The Mackades Collection (Books 1-4). Nora Roberts

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      “You want me to ask Regan to let me move in with her?”

      “And Cassie, and the kids.”

      The idea was surprisingly appealing. Waking up beside her, sharing that first cup of coffee. “You going to deputize me, Dev?”

      “Not on your life.”

      “Too bad. Well, I’ll run it by Regan and let you know.”

      Chapter 8

      “Absolutely not.” Regan planted her feet, folded her arms over her chest. “You are not sleeping in my bed with two little children in the next room.”

      “This isn’t about sex,” Rafe said patiently. “That’s just a bonus. I’m telling you, this is an official request from the sheriff.”

      “Who just happens to be your brother. No.” She turned away to set glassware back on the shelf she’d been dusting. “It would make Cassie uncomfortable and set a poor example for the children.”

      And if they weren’t there? He found the question leaping to the tip of his tongue like a frog. He was barely in time to prevent himself from letting it jump out.

      “It’s Cassie and the kids who are the issue,” he insisted. “You think Dolin’s just going to leave them alone because Cassie signs some paper telling him to?”

      “I have no idea what he’ll do, but he’ll have to get past me first.”

      The thought of it, just the thought of it, had his blood icing over. “Now you listen…”

      She jerked his hand from her shoulder and whirled back. “No, you listen. The man is a bully and a drunk. I’m not afraid of drunken bullies. I offered Cassie my home, and she’s welcome to stay there as long as she wants. I have a good solid lock on the door, which I’ll use. I know the number for the sheriff’s office, which I’ll use, as well, if it’s necessary.”

      “There’s no lock on that door.” Rafe jerked a thumb toward the front of the shop. “What’s to stop him from walking in here during business hours and harassing you? Or worse.”

      “I am.”

      “Right.” He wondered if shaking her would rattle her brains back into place. “Putting Dolin on the receiving end of that stubborn chin of yours isn’t going to stop him. In case you haven’t figured it out, he likes hurting women.”

      “I’ll take a moment to remind you that for the past three years I’ve been here and you haven’t. I’ve seen exactly what he’s done to Cassie.”

      “And you figure because you’re not married to him, you’re safe?” He did shake her. “You can’t be that stupid.”

      “I’m not stupid,” she shot back. “I’m competent. I don’t need or want you for a bodyguard.”

      His eyes changed, going from full heat to slow burn. On her shoulders, his hands tensed, then lifted away.

      “I guess that’s the bottom line, isn’t it? You don’t need or want my help.”

      Ego, she thought with a muffled sigh. There was no monster so fierce or so vulnerable as a man’s ego. “The sheriff’s office is five minutes away, if I need to call out troops.” Hoping to calm them both, Regan put her hands on his shoulders. “Rafe, I appreciate your concern, really I do. But I can take care of myself, and Cassie, too, if it comes to that.”

      “I bet you can.”

      “I worked a shop in D.C. for years. One memorable evening, I was robbed at gunpoint. I know how to be sensible, how not to take chances and how to defend myself. I appreciate the fact that you’re worried, but I’m not Cassie. He can’t frighten or intimidate me.”

      “Regan—”

      “Wait, let me finish. Cassie is so fragile right now, and the children are too quiet. I’m not sure how they would handle having a man around. The kids don’t know you.”

      He jammed his hands in his pockets. “I’m not going to kick them around.”

      “They don’t know that. Little Emma sits at Cassie’s feet with her doll and barely says a word. And the boy— God, Rafe, he breaks my heart. They need time to feel safe again. You’re too big, you’re too strong, you’re too…male.”

      Stubbornly he ignored the fact that she’d hurt him—that he could be hurt—and concentrated on the situation at hand. “You’re being pigheaded.”

      “I’m doing what seems right to me. That’s the only way I know how to handle things. Believe me, I’ve thought this through, weighed the options. Having you move in just isn’t one of them.”

      “Invite me to dinner,” he said abruptly.

      “You want to come to dinner?”

      “Ask me to dinner, so I can get to know the kids, so they’ll get used to me being around.”

      “Now who’s pigheaded?” But she sighed. It was a reasonable compromise. “All right, seven-thirty, and you’re out by ten.”

      “Can we neck on the couch after the kids go to bed?”

      “Maybe. Now go away.”

      “Aren’t you going to kiss me goodbye?”

      She huffed out a breath, then kissed him primly on the cheek. “Business hours,” she said, then laughed when he grabbed her. “Rafe, we’re right in front of the window. I—”

      The rest was lost as he crushed his mouth to hers. “Might as well give them something to talk about.” And give her something to think about, he told himself. She was damn well going to do a lot of thinking about Rafe MacKade.

      He nipped her lip, let her go, then sauntered out the door.

      A block away, Cassie sat in Devin’s office, twisting her hands together. She knew it should be easier because it was Devin, someone she’d known all her life. But it only made the shame worse.

      “I’m sorry, we got busy, and I couldn’t take my break until now.”

      “That’s all right, Cassie.” It had become habit to keep his voice quiet when he spoke to her, as a man might speak to a wounded bird. “I’ve got the paperwork filled out for you. You just have to sign it.”

      “He’s not going to go to jail.”

      A fist squeezed his heart at the emptiness in her tone. “No.”

      “Is it because I let him hit me?”

      “No.” He wished he could reach out to soothe those nervous hands. But the desk was between them, an official barrier. “He admitted that he hurt you, but the court took other things into consideration. His drinking problem, his loss of a longtime job. He’ll have to go into counseling, report to his probation officer. Stay out of trouble.”

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