Page 76 of To Bring You Back
She left the slip and rounded the bed to stand in front of him. “We were arguing about what our relationship is and isn’t. I put my hand on his arm”—she touched Gannon’s arm where the honor tattoo ran—“and he pushed me off.”
“Hard enough to do this.” He lifted his hand but stopped short of touching her cheek.
Her bruised and red eyelid half covered her blue iris. She held eye contact for a moment, then nodded and shrugged away. “I got out, him screaming behind me that he’d find me. You don’t think he’d come all the way here, do you?”
That depended on the man’s resources and determination, and given this new information, Gannon wondered if this man had both. What if he’d also caused Harper’s injuries at Gannon’s apartment?
“Was this guy involved the first time you got hurt?”
She cocked her head, expression troubled. “Oh. At your place? No. I fell, like I said.”
That lined up with the security footage. It was easier to believe she’d fallen the first time than that her fling had erased his presence on the video. And one attack was plenty serious. “You ought to press charges.”
She eased past him and onto the balcony, as if considering what he’d said. But then she asked, “How many dogs do you have here?”
“Just the two.” Trigger and Camo had greeted them when they walked in, so John must’ve left his door open.
“But this one’s different.”
Gannon joined her on the balcony. A black dog with white on his muzzle explored the great room. On spotting them, the dog barked once and wagged his tail.
“Bruce, be quiet.”
Sick pressure built in his stomach. Bruce and Adeline? Here? Now?
Harper arched an eyebrow. “Bruce? What kind of dog name is that?”
“You should call it a night.” He started for the stairs. He’d descended only a couple of them when he caught sight of Adeline, Tegan, and John coming down the hall from the garage. Though dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, Adeline appeared to have just rolled out of bed, her hair a gorgeous tangle of waves.
Behind her, Tegan gazed at the room as if she was touring Versailles, and John carried two bags. His gaze hooked firmly on Harper, who stood at the railing. If the drummer were the type to give lectures, Gannon would be in for one.
Adeline didn’t seem to notice her. She met Gannon at the base of the stairs and leaned into him, arms finding their way around his waist.
He held her, but confusion, regret, and worry kept him from enjoying it. Was that smoke he smelled on her? “What’s going on?”
“Called and texted you, man.” John glared at Harper another moment before fastening his glare on Gannon. “Someone started Adeline’s house on fire.”
“What?” His stomach filled with acid as he studied what he could see of Adeline for damage. Her forehead was smooth and pale, her hair glossy, the shoulders of her top unsinged.
“It wasn’t serious.” She stepped back from him and snuggled her arms across her body, as if she still needed a hug. “It was probably an accident, but John thought we should come here.”
Tegan’s gaze locked on the second-floor landing. It was only a matter of time until Adeline noticed Harper too, and what would she think? She’d been concerned about his relationship with the actress already.
John handed Gannon one of the bags. “She heard someone messing around in the yard earlier. Cigarette butts next to the yard waste bags. Could’ve burned the whole place down.”
“On purpose?”
Instead of replying, John caught Tegan’s eye and tilted his head toward the kitchen. “There are rooms this way.”
Tegan offered Adeline a glance loaded with sympathy, then left. Bruce trotted after them.
“Some of Gannon’s fans are the jealous type, aren’t they, honey?”
Adeline’s big brown eyes angled up to the balcony. Her lips parted as she spotted Harper, who’d hidden behind her sunglasses again. The differences between the two had never stood out so strongly. Harper, intent on controlling appearances with sunglasses, styled hair, designer clothes, and aloof comments, versus Adeline, who remained authentic and vulnerable with raw beauty that didn’t come from surgeons, stylists, or makeup.
He pulled his focus away to check his phone. Adeline had called once, and John had texted and called, all around the time he’d left his phone in the SUV to grab Harper’s bags. He hadn’t thought to check for messages when he got back in the car because it was so late. Everyone should’ve been sleeping. He’d left Adeline safe and sound just hours before.
Now she gaped at him, displaced, looking lost and hurt.
