just seen, Ty had been scared enough. He and Jagger had definitely pegged Mark right. And the situation screamed for justice. Sinner style.
“Maybe we should go to Hawaii instead of the moon,” Evie said, stroking Ty’s head. “At the rate Zane’s going, it should only take a few days.”
“How ’bout I just pay for the vacation and then swear all I like?”
Evie’s lips quivered with repressed laughter. Ty turned his head and met Zane’s gaze. Then his face broke into a smile.
That was the moment Zane knew.
He was home. And nothing would take him away.
* * *
The noise woke him. A soft murmur that he couldn’t identify as a threat, but which made him uneasy just the same.
Zane pulled his weapon from under the cushion and sat up on the couch, trying to pinpoint the sound. The safe house, an open plan apartment above Sparky’s garage, afforded little space to hide, which left the bedroom, the small office they’d fixed up for Ty, or the bathroom, as the source of the noise.
Not bothering with his shirt, he made his way through the sparsely furnished apartment. Bathroom clear. Ty sleeping soundly on the camp bed they’d set up beside the desk. Kitchen empty. He paused outside Evie’s room and heard the sound again. Then he pushed open the door.
He’d never seen Evie cry. Through high school break-ups, verbal and emotional abuse from her alcoholic mother, and the longing for her absent father, she’d always held fast. But now, she sat on the cold, wood floor, her back against the wall, the phone pressed to her ear, and tears streaking her cheeks. Her eyes widened when she saw him and she murmured into the phone. “I’ve got company. Have to go.”
He wanted to know who was on the phone, and whether that person had said something that made her cry, and if so, who he was and where he lived. And why was she on the phone with someone else when Zane was sleeping just outside her door?
She needed comfort. He could provide. Weapon holstered, he crossed the room and pulled her to standing, his gaze taking in the T-shirt that barely skimmed her lips. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her to him, enfolding her in his warmth. No words. Just silence. He had always loved silence.
After a few moments, she relaxed against him, her arms circling his waist, her cheek pressed against his chest. She had taken out her ponytail and her hair fanned over her shoulders, the gold highlights shimmering under the soft glow of the bedside lamp. So beautiful. So fragile. His Evie.
“It’s been a rough day,” she whispered. “Viper … She choked on the name. “I lost Bill, and the shop, and T-Rex. We’re on the run, and you … you want to send us away. What about Ty?”
“I’m not about to walk away from my responsibilities.”
Her breath left her in a rush. “I don’t want him to be just a responsibility. You’re his dad. I want him to have a relationship with you.”
“Like I had with my old man?” He couldn’t hide the bitterness in his voice. “Some kids are better off without their parents.”
“I just thought…” She tried to pull away and he held her closer, the slight movement of her body sending shock waves to his groin.
“I’m not leaving you or Ty.” At least not while Viper was out there. But after he dealt with Viper, what then? How did he integrate a son into his life? And Evie. How could he win her back? How could he ask her to forgive him when he couldn’t forgive himself?
“I guess I don’t know you that well after all.” But the desire that burned in her green eyes said otherwise, and when she met his gaze, her little pink tongue flicking out to wet her lips, he couldn’t deny his hunger.
“Then get to know me again.” His hand cupped her jaw with infinite care. Drawing her close, he dropped his head and claimed her mouth in a long, sensuous kiss.
“Yes.” Evie moaned into his mouth, the sound reverberating through his body, firing his blood, decimating the last of his restraint. He groaned, shoved her against the wall, and her lips apart for the soft slide his tongue. She tasted of coffee and cream, and something sweet.
* * *
Hard kiss. Demanding kiss. Desperate kiss. A kiss that turned her inside out, and told her the man he had become was not the boy she once