The message was short, but even from the quick glance, she could see the threat in it. Big mistake, Dawn. You’ll regret this. Her blood ran cold.
She snatched the phone up before Gunner could see more than just the name, shoving it back into her purse like it meant nothing. Like it hadn’t just sent a wave of unease crashing over her.
But Gunner was perceptive. His eyes narrowed slightly, his entire posture shifting, sharpening. “Something wrong?”
“No.” The word came too fast, too clipped, and she knew he didn’t buy it.
Gunner didn’t say anything right away. He just watched her, his gaze assessing, his jaw ticking slightly as if debating whether to press her on it. Finally, he sighed, raking a hand through his hair.
“If you say so,” Gunner said.
Dawn forced a smile, trying to push aside the lingering tension in her gut. “It’s nothing. Just ... work stuff.”
She could tell he didn’t believe her, but thankfully, he didn’t call her on it. Instead, he stepped back, giving her space, but not before reaching out and brushing his knuckles along her cheek one last time.
“I’ll call you,” he promised, his voice quieter now, softer.
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
As he turned and walked away, the powerful rumble of his bike starting up filled the quiet night air. Dawn exhaled a shaky breath, pushing her door open and stepping inside.
The moment she was alone, she pulled out her phone, her fingers hovering over the screen. Jesse’s message sat there, taunting her. She should just delete it. Pretend it didn’t rattle her. Jesse was a nobody, a bitter, insecure man who didn’t take rejection well. He wasn’t worth her energy.
And yet... Curiosity won out. Her thumb hesitated, then tapped the message open:You think you can just brush me off like I’m nothing? You don’t get to make a fool out of me, Dawn. You’ll see.
A cold shiver raced down her spine.
She had no idea what Jesse was capable of, but something told her he wasn’t the kind of man to let things go easily. And for the first time since rejecting him, she wondered if she’d just made a terrible mistake. No, she told herself, forcing her spine to straighten. Of course it wasn’t a mistake. She knew that entertaining guys like Jesse wouldn’t lead to anything good.
Men like him took and took, demanding more than they were owed, twisting reality to suit their egos. She’d seen it before, lived through it with past relationships that left her drained and questioning herself.
But Gunner was different. He didn’t need to play games or push boundaries to prove his worth. He carried himself with the kind of confidence that didn’t demand submission but rather commanded respect.
There was strength in the way he looked at her, a promise in the way he spoke her name. He made her feel something raw and unshaken, something real. And she wasn’t about to let some entitled asshole like Jesse make her second-guess that.
Chapter Five
