Read Online Irresistible Force by D. D. Ayres - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: D. D. Ayres
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clearly she had known she was all but defenseless against that bastard.
He took a step toward her, keeping his voice soft. “A guy who likes to manhandle women is likely to circle back as soon as he thinks he safely can. That might be a day, or a week. You should at least get a restraining order against Coates so you will have serious backup if you need it.”
“Is that your professional or personal opinion? Because what I really didn’t need was for Eric to think I left him for a hunky new boyfriend.”
She turned, picked up the soggy packet of oysters she’d dropped on the table, and headed toward the kitchen.
James stared after her. Jeez! Where had he gone wrong? He’d meant to reassure her. Now she was pissed.
When she disappeared through the doorway, he glanced around to call Bogart to heel, but his partner was already at his side, staring up at him as if he were about to hatch.
Bogart looked back over his shoulder toward the kitchen and then again at James, his brows twitching up and down, signaling confusion.
“Yeah, yeah, I know. I need to fix it.”
Reluctantly, he headed after her.
* * *
Shay didn’t release her breath until she was all the way into the kitchen. She’d been unforgivably rude to the man who’d saved her and was now just trying to help. What was her problem?
Oh hell. She knew what was wrong.
Struggling to regain control over her stressed-out emotions, she emptied the container of iced oysters into the sink. She was so grateful that James had appeared when he did that she was tying knots inside herself just to keep from showing it.
Because her emotional reaction had ranged far beyond simple relief.
It had been nothing short of thrilling to see his tall silhouette filling her doorway. Even unshaven and still dressed in wrinkled camo, James had the look of capable protector written all over him. Her very own Avenger.
Get a grip, Shay.
She couldn’t afford to think that way, for even a second, about Officer Cannon. He wasn’t hers. Nor was Prince … Bogart. Just because they had unexpectedly appeared as the tag-team rescuers she had been praying for didn’t mean she should let her emotions run wild. In a few minutes, she’d be all alone again.
And James was right. Eric would show up again in her life, sooner or later.
Shay’s throat began to constrict with mounting anxiety.
“No! Not yet!” she whispered under her breath. There’d be plenty of time for an anxiety attack over her future once she was alone.
James found her standing before the sink. He paused in the doorway, propped a shoulder on the door frame and crossed his arms, trying his damnedest to look less like a cop and more like a regular guy.
While he decided what to say, he took in all the details of her he hadn’t had time to notice when he walked in.
He liked the way she looked in skinny jeans shoved into hand-tooled cowboy boots so scuffed and creased that they appeared to have been her favorite footwear for a long time. A teal-blue turtleneck sweater covered her from chin to the tops of her thighs. He knew from wrestling with her that it hid a body with plenty of feminine curves. Not that he should be thinking about her in that way. Yet nothing he’d done so far today fell into the should category.
Unable to think of anything intelligent to say, Shay tried to ignore the man standing in her doorway. It wasn’t easy. Her gaze kept straying halfway toward him before she could snatch it back. Each foray made her more fully aware of his presence. The easy grace of his long body draped in camo reminded her of the hard muscles beneath. Of the way he’d effortlessly lifted her off her feet this morning. She could still recall the hard band of his arm pressing under her breasts.
Oh crap. She needed to stop thinking altogether.
Desperate for distraction, she looked down at Bogart, who had come up to her with his tail wagging, certain that his presence was welcome.
She squatted down and hugged
He took a step toward her, keeping his voice soft. “A guy who likes to manhandle women is likely to circle back as soon as he thinks he safely can. That might be a day, or a week. You should at least get a restraining order against Coates so you will have serious backup if you need it.”
“Is that your professional or personal opinion? Because what I really didn’t need was for Eric to think I left him for a hunky new boyfriend.”
She turned, picked up the soggy packet of oysters she’d dropped on the table, and headed toward the kitchen.
James stared after her. Jeez! Where had he gone wrong? He’d meant to reassure her. Now she was pissed.
When she disappeared through the doorway, he glanced around to call Bogart to heel, but his partner was already at his side, staring up at him as if he were about to hatch.
Bogart looked back over his shoulder toward the kitchen and then again at James, his brows twitching up and down, signaling confusion.
“Yeah, yeah, I know. I need to fix it.”
Reluctantly, he headed after her.
* * *
Shay didn’t release her breath until she was all the way into the kitchen. She’d been unforgivably rude to the man who’d saved her and was now just trying to help. What was her problem?
Oh hell. She knew what was wrong.
Struggling to regain control over her stressed-out emotions, she emptied the container of iced oysters into the sink. She was so grateful that James had appeared when he did that she was tying knots inside herself just to keep from showing it.
Because her emotional reaction had ranged far beyond simple relief.
It had been nothing short of thrilling to see his tall silhouette filling her doorway. Even unshaven and still dressed in wrinkled camo, James had the look of capable protector written all over him. Her very own Avenger.
Get a grip, Shay.
She couldn’t afford to think that way, for even a second, about Officer Cannon. He wasn’t hers. Nor was Prince … Bogart. Just because they had unexpectedly appeared as the tag-team rescuers she had been praying for didn’t mean she should let her emotions run wild. In a few minutes, she’d be all alone again.
And James was right. Eric would show up again in her life, sooner or later.
Shay’s throat began to constrict with mounting anxiety.
“No! Not yet!” she whispered under her breath. There’d be plenty of time for an anxiety attack over her future once she was alone.
James found her standing before the sink. He paused in the doorway, propped a shoulder on the door frame and crossed his arms, trying his damnedest to look less like a cop and more like a regular guy.
While he decided what to say, he took in all the details of her he hadn’t had time to notice when he walked in.
He liked the way she looked in skinny jeans shoved into hand-tooled cowboy boots so scuffed and creased that they appeared to have been her favorite footwear for a long time. A teal-blue turtleneck sweater covered her from chin to the tops of her thighs. He knew from wrestling with her that it hid a body with plenty of feminine curves. Not that he should be thinking about her in that way. Yet nothing he’d done so far today fell into the should category.
Unable to think of anything intelligent to say, Shay tried to ignore the man standing in her doorway. It wasn’t easy. Her gaze kept straying halfway toward him before she could snatch it back. Each foray made her more fully aware of his presence. The easy grace of his long body draped in camo reminded her of the hard muscles beneath. Of the way he’d effortlessly lifted her off her feet this morning. She could still recall the hard band of his arm pressing under her breasts.
Oh crap. She needed to stop thinking altogether.
Desperate for distraction, she looked down at Bogart, who had come up to her with his tail wagging, certain that his presence was welcome.
She squatted down and hugged
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