Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 122440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 612(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 408(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 612(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 408(@300wpm)
“This isn’t finished,” Rafferty snarled.
Wilder didn’t bother to reply. What was there to say? Rafferty had been accepting bribes for years. Sooner or later, he had to know there would be an investigation. By trying to help Bale with his plan to implicate Shabina in the series of ritual murders, he had brought the eyes of the FBI down on him. Of course they were investigating him. Anyone with a brain would have known it would happen. Arrogance, just like in the senator’s case, made Rafferty feel he was immune to consequences.
Wilder watched him leave and then turned to head to the back room to reassure Harlow.
Chapter Sixteen
Harlow woke to the low murmur of voices. As usual, Wilder was wrapped around her tightly, one arm and thigh holding her in place. He liked to sleep close, and she tended to have nightmares and thrash around. His solution seemed to be to pin her down. She had to admit it worked, but it had taken a little getting used to.
“Need you to get up for a few minutes, Wilder,” Rainier spoke in a hushed tone.
“I’m awake,” Harlow announced. “If you need me to step out of the room, I’m good with that.” She wasn’t, but she would be. She knew there were matters she was better off not knowing. She didn’t always agree with Rainier and Wilder’s answers to individuals who were considered above the law.
Wilder didn’t even loosen his hold on her. “You could have pretended to stay asleep, babe. You could have heard everything.”
“I wouldn’t do that. You told me straight up there might be things you couldn’t share.”
“I may have said couldn’t, but mostly I meant shouldn’t. We’re not having one of those relationships. Ours is going to be an everything-that’s-possible-will-be-open-between-us.” Wilder turned his head to look directly at Rainier. “I know you have that same policy with Shabina.”
“It’s a little difficult with Shabina. I protect her when I feel it’s necessary. She’s tough, yes, but she’s also very fragile at the same time.” He shrugged, more of a roll of his shoulders. “She thinks she’s tough all the time, but she has that heart of hers, and I’m going to protect it.”
Harlow didn’t know if Rainier was cautioning Wilder but she didn’t want to be thought of as fragile. She didn’t have the horrendous background Shabina had. In any case, Shabina wasn’t exactly fragile either. She had a strength of spirit, a determination to survive, and she’d done so when most others wouldn’t have made it. Harlow knew Rainier respected his wife just as Wilder respected her. She realized she had to come to terms with the protective nature of both these men.
“My woman can deal,” Wilder declared.
Harlow could have kissed him. Right there in front of Rainier. Instead, she let him see how she felt, the stars in her eyes. She might not agree completely with his assessment because she was afraid for him all the time, but she wanted the closeness of a trusting relationship, and she did know, no matter what, she could deal.
Wilder sat up and pushed back toward the headboard, adjusting pillows as he did so. “Come up here, Harlow.”
She didn’t hesitate. She slipped into the spot she was becoming very familiar with, right under his shoulder, tight against him. His arm circled her, keeping her close.
“What’s going on, Rainier?”
“Tonight, I figured it was time to pay Paul Rafferty a visit and have a heart-to-heart with him. I had gathered information on his home and knew it would be an easy entry. He wasn’t very security conscious.”
“Isn’t he married?” Harlow asked.
“He was. Or is, but she apparently had enough of his cheating, and she took off last month,” Rainier said.
“She lasted longer than either of his other two wives,” Harlow said. “You’d think the man would learn not to get married if he wants to run around. Although he’s very political and probably knows voters prefer someone settled and married.”
“You’d think women would realize if he cheated several times on the first wife and then the second, he was going to continue that behavior,” Wilder said.
“Rainier, it’s only been a few days since the two of you revealed that Rafferty took a bribe from the senator,” Harlow cautioned. “If anything happened to him, you and Wilder would come under suspicion, especially if you were caught on camera or by someone being in the house unexpectedly.” Harlow wasn’t sure why she was more worried about Rainier than Rafferty. If Rainier was going to pay the sheriff a visit, it might not end very well.
“I checked to ensure no one else was in the house,” Rainier assured. “He hasn’t replaced his wife yet.”
Wilder’s fingers slid back and forth over Harlow’s shoulder in an absent way that she still found distracting—and wonderful.
“If all you had to worry about was Rafferty alone in the house, that would make the entry even easier,” Wilder commented.