Free Black Dawn by Rose Wulf Page B

laughter. “Innocent? Izzy,
sweetheart, I love that you have a good relationship with your bodyguard, but
it’s his job to protect you from things like slipping and breaking your neck.
Besides, he’s a demon. He’s never been innocent. That’s the beauty of it,
honey. They’re expendable.”
    Izzy’s heart stalled in her chest and her breath caught in
her throat. Had he really just said that? About Darr ? About the only reason she was still breathing? About the man she loved? Tears of anger and
irrational betrayal burning behind her eyes, Izzy snapped, “Then I must be
expendable to you, too.” She jabbed the End Call button and tossed the phone
toward the far pillow, fighting back her sobs. I can’t believe he—
    “Izzy?” Darr was kneeling beside her, one warm hand on her
thigh and worry in his eyes. He reached up with his other hand and brushed a
wayward tear from her cheek with more tenderness than any human man had ever shown her. “What’s wrong?”
    Desperate to keep her composure, Izzy drew in a deep
breath.
    “That’s the beauty of
it, honey. They’re expendable.”
    “That bastard !”
she exclaimed furiously before she knew what she was doing. “How could he?”
    Darr straightened and pulled her into his arms, taking a
seat on her bed and allowing her to curl into him. With her head on his
shoulder, his hand in her damp hair, and his cheek resting over her temple, he
whispered soothing sounds in an effort to comfort her. “Shh. Take a deep
breath, baby,” he whispered. “I’m here. I’ll help you through it.”
    Izzy’s tears slowed as his words washed over her. In all
their years together he’d never called her by any nickname other than the one
she’d chosen for herself. But the tenderness in his words and actions now
warmed her to her soul. Was there any way this man could possibly resent her
for her father’s choices?
    Struggling to get a proper sentence out, Izzy said,
“It-it’s my father.” She swallowed and let her eyes close. “He’s a horrible
man, isn’t he?”
    Darr was silent for several seconds, providing the answer
she’d anticipated. Still, when he spoke, his voice was gentle. “He has
redeeming qualities.”
    “Name one,” Izzy challenged, looping her arms around his
shoulders.
    “He loves you.” The response was immediate, leading her to
believe this really was Darr’s first answer. Perhaps his only. She certainly
wouldn’t blame him.
    Even so, it wasn’t enough for her in the moment. “Maybe,”
she allowed slowly, “but he does it wrong.”
    Again, Darr hesitated. “How so?”
    Sniffling, Izzy mumbled, “He doesn’t care about what I care
about…” And that was far too close to a confession their newly-established
relationship probably wasn’t strong enough for just yet. Way, way too close.
    Fortunately, before Darr could grill her on that slip-up,
her cell began ringing again. It was her father’s ringtone. Determined to
ignore it, Izzy tightened her arms around him and did her best to bury her face
in his shoulder. Damn did he smell good, too.
    One of the arms around her waist pulled away, though, and
the next thing she knew Darr was speaking. To her phone. “Mr. Duchane.”
    Izzy’s throat went dry and she held her breath. What would
her father say?
    Apparently Darr had put her phone on speaker, because her
father’s vaguely distorted voice was louder than it should have been. “Hello,
Darr. I’d like to speak to Izzy.” There was no trace of the heartless bastard
in his voice. It was sickening.
    “She’s here,” Darr assured him. “You’re on speaker.”
    “Oh,” Gerald mumbled, a flicker of awkwardness passing
through. He cleared his throat and added, “Izzy, sweetheart?”
    Swallowing past her stubbornness, Izzy reluctantly lifted
her head but made no move to reach for the phone. “My hanging up on you meant I
don’t want to talk anymore,” she said. She needed to get him off the phone as
quickly as possible, for so many