Trained To Defend. Christy Barritt

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       TWO

      Sarah jerked her eyes open and startled at the unfamiliar space around her.

      Where was she? Was that man here—the man who’d killed Loretta? Had he caught Sarah and taken her somewhere?

      She sprang up, swinging her gaze around as panic seized her. Movement caught the side of her vision.

      The killer. He was here.

      Sarah raised her hands, ready to give every last ounce of her strength to stay alive.

      Her arm jerked toward him. But, before her fist connected with the man, he grabbed her wrists.

      The action immobilized her. She thrashed, trying to get away. It was no use. The man…he was too strong. He overpowered her too easily.

      “Sarah, it’s okay.” His voice sounded surprisingly calm and soothing—not at all like Sarah had imagined.

      But she wouldn’t let that fool her.

      “No, it’s not okay.” With one last burst of strength, she began fighting again.

      “Sarah, it’s me. Colton.”

      Slowly, her ex-fiancé’s face came into view.

      Colton.

      That was right. She’d fled to Colton’s house. She barely remembered making it here.

      She only vaguely recalled driving around as if on autopilot. Of deciding to come here but changing her mind. Of wandering country back roads in the dark, worried about running out of gas.

      She remembered the panic. Remembered not thinking clearly.

      As more details from last night flooded back to Sarah, she gasped.

      Details about Loretta. Of the woman’s final moments.

      Tears sprang to her eyes, and her limbs shook uncontrollably.

      Loretta was dead. She’d passed right there in Sarah’s arms while her attacker had lain collapsed against the wall.

      As Colton released her hands, Sarah leaned back, desperate to hold herself together. Yet she couldn’t.

      No, she’d been so frantic that she’d run to the very man who’d broken her heart—only he refused to acknowledge that he’d been the one to pull away. Colton refused to understand why Sarah had no choice but to leave, refused to understand that this was never about her art.

      Buzz appeared beside Sarah, and his cold nose nuzzled her hand. She smiled and rubbed the dog’s head, finding comfort in his familiar scent.

      Her smile faded quickly.

      Poor Buzz…he must feel worse than she did. Buzz had loved Loretta so much.

      And now she was gone.

      Another guttural cry escaped.

      Colton leaned toward her, his gaze intense and concerned. “Sarah, you need to tell me what’s going on.”

      She studied Colton a moment. Glanced at the perfect lines of his face. His messy light brown hair.

      The man always got her pulse racing.

      But he was off-limits. Sarah needed to remember that. He’d already broken her heart once. If he broke it again, she wasn’t sure it could ever be repaired.

      Which was why coming here had been such a horrible idea. Sarah definitely hadn’t been thinking clearly. Otherwise, she would have gone anywhere else.

      She gathered the blanket around her and stared at the fire in front of her. Buzz lay down beside her, his icy blue gaze on Colton, as if daring him to make one wrong move.

      She needed to tell Colton why she was here. But first she needed to collect her thoughts. Besides, she wasn’t sure she could say the words aloud.

      Every time she remembered what happened it felt like a punch in her gut. Maybe this was a nightmare. Maybe she would wake up. Sarah wished those things might be true and, even more, she wished she believed them.

      But she knew the truth. She just didn’t know if she could find her voice long enough to share.

      “Can I…can I have some tea?” Sarah asked, buying herself time. “Please. I… I just can’t get warm.”

      As if on cue, her teeth chattered. The reaction had little to do with the cold, however. No, it felt like someone had rammed an icicle into her chest and shattered her emotions.

      “Of course.” Colton stood. “But then we need to talk.”

      Why had Sarah come here? Why couldn’t she think of anywhere else she’d be safe?

      She knew why. Colton had always been a protector. Even if he had been distant and withdrawn toward the end of their engagement, СКАЧАТЬ