Page 61 of Forged in Peril

He’d gotten a decent enough look at the man who had taken Bristol.

He was of average height and build, with tan skin, dark hair, and dark eyes. Normal nose, normal ears, normal mouth. There was very little to differentiate him from half of the other men he saw on any given day, aside from perhaps how well he was dressed. Even his race was ambiguous.

He swore under his breath, ignoring the stares as people walked by him, no doubt noticing that his face was slick with sweat.

Pulling out his phone, he sent Gabe another text, letting him know that their potential break in the case had just disappeared into the crowds of downtown San Antonio.

CHAPTER

NINETEEN

BRISTOL

Bristol sat back in her chair, trying to stop her fingers from shaking as Jaclyn looked over at her, her eyes brimming with concern.

The two of them sat in the upstairs lounge, and despite the fact that the lawyer had brought her coffee instead of tea, the familiar room was comforting.

Still, she struggled to let herself relax. Despite the logical fact that she was safe here, her body insisted on remaining in fight or flight mode.

“Bristol, I’m so sorry,” she heard Cam say, his muscled form taking up a good portion of the doorway as he rushed into the room.

Before she could say anything, he was next to her, leaning over and crushing her in a desperate embrace.

He lingered there for several long seconds, and she could feel the racing of his heart through the sweat-soaked dress shirt and jacket that he had worn to his meeting with D&P.

She forced her breaths to follow his own, and to her surprise, the closeness helped.

At last, she felt a little of the tension in her own muscles melting away.

However confused and muddled her feelings were, her body didn’t lie.

When he was near her, her heart rate slowed, her hands stopped shaking, and her lungs remembered how to breathe.

She was safe.

She was safe because even when it was her own stupidity that got her into trouble, he was willing to put his own life on the line to protect her.

“I’m sorry,” she said, pulling away, a fresh wave of guilt replacing the peace she’d felt just seconds before.

“Can we have a moment, Jaclyn?” Cameron said, glancing over at the lawyer, who got up from her own seat in an instant. “Of course, sorry,” she said, giving a jerky little laugh as she strode toward the door on her practical two-inch heels. “If you need anything at all, Bristol, I’ll be back in my office.”

Bristol thanked her, and listened until her footsteps had disappeared down the hall before turning back to meet Cameron’s eyes.

“I know I should have stayed at FBS,” she said. “I messed up. I’m so sorry. I should have listened.”

Cameron shook his head, anger flashing in his blue eyes. “I thought I’d lost you. I had no plan, and backup wasn’t going to make it before you reached the van. I don’t know if I would have made it to you in time, not without you getting shot.”

She watched the muscles in forearms tighten as he rested his elbows on the table in front of them, her untouched mug of coffee sending plumes of steam into the air.

“I didn’t get shot,” she said. “I’m not hurt, just shaken up. I promise.”

“You didn’t get shot because those lowlifes decided to abandon their plan!”

His voice was so loud that for a moment, she sat back, stunned.

Cameron Forge never raised his voice. Certainly not in front of her.

She said nothing, glancing down at her lap, feeling guiltier than before.

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