“It is. But it’s also to make sure you’re safe. I’m sorry, Emily. I wanted to tell you, but I knew you weren’t going to agree to let us keep a close watch from a distance. Heaven forbid Perez would break in and try to harm you or take Queenie and you couldn’t call for help, or I wasn’t there. This alert gives the guys and me the opportunity to know you would need help.”
She yanked on the last of her clothes and met his gaze. “What about my trust?
“I’m really sorry, Emily,” he said, his words sounding pathetic even in his own ears. “The last thing I wanted was to hurt you or break your trust.”
“Well, you failed on both accounts.” She drew in a ragged breath and blinked. Her eyes were glossy as hurt and anger mixed to darken her gaze. “Was I a job to you? Did you get into my bed so you could be on the premises?”
“Come on, Emily. You know that isn’t true.” He worked to keep a lid on his anger.
Did she really think he was that kind of a guy?
She lifted her shoulders. “No, Holden, I honestly don’t. I don’t know what’s true right now. Other than I need to go. I have to get away from you and think, and I need to go chase away the raccoon I saw onyourphone. It apparently tripped the alarm. No need to worry yourself or your buddies about it. I’ve got this one.”
She inhaled and exhaled loudly. “I can’t believe how damn stupid I’ve been. Gullible should be my freaking middle name.” While she ranted, she shoved her feet in her shoes, then grabbed her purse off the couch and straightened to face him. “Stopspying on me. I’m done being controlled.”
Jaw clenched tight and eyes watery, she marched past him, shook off his arm when he set a hand on her arm, then she jerked his door open and slammed it behind her.
Fuck.
Holden blinked and waited a few seconds to see if she’d come back inside. He watched her through the curtains as she sat in her car. Silently, he willed her to calm down and come back inside. But when she started it and backed out of his driveway, he rushed to the kitchen and pulled on his clothes.
He needed to make sure she was safe, then let her yell at him some more since he definitely deserved it.
What if it had been more than just the raccoon she’d supposedly seen on the screen of his phone?
Mad, pissed off, or furious, he didn’t care. No way would he allow her to go home without back-up.
Chapter Seventeen
Emily couldn’t believe how damn freaking stupid, naïve, and blind she’d been to fall for another controlling male.
What was wrong with her? Was she subconsciously looking to be hurt? She didn’t like getting her heart ripped out.
And this time it was so much worse than the last.
The stinging in her eyes increased again. Dammit.
She swiped at her face and slowed her pace as she drove through Main Street on her way out of town.
It was worse because she’d connected with Holden, mind, body, and soul. At least, that was how it had been for her, especially tonight. She thought what they’d shared was truly special.
God, how wrong could she be?
She wiped the tears from her cheeks again and force herself to breathe through her swollen throat.
Her phone began to ring. She ignored it and the texts sounding on her phone. Whether they were from Holden or not, she wasn’t in the mood. And it couldn’t be Animal Control trying to contact her, since she wasn’t on-call tonight.
It stopped ringing.
She blew out a slow breath and the scene in his kitchen played through her mind again. When she’d picked up Holden’s phone, beeping with an alert like hers, she’d noticed his screen had a few extra camera views that hers didn’t have, both inside the renovated building and on the back of her house.
What the hell?
Some were shots of her backyard, which had nothing to do with her future sanctuary. That was her private area, and she hadn’t given them permission to install equipment there.
Her heart squeezed tight as she recalled how, over the past two weeks, she’d instigated some hot and heavy kisses, hoping to have sex in her backyard, surrounded by nature…and every single time, Holden had carried her inside before they’d gotten anywhere close to naked.
Now it all made sense…
