Dangerous to Her Page 13

  “I need his attorney’s number.”

  “You’re smoking something if you think he’ll let you talk to the guy.”

  “I hear you. But Johnson’s connected to a few things I’m looking into. If and when I can connect the dots, I want to have Johnson’s attorney on speed dial.”

  Chapter 13

  Friday

  The night of Linda’s assault had been a sleepless one for Mattie. After checking and rechecking that Jordan was okay, she’d spent the hours staring at her bedroom ceiling, reliving Linda’s injuries as well as the fear she’d felt when she’d believed a stranger had entered her house. She’d tried to distract herself with housework or catching up with work or updating the photos in Jordan’s scrapbook, but when she wasn’t thinking of Linda, her thoughts would inevitably turn to Dominic.

  The first time she’d seen him in court. His kiss. His stunned acceptance when he’d learned he’d fathered a child. His silent yet determined resolve to change her locks.

  His kiss.

  The few times she was able to fall asleep, her dreams were haunted by images of combined violence and sensuality, jerking her awake time and again. She was nodding off when the phone rang, but she immediately answered. “Hello?”

  “Mattie, it’s Brenda Florentine.”

  “Brenda?” Mattie sat up, checked the clock, and saw it was only 9:00 a.m. She wasn’t scheduled to be in court until 11:00 a.m. today.

  “We heard about what happened to Linda. It’s the talk of the courthouse. How is she?”

  “I—I—” Mattie rubbed her eyes, trying to get her thoughts together. What was she supposed to say and not say? “She was hurt pretty badly but she’s stable. I haven’t gotten any more information. Does the judge know?”

  “Yes. He’s arranged for another court reporter to sub for you today.”

  “What? Why?” Annoyance tinged her voice at his presumptuousness. Since when did he make decisions like that without consulting her? And why? So she’d be away from the courthouse? So he could have someone attack her like Linda?

  Slamming her hand on the mattress, Mattie ordered herself to stop it. What kind of crazy thought was that? She was letting Dominic’s suspicions infect her.

  “He’s gotten it into his head that with the assault you suffered in court combined with this, you need some time off. You know the judge. He’s always looking out for you.”

  Brenda’s final sentence was said with a decided edge that immediately made Mattie frown. “Judge Butler is kind to all his employees. You should know that more than anyone.”

  The silence on the line told Mattie her barb had struck home.

  “You’ve got him fooled, Mattie. He thinks you’re so sweet, when really you’re—”

  “Thanks for passing along the message,” she said.

  There was a brief moment of silence, then Brenda snorted. “Whatever. By the way,” Brenda chirped. “I have your hair-brush. I forgot to put it back in your purse after I borrowed it the other day.”

  The first thing Mattie felt was outrage. She’d never given Brenda permission to go into her purse. “Is my hairbrush the only thing you took?” she blurted out.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Someone came into my house yesterday, Brenda. Whoever it was had a key. Do you know anything about that?”

  “You’re crazy,” Brenda shot back. “What would I want from your house? I told you, I only borrowed your hairbrush.”

  She hesitated, wanting to ask her what she’d done all day, but feared coming off as a hysterical fool. What possible reason would Brenda have for coming into her house, especially when nothing was taken? She obviously didn’t care who knew she was seeing Judge Butler, so silencing Mattie couldn’t be a motive. Annoyed with the woman and herself, she said, “Just keep it, Brenda,” before hanging up.

  Mattie dressed quickly and called the hospital, only to confirm that Linda’s condition hadn’t changed. She took a moment to assess the situation and what she should do next. Normally, the first person she’d call for legal advice after Linda was Judge Butler. Now, that wasn’t even an option. She didn’t believe Judge Butler had hired Tony to hurt Linda any more than she believed Tony was capable of such violence. Still, she also couldn’t shake the image of Tony’s face when she’d handed him Judge Butler’s envelope, or his questions about whether the judge had been acting differently.

  She’d tried calling Tony last night but he hadn’t been home and hadn’t returned any of the messages she’d left on his voice mail. She needed to talk with him first, needed to get them both to an attorney, before she decided what, if anything, to tell Dominic about his background.

  She jumped when someone knocked on her door. Cursing her nerves, she checked the peephole, then let out a sigh of relief.

  Tony. Thank God.

  She threw open the door and launched herself at her brother.

  He staggered back with a small laugh, dropping the brown paper bag he’d been holding.

  “Whoa, whoa. I’m glad you’re happy to see me but—”

  “Tony, I tried calling you last night. Where were you?”

  He pulled away, his face overcome by concern. “What’s wrong? Is something wrong with Jordan?”

  The tears she’d been holding back could no longer be contained. She sobbed, racked so hard by fear and grief that she could barely breathe let alone talk. “Jordan’s fine,” she choked out, “but Linda—Linda—”

  Tony’s fingers tightened painfully on her arms. “What about Linda?”

  Mattie fought to regain her composure. “She was—she was attacked last night in the parking garage at work.”

  The moment she said the words, she knew. Tony hadn’t had anything to do with hurting Linda. She’d known him her whole life, and the shock and fear on his face was as real as it had been twelve years ago when she’d told him their parents had died in a car accident. He paled and swayed, throwing them both off balance. Mattie caught him.

  “Is she—?”

  “She’s in the hospital. She hasn’t woken up. But she—she almost died, Tony.”

  Tony’s mouth tightened and he suddenly straightened. Looking around first, he shepherded her off the porch. “Let’s go inside.”

  Leaning against him, she walked inside and collapsed on the couch.

  He sat beside her and took her hands. “What do you mean, she was attacked? Did anyone see who did it? Were you with her?”

  “No. I was walking to the garage when I heard glass break and a car alarm go—”

  Tony dropped her hands to run his through his hair. Vaguely, she noted that he’d gotten a haircut since they’d last talked. The curls she’d admired the other day had been shorn close to his head. “You were walking to the garage alone? Why weren’t you together?”

  “She’d left court early. And I was walking to the garage with a deputy.”

  His eyes sharpened. “The deputy you told me about?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he help her?”

  “Yes. But Tony…he’s asking questions about you. Linda— Linda passed out right after they found her, but not before she said your name.”

  Tony looked poleaxed. “My name?”

  “Yes. I know she could have been talking about someone else, but did you go see her? After she dropped me—”

  Another knock at the door had her jumping. She grabbed Tony’s shirt front, fear suddenly making her panic. “Don’t answer it.”

  Tony grabbed her hands and rubbed them between his. “What’s going on, Mattie?”

  “Mattie, it’s Dominic. I know you’re inside and I’m not leaving until you answer the door.”

  “Dominic. Wasn’t that the name of the guy you—” Tony narrowed his eyes. “Who does he think he is, talking to you like that?” Tony surged to his feet and strode toward the door. She swiftly followed behind him, clinging to the back of his shirt like a monkey.

  “Ignore him, Tony!”

  He whirled around but gently held he
r away from him. “Why? I don’t have anything to hide, Mattie.”

  Something must have flickered across her face because Tony suddenly frowned. “But apparently you think I do.” Hurt shone in his eyes. “Mattie, you don’t think—?” he whispered.

  The pounding on the door got louder. “Mattie, are you talking to someone?”

  Tony backed away from her, no longer heading for the front door but away from it.

  “You do. You think I hurt Linda.” He looked around. “Where’s Jordan? Do you think I’d hurt her too?”

  “Open the door or I’m coming in. Now.”

  “No, Tony, please. Just wait. I’m sorry.”

  “Stand back from the door. I’m coming in…?.”

  “Tony, just wait…” Mattie ran for the door and threw it open. Dominic looked grim, muscles tense and pumped. In his hand, he grasped the paper bag that Tony had dropped. She immediately turned back to her brother. “Tony—”

  But he was gone. She heard the back door of the kitchen slam and tried to go after him, but strong fingers wrapped around her arm.

  “You’re not going anywhere.”

  Dom barely moved out of the way before Mattie’s fist whizzed by his temple.

  They stared at one another in shock.

  Narrowing his eyes, he easily picked her up, the paper bag still clutched in his hand, and kicked the door closed with his leg. He started to put her down, but Mattie went ballistic.

  She started wriggling, his hardness rubbing against her soft curves even as she tried to gouge his eyes out. “Let me go!”

  “Stop it,” he shouted, catching both her wrists in one hand and lifting her off her feet again. He carried her over to the couch and pinned her down with his body across her chest, careful not to put his full weight on her. The care he took made her angrier and she kicked out until he pinned down her legs just in time to stop what surely would have been a debilitating blow. “Will you calm down?”

  “How dare you come in here and start manhandling me? How dare you threaten to kick my door down?”

  She ripped one wrist out of his grasp, but he simply caught it again and slammed both wrists down, one on either side of her head. “I thought you were in danger,” he shouted.

  She froze. Their breaths mingled as they stared at one another, her racing heartbeat thumping against his own. His blond hair had fallen into his eyes during their tussle and she suddenly realized that as light as his hair was, his lashes were dark fringes that framed the blue of his eyes until they shone like a beacon. “I was worried when I changed your locks. I was worried when I left. And I’ve been worried ever since. You think I like imagining you alone here, someone doing to you what he did to Linda?”

  His genuine concern stunned her and caused an odd ache to form in her chest. She licked her lips and his eyes followed the movement as if hypnotized.

  “Get off me,” she whispered.

  He did, slowly releasing her wrists as if anticipating her lunging for him. He held out a hand, which she ignored.

  “There was a paper bag on the walkway with its contents spilled out. I heard you talking to someone in here. You sounded upset. I wasn’t taking any chances.”

  “You know I have cause to be upset.”

  “That’s why I gave you a few seconds. Believe me, I wouldn’t have waited otherwise.”

  Mattie actually sneered at him. “It must be great, being big and strong enough to go wherever you want, whenever you want to.”

  “Yeah, well, sometimes it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” He rubbed his side absently as if it suddenly pained him. When she saw her watching him, however, he dropped his hand and sat back. “Your brother ran.”

  Standing, she straightened her clothes, then glared at him. “Of course he did. With a crazed cop out to get him, what other choice did he have?”

  Hands on hips, Dom thrust his face close to hers. “If I’m crazed, it’s because you’re making me that way. When are you going to get it through your head that I am not trying to hurt you?”

  “No,” she shot back. “You’re just trying to pin my brother for attempted murder. It’s been a slow week, after all.”

  “You have a smart mouth, Mattie, and one of these days it’s going to get you into trouble.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Did you just threaten me?”

  He smiled tightly. “Why, yes. I do believe I did. And what are you going to do about it?”

  She placed her hands on his chest and shoved. He didn’t move, which made her scream in fury. She pressed her hands against him again, but this time he caught her wrists, holding her palms against hard, warm muscles. “I—I—”

  “Tell me what you’re going to do, Mattie,” he taunted.

  “Let go of my hands.”

  He didn’t look like he was going to comply. He stared at her mouth as if he wanted to kiss her. As if he wanted to devour her. Her breath caught just as he released her hands. “Fine, but you can tell—”

  Before he could step back, Mattie reached up, grabbed his ears, and pulled his head down even as she rose on her tiptoes to kiss him.

  Every cell in Dom’s body seemed to freeze as Mattie’s lips touched his. Despite the aggression in her grasp and in her eyes, her lips were soft. Hesitant. Almost shy.

  As if unsure of their welcome.

  With his own breaths echoing in his ear, he watched her pull back to stare at him with dazed eyes.

  “You shouldn’t have done that, Mattie,” he whispered.

  Heat suffused her cheeks and she shook her head. “I’m sor—”

  His mouth swept in, taking hers with the confidence that had been lacking in her kiss. Swallowing her gasp, he licked at her lips until they parted. His tongue moved inside, not rough, not intrusive, but demanding nonetheless. Demanding her response. Demanding her surrender.

  Which she unhesitatingly gave. It was in her moan. In the way her hands moved from his hair to behind his neck, pulling him closer. In the way her body plastered itself to his.

  In seconds, they were back on the couch, but instead of fighting him, her body was pliant and open, welcoming him and asking him for more.

  He ripped his mouth away and rested his forehead on hers. “I’ve wanted to kiss you again, Mattie. I’ve dreamed of it.”

  She smiled and he lowered his head, needing to suck on her pretty lips more than he needed his next breath. She kissed him with the same hunger and desperation for about thirty seconds. Then she stiffened and froze. When she pulled back, he barely refrained from begging her to stay.

  Sighing, Dom let go of her and sat up.

  “Tony.” She seemed to have trouble catching her breath, but managed to choke out, “He—he didn’t do it, Dom. I know it. I know him.”

  He thought of the speculation about Joel. About his own certainty that Joel would never have had anything to do with Guapo or taking his own life. That same certainty was reflected in Mattie’s eyes.

  Slowly, he held out his hand. This time she took it. He pulled until they were both standing. Brushing back her hair, he nodded. “Okay. I believe you.”

  “You do? Why now?”

  “Because I know you, Mattie. If you believed Tony was guilty, you’d tell me. You’d still fight to keep him safe, but you wouldn’t risk another person’s safety, especially Jordan’s.”

  Tears filled her eyes and she reached out and pulled him toward her, hugging him tight. “Thank you for believing me.” Pulling away, she swiped at her tears. “But what do we do next?”

  Using the pads of his thumbs, he swiped away a few errant drops of moisture she’d missed. “We check in with Linda and see if she’s awake. You pick up Jordan. We try to find your brother. But first tell me about the burglary on Linda’s apartment. I read the police report she filed, and she told officers that she’d been receiving harassing phone calls.”

  Mattie’s eyes widened. “That’s right. She even changed her number because they’d gotten so bad. She never said she’d received any more
after that, but they could totally be related.”

  “So, besides Tony, was there anyone in her life—ex-boyfriends, any defendants she mentioned—that might have a reason to hurt her.” He raised his hands when she glared at him. “You know what I meant.”

  “No one she’s mentioned.”

  “Did she ever mention a man named Mark Guapo to you?”

  “No. We rarely talk about specific cases. Why would she?”

  “He was a defendant she prosecuted several months ago.”

  When she said nothing, he prodded, “So you’ve never heard the name before? At work?”

  “Guapo.” Her brows furrowed. “It sounds vaguely familiar, but—”

  “Judge Butler was the sitting judge.”

  “When?”

  “Two months ago last week.”

  “I was probably assigned to a different courtroom at that time.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Jordan wanted to go on vacation for her birthday. I took some time off and another court reporter came in to cover me. When I returned, Judge Butler was right in the middle of a big case. It could have been that one. Why is this Guapo person so important?”

  “He might not be, but I’m just trying to explore all the bases.” He paced in front of her for several minutes before pausing to sit beside her. “Mattie, when Dusty attacked you in court, did you notice anything unusual?”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know,” he growled, rising again to continue pacing. “But he was on something when he attacked you, and yesterday I found out he’d died of an overdose in his cell. Dusty was a small-time druggie. Smuggling drugs into the jail isn’t uncommon but it’s not easy either. Someone was supplying him. He said it was in exchange for making some noise in court, but there’s something else going on. Something that I think might be related to this Guapo defendant, and in turn possibly Linda. You got close to Dusty—”

  “You think this Guapo character sent Dusty to hurt someone in the courtroom? Judge Butler? Linda?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She stared at him, frustration plainly etched into her features. “Give me a second.” Rising, she moved to the sink, grabbed a glass, filled it with water, and took a sip. When she raised the glass in inquiry, he shook his head. Seconds, then minutes ticked by as she stared into her glass. Suddenly, she lifted her head. “His grip was off,” she said excitedly.