Annihilator

Once again, Gavin insisted on accompanying Megan to her apartment door. Talk about dancing with temptation.

Bad enough dealing with him in the closeness of his car, especially after that devastating kiss, then having the scent of his cologne enveloping her as other building tenants forced him to invade her space. But she doubted her willpower if he entered her apartment, a place that would offer privacy and a bed. A bed that hadn’t seen any exercise since her move here.

I need him to go. Quickly. Exiting the elevator, she took brisk steps to her apartment, only to slow as she approached the door to her place, a door not quite closed.

Key in hand, she hesitated.

“Move away from the door,” he ordered, but she didn’t jump to obey.

“Maybe I didn’t close it properly when we left earlier,” she muttered, reaching out with trembling fingers to push at the portal. It swung open.

Before she could truly comprehend what she glimpsed, Gavin had inserted himself between her and the open doorway, blocking her view.

But a second was all it took. One second to see that a tornado had apparently visited her home and left only wreckage in its wake.

Her trembling coalesced into a cold anger at the senseless destruction of her apartment.

Sure, she’d not lived here long or truly given it her stamp, but darn it, this was her space. My home. And someone had dared enter and destroy what little she had.

Someone would pay.

It didn’t take a keen sense of smell for Gavin to realize something was amiss as they approached Megan’s apartment door. The fact that it sat ajar screamed intruder, especially since Gavin knew for a fact that they’d closed it when they left earlier. Hell, he’d watched her lock and test the knob before they set off.

When Megan didn’t heed his warning to move aside, he simply inserted himself between her and the doorway, ensuring that should any intruders wait within, they’d have to deal with him first.

Or should he say, he’d deal with them?

Mess with my woman, mess with me. Apparently, wolves and cavemen had a lot in common.

Stepping into her apartment, Gavin focused on the possibility of the attackers—attackers in the plural because he smelled more than one. His focus didn’t mean he missed Megan’s gasp of dismay, but he’d focus on that in a moment. The broken detritus of her belongings could be replaced.

She couldn’t.

Someone had gone through and left a very potent message, even spray-painted it on the wall.

Plead guilty or else.

“Not very subtle, are they?” he said aloud as he came to the conclusion he and Megan were alone.

“They trashed my place to try and convince me to go to jail for a murder I didn’t commit? Are they out of their freaking minds?” Far from being terrified, Megan sounded disbelieving. “What idiot would ever agree to something like that? So what if they destroyed my place? I’m not going to spend my life behind bars.”

“Fear can be a powerful motivator.”

“Fear?” She snorted in clear disdain. “This makes me mad, and even more determined to fight this.”

“That’s my girl.” He couldn’t help pride in her stance, even as her fighting spirit took him by surprise. Most women he was acquainted with would have taken this opportunity to sob and fling themselves at him, begging he protect them. They would have hinted at sleeping over. He would have refused of course. An active social life didn’t mean he invited his bed partners to get too close. He did have secrets, after all, and a need for personal space. But Megan was different.

“I’d better get the bucket and rag out.”

“You don’t want to call the police?”

She snorted. “What for? We both know break and enters don’t rate high on their list of priorities. Especially for a suspected murderess. If you’ll excuse me, I have a mess to clean up.”

As Gavin glanced around the place, he noted it was more than just a mess. She needed a Dumpster, and pretty much everything replaced. She obviously couldn’t stay here and surely acted so brave out of pride.

“You can stay with me until we catch the culprit,” he told her. He waited for the smile of gratitude. Maybe a hug. Or a kiss?

“No.”

The unexpected reply threw him for a loop. “Er—what?”

“No. Totally inappropriate and unnecessary.”

“You can’t stay here. Not only is this place unfit, but how do you know the culprits won’t come back?”

She pursed her lips. “Good point. I’ll find a motel.”

“I thought you were broke.”

Her nose wrinkled, and she made a noise. “Ugh. Dammit. I keep forgetting about that. I guess staying here is the only option. I doubt they’ll come back tonight, and if they do, good luck getting in. I’ll wedge a chair under the door.” She walked away from him, stripping off her coat and draping it on the leg of an overturned armchair. She headed to the bedroom, still speaking. “It won’t be that bad. I’ll just vacuum up the glass and stuff so I don’t cut myself and—”

The stream of curses she let out would have made even the most obscene comedian blush. How could such a pretty, demure woman know the most painful way of brutalizing a body part? Even more shocking, how could she utter it with complete conviction that she could accomplish the physically impossible feat? The flip from sweet victim to violent vixen rendered Gavin speechless.

Needing to know what had set her off, he entered her bedroom, only to stop as the scent of urine hit him.

“They peed on my bed!” She stood at the foot of it, hands on her hips, and glared.

Despite the nasty environ, her evident anger, and her dirty, dirty mouth, he’d never seen anything sexier. Grabbing her by the hand, he yanked her back out into the main area.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“Getting you out of here.”

Digging in her heels, she halted her movement. “I am not going with you to your apartment.”

“Fine. But you’re going somewhere. I know of a hotel downtown we can go to with decent security and tight lips. Before you argue about the price, let me state that I consider this part of the cost of taking you on as a client. If you get killed because I was lax in your protection, then it looks bad on me.”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No. And let it be known, right now, that I will carry you out of here kicking and screaming, caveman-style if needed. So swallow your pride and stubbornness. We’re going.”

“Fine,” she grumbled. “I’ll go to a hotel.”

Hallelujah, he’d gotten her to agree. It probably wasn’t a good time to mention he’d be staying with her and that he planned to get a room with only one bed.

For her protection and to save on costs of course. Already he prepared his argument, because no way would she allow it without a fight.

He rather looked forward to it.