Free Blood And Bone by Dawn Brown

sun came up—which coincidentally was less than an hour away—but the bottom line was she had a book to write. Whatever strange attraction she was experiencing was completely inappropriate. Des was a source for a story, nothing more. She needed him to help her find Julia at the very least, and in a best-case scenario, to agree to an interview himself. She couldn’t afford to blur the line between them because she was flattered, or because he was a damned good kisser.
    From this point forward, her behavior where Des was concerned would be nothing less than perfectly professional.
     
    By the time Des arrived home, the sun’s first rays had started to brighten the eastern sky, and his mood had improved considerably. So much so, he was whistling. Sure, his body throbbed like he’d gone ten rounds with a fleet of sumo wrestlers, but aside from that, he felt pretty damned good.
    Shayne wanted him. Maybe as badly as he wanted her. The knowledge filled him with a heady sense of triumph. Rebound? He grinned. Not when she’d kissed him like that.
    He shoved his key into the lock of the garage apartment he rented, but found the door open. His good mood evaporated. If those assholes had broken into his apartment… He’d never considered the possibility before. The old widow he rented from was better than any alarm system he could buy. Nothing happened in this neighborhood Rose didn’t know about.
    He pushed open the door and entered the small square kitchen. If there had been anyone in the apartment, they’d been extremely careful. The dishes piled in the sink were as he’d left them. Nothing appeared broken or out of place.
    If those idiots had broken in, they wouldn’t have been careful and they certainly wouldn’t have left anything in his apartment intact. So who had been there?
    Des climbed the steep stairs to the loft, but froze at the top. Hudson sat on the swivel chair behind his desk.
    “I would have picked up the place if I’d known you were stopping by,” Des said, jamming his hands into the back pockets of his jeans.
    Hudson watched him with small black eyes. “Now why don’t I believe you?”
    “I’m surprised to find you here. Did you run out of defenseless women to terrorize on deserted roads?” As soon as the words left his mouth, he wanted to call them back. If Hudson knew about his visit with Shayne, Heddi would too.
    The big man’s face remained stoic, as if he hadn’t heard Des. Between his robotic features and a physique like Frankenstein’s monster, it was easy to believe he was as thick in the head as everywhere else, but Des knew better. Hudson never missed a beat.
    He stood, his huge square frame filling the room. “She wants to see you.”
    Des tensed. “It’s five a.m.”
    “Now.”
    “My next payment isn’t due for another two weeks.”
    “She wants to see you on another matter.”
    His stomach churned sickly. Please, not Julia. Not again .
    Despite his pounding heart, he cocked his head and tried to appear nonchalant. “Is Heddi interested in acquiring some property?”
    “Now!” Hudson’s voice exploded like a thunderclap. “She doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
    “It’s. Five. A. M.” He enunciated every word, as if speaking to the insanely dim-witted. “She’s not even awake.”
    “You can wait for her at the house.”
    Des sighed through gritted teeth. Exhausted and sore all over, the last thing he wanted was to be dragged in front of Heddi, but he had to go. Arguing with Hudson was about as effective as arguing with the wall.
    “I want to change first.” Des went to the dresser at the far end of the long room.
    “Stop stalling.”
    “You might jump at her every command,” Des snapped, yanking open a drawer, “but I’ll be damned if I’m going to.” He pulled out a pair of clean jeans and a new shirt.
    Hudson snorted. “Keep telling yourself that.”
    Tension gripped Des’s aching muscles, and a dull pain throbbed behind his eyes. “She can wait