Love Bites Read Online Free PDF

at his side, answering questions about the break-in while judiciously omitting any mention of losing her towel.
    Evan sure as hell wasn’t going to share that with anyone.
    The cops noticed her blackening eye and the bruise on her cheek. “You get that tonight, in the scuffle?”
    “No.” Because it was important, Cinder gave them the details about the incident at the hospital.
    The bruise on her arm had also darkened, but Evan had seen her naked, and hadn’t noticed any other injuries.
    Not that he’d been looking for injuries. Mostly he’d just stared…and absorbed.
    Other officers searched the area for the intruder.
    They didn’t find him.
    Everyone assumed it had to be the same guy who’d attacked her at the hospital. It didn’t take an investigative genius to see that he’d broken the lock on the patio door to get in.
    Cinder explained that both the dog and the cat had been lounging in the bathroom with her, so the guy must have gone straight to her bedroom. She remembered Doug barking and running off, but she’d thought nothing of it.
    Whenever she showered, Doug stayed extra vigilant, barking at cars in the lot, tenants coming or going, every leaf that blew by. She’d had no reason to think anything unusual had happened.
    “Why did you have the radio turned up so loud?” Evan asked.
    Her face went hot pink. “Singing helps keep me from thinking too much.”
    His heart softened. “You were fretting about what happened at the hospital?”
    She had that deer-caught-in-the-headlights look about her before she shrugged. “Okay.”
    What the hell did that mean? If it wasn’t the incident from the hospital, then what hadn’t she wanted to think about?
    One cop looked up from a notebook. “With what you’ve told us, he must have followed you, scoped out the place, and after you left the apartment, he decided to wait around until you returned.”
    Alone. With that realization, Evan felt sick. She’d been a specific target for a lunatic. He shared a look with his brother and friend.
    “Given the disarray of your closet,” the other officer added, “I think he planned to hide in there.”
    The hot color leeched from her face. “My closet? But…why?”
    “He probably figured you’d make too much of a fuss if he tried to take you from the shower. Close as these apartments are, someone might have heard you.”
    “Or more likely,” Brick added, scowling at both cops for scaring her more, “he went past the bathroom when he saw Doug coming after him.”
    “Good thing you had him with you,” Jesse agreed.
    What if she’d left Doug behind while she’d showered? Granted, Doug wouldn’t have liked that idea. But if the dog had thought she was going to work, he wouldn’t have kicked up a lot of fuss.
    Looking at her now, sensing her disquiet, Evan knew she would never again ignore the dog’s bark. The events of the day had irrevocably changed her. What would it take to make her feel safe and secure once again?
    He’d damn well figure it out, one way or another.
    Pulling his gaze away from Cinder, Evan addressed the cops. “Are we all done here?” He wanted to be alone with her. Now.
    “Since there’s not much else we can do, I guess so. But I would recommend you get that door fixed right away. Until we catch him, there’s no guarantee he won’t be back.”
    Evan wasn’t the only guy to tense over that, especially when Cinder wrapped her arms around herself.
    Brick said, “I’ll take care of fixing the door. I’ll change the lock, but I’ll also make a brace that she can use, so even if someone tampers with the lock, they won’t be able to get the door open.”
    Brick ran the family hardware store. Jesse was a carpenter. Together they’d no doubt make her door impenetrable.
    “You have what you need?” Evan asked.
    “Yeah, piece of cake. Don’t give it a thought.”
    Jesse said, “It’s going to take a few hours at least. Cinder should stay with Evan tonight.”
    The cop nodded.