counting on that happening. He returned to the sofa. Once he stepped into the role of driver, it would be risky for him to be seen coming or going to her apartment. He could have the rest of the day and tonight with her before he became Richie Kaplan, first cousin to Pressley’s driver.

“Come here.” He sat back and lifted her over his lap. The soft smile she gave him as she straddled his legs stirred something deep inside him.

She trailed her fingers over his cheek. “I’ve never seen you with scruff before. It’s kind of sexy.”

“Maybe I’ll keep it, then.” He preferred to be clean-shaven, but he was growing the beard to help disguise his face since Pressley’s man had seen him.

“Can you stay awhile? Maybe take this to my bedroom?”

“Are you sure…after what just happened?” She was just attacked, her lip was cut, and the last thing he wanted was to take her to a place she wasn’t ready for.

“I need you to hold me. I feel safe with you.” She pressed her forehead against his. “Please.”

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