‘What the fuck was I getting myself into?’ I wondered as I made my way through the hallway towards the lobby. A few familiar faces passed me by, exchanging greetings and knowing smiles. I passed a mirror and saw my reflection, silently telling myself to get a fucking grip. I was also questioning why I was this worked up over a chick I had known for less than 10 minutes.

Plowing my hand through my hair, I tugged on the ends. I didn’t want to embarrass her by telling her how stupid it was for her to go to all this trouble just to get away from a guy. She was such a walking contradiction. There was something so vulnerable about her even though she tried to act strong. I could smell the fear coming off of her. When her sparkling blue eyes looked up at me it felt like the wind had knocked me on my ass.

While our chemistry was undeniable, I knew I had to take my emotions out of it. I was a professional, and I was going to treat this situation just as I would any other person needing some help from a cop. I snapped my neck back and forth and pulled on my cuffs, straightening the sleeves of my dress shirt. I was not looking forward to this conversation.

I started to scan the lobby looking for the troublemaker. There was a gentleman in his fifties sitting in a chair doing work on his laptop and a couple cuddling in the corner by the bank of elevators. I silently cursed myself for not getting a description from Lexi. I was about to turn around when I noticed a guy who was around my age leaning up against the wall by the stairwell entrance.

He was well dressed in a Brooks Brothers shirt and crisply pleated khakis. His hair was slightly wavy and his skin was that golden tan that you could only get if you lived in the South.

Bingo. I was sure this was the guy.

He immediately straightened up when he saw me approach. “Mr. Hunt?” I asked, stepping right in front of him.

He gave me a once over then slowly began to size me up. “Who wants to know?”

I reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out my shield and ID. “Detective Brad Morgan, NYPD.”

He tried to act surprised, but the way his face tightened, it told me that he knew exactly what this was about. “What can I do for you this evening, Detective?” He replied in a polite but casual manner.

“I understand you’re trying to get in touch with a guest who is attending an event in the ballroom?”

His eyes were calculating and his posture became slightly aggressive when he answered me. “By guest, you mean my fiancée?”

“That’s odd.” I brought my stance to match his. “Because she referred to you as her ex- fiancée.”

His body stiffened, suggesting a challenge that I couldn’t wait to fucking meet. “Is that so?” His voice was tense. “Detective?” he asked, pausing again. “I’m sorry, what did you say your name was again?”

It was clear that he was trying to control the situation and jerk my chain a little. “Detective Morgan.” I replied tightly.

Most people would be a little intimidated at being approached by a cop, but Colton just rocked back and forth on his heels like he didn’t have a care in the world. He was either a full-blown narcissist or he didn’t respect law enforcement. Based on my conversation with Lexi, I was sure that it was both.

“I’m really not sure what business it is of yours what the status of our relationship is.” Then he stopped and tilted to his head to the side and snapped his fingers like he just had a brilliant idea. “Unless, you’re fucking her! Is that it?”

It was clear that he was trying to provoke me.

I saw a few people begin to take notice of our exchange so I moved in close and spoke to him through clenched teeth. “I’m not going to dignify your question with a response. As for what business is it of mine…” I stopped and rotated my jaw, ignoring the urge to wipe the smug look from his face and finished. “When I see a woman cowering in the corner of the bathroom afraid to come out because she is afraid for her safety…” I inched my face into his “… I make it my business!”

Rage flashed in his eyes as he narrowed them into slits. It was clear to me that this guy had no clue as to how close I was to smashing his head up against the wall. He stared back, his eyes undeterred and body seemingly unthreatened. This was a man who wasn’t used to backing down from anyone and it wouldn’t take much to get him to lose his composure. I would bet money that if he had a loaded gun on him, he would have no problem pulling the trigger.

“Do you have any idea who you’re dealing with Detective?”

The bite to his words was undeniable and I could feel my hands starting to ball into fists. “Mr. Hunt. I’m very well aware of who your daddy is.” I cleared my throat. “But as you already know, you’re not in Georgia anymore and I’m the sheriff in these parts. Now I’m only going to tell you this just once and I will say it slowly so a redneck hick from the South like you can understand me. Leave Miss Manning alone.”

“Or what?” he asked, folding his arms in front of his chest trying to intimidate me. He reminded me of a little boy who threw a temper tantrum whenever his toys were taken away. People were just possessions to him. I had no doubt that he viewed Lexi as one of his most prized possessions. You could tell by his demeanor that he came from old money and was comfortable knowing that his family connections could and would fix any trouble he decided to create.

Men like him never walked away from a challenge. He wasn’t going to go away without a fight. But it seemed as though he was more comfortable fighting with Lexi than wanting to fight me.

I kept my face straight and my temper in check. I was a professional and trained to deal with shit heads like this. “Or Mr. Hunt, you’ll be dealing with me.”

I didn’t know why this was so important to me. It wasn’t like I didn’t already have enough on my plate, but for some reason I felt compelled to help her. There was no denying my attraction to her, but it was also something else too. It was subtle, but I could still feel it. It had been a long time since I’d felt anything.

He faked a condescending laugh, sending my defenses into high alert. “Detective Morgan, right? Since you’re somewhat familiar with who I am, you should also know that I never back down from a challenge.”

And there it was. This was about me trying to take away his possession.

“Really? Is that a threat?” I asked wanting to clarify his statement.

“Oh, it’s not a threat, Detective. It’s a promise!” He said without a bit of hesitation, taking in our surroundings. I noticed his confidence drop a few levels when my buddies Sawyer and Lucas came up from behind me. Colton was an asshole, but he wasn’t stupid. Guys like him were always calculating the odds, taking cheap shots when they could get away with them and tucking their tail to fight another day when it was clear they might lose. I’d bet my small inheritance that he had just realized that he wasn’t going to win today. His pride meant too much to him to stick to his guns and slug it out.

“Is there a problem here?” Sawyer asked with his head moving back and forth between us.

Colton turned his face to my friends and smiled. “No problem.” he said in that cool, sarcastic tone of his. “I’m just having a friendly conversation with Detective Morgan here.”

Sawyer squinted his eyes and studied me, noticing my clenched fist by my side. “You sure about the friendly part? Because it looks to me like you are about a half second away from getting a fist in your face.”

Colton brought his hand up to his jaw, seeming unsure how to respond. “I assume these are friends of yours, Mr. Morgan. You haven’t even introduced them to me.” He said with a smug grin—what a controlling son of a bitch.

Lucas reached out and placed his hand on my shoulder. “What’s going on here?”

My muscles were so tense they were straining against my dress shirt. Colton was built but my experience was that gutless cowards who hit women were rarely willing to physically square up against someone who could actually put up a fight. We both knew that the odds were stacked against him and it was time for him to use his brains over his brawn.

Colton clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes on mine. “I’m afraid you’re overstepping your boundaries here, Detective. I would be very careful if I were you. The press doesn’t take lightly to the men in blue abusing their power.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing for both us that I’m not wearing blue, isn’t it?”

Lucas looked at Sawyer and then back at me. There was a smile playing on his lips when he spoke “That’s funny, because everyone knows you don’t look good in blue anyway.”

Colton didn’t like being the butt of anyone’s joke. In fact, he looked like he was ready to blow.

“Let me tell you something. Lexi belongs with me.” He hissed out. “I’m going to chalk up this conversation to a simple misunderstanding on your part. You can tell my fiancée that I’ll be back. I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon.” And with that he turned and walked away.

Once Colton was gone, Lucas spun on his heels. “What the fuck was that about?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling my pulse start to return to normal. “I’ll fill you in later.” I said then stopped and turned around. “Do me a solid and make sure that clown leaves the building. Please?” They both knew I was not one to lose my cool easily, so their curiosity was understandable. Instead of drilling me with questions, they simply nodded and followed Colton out of the building.

Once I was sure that he was gone, I walked over to the bathroom and tapped gently on the door. “You can both come out now. He’s gone.”

Abby greeted me, standing off to the side. “How did it go?” She asked as I made my way into the room.

Lexi rose from the chair, the relief I saw was all the confirmation I needed in knowing that I had done the right thing.

Meeting her ex had explained two things. First, he was an asshole of gigantic proportions and second, Lexi had every right to be afraid of him.

“Your ex-fiancé is quite the guy, huh?”

She ran her hands down her face in frustration. “God, I’m sorry to involve you in this mess.”

“Hey, no worries.” I put my hand out stopping her. “It’s fine. Besides, protecting and serving the public is my job!” I added with a wry grin trying to lighten the mood.

“Thank you, Detective. Is he really gone?” She asked hopefully. Her long eyelashes flickered making her look even more breathtaking than I remembered.

My grin faltered a bit. “He is for now.” I stressed, choosing my words carefully.

Her shoulders sagged when all I wanted to do was comfort her. “It’s okay, I know it’s only a matter of time before I run into him again.” She said sadly, reading between the lines.

Abby chimed in. “Lexi, don’t say that. You’re not alone anymore. We’ll figure this out. I promise.”

Lexi bit down on her bottom lip, and I was suddenly turned on. What the hell was wrong with me? This poor girl’s life had been turned upside and my dick chose that moment to make an appearance.

“You’re right.” She piped up with the sound of determination in her voice. “I’m done being the victim here. I can’t run forever and he can’t make me go back. I won’t allow him to take more from me than he already has.”

I knew I was skating on very thin ice and her confidence was definitely a turn on. But she needed to keep a level head about this.

So, I told her honestly, “I’m not going to lie, he doesn’t seem like the type that’s going to disappear. But I’ll do whatever I can to help you.”

Her head snapped towards mine in surprise. The way she stared at me had me feeling nervous and uncomfortable, and I never got nervous. That should have been my first warning. “You would do that for me?”

“Absolutely!” I swallowed, trying to mask the way my body was reacting to her.

Abby leaned in, grabbing both of her shoulders. “See, I told you he was a great guy!”

Abby’s eyes flickered to mine; the affection was obvious. A big part of me wished I could feel more than friendship for her but I just couldn’t seem to get there. I wished I could say the same about the lovely southern belle standing in front of me.

“Well, I think I should get going now,” Lexi sighed, picking her purse up off the floor. “Thank you both for all your help tonight.”

Why did the thought of this girl walking away bother me so much? I wasn’t ready for our time to come to an end just yet and I started to think of any excuse to spend a little more time together.

“You know what, I was about ready to call it a night, anyway. I’d like to make sure you get home safely.”

Both sets of eyes darted towards mine. “Thank you, but I think you have already done enough tonight.” She said, fastening the strap of her purse along her shoulder.

“I insist.” There was no way she was walking out of here alone. I had no idea where Colton, the asshole, went after we chased him out of the building and I wasn’t taking any chances. While feeling the need to protect her was new to me, it felt almost instinctive.

She still looked unsure. I didn’t want to scare her, but I wanted her to be prepared. “Lexi, you know your ex better than I do. But I know his type well. He wasn’t happy when he left. I would feel a lot better knowing that you made it home safe and sound. Tomorrow, I also think you and I should discuss getting an order of protection against him.”

She looked like she was about to give me a dozen reasons on why that wasn’t going to happen when to my surprise, she nodded slowly and said. “Okay.”

I had been involved in too many domestic situations over the years to naively think we had seen the last of Colton Hunt. I knew from experience that things were likely to get worse—a whole lot worse—before they started to get better.