ChasingSin Read Free

disengaged and
pushed out of the cab. She rounded on them, her eyes bright with anger as she
waited.
    “Looks as if she’s itching for a fight.” She’d been quiet
the entire ride and had barely spoken to them as they’d watched a wrecking crew
dislodge her Jeep from the house. The vehicle was a total loss, and now they
were down a chase vehicle.
    Even if the car wasn’t salvageable, Snyder hoped Kate
learned a valuable lesson. Considering the glare being shot his way right now,
he doubted it. “You think? Better to get this over with now than face it
tomorrow while we’re out on the road again. She’ll get on a roll cussing us out
and get pissed when she misses a tornado.”
    Tripp followed Snyder out and locked the truck. Kate flew at
them in a blur, but he managed to reach out and snag her arm before she landed
a punch. The glare of her clear gray eyes rivaled the most violent of storms,
but didn’t faze Snyder. He’d already been on her bad side once today, no point
in trying to avoid it again.
    “I don’t want to see either of you in the field again. Got
that?”
    The events of earlier had finally come to a head and Snyder
allowed his own emotions to spill over. “Jesus Christ, where was your head back
there?”
    “You could have gotten yourself killed,” Tripp added,
annoyance evident in the statement.
    Kate snorted. “You’d probably like that, wouldn’t you?
Eliminate some of your competition.”
    “Colleague,” Snyder corrected as he pointed at her. “We’re
all out there risking our asses for the same reason. There is no competition
when it comes right down to it and you know it.”
    Her eyes flared with heat. “Bullshit. This is just some game
for you two. Some way for you guys to pass the time waiting for the next
hurricane season to blow in. This is my turf, my show on the ground. If you’re
not going to let me do my job, neither of you have any business behind the
wheel of a chase vehicle.” She pushed into Snyder, jabbing her finger into his
chest to emphasis her words.
    Getting her to see the voice of reason would be impossible,
but he was hardheaded enough to push the issue. If he didn’t, he was afraid
they’d lose her. Easing his posture, he clasped her finger, turning her hand so
he could weave his fingers through hers.
    “Kate, stop it. Think about what you just did. The risks you
took just to get the shot. You nearly hit us twice because you were barreling
along at a high rate of speed. It wasn’t just your life on the line, it was all
three of ours. You have no right to take those kinds of chances.”
    A scowl darkened her pretty features and told Snyder he
hadn’t made a dent.
    “If you two have lost your nerve, then stay out of my way.”
Tripp intercepted Kate as she pushed away from Snyder. “Let go of me.”
    “Not if you’re going to keep putting yourself in extreme
danger like you just did. That was uncalled for and you know it.”
    “It’s my business what I do. This is my research. My life .”
    Snyder stepped next to Tripp, barring her from leaving. He
purposefully kept his voice smooth and calm in an effort to erase some of her
ire. “There’s a distinct difference between science and being reckless. You’re
being unreasonable right now, and until you get your head out of your ass,
you’re not going anywhere.”
    “You’re a prick,” she shot back, the words scorching his
soul as they knifed through it. “Both of you.”
    He folded his arms and refused to move despite her steely
glare. They’d faced worse storms than her. “So we’ve been told.” When she
huffed out a breath and turned her face away to stare out at the horizon, he’d
finally had enough. His arms lowered, his hands skimming against her back.
    Tripp reached up and brushed her dirt-encrusted hair out of
her face. “Why do you do this to yourself, Kate? Just to prove something?
Everyone knows you’re the best out in the field. Stop trying to kill yourself.”
    “The only point