It'll Be An Adventure (Masters of the Shadowlands #15)(82)
Author: Cherise Sinclair

Of course. Because his goal was to be the boss—and the one talking to the press.

 

“I’m sure it was worthwhile.” She turned away.

 

“No, wait.” He put a hand on her arm, moving closer. His voice dropped. “How have you been anyway? I saw the footage from the bridge. You looked pretty banged up.”

 

“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.” She pulled her arm away.

 

“Of course I’d be concerned. We were…we were good together.” He lowered his voice. “I’ve missed you.”

 

Her snort of disbelief couldn’t be suppressed. “Uh-huh.” Had he even noticed she was gone? Or maybe he’d run out of socks to wank into during calls to Skylar.

 

“No, seriously. I think we should try again.” His smile was the one she’d always loved…and now she saw how well it covered up what he was really thinking.

 

God, she’d been a fool. “Ross, I don’t—”

 

“Tell you what, let’s go out this weekend. I’ll take you somewhere nice and then—”

 

“No.

 

“No? Just like that?” His hazel eyes hardened. “I’m doing you a fucking favor asking you out, giving you a chance to actually be around people and not just books.”

 

He’d always teased her about her being a complete introvert. Now she realized his words had always held a patronizing edge.

 

She shook her head. “I like my books.”

 

He moved closer. “You know you want me. Want my cock.”

 

“No. No, I don’t.” Since the surrounding noise had lessened, her rejection came out far too loud.

 

“Jesus, don’t you sound like a bitch,” he said in a hard, too-audible voice.

 

When people turned to look, embarrassment scorched her veins and dried up her voice.

 

Ross didn’t stop. “What is it, the wrong time of the month?”

 

Here was one of the red flags she should have picked up far sooner. She should be rude to him right back…but Pa had insisted his kids be polite, no matter what. The lodge’s customers—and Pa—were always right.

 

“Excuse me. I need to leave.” She tried to escape, but he kept pace with her.

 

“I never knew you were such a fucking cunt, acting like your shit don’t stink.” He was so close his shoulder bumped into hers, and she moved faster. “Maybe I should tell everyone about you, how you spend all your time reading cuz you can’t get a man.”

 

“I have a man,” she muttered.

 

“He’ll get bored soon enough.” Ross looked her up and down. “Real bored, tiny tits.”

 

She spotted Dustin with some of the other Pasco K9 people near the cars and shouted, “Hey, Dustin, I have a question.”

 

As the SAR people turned to look, Ross sauntered away. “Bye, bitch. Later.”

 

Never. Not if she saw him first.

 

Her hands were trembling, and oh, she wanted nothing more than to simply hide. Only she couldn’t. Couldn’t do anything.

 

Couldn’t even stand up for herself.

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

 

 

 

 

 

In the parking lot of Saxon’s vet clinic, Murphy got out of her car and stretched her sore back muscles. Writing—not for the weak. For the last three days, she’d put in a ton of writing.

 

Guess she could thank Ross’s rudeness for the quick increase in her word count.

 

That was the only good thing she could say about their meeting. In fact, she’d been so shaken that Saxon had noticed and dug until he’d found out what happened. And then, when she had a meltdown because he’d started out the door to go beat Ross up, her barbarian had stayed home—but had lectured her about not allowing herself to be bullied.

 

Well, okay, first he’d held her and comforted her and been awesome. But a lecture?

 

It was galling to admit he’d made sense. So…she’d used parts of his lecture in a scene where Lady Dinah was trying to help the bullied maid at the Brimstone Club. Would Saxon recognize his own words when he read her book?

 

Murphy grinned. She would highlight that passage when she gave him a copy.

 

Her smile faded. Ross’s behavior and Saxon’s lecture led her to resume her efforts to stand up for herself.

 

And to try to figure out why her father picked on her—even more often than on her brothers who also suffered from his manipulations.

 

Maybe it was because she was female. Unlike males, women were pressured to be caring and nurturing.

 

Society was so short-sighted. Honestly, wouldn’t it be better if everyone was caring and nurturing?

 

Respect, consideration, and caring should be a two-way street—and her newest vow was to insist that it was, whether with a lover or her family.

 

Insist? Just the thought made her so uneasy, her shoulders hunched.

 

With a huff of disgust, she stiffened her spine. And then laughed at herself. Hey, I’m a work in progress. I’ll get there.

 

After grabbing her market tote bag, she headed into Saxon’s veterinary clinic. It was the first time she’d been here, and okay, she was curious.

 

The waiting room was decorated in restful blues with a big aquarium that might be calming for humans but, apparently, didn’t do a thing for the pets. Unhappy meows came from a cat carrier. Across from the older woman and her cat, a man had his arm around a trembling cocker spaniel.

 

Murphy gave the dog a sympathetic look. That’s how she felt when waiting for a GYN appointment.

 

Behind the curved reception counter was…Rainie? She sure didn’t look like the woman Murphy had met in the Shadowlands—or even the one who’d stopped by to visit.

 

No, this was Ms. Professional. Her colorful hair was drawn back into a bun. She wore a silky, dark purple shirt that covered her tattoos. Subtle makeup. Gold studs in her ears.

 

Though her wide smile was the same. “Murphy, what brings you in?” Worry crossed her face. “Is Brummell all right?”

 

“He’s fine. Growing fast.” At the desk, Murphy held up the market tote. The spicy aroma coming from it made her stomach growl. “Saxon mentioned he loves the Cuban sandwiches from that little Latin deli downtown, and I was near there. Can I leave this with you for him?”