Somebody to Hold (Tyler Jamison #2) - April Wilson Page 0,86
sight of a studded leather collar and leash lying on the coffee table, I see red. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
Before he can utter a word, I grab Turner by the front of his shirt and slam him against the wall.
“You can’t do this,” he says. He sounds belligerent, but the stark terror I see in his eyes says something different. “I’ll have you fired for this.”
Too late for that, pal.
“Listen carefully, asshole,” I say through gritted teeth. “If I ever catch you within a mile of Ian—if you ever call him or text him again—I swear to god I will end you. Am I making myself clear? You stay the hell away from Ian, or I will kill you. And I promise, if I do, no one will ever find the body.”
Turner’s mouth falls open, but no words come out.
“Say it, Brad. I want to hear you say the words.”
“I’ll stay away from him, I swear!”
I wrap my fingers around his throat and squeeze, cutting off his air, just like he did to Ian and god knows how many other men. Only I’m not playing a sex game with him. This is for real.
I watch his face darken as he chokes. “You’re not such a tough guy now, are you, Brad?” I nail him with a glare. “This is your one and only warning.”
I release him and step back, prepared for him to lunge at me. Hell, I’m prepared for anything. But he doesn’t retaliate. Gasping for air, he wilts before my eyes, his knees giving out on him.
Without a second look, I walk out the door and exit the building. Despite having ended my career in law enforcement, I feel more empowered than I ever have in my life.
Ian’s mine, and I won’t let this motherfucker, or any other, hurt him.
Chapter 32
Ian Alexander
“Tyler? Where are you, babe?”
“I’m in the living room.”
I find Tyler seated on the sofa, tablet in hand and his black reading glasses perched on his nose. He’s in a much better frame of mind than he was yesterday when we got home. “You look hot, like in a sexy professor kind of way.”
Lifting his blue-green eyes to me, he gives me a look that I’ve come to recognize. His bossy look.
I sit on the coffee table in front of him and peer down at his tablet. “What are you reading?”
He glances at me over the top of his glasses. “I’m studying for the Illinois private investigator’s license exam.”
“Oh, my god, I want to take it too. What do you have to do to qualify?”
He removes his glasses and hooks them on the neckline of his T-shirt. “Are you at least twenty-one years of age?”
Now it’s my turn to give him a look. “Duh.”
He cocks a dark eyebrow. “Just answer the questions, please.”
Oooh, he’s using his cop voice. Swoon. “I am.”
“Have you ever been convicted of a felony?”
“No.”
“Are you of good moral character?”
“I hope so. Yes.”
“Well, there’s more to it, but basically yes, I believe you’re eligible to be a licensed PI in our fair state.”
I take his tablet from him and set it aside so I can straddle his lap. “I want to get licensed. I want to learn how to shoot a gun, and I want to take self-defense classes.”
He studies me. “You’re serious about this, aren’t you?”
“I’m absolutely serious. I think I’d be good at it. I don’t have all the experience you do, but I can learn. I knew I’d never be good at an office job, where I’d have to sit behind a desk all day and stare at the same four walls. But this is different. We’d be out and about, constantly on the move, unless we’re stuck in the car on a stake-out—but then, I’d be with you, and there’s no one I’d rather spend my time with. I’m serious, Tyler. I think this is something I’d be good at. Let me do this with you. Let me help you save people.”
Tyler smiles. “All right. If you really think this is what you want to do… then yes. You need to pass the exam, take a gun training course so you can obtain a concealed carry permit, and take some self-defense classes. I could use a little more training, too, in that regard.”
I’m so excited I could explode. Not just because he’s agreeing, but because he’s taking me seriously. I grab his shirt and lean in to kiss him. “Thank you.”