Free A Hero In Uniform - The Complete Series by Savannah DelGardo Page B

Nothing to report.”
     
    “ Good to hear.”Jackson said. Then, “Tell me about this woman I've been hearing about. Jessi?”
     
    “ I stopped some arsehole from raping her at the rodeo last night.” Ric said. “She's fine now, but she was pretty scared at first.”
     
    He remembered what she'd said on the phone last night; it was a very big deal … I've been in a situation similar to that before … He didn't know what to make of that, but he told himself he'd find out more when he got back to port. 
     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     
    Three
     

     
    Two months later …
     

     
    Since her attack, Jessi had been attending a self-defense class at a gym not far from the cafe. She'd told herself that she wouldn't be the victim ever again and it was time to do something about it. The class was teaching her and a handful of other local women the basics of hand-to-hand combat that would allow them to slow down an attacker long enough for them to get away and get help.
     
    Jessi wasn't delusional; she knew she wasn't going to become some Alpha-female Ninja just because she knew a few moves, but the class was giving her the one thing she'd been lacking in her life.
     
    Confidence.
     
    She felt stronger and more capable of standing up for herself.
     
    And that new-found confidence was put to the test one afternoon when she was at the cafe. Jessi was in the middle of cleaning the service counter and rearranging the display cabinet that held their salad bar when a very familiar voice spoke to her from behind.
     
    “ Jessica.”
     
    She froze, her heart lurching to a full-blown stop before picking up speed again and racing a million-miles-a-minute in her throat. Her hand tightened around the rag she held and her stomach rolled, but she forced herself to turn around and face the man who had made her his personal punching bag. Seeing him again after three months was a shock to the system, so Jessi was proud when her voice sounded normal when she spoke. “What are you doing here, Kevin?”
     
    Kevin Nolan smiled a slow, feral smile and asked, “Is that any tone to take with your husband?”
     
    Jessi swallowed and replied, “Ex-husband. And you didn't answer my question.”
     
    “ I'm impressed, Jess. You've grown some balls since you've been away from me.”
     

Why did he have to show up the one afternoon I'm here on my own? Jessi silently fumed, hating that Judy had needed to go home and Eve wasn't due to start for another ten minutes. 
     
    “ I'm here to talk.” Kevin said. “That's all I want. To talk to you.”
     
    “ I have nothing to say to you.” She told him, “And I don't want to listen to anything you have to say, either.”
     
    Kevin came closer and took her hand, his grip tightening painfully when she tried to pull away. “Jess, baby, don't be like that. We left things unfinished.”
     
    Jessi stopped trying to free herself because his tight grip was hurting her. Instead, she forced herself to meet his cold gaze and said, “Nothing is unfinished between us, Kevin. It was all finalized when those divorce papers were signed.”
     
    “ I didn't want to sign those papers.” Kevin snarled. “I didn't want to lose you.”
     
    “ You should have thought about that before you decided I would make a good punching bag.” Jessi told him.
     
    Kevin stared at her for a few minutes, and she couldn't tell what he was thinking, which scared her. When he spoke, his voice was normal and calm. “Give me a second chance, Jess. Please, baby. I can't live without you.”
     
    His pleading made her sick and she jerked her hand free when he wasn't expecting the move. She pointed a finger at the entrance and told him, “I suggest you leave, Kevin, before I call the police.”
     
    Anger clouded his eyes and he growled, “I'll leave. But I will be back.”
     
    He left and Jessi sagged against the back counter, pressing a hand to her chest in an attempt