Invincible

Two patrol officers were standing on the sidelines, spellbound. The chief came out and stopped, just watching the two antagonists, who hadn’t noticed their audience.

“What if you’d hit something lying in the middle of the road? You’d have gone straight off it and into a tree or a power pole, and you’d be dead!”

“Well, I didn’t hit anything! I was scared because I saw a car following me. Who wouldn’t be paranoid, with people watching you all the time and my father having secret phone calls...!”

“If you’d answered your damned cell phone, you’d have known who was following you!”

“It was in my purse and I was afraid to slow down and try to grab it out of my pocketbook!”

“Of all the stupid assignments I’ve ever had, this takes the prize,” he muttered. “And why you had to go to San Antonio...?”

“I went to buy a dress for the Valentine’s Day party!”

He gave her a cold smile. “Going alone, are we?”

“No, I’m not.” She shot back. “I have a date!”

He looked oddly surprised. “Do you have to pay him when he takes you home?” he asked in a long, sarcastic drawl.

“I don’t have to hire men to take me places!” she raged back. “And this man doesn’t notch his bedpost and take in strays to have somebody to sleep with.”

He took a quick step forward, and he looked dangerous. “That’s enough,” he snapped.

Carlie sucked in her breath and her face paled.

“It really is enough,” Cash Grier said, interrupting them. He stepped between them and stared at Carson. “The time to tell somebody you’re following them is not when you’re actually in the car. Especially a nervous young woman whose life has been threatened.”

Carson’s jaw was set so firmly she wondered if his teeth would break. He was still glaring at Carlie.

“And you need to keep your phone within reach when you’re driving,” he told Carlie in a gentler tone and with a smile.

“Yes, sir,” she said heavily. She let out a long sigh.

“She was doing a hundred miles an hour,” Carson said angrily.

“If you could clock her, you had to be doing the same,” Cash retorted. “You’re both lucky that you weren’t in the city limits at the time. Or that Hayes Carson or one of his deputies didn’t catch you. Speeding fines are really painful.”

“You’d know,” Carson mused, relaxing a little as he glanced at the older man.

Cash glowered at him. “Well, I drive a Jaguar,” he said defensively. “They don’t like slow speeds.”

“How many unpaid speeding tickets is it to date? Ten?” Carson persisted. “I hear you can’t cross the county border up around Dallas. And you, a chief of police. Shame, shame.”

Cash shrugged. “I sent the checks out yesterday,” he informed the other man. “All ten.”

“Threatening to put you under arrest, were they?”

“Only one of them,” Cash chuckled. “And he was in Iraq with me, so he stretched the rules a bit.”

“I have to get home,” Carlie said. She was still shaking inside over the threat that turned out to be just Carson. And from Carson’s sudden move toward her. Very few people knew what nightmares she endured from one very physical confrontation in the past.

“You keep under the speed limit, or I’m telling your father what you did to his car,” Carson instructed.

“He wouldn’t mind,” she lied, glaring at him.

“Let’s find out.” He jerked out his cell phone and started punching in numbers.

“All right!” she surrendered, holding up both hands. “All right, I’ll go under the speed limit.” Her eyes narrowed. “I’m taking that sword to a rune forge tonight. So the next time you meet me on a battleground, Hordie, I’m going to wipe the ground with you.”

He pursed his lips. “That would be a new experience for me, Alliance elf.”

Cash groaned. “Not you, too,” he said. “It’s bad enough listening to Wofford Patterson brag about his weapons. He even has a dog named Hellscream. And every time Kilraven comes down here, he’s got a new game he wants to tell me all about.”

“You should play, too, Chief,” Carlie said. She glanced at Carson. “It’s a great way to work off frustration.”

Carson raised an eyebrow. “I know a better one,” he said with a mocking smile.

He might not mean what she thought he did. She flushed helplessly and looked away. “I’m leaving.”

“Drive carefully. And buckle up,” Cash told her.

“Yes, sir, Boss,” she said, grinning.

She started the car, pulled it around and eased out of the parking lot.

She really hoped that her father wouldn’t find out how she’d been driving his pet car. It would be like Carson to tell him, just for spite.

Odd, though, she thought, how angry he’d been that she’d taken such chances. It was almost as if he was concerned about her. She laughed to herself. Sure. He was nursing a secret yen for her that he couldn’t control.

Not that he ever would ask her out or anything, but she had grave misgivings about him. He was known for his success with women, and she was soft where he was concerned. He could push her into something that he’d just brush off as insignificant, but her life would be shattered. She couldn’t let her helpless interest in him grow. Not even a little. She had to remember that he had no real respect for women and he didn’t seem capable of settling down with just one.

She pulled into her driveway and cut off the engine. It was a relief to be home. Just as she got out of the car she saw the black sedan drive by. He didn’t stop or wave. He just kept going. Her heart jumped up into her throat.

In spite of all the yelling, he’d shepherded her home and she hadn’t even noticed. She hated the warm feeling it gave her, knowing that.

3 (#u011b2b5b-d269-5b00-832f-441e1850574c)

CARLIE HAD HOPED that her father wouldn’t hear about her adventure. But when she got inside the house, he was waiting for her, his arms crossed over his chest.

“He lied,” she blurted out, blushing, the dress in its plastic bag hanging over one arm.

He blinked. “Excuse me?”

She hesitated. He might not know after all. She cocked her head. “Are you...angry about something?”

“Should I be?”

He made her feel guilty. She drew in a breath and moved toward him. “I was speeding. I’m sorry. Big Red can really run...”