“What?” Her tone was confused but threaded with hurt.

“I said, shut up.”

Her head twitched and her eyes slid away as she mumbled, “Sorry, I –”

His hand still in her hair twisted. “Don’t say you’re sorry,” her eyes slid back to his as he went on, “got nothin’ to be sorry for. And you got nothin’ to feel lucky about.”

“Alec –”

“One person lucky in this bed, baby, and that person’s got a dick.”

Her lips parted again as she stared at him silent.

“You know the life I was born into.”

“Alec –”

“That life coulda taken me down a different road, but it led me to you.”

“Alec –”

He heard a phone ringing, a cell, Feb’s tone coming from the living room and he heard it so well he hoped to God Jackie was dead asleep because Feb was a moaner and when he was f**king her, she could get loud.

He ignored the noise and said to Feb, “Sucks, baby, what happened to us, what happened to you, what’s still happenin’ to you. But we’re back on track and, make no mistake, it isn’t you who’s lucky we are, it’s me who’s the lucky one.”

Her phone stopped ringing as she said, “Colt, it’s me who –”

He dropped his head, kissed her quiet and when he lifted his head again, he said, “Stop sharin’, Feb, can’t take it.”

He watched her eyes get big. “I thought you wanted me to share.”

He smiled at her. “I’m thinkin’ I was wrong.”

“But –”

He touched his lips to hers again and teased, “You’re too sweet, like candy, you keep goin’, you’ll rot my teeth.”

He heard her phone start ringing again and he lifted his head to listen to it.

“Alec –”

Quickly and distractedly, he ordered, “Quiet, Feb.”

“You’re very bossy,” she said on a mildly annoyed snap, one that said she didn’t mean it but she also kind of did.

Her phone stopped ringing and he focused back on her.

“February –” he started to close the conversation down but her phone started ringing yet again and the warmth Feb injected into his chest evaporated, the cold taking over, he watched her head twitch as she finally heard her cell.

“Fuck,” he cursed, pulling away from her and rolling off the bed.

He grabbed his jeans off the floor as she came up on an elbow, yanking the covers over her br**sts, her head tilted as she listened to her phone stop ringing then, seconds later, it started again. Her eyes sliced to his as he tugged on his jeans. He watched her face paling before she threw off the covers, twisted her legs over the side, got up and grabbed his shirt.

“Let me take care of this,” he said to her as she shrugged his shirt on.

“Okay, but I’m coming with you.”

“Feb –” he began as she bent forward to nab her panties but shot back up to lock eyes with him.

“I’m comin’ with you.”

At her tone Colt felt it prudent not to argue.

The phone stopped ringing and started again by the time she had her underwear on and three buttons done up at her chest. They hit the living room and she turned on a lamp. Her purse was on his coffee table, the cell on top stopped ringing only to start again.

He grabbed it, looked at the display and it said “Unknown caller.”

Colt let it ring once more before he flipped it open and put it to his ear.

“Better be good, it’s f**kin’ midnight,” he said into the phone.

He got silence back and he watched Feb watching him.

“Someone there?” Colt prompted.

Nothing.

“Don’t piss me off,” he warned and that’s when he got it.

“She’s not supposed to be there,” a man’s voice, vibrating with emotion, probably anger, said into his ear. Colt couldn’t know for sure if it was Denny, if he’d ever actually spoken to the man, it hadn’t been in years but he still knew it was Denny.

“Lowe?” he asked, waving his hand at Feb, motioning to the bedroom, hoping she’d understand what he meant. She nodded and ran down the hall.

“No,” the man said.

“This isn’t Denny Lowe?”

“No,” the voice was getting agitated, “this is Lieutenant Alexander Colton.”

Colt felt a chill shaft down his spine.

Fucking shit. This guy was whacked.

“You’re wrong, seein’ as I’m Alec Colton,” Colt told him.

“No. No, you aren’t. She isn’t supposed to be there. Not without me.”

Colt had absolutely no idea how to play this and he also didn’t know if Feb was right now calling Sully.

He went with his gut, hoping Feb read his meaning and doing what he could to keep the sick bastard on the line. “She’s Feb, Denny, you know she’s meant to be with me.”

“She’s meant to be with me.”

“How do you know she’s here?”

“You can’t have her, she’s mine.”

“Sorry, Denny, you’re wrong. She’s mine, always has been and you know it.”

“You can’t have her. She and I are meant to be together.”

“How do you know she’s with me, Denny?”

“Stop callin’ me Denny!” he shouted as Feb hit the room, Colt’s cell in her hand, her eyes on Colt.

“Denny, listen to me, you aren’t doin’ right by her. What you’re doin’, Feb doesn’t want. You’re tearin’ her apart. Stop. Go to the nearest Police Station and turn yourself in.”

“Gotta make her safe. It’s my job. I’m the good guy. I’m the police. I gotta make her safe so no one can hurt her again.”

“You aren’t makin’ her safe, Denny, you’re hurting her, scaring her.”

“She knows it’s my job. She knows I’m doin’ it all for her.”

Colt tried something different. “How’d you get this number, Denny?”

“She gave it to me.”

“She didn’t. She hasn’t seen you in years.”

“I come into the bar all the time.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, I do. Sit at the end. She brings me beers. She watches me when she thinks I’m not lookin’.”

Holy f**k, he had eyes in that bar.

“Denny, I do that. You haven’t been in the bar since she’s been home.”