Page 182 of Puck Me Secretly

Baxter yelped with pain. “This is police brutality. I didn’t do nothing.”

Pizza guy stood up. “Get this piece of garbage out of here.”

Only when they had hauled Baxter to his feet and shoved him out the front door did anyone pay attention to me.

“Ma’am,” the pizza dude spoke. “Are you Rory Ashford?”

I nodded, fighting tears.

I heard a different voice shouting from outside. “Let me inside. Let me see her.”

Max!

Pizza guy smiled. “There’s some big as fuck hockey player claiming to be your boyfriend. You want me to let him in?”

I nodded again, working overtime to keep my shit together.

I hung on until he pushed through the front door, looking wildly around until he saw me. Big strong arms came around me. Protecting me. Holding me. I clung to him and at that moment I felt safe enough to cry. Except I didn’t. With his arms around me, and his big hand stroking my hair, I no longer felt like crying.

I stared up at his face, unable to speak.

“Rory.” He crushed me in his arms. “Rory.”

For three hours,Max didn’t let go of me.

His arm was around me while the two detectives interviewed me.

He held my hand when I walked through the house, explaining what happened.

His hand was on the back of my neck when I phoned my mom to assure her I was all right. Promising that I’d explain everything tomorrow.

And he pulled me into his lap and wrapped his arms around me when the forensic team worked in the kitchen to dust for prints. They lit up the kitchen with their high density flashes.

“How did the police know to come?” I buried my face in Max’s warm neck.

He rubbed my back. “Calder called me.”

I lifted my head. “He did?”

“He told me that something was wrong. I arrived here the same time Calder got here. He recognized Baxter’s car down the street.”

“What did you do?”

He grimaced. “I climbed up to your deck.”

“You did what?”

“I saw Baxter with the gun and I lost my mind. We called the police.”

“Oh my god. If he had seen you, he’d have killed you.”

“The police and the SWAT team arrived within minutes. They had a sniper on your neighbor’s roof, but they couldn’t get a clear shot.”

“Holy shit.”

“So, they entered the house from upstairs and the garage and then they sent in the guy with the pizza box.”

“You saved my life.”

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