A Promise to Protect. Liz Johnson

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      THREE

      Ashley blinked against the sun reflecting off the spiderweb of her windshield, hands on the wheel and chin on her chest. Who would do such a thing? And why? Abuse usually took place behind closed doors, when there was no one around to witness it. Abusers were very, very good at protecting themselves from the consequences of their violence. An open attack like this seemed so strange, so out of character. And that made her nervous. If her attacker was willing to go this far, what would he do next?

      She rolled her window down as Matt leaned a forearm on the roof of the car, towering over her little coupe.

      “Do you want to leave the car here and call a tow truck? I can drive you back to your place.”

      She managed to offer him a slightly off-center smile. “I’m okay. I won’t run anyone over. I promise. The glass place is right around the corner.” And there was no way she could afford to pay for a tow truck either. But he didn’t need to know that.

      “You sure? You’ll be driving right into the sun. It could be kind of hard to see. Would you rather drive my truck?”

      She glanced down the street at the SEAL-approved vehicle of choice. The truck was tall enough to accommodate his long legs, but not so big that it drew undo attention.

      Besides, she didn’t need him to hold her hand in this. She’d accept his help safeguarding Lil’s Place—he was much better qualified in that arena. But driving her car a couple of blocks wasn’t a mission only a SEAL could do. He was capable, but so was she. “That’s all right. I’d rather drive mine.”

      “Fair enough.”

      Why did his words sound just the opposite?

      “I’m fine. Really.”

      “If you’re sure.” She nodded. “Okay. I’ll follow you over there, and then take you home.”

      “Thanks. I appreciate the ride.”

      “I won’t leave you stranded.” There was something deeper to his words, like he was going to give her more than a ride. Like he was promising to see her through this whole ordeal.

      Even if she didn’t need it. She’d been just fine on her own for the last three years.

      She glanced up just in time to catch Matt’s reflection in the rearview mirror as he walked behind her car toward his truck. He favored his left leg ever so slightly, his gait just a bit off, but despite his uneven stride, he was in his truck and pulling out of his parking spot—leaving room for her to pull out in front of him—before she’d even turned her car on.

      * * *

      As she pulled into the empty street, the cracks turned her windshield into a kaleidoscope, which proved harder to see through than she had anticipated. She fought to stay between the barely visible lane lines.

      “Just keep going straight.” She repeated the mantra several times before another driver blasted his horn at her for crossing the middle line. She swerved back into her own lane, drawing dangerously close to a car parked along

      the curb.

      Her breathing picked up speed to match her pulse until she pulled into the gravel parking lot of the glass-repair shop.

      True to his word, Matt came in right behind her, parking beside her coupe as she ducked into the front office.

      Ten minutes later she hurried up to Matt’s truck, clutching her purse. Getting up to the seat could have been part of a training regimen to climb Everest.

      “Need a hand?” Matt turned to open his own door, but she clawed at the bench seat until she gained enough of a grip to scramble all the way up.

      “Nope. I’ve got it.”

      He nodded, slamming his door closed at the same time she settled into her seat, hands clasped in her lap.

      “Where to?”

      She directed him toward Lil’s Place and settled in. The heater kicked out lukewarm air, taking the chill out of the Northern California winter afternoon. She rubbed her hands together and held them in front of the vents.

      “What did they say?”

      She sighed. “They’re closed tomorrow, and they have a backlog. So it’ll take at least a couple days. They said they hope it’ll be done by Saturday morning.”

      He frowned, his eyebrows pinching together. “That seems like a long time for you to be without a car. I’m not sure it’s safe for you not to have one.”

      “Maybe that was his plan.” She said the words without really thinking, but they rang true.

      The truck rumbled along, filling the silence, and she knew he recognized the truth of it as well. “I’ll be in town for a while. I’ll take you anywhere you need to go.”

      She smiled, really looking at him for the first time since she’d run into him that morning. His jacket hung open, and his snug T-shirt revealed that the man didn’t have an ounce of fat on him, despite his injury. The loose curls on top of his head that might have made another man look boyish, just made Matt look like the statues of Greek gods she’d studied in art history.

      His presence was reassuring at the least. And strangely familiar, even if she hadn’t seen him for more than four years. Matt had accompanied Tristan home for Christmas that year, and, at barely twenty, she’d had a bit of a crush on him. That was before Paul had come into her life.

      She’d never been sure if Matt had been aware of her feelings for him back then. Of course, when they started, she’d been just sixteen. That had been more schoolgirl crush than full-on attraction. With time, and increased maturity, her feelings had grown. But Matt had either never realized or never acknowledged her interest in him. In the handful of times he’d visited their home during her senior year of high school, he’d teased her just like Tristan. Just one of the family.

      She’d never told her mom—let alone Tristan—how much she liked Matt back then.

      And then Paul happened.

      So exciting at first. Rappelling and midnight swimming in the lake. He drove fast and broke the rules, ditched class and stayed up all night talking with her.

      Despite Tristan’s warnings that Paul might not be everything he seemed, she’d fallen for him. Hard.

      Just as hard as his fist the first time he had hit her.

      She hadn’t thought romantically about any man since Paul. Not Matt or anyone else.

      But now that Matt was here, sitting next to her and filling the cab more than he should have, her mind wandered to the past and dug up memories that had no place in her current situation.

      In the edge of her line of sight, СКАЧАТЬ