Excellent.

After playing busybody, I walked to the kitchen. I had two cold ones popped open by the time Brock got back and I was taking a huge freaking swallow from mine.

Brock walked right to me and I had to jerk my arms to the side because when he walked to me, he didn’t stop. He folded his arms around me and pulled me deep.

Then, against the top of my hair, he asked, “You good?”

“I think that was cathartic,” I said to his chest, my arms snaking around him.

“Good,” he muttered into my hair.

“I still feel the need to get drunk,” I went on and he chuckled. “Blotto,” I changed my mind as to the state of drunkenness I aimed to achieve and Brock kept chuckling. Then I changed my mind again, “No, shitfaced. Totally.”

His arms gave me a squeeze before one of them released me and my head went back just as his hand wrapped around my neck, his thumb stroking my jaw.

“Have at it, sweetness,” he said quietly.

I sucked in breath.

Then I asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he answered immediately.

“Brock –” I started warningly but stopped when he shook his head, his thumb stopped stroking and his fingers grew tight.

“I could be wrong, babe, but you got through. I don’t know if he was behind the shit that went down in front of your house tonight but if he was, it won’t happen again. You wounded him. No, you crushed him. Whatever f**ked up shit that’s in his head that makes him tick, it unscrambled and he focused long enough for your message to get through. Even if I miss my guess and he still intends to dick with you, I suspect his father will move mountains to try and make him stop.”

“Well, that’s good news,” and it was, “but I was talking about you getting shot at.”

At that, I felt and saw his casual shrug before, “Not my favorite pastime, baby, not even in the top hundred and fifty but it’s happened and you deal.”

Okay, well…

Yikes!

I’d pulled my shit together but frankly I’d dealt with enough that night and enough the last however many years. I would deal with the fact my man was a man who got shot at later.

Like, in my next life.

Moving on.

“You said if that was Damian, do you not think it is?”

“He’d be my prime suspect. Or he was until I saw him with you. Probably not his brightest move to admit to calling a hit on a cop ever but definitely not right in front of the cop he called the hit on but when you were shoutin’ at him, he seemed genuinely surprised and started to deny it though he didn’t get to finish considering you were still shoutin’.”

“I had things to get off my chest,” I told him quietly and he grinned as his hand at my neck as well as his arm around my back gave me a squeeze.

Then he dipped his head, touched his mouth to mine and then lifted it away before he whispered, “Yeah, and I’m f**kin’ glad you did. You were magnificent, sweetness. Fuckin’

phenomenal. ”

It was nice he thought that and all.

But…

“I lost it again,” I whispered, pressing in closer.

“No, you’re finding it,” he contradicted.

“What?”

“Babe, he took your power. Tonight, you took it back. And it…” his arm gave me a squeeze, “was,” his hand gave me a squeeze, “fuckin’,” his forehead dropped to rest on mine,

“beautiful. ”

I closed my eyes and pulled in a deep breath.

Then I opened them and said, “You had my back.”

“I always have your back.”

Warm gushiness flooded through me, one of my hands slid from around his back, up his chest, his neck to cup his cheek.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

“You’re welcome, Tess,” he whispered back.

He lifted his forehead and his thumb swept my jaw as my fingers slid from his cheek into his hair.

Then he declared, “Shit that went down tonight, get it outta your head.”

I blinked.

Then I asked, “Sorry?”

“It happened, it’s reported, the phone call prior is bein’ looked into. You live your life.

You bake your cakes. You spend time with your friends. You already tell me where you are and where you’re goin’, you intensify that. I’ll send someone to look at the security at your bakery and also look into setting something up here.”

“Brock –”

“Vance is good at that shit, stellar. I’ll talk to him.”

“Brock –”

“Units are gonna drive by regular, keep a look out. And your bakery is now on radar.”

“Hon –”

“They got shell casings. Those might have prints. Guy was wearin’ a ski mask but I got his build, make and model on the car, a partial plate and he wasn’t wearin’ gloves so we know he’s white.”

“Can I –?”

His thumb stopped stroking and his fingers gave me a squeeze.

“You be smart, you be vigilant but I have your back, Tess, I always do. You do not need to worry about this.”

I stared at him thinking now maybe Brock was high.

Then I reminded him, “You got shot at tonight.”

“Yeah, babe, and it’s happened before. I hope it won’t happen again but in my line of work that’s a possibility. I deal and you bein’ my woman, you deal.”

“But –”

His hand shifted so his thumb could press on my lips.

“This is the job you have now, Tess. You’re with me, you deal and you’re with me. And the woman I saw tonight shrieking in the face of the monster who violated her, she won’t have a problem with that. The only way you beat motherfuckers who try to f**k with you is not to let them beat you. So you deal.”

Damn, I freaking hated it when he made sense.

“Yeah?” he prompted when I said nothing.

I didn’t answer. Instead I asked, “Did Martha ask your Riviera order?”

“Yeah she did, now did you get me?”

It also bugged me that you couldn’t pull shit over on him.

I rolled my eyes.

Then I said, “I got you.”

He grinned. Then he dipped his head to touch his lips to mine again. Then he lifted it and looked at the counter of the island.