Page 6 of Some Saviors Can Break You

Unfortunately, he was right, and there was no use pretending that he wasn't. Whether it had been random, related to her case, or the serial killer she’d been hunting here to leave his next body in the dumpster she’d just checked, that car had intended to run her over.

Could it really have been the Dumpster Killer?

Could she really have figured out his pattern?

“Something occurred to you just then, your eyes lit up.”

She blinked and looked up, disconcerted to find that Eli Lennox was standing directly in front of her. Close enough that he could have swiped the gun from her hand if he’d wanted to. Since she didn't think that he was involved, and she didn't want to shoot him, she’d never had to take a life before and she hoped to make it through her career keeping that record, she slipped her gun back into its holster.

“I'm a homicide detective, I was just wondering if what happened was related to a case I was working. What exactly did you see?” Her position, bent down picking up the glove, meant she hadn't had as good a vantage point as he would have had standing up.

Instead of answering her question, Eli reached out and wrapped a hand around her elbow, gently lifting her arm so he could examine her wrist. “You were favoring your other hand, did you hurt this one when I saved your life?”

“Are you going to keep harping on that?” When she tried to pull her arm free, he tightened his hold. His fingers were firm but gentle, and he was careful not to hurt her while still keeping her arm in his grasp.

Shooting her a cocky grin, he said, “You know it’s an old Chinese proverb that if you save someone’s life, you’re now responsible for them, it’s your job to make sure they’re looked after.”

His fingertips brushed lightly across the sensitive skin on the inside of her elbow, and even though his touch wasn't directly on her skin, she couldn’t stop a shiver rolling through her body. Of course Eli noticed, and that cocky smile of his grew bigger.

“You cold?” he asked, his voice husky now. Without waiting for her response he whipped off his coat, wrapped it around her, and then scooped her up into his arms and carried her across the street.

“What are you doing?” Florence asked, both confused and enjoying being cradled in a strong pair of arms a little more than she should.

“Taking you inside out of the cold,” came Eli’s smooth reply.

“But I need to call my boss, report what happened.”

“You can do that inside. We’ll call an ambulance too.” Eli carried her across the street and inside the lobby of an office building.

“I don’t need an ambulance.” Spending the night in the hospital was not on her to-do list. If she was right and she’d managed to figure out the Dumpster Killer’s pattern, she needed to call her partner, get their maps out, go over things, and see if they could use her pattern to figure out where he would go next. If they couldn’t get ahead of this man then how would they ever catch him?

“Your wrist looks broken,” Eli said as he set her down on a couch off to one side of the foyer. “You’ll need x-rays and a cast.”

Florence shrugged off his apparent concern. “I’ll wrap it when I get a moment.”

His lips quirked up in amusement. “Babe, while I love your confidence in your own abilities, you need a doctor. If you don’t want an ambulance I can always drive you to the hospital. Then take you out for coffee afterward.”

“What do you mean, coffee?”

“You know a guy, a girl, a quiet little café, coffee, maybe baked goods of some sort, a date.” He knelt before her, one hand cradling her injured wrist, the other rested on her knee, the heat of it seeped through her jeans and into her skin, warming her entire body.

“A date?”

“Unless you're involved with someone?” He arched a challenging brow.

Why did he have to sound so confident that she was single? “I don’t date guys I don’t know.”

That made him chuckle. “Isn't that the whole point of dating? Getting to know someone?”

The smile he shot her was at a hundred charming watts, and she assumed it was the kind of panty-melting smile he used to get women to agree to whatever he wanted. Too bad for him her panties were made of stone, they didn't melt for guys no matter how sexy they were, and this particular one was off the charts sexy. Florence was sure he had women falling all over themselves to go to bed with him, and she didn't want to be just another conquest.

“How about I make you a deal?” Eli said.

That got her suspicious hackles rising. “What kind of deal?”

“You tell me that you're not attracted to me, and I’ll wait here until your cop buddies show up to make sure that guy who tried to run you down doesn’t come back, and then I’ll walk away. But …” he drew the word out, “if you find me attractive, then I get to take you on a date to Florence.”

“Florence?” Her eyes bulged at the notion.

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