Sheltering His Desire Read Free Page B

want to talk about Tate, because that meant thinking about
him. And thinking about him meant regret, embarrassment, and a want
she couldn’t sate. “Not for at least six hours.” She grabbed her
mug from its spot near the sink, and filled it as full of coffee as
she could. She followed that with generous helping of sugar and
cream. Coffee threatened to escape as she stirred the mixture
together. She took a long drink, not caring that it scalded her
throat and tongue going down.
    “Did the police say when they’d be by?” she
asked as she wandered back into the lobby. She didn’t have to ask
if Sara had called. There was no question the dog’s injuries were
at least partially intentional, and that meant filing a report.
Unfortunately, it didn’t guarantee the felony conviction that
should go along with the abuse, but it helped.
    “I told them you’d be gone by seven. They
said they’d be in before then.”
    The chairs called her name, but Alyssia
couldn’t sit down until she was a little more awake. “Did the girl
leave a name?”
    “No. But Tate really does know her and the
dog. Called her Cait. She asked us not to mention her.”
    Alyssia rubbed her eyes as a new wave of
exhaustion washed over her. That was never a good sign. Dread
joined her jumbled thoughts as Tate’s response about being friends
with the dog floated back to mock her. Please, please, please let
it not be someone powerful enough to do something like have the
city change her zoning.
    The front door chimed, and Sara hit the
button to release the afterhours lock and let Tate in. The moment
he stepped through the door, the scent of chilies and enchilada
sauce nearly knocked Alyssia over. She was hungrier than she
realized. She had to force herself to not tear into the food the
moment he set the box in front of her. He leaned against the other
side of the counter as she and Sara dug in.
    “You’re a heaven-sent demon,” Sara told
him.
    “And not eating,” Alyssia said once she
realized it.
    He shook his head. “Some of us have to sleep
tonight, not tomorrow morning.
    Right. She’d kept him up all night. “Thank
you for everything. We’re okay, now.”
    He still didn’t move. His fingers twitched,
and he stared at the wall behind her head.
    Was he really making her do this? Why did he
have to spoil the moment? “And earlier is in the past, right?”
    “What?” He shook his head and finally looked
at her. “Right. Earlier. Yeah. In the past.” His brow furrowed.
“The dog’s name is Grim. He belongs to Thompson’s kid.”
    Alyssia’s appetite evaporated in an instant.
He probably didn't have the power to get her zoning changed. Not
directly anyway. But he did own a local TV network affiliate, which
tended to be vocal about businesses he didn't like. He’d done
editorial pieces on their place before, about how it was a waste of
valuable retail space and community resources. Now she was about to
potentially file criminal charges against his teenage son. She
nibbled at her food, no longer tasting it. “Of course he does.”
    “He can’t do anything other than huff and
puff. I’ll be back tomorrow night, we’ll get your campaign up and
running, and the one side of the business will never touch the
other.”
    She ignored the reminder they would have made
more headway tonight if she hadn’t thrown a tantrum. The last thing
she needed was to linger on the memory of the kiss. She was too
busy trying to convince herself things really would be as easy as
he said.

Chapter
Three
    The moment the shelter door swung shut behind
the police officer, Alyssia sank into a nearby waiting room chair.
She leaned the back of her head against the wall, closed her eyes,
and let the rising sun warm her face. Exhaustion rolled through
every inch of her body. She was pretty sure last night had been the
longest night of her life. Of course, just like the second longest
night of her life, it had started with Tate, and her making a fool
of herself.
    She