Under Threat by B.J. Daniels (reading the story of the .TXT) 📕

Natalie burst into the Texas Rangers offices, and after jumping through all the hoops she had to jump through to get to the floor with Vaughn’s office, Ranger Stevens was there to greet her. “Ms. Torres. It’s good to see you under better circumstances.”

“Are they better circumstances?” Which was flippant, because of course they were better. Her house hadn’t burned down today, and she’d been reunited with her sister.

But she was angry, and she wanted to fling her anger at everyone who got in her way. Every second she was away from Gabby, she was going to be angry.

“Follow me,” Ranger Stevens offered, sounding far too amused.

She followed him, pausing at the door to an interrogation room. It was the interrogation room where she’d all but signed Herman’s death warrant. Where she’d set everything into motion, because she hadn’t been able to keep her mouth shut.

She wasn’t foolish enough to think that had put everything into motion. Obviously the FBI had had its own thing going on. It was happenstance she had gotten mixed up in it.

It was all too much, and Vaughn—the man who’d been silent for days—had the gall to send her a note—a note!—to answer more questions.

She ignored the part where she’d been silent too. Because she was afraid if she let go of any of her rage, she’d simply fall apart.

“He’s waiting.”

She scowled at Stevens, but then she entered the room on that last wave of fury.

Vaughn stood with his back to her, his palms pressed to the interrogation table. It hurt to look at him. To look at him and not touch him. It seemed that seeing Gabby this morning had broken that dam of feeling that she’d been hiding behind since she’d shot the man who’d kidnapped Gabby.

She’d been numb for days, but now, all she could do was feel. All she could seem to do was hurt. She was afraid she was going to cry, but she swallowed it down as best she could.

“You summoned.”

Vaughn turned, and she wasn’t prepared for those gray-blue eyes, the way the sight of his body and mouth trying to curve in a smile slammed through her.

She wanted to hug him and to cry into his shoulder. She wanted him.

But despite that a world of emotion seemed to glitter blue in those smoky eyes, he merely gestured to a seat at the table. “Have a seat, Ms. Torres.”

“I think you’re damn lucky I’ve taken a vow of antiviolence, because I’d as soon shove that seat up your seat as sit in it.”

She had clearly caught him off guard with that, and she felt a surge of victory with all that anger. Let him take a step back. She wanted him to react.

“Natalie, just sit down and—”

“Go to hell.” Which was probably cruel, but she wanted to be cruel, because maybe if she was, this could be over, and she could move on. She whirled toward the door.

“I was going to let you hypnotize me.”

She whirled back, somehow every sentence he uttered making the violent thing inside of her larger. “What?”

“It’s supposed to be romantic,” he returned, clearly irritated she wasn’t falling into line.

“What the hell is romantic about me hypnotizing you? You can’t tell me how you feel unless I put you under?”

“You gave me a whole lecture about people being unable to give information under hypnotism unless they want to, and I’m trying to show you how willing I am to—”

“Then just say it!”

“I love you.”

They both stood in stunned silence for Natalie wasn’t sure how long. She clutched her hands at her chest and tried to...process that. Meanwhile Vaughn stood stock-still, his eyes a little wide as if he was shocked by his own words.

“I don’t...believe in a lot of...” Vaughn rubbed his palm across his jaw and then took a step toward her. “Natalie, I fell in love with you. Your strength, your dedication.” He swore. “And I thought that’d go away, or dull, or... I don’t want to fail someone else. I’m so sick of feeling like I failed, and I just wanted to show you that I’d do it anyway.”

“Fail?” she asked incredulously.

“Try!”

“Oh.” He loved her, and he wanted to try. He was trying to be...romantic. Vaughn Cooper. For her.

“Will you sit now?”

“No.”

His eyebrows drew together, but before he could be too confused over her refusal, she found the courage to do what she’d wanted to do the moment she’d stepped in the room.

She moved into him, wrapping her arms around him, holding him through the ragged exhale he let out. “Nat—”

“I love you too,” she whispered fiercely. Because that was such a better emotion to focus on than anger. That was what she should have taken away from this morning and being reunited with Gabby, not feeling anything... Love. Hope. Faith.

“I wasn’t sure... I’m not sure I know how to go from the most important thing to me being your safety—and me keeping you safe, to you just...being safe. How does...any of this work?”

She pulled back a little and tried to smile, but a few tears slipped out instead. She could tell it bothered him, but he didn’t rush to stop her. No, for all Vaughn’s gruff, by-the-book protector conventions, he always seemed to give her the space she needed to work it out.

And hold her through it if she needed.

“My life is literally burned to the ground, and I have a sister who’s been held prisoner for eight years finally back in it. I don’t know how any of this works, but I just guess you...figure it out.”

“Together?”

“We make a pretty good team.”

He wiped away one of her tears, his rough thumb a welcome texture against her cheek, his mouth gently curved, that love shining so clearly in his eyes. “We do,” he agreed, his voice rough and...true.

Because Vaughn didn’t lie, and he didn’t sugarcoat. This man, who understood obsessions and failures, violence and the absence of it. How to keep