so,” she said flatly. “Not at this angle.” Inspecting his upper arm quickly as Abilene held onto the drug dealer to keep the unconscious man from sinking to the pavement, Kendra bit off half a curse. “Dammit, you’re hit. He shot you, probably while you were playing at being a bulletproof shield and draping yourself over me.”
Abilene grinned broadly at her, despite the stinging sensation that was beginning to penetrate his consciousness. “Was it good for you, too, Good?” he cracked.
“Abilene—” There was a warning note in her voice that told him to back off. She didn’t consider this a laughing matter. And she definitely didn’t want to revisit that one flash of heat she’d felt when his body had pressed into hers.
Again he shrugged in response, but this time there were consequences to the action. She saw the wince he tried to cover up.
“All in a day’s work, Good,” Abilene told her cavalierly.
“Yeah, if you’re working as a superhero,” she countered, her temper fraying. He could have been killed, playing the hero. And it would have been her fault, she thought with a twinge of guilt. She couldn’t have been able to handle that, having Abilene die because of her. “You didn’t have to throw yourself over me like that,” she insisted angrily. “I have a gun and I know how to use it.”
Rather than argue with her—something Matt was quickly learning just led to nothing but one dead end after another—he caught her off guard by quietly saying, “You’re welcome.”
The two simple words stopped her cold in her tracks even though she continued to glare accusingly at him. She knew damn well that she would probably have been the one with the bullet in her if he hadn’t played the hero.
And who knew? That bullet could have gotten lodged in a fatal place. In effect, he could very well have saved her life, even if she was having trouble admitting that fact.
“Yeah,” Kendra finally acknowledged with more than a little reluctance, all but spitting the word out as if it had turned bitter on her tongue. “Thanks.”
He laughed. “Sugar and spice” was definitely not a description that could easily have been applied to her. She was more like hot sauce and wasabi.
“Don’t worry, Good. I’m not about to say that your life’s mine now or anything like that just because I saved you.” Moving quickly despite his wound, he cuffed the unconscious dealer’s hands behind his back. “I just didn’t want to disappoint my mother and tell her that the invitation was canceled.” With that, he hefted the skinny man up over his good shoulder, ready to transport him into a vehicle.
“Get in the car,” she ordered, pointing to their unmarked vehicle. “I’m driving.”
The second he did, after depositing the unconscious drug dealer in the back, Kendra took off.
Abilene braced his one good arm against the dashboard, thinking that perhaps the invitation would have to be canceled after all. Dead people didn’t attend brunches.
Chapter 8
“W ho taught you how to drive?” Abilene asked less than ten minutes later as they peeled into the hospital’s E.R. parking lot.
The entire trip whizzed by in a blur with his partner going way over the speed limit and flying through yellow lights less than a beat away from turning red. He’d white-knuckled it all the way, wondering if they would make it to the hospital in one piece or if her driving would land them in the morgue instead.
“My brother, Tom.” Kendra brought the car to a jarring stop. “Why?”
Abilene silently released the breath he’d been holding for the last nine and a half minutes. “By any chance does your brother have anger issues?”
Kendra shot him a warning look. “No, but I do.”
Jumping out of the car, she rounded the hood before Abilene could get his door open and was at his side as he slowly rose from his seat. She saw that he needed to hold on to the side of the vehicle to do it. The whole side of his
Abilene grinned broadly at her, despite the stinging sensation that was beginning to penetrate his consciousness. “Was it good for you, too, Good?” he cracked.
“Abilene—” There was a warning note in her voice that told him to back off. She didn’t consider this a laughing matter. And she definitely didn’t want to revisit that one flash of heat she’d felt when his body had pressed into hers.
Again he shrugged in response, but this time there were consequences to the action. She saw the wince he tried to cover up.
“All in a day’s work, Good,” Abilene told her cavalierly.
“Yeah, if you’re working as a superhero,” she countered, her temper fraying. He could have been killed, playing the hero. And it would have been her fault, she thought with a twinge of guilt. She couldn’t have been able to handle that, having Abilene die because of her. “You didn’t have to throw yourself over me like that,” she insisted angrily. “I have a gun and I know how to use it.”
Rather than argue with her—something Matt was quickly learning just led to nothing but one dead end after another—he caught her off guard by quietly saying, “You’re welcome.”
The two simple words stopped her cold in her tracks even though she continued to glare accusingly at him. She knew damn well that she would probably have been the one with the bullet in her if he hadn’t played the hero.
And who knew? That bullet could have gotten lodged in a fatal place. In effect, he could very well have saved her life, even if she was having trouble admitting that fact.
“Yeah,” Kendra finally acknowledged with more than a little reluctance, all but spitting the word out as if it had turned bitter on her tongue. “Thanks.”
He laughed. “Sugar and spice” was definitely not a description that could easily have been applied to her. She was more like hot sauce and wasabi.
“Don’t worry, Good. I’m not about to say that your life’s mine now or anything like that just because I saved you.” Moving quickly despite his wound, he cuffed the unconscious dealer’s hands behind his back. “I just didn’t want to disappoint my mother and tell her that the invitation was canceled.” With that, he hefted the skinny man up over his good shoulder, ready to transport him into a vehicle.
“Get in the car,” she ordered, pointing to their unmarked vehicle. “I’m driving.”
The second he did, after depositing the unconscious drug dealer in the back, Kendra took off.
Abilene braced his one good arm against the dashboard, thinking that perhaps the invitation would have to be canceled after all. Dead people didn’t attend brunches.
Chapter 8
“W ho taught you how to drive?” Abilene asked less than ten minutes later as they peeled into the hospital’s E.R. parking lot.
The entire trip whizzed by in a blur with his partner going way over the speed limit and flying through yellow lights less than a beat away from turning red. He’d white-knuckled it all the way, wondering if they would make it to the hospital in one piece or if her driving would land them in the morgue instead.
“My brother, Tom.” Kendra brought the car to a jarring stop. “Why?”
Abilene silently released the breath he’d been holding for the last nine and a half minutes. “By any chance does your brother have anger issues?”
Kendra shot him a warning look. “No, but I do.”
Jumping out of the car, she rounded the hood before Abilene could get his door open and was at his side as he slowly rose from his seat. She saw that he needed to hold on to the side of the vehicle to do it. The whole side of his
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