Read Online White Collared Part Three: Revenge by Shelly Bell - Free Book Online Page A

buildings were abandoned, stripped of anything valuable, from the fixtures to the copper wiring. Still, this was her city and the place she called home.
    As she turned down a street of half-burnt houses, her thoughts strayed to Tom. After spending two years with him, she would’ve expected to feel his loss, but they never really had a connection. It was comfortable and easy. Nothing like the passion that blazed with Jaxon. Nothing like she’d experienced last night when she’d crumbled in his arms and cried tears she’d thought long dried.
    He’d been right. She’d trusted him with her body and even her life, but it had been so much harder to trust him with her secrets. And now that she had, she’d panicked and run away again. How many chances would he give her before giving up on her?
    She didn’t want to push him away, but there were pieces of herself she’d never be able to relinquish, even to Jaxon. He didn’t understand why she needed space today or how much she had to prove. While she acknowledged being a sexual submissive, there was no way she’d ever let it translate into any other area of her life. There was a difference between him trying to protect her and being overprotective.
    Would Jaxon be waiting for her at her apartment? Last night had been . . . intense. She didn’t regret it, but she didn’t know how to deal with him knowing her secrets.
    A dark car pulled off the curb and into her lane, almost sideswiping her, and her breath caught in her chest as she veered to the left to avoid an accident.
    What an asshole.
    She hit the gas to put some space between her and the car. The car picked up speed and tailed her dangerously close.
    Her pulse took off like a dog chasing a rabbit, and a sense of foreboding sat heavy in her gut. She gunned the gas and glanced in her mirror at her pursuer. She could make out only the shadow of the driver, but there was no mistaking that the car was a BMW.
    Was it possible it was the same one from outside Mrs. Webber’s house?
    He was gaining on her.
    She hit an icy patch of road, losing control of her bike. Gripping the handlebars, she swerved into the other lane and into the path of an oncoming Jeep. With no other choice and seconds to spare, she jumped the curb and hit the brakes, stopping only inches from the wall of an old brick office building.
    She jumped off the bike and quickly pulled out the gun from her purse. Her hands shook as she aimed in front of her. The Jeep had parked by the side of the road, but she didn’t see any sign of the BMW.
    Sunlight reflected off her mirror and blinded her. She heard the slam of a car door and then the steps of someone walking toward her.
    The figure approached, blocking the sun. Rachel Dawson’s face came into view.
    Kate kept the gun trained on her. She didn’t trust the nosy reporter.
    Rachel frowned as she eyed the gun but held out her hand anyway. “Are you hurt? Do you need to go to the hospital?”
    As much as it burned Kate to take help from the woman, she accepted her offer to help her to her feet and then removed her helmet. “I’m good. Mind telling me what you’re doing here?”
    Rachel swallowed. “As soon as you lower the gun, I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”
    Kate dropped it to her side. “I take it your being here is not a coincidence?”
    Rachel shrugged. “I waited for you outside your apartment. Saw Jaxon bring you home this morning and then I followed you to the hospital. Sorry about your friend.”
    The reporter spoke matter-of-factly with no real emotion behind her condolences.
    Kate scanned the street. “Why were you coming from the other direction?”
    “The BMW also tailed you from the hospital. I was curious, and so I stayed with him until he parked. Then I thought maybe I was wrong and turned around. Good thing too, don’t you think?”
    Rachel’s explanation made sense, but Kate still didn’t trust her. “Did you get the license plate?”
    “The plate was so muddy, I