Page 28 of Handcuffs & Honey

Dominic hung up, sat in his chair, leaned back, and rubbed his temples. He knew that this was far from over, but he didn’t know what else he could do. He had done what he thought was right by showing Ezekiel the report, but Ezekiel wasn’t going to let it go.

Julian wasn’t going to like being locked down, especially since he’d looked forward to going back to work, but if Dominic was going to keep his mate safe, that was the only solution.

* * * *

Denali watched as Ezekiel stormed out of Sheriff Harper’s office. He seemed volatile, and Denali was proven right when Ezekiel swiped his arm out and knocked over a stack of files that had been sitting on top of a filing cabinet.

Denali stood, ready to kick the guy’s ass, but Deputy Cannon Lowry held up a hand. “Let him go.”

“His son was a piece of shit,” Denali snarled. “I did everything by the book.”

“We both did,” Cannon said. “He’s grieving, Denali. If he wants to knock some folders over, let him.”

“Are you taking his side?”

“No.” Cannon shook his head. “We did what we had to do, and he’s coping with the loss of his son.”

Denali was surprised that Ezekiel hadn’t attacked him since he’d been the one who’d killed Robert. “Do you think he’s going after Julian?”

Cannon gave a low whistle. “If he does, that’ll be the biggest mistake of his life.”

Dominic would shred Ezekiel to pieces, and Denali would help. Their boss, and friend, had just found his mate, and Denali would do everything in his power to keep Julian safe. “I’m heading to the diner.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s where Julian probably is.”

Cannon shook his head. “And lead Ezekiel right to him? I’m pretty sure Dominic has already called Roman. For now, we sit tight.”

Denali snorted. “Since when did you become my boss?”

Cannon shrugged. “Since your motive to keep Julian safe just might compromise his location.”

With a growl, Denali dropped into his seat. He didn’t like sitting on his ass when someone was in danger. It went against his nature, but Cannon was right. Ezekiel might be watching the station, and if any one of them tried to go to Julian, the guy would follow. Their only priority now was keeping Julian safe.

* * * *

Julian watched as, twice now, Roman walked out the back door that led into the alley, looked around, then walked back inside. His boss had told him what took place at the station, and Julian was nervous as hell.

Ezekiel was going to murder him when he found out where he was. Why on earth had Dominic told the truth? He could have just said he hadn’t seen Rob. He could have played dumb, but instead, he’d laid things out for Ezekiel.

And now the guy was gunning for him. Julian had no doubt about that. Hunting him. He didn’t like the feeling of having a target on his back. He didn’t like jumping every time he heard the door to the diner open and close. He didn’t like hiding out in the kitchen where he had to do food prep or wash dishes.

Washing dishes sucked, even though Roman had a dishwashing machine. It was still gross to scrape off food, rinse, and stack the dishes inside the machine. Normally Roman had a person for that, but the guy had quit three weeks ago, and so far, Roman hadn’t replaced him.

Julian definitely wasn’t going to be the replacement. He liked interacting with the customers and liked bringing the plates out, not washing them.

“No boogeyman so far?” he asked.

Roman shook his head. “I’m just making sure the alley is clear. I have a feeling Dominic will use it to get you out of here.”

Julian nodded, relief washing over him. He hadn’t been sure how he was going to make it out of there alive if Dominic didn’t come through for him. “Thanks, Roman. I really appreciate this.”

Roman grinned at him, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “Think of it as an adventure.”

Julian snorted a laugh, momentarily forgetting the danger he was in. “Yeah, right. More like a nightmare.”

“Hey, you never know,” Roman said, clapping a hand on Julian’s shoulder. “Maybe tonight will be the night you finally get to live out your James Bond fantasies.”

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