Nolan nearly dropped his thermos at the loud crack. “What was that?” He screwed that top back on the bottle and set it on the floorboard.

Jason had bolted upright out of his nap. “Was that a gunshot?”

Nolan reached for the door handle. “Yeah. It came from the back.”

Nolan quickly put in a call for backup and they both bolted from the vehicle. Nolan followed Jason, who headed toward the rear of the house. “Jason, you stay back.”

“No way.”

“You don’t have a weapon. Stay back!”

Nolan rounded the side of the house to see a figure flee into the woods.

“I got him,” Jason said. “You see if anyone is hurt.”

“Ja—”

But his brother was already pounding toward the woods. Talk about a role reversal. Nolan growled and vowed to have a word with Jason as soon as possible.

The only thing that brought him comfort was the fact that Jason was a seventh-degree black belt and had graduated the police academy before deciding to be a firefighter. He could take care of himself in a fistfight, but a bullet would end things fast. And not in his favor.

Sending up a silent prayer, Nolan climbed the deck steps for the second time that night and knocked on the door. Callie’s blond head appeared from around the back of the recliner where she crouched. When her eyes locked on his, she gave a small cry and raced toward him.

She threw opened the door, grabbed his wrist, and yanked him into the den. He shut the door behind him. Her scared, pale face wrenched something in the vicinity of his heart.

“Are you okay?”

Tears stood in her eyes. “Barely. Someone shot at me, Nolan.”

“Where are the others?”

“I don’t think anyone else heard it. I ducked behind the recliner and called 911.”

“Okay, stay here. Backup is on the way.”

“Wait! Where are you going?”

“After the guy that did this. He ran into the woods and Jason went after him.”

She gasped. “Jason? Your brother?”

“Yes.”

“But he’s not a cop.”

“No kidding. Stay put. Tell the cops what happened when they get here. I’ll be back.”

He slipped out the door before racing down the deck steps, across the yard, and into the very woods Callie had come from only hours earlier. Someone had just tried to kill Callie—again.

He dialed his brother’s number while he searched the area aided by the dim light of the moon. Jason’s phone rang and he finally picked up. “Hey.”

“You find him?”

“No. He slipped away from me. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Relief and disappointment warred within him. Relief that there wasn’t a showdown between the man with the gun and an unarmed Jason—and disappointment that the shooter had gotten away. “I’ll meet you back at the house.”

“Heading that way now.”

Something slammed against the side of Nolan’s head and he cried out as he went to his knees. His phone fell from his fingers. Running footsteps reached his ringing ears along with the sound of sirens. His head spun and he struggled to his feet.

“Nolan!”

Jason’s voice was squawking at him from the phone he’d dropped. He snagged it from the ground. “Yeah?”

“You okay?”

“He doubled back or something. Knocked me in the head. I’m seeing stars that aren’t in the sky right this minute.”

“Can you make it back to the house?”

“I can make it.”

He retraced his steps, tension in every muscle, pulse pounding in his head. He half expected the guy to try to hit him again and breathed a relieved sigh when he made it back to the house without another incident.

Before knocking on the door, he called in an update to the officers now arriving on the scene. He’d have to give a report, but for now, he wanted someone combing the woods behind the house.

Callie opened the door to him and he stepped inside. She gasped when she caught sight of him. “Your head!”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not.”

Megan entered the room, pulling her fleecy pink robe around her. “What’s going on?”

“Someone shot at me while I was in the kitchen,” Callie said.

“What!” Megan’s eyes widened and her face paled. “Who would do such a thing?”

“If I knew that, he’d be in jail,” Callie said and ran a hand over her eyes.

Jason stepped into the den and met Nolan’s gaze. He gave a slight shake of his head to indicate he still hadn’t been able to catch up to the suspect—even having his new location.

“And Nolan, you’re hurt!” Megan rushed over to him and took his hand. “Come into the kitchen and let me get that cleaned up for you.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine. You’re bleeding. Now come here.”

“The kitchen is a crime scene, Megan. We need to stay out of there.”

“Then I’ll get the kit out of my bathroom. It’ll be like old times when I used to patch you up after one of your boxing matches.”

She left and Nolan went to open the front door to the officers while the rest of the family filed into the den, questions pinging from them. He heard Callie explaining the incident. Her mother cried out and stumbled.

Callie caught her mother before she sank to the floor. She guided her to the brown leather loveseat and helped her sit. Her mother leaned back and closed her eyes. “Shot at you? Someone shot at you?” she whispered.

“Yes. But he missed. By a lot.” Well, not really, but right now she’d say just about anything to see some color come back into her mother’s face.

“Obviously you need to upgrade the security around here,” Richard said.

Callie rolled her eyes. “Mom, just breathe. It’s going to be okay.”

Her mother opened her eyes. “That’s twice someone has tried to hurt you tonight. Someone is after you. Who? Why?”

Megan had returned with the first aid kit and was pestering Nolan about letting her help clean his wound. So far he’d put her off and she had that half scowl, half pout on her face that boded trouble for someone if she didn’t get her way soon. Nolan must have recognized the look, because he finally relented. He didn’t resist the ibuprofen she handed him either.

Rick’s children must have lost interest in the chaos because as soon as they gave their, “I didn’t hear or see anything statements,” they disappeared back to their rooms.

Callie rubbed her tired eyes for the hundredth time that night and sat on the couch beside her mother. “Coming home might have been a bad idea.”

“No,” her mother shook her head. “It was time.”

“But look what I’ve brought with me.”

She clasped Callie’s hand and turned her head to look her in the eye. “Did you bring it with you or was it already here?”

Callie frowned. “What do you mean?”

Nolan stepped back into the room and her mother stood. “This conversation will have to wait. Let’s get this taken care of then we’ll have a talk,” Nolan said.

“Fine,” Callie said. But her mind spun. What could her mother possibly have to talk about?

After the crime scene unit left, Callie joined Nolan in the kitchen. “What time is it?”

He nodded toward the window. “Time for the sun to come up.”

Megan swept into the kitchen, fully dressed and made up. “Brian’s picking me up.” She smiled at Nolan. “He’s taking me to the little café down near Red’s. Remember that place?”

His cheeks flushed and he cleared his throat. “I remember it.”

Callie raised a brow at the interaction.

“Anyway, I don’t know when I’ll be back.” Megan winked at Nolan. “I’m sure I’ll be reveling in all the good memories. We had some good ones, didn’t we?”

“We did.”

She sighed. “I don’t know who wants to shoot Callie, but I sure hope you find him fast.”

“I plan to.”

“Last night was horrid.” She shuddered.

Callie stood and hugged her sister. “I’m sorry to have brought this home with me.”

“Just be careful and watch your back.”

“I will.” She studied Megan. “Are you and Brian serious?”

“Serious? Nope. Not at all. He’s just someone to have fun with right now.”

A knock on the kitchen door pulled them apart. Brian stepped into the room and nodded. “Morning.”

“Good morning,” Callie murmured.

He turned his gaze to Megan. “You ready?”

She swept past Callie and Nolan. “See you later. Stay safe.”

And then she was gone, leaving Callie alone with Nolan. Her heart thumped a bit harder as she took her seat. “How’s your head?”

“Pounding. But I can ignore it for the most part. How’s your throat?”

“Sore.” She smiled. “But I can ignore it for the most part.” She glanced at the door one more time. “How serious was it between you and Megan?”

“Not as serious as she just made it sound.”

“Are you sure you’re remembering that correctly?”

He snorted. “I have a perfectly fine memory of the times I spent with Megan. We had fun, but that was it.”

“I think she wanted more. The way she was flirting with you just now says she still might.”

“I don’t know. She doesn’t matter. Not in that way anyway.” He paused and swallowed, then met her gaze. “Why’d you leave, Callie?”

She didn’t have to ask what he meant. Her mind tumbled back to that awful year her father had died and her mother had married Rick. “I had to. Rick was very abusive toward me. Verbally and physically.” There, she’d said the words aloud for the very first time.

He fell silent, then cleared his throat. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

She shrugged. “I was . . . embarrassed.”

“What? Why?”

“I just was.”

“But that wasn’t your fault. What about Megan?”

“He didn’t touch her,” she whispered, “just me.” She lifted her gaze to meet his before looking away. What was it about her that was so unlovable? What was it about her that caused men to want to abuse her? A year ago, she’d broken off a relationship that had been emotionally devastating. She’d done a lot of healing in the time since, but that question lingered in the back of her mind.

Nolan grasped her fingers and she jumped. “Sorry, I got lost for a few seconds.”

“I’ve never stopped loving you, Callie.”

She blinked. “Oh.”

“I just thought you should know that.”

Tears gathered. She forced them away, unable to deal with the raw emotions sitting on the surface of her nerves. “How did you get here so fast?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean the person shot at me and seconds later, you were at my door. And Jason, too.”

“We were watching the house.”

“Oh. Really?”

“Yeah. The events of last night just didn’t sit well with me. I decided to come stake out your house and Jason insisted on coming along.”

A tear spilled over. “Thanks.”

Footsteps echoed on the hardwoods, and she swiped away the tears as her mother entered the kitchen. “May I come in?”

“Of course,” Callie said even as her mind still reeled at Nolan’s words. He’d never stopped loving her? But . . . she was unlovable, right?

Her mother fixed herself a cup of coffee and joined them at the table. She sat silent as Callie exchanged a look with Nolan. He raised a brow and she shrugged.

“What is it, Mom?”

With a heavy sigh, her mother lifted the coffee cup and took a sip. “I have a secret and I think it’s time to tell it.”

“A secret?” Nolan asked.

She nodded. “I’ve wracked my brain to try to figure out how someone would know it and why it would be something someone would want to kill Callie over, but I just can’t think of a reason.”

Callie swallowed hard. “Okay. So . . .”

“So, I think I need to tell you my story and see if you can figure it out. I’m afraid if I wait too long, someone will hurt you, but at least if I tell you the truth, you may have a fighting chance.”

A fighting chance?