Explosive Attraction - By Lena Diaz Page 0,51

chest.

He hadn’t followed her because there hadn’t been enough time.

Even as tall and muscular as Rafe was, he couldn’t easily run with two hundred pounds of deadweight in his arms. The bomb had blown less than a minute after Darby ran across the drawbridge, too soon for Rafe to make it to safety. So what had happened? Who was on the gurney?

She fisted her hands in frustration and rolled her head back and forth across her knees. The sound of the door opening had her jerking her head up.

Buresh stood in the doorway, his brows raised in surprise. Darby supposed he wasn’t used to seeing someone else sitting at his desk. She uncurled her legs and stood, moving out of his way.

She gripped the edge of the desk, facing him. He gingerly lowered himself into his chair, his face lined with pain, reminding her of his injuries. A hundred questions rushed through her, but she held them back, trying to give him the time he obviously needed to pull himself together.

He let out a long breath. “I’m sorry you had to wait. I had to take care of that mess at the fort, then go to the hospital, then make arrangements to put you in protective custody until we find the bastard who did this.” Another pained expression crossed his face.

Darby couldn’t wait a second longer. “Who was on the gurney? Who went to the hospital?”

His brows drew down and he frowned. “Detective Young. I thought you knew that. Detective Morgan saved his life. Jake is in for a long recovery, but the doctors think he’ll make it.”

Young was at the hospital. Jake Young.

Not Rafe.

She stumbled to the chair beside Buresh’s desk. Air. She needed air. She dropped her head in her hands and struggled just to breathe. Despair unlike anything she’d ever known slammed into her.

Wait, he hadn’t said Rafe was dead. Maybe she just hadn’t asked the right question. A small spark of hope surged through her. “And did...Detective Morgan go to the hospital, too?”

“No.” His voice sounded confused. “There wasn’t any reason to take him to the hospital.”

Darby nodded miserably, grief welling up inside her again. There’d been no reason to take Rafe to the hospital because he was already gone. “I’m so sorry. So very, very sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” a deep voice called out from the doorway. “None of this is your fault.”

Darby’s head shot up and she stared in disbelief at Rafe standing just a few feet away. Joy and relief warred inside her, and suddenly she was in his arms. She didn’t even remember running to him, but she was standing in front of him, resting her head against his chest with her arms wrapped around his waist.

He stiffened, reminding her how inappropriate her actions were. Embarrassment had her cheeks feeling warm. What had gotten into her? She had no clue. She started to pull away, but he drew her back against him, hugging her just as tightly as she’d been hugging him.

“It’s okay,” he whispered, his lips close to her ear. He rubbed one hand up and down her back in a comforting gesture. “I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. There’s no reason to be afraid.”

Afraid. He thought she was afraid. She was, but not for the reasons he thought. She’d been terrified that he’d been killed.

The feel of him, the smell of him, was so intoxicating she stayed in the warm cocoon of his arms. Then the silence around her registered, and she opened her eyes.

Buresh was watching her with a thoughtful look on his face. And behind him, a sea of faces in the squad room were staring at her, some of them smiling, some of them looking outright hostile.

She forced herself to let go.

Rafe dropped his arms from around her, and it was all she could do not to touch him one more time, to assure herself he really was okay. She took a couple of steps back so she could look him in the eyes.

“What happened? You said you’d follow me out of the fort, but when I turned around, you weren’t there.” She swallowed hard. “Then there was an explosion. I thought... I thought you...” She shook her head and wrapped her arms around her waist. “What happened?”

Rafe gave her a puzzled look, as if he was trying to figure her out. He glanced at Buresh before answering. “There was a timer on the bomb. I knew there wasn’t enough time to get out of