Free Choosing Rena by dakota trace Page A

temptation and turned to check if he was
still in the room. Her eyes widened as she took in the stormy
expression on his face.
    “I’d like to know who the hell hurt
you so badly, Rena MacAllister, that you’d doubt your worth to me
as a friend, let alone a beautiful submissive woman.” Then he
turned and strode out of the room.
    Neither surprise nor shock could cover
the emotions that hit her as she tried to take in what had just
happened.

Chapter Eight
    Jackson wasn’t sure if he should go
out and find the asshole who’d done such a number on the woman he’d
just left standing in the kitchen, or if he should bend Rena over
his knee and paddle some sense into her for believing it. Raking a
hand through his hair, he paced back and forth in the living room.
One thing was sure, he needed to get a handle on his temper before
he did both.
    A knock at the door forced
him to stop his pacing. Striding over to it, he gave the nob a
vicious twist, jerking it open to find Detective Sean Anderson
standing in the hallway. Somehow he wasn’t surprised that Jude had
requested that the detective be put on his case. It’s good to have friends in high places at the
Chicago PD.
    “Jackson.” A wry grin crossed Sean’s
face. “Somehow I had a feeling you were the reason I was handed
this case and then to find you at the crime scene. Well I guess I
shouldn’t be surprised.”
    Jackson shrugged as if he had no idea
what the other man was talking about. “Sorry, I think it was Jude’s
hand this time, not mine. But thanks for coming. The report I read
afterward showed a blatant lack of good handling.”
    A frown crossed Sean’s face. “Well
I’ve read the report and did notice some inconsistencies, but
nothing suggested the investigation had been handled
incorrectly.”
    “Well come on in. I’ll let you look
around. I’m sure you’ll be able to help us get to the bottom of it.
Whether the crime scene was mishandled or not, it’ll get Jude off
my ass.” Jackson stepped back, allowing the cop to enter. “I can’t
tell you how much grief I’ve gotten from him of late, especially
after Olivia’s car was vandalized last night.” Shutting the door
behind him, Jackson wasn’t surprised to see Sean wrinkle his
nose.
    “ Damn, the stench in here
is unbelievable.”
    “Yeah that’s what happens when you
have a heat wave going on and the perp decided to defecate and
urinate all over the place. We’re dealing with one sick
fucker.”
    A high pitch squeal came from the
kitchen, interrupting their conversation. A muffled thud followed
by a feminine curse had Jackson hurrying into the kitchen. Both he
and Sean stopped and stared as they encountered Rena standing on a
kitchen chair, proceeding to chew out the motion sensor at the top
of the slider. Some of the curse words were shocking to hear as she
prodded at the damn thing.
    “Rena?” His voice rose to be heard
over the shrill shrieking of the alarm.
    She turned on top of the chair, her
hands going to her hips as she glared at them. “Who was the wise
ass who decided to rearm the alarm? Isn’t it kinda like shutting
the barn door after the horse gets out?”
    Next to him, Sean cocked his head as
if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Not that Jackson could
blame him. Rena had that effect on people when they first met her.
From her braids to the heavy metal t-shirt and her ripped jean
shorts, she looked nearly ten years younger than she was. Nothing
like what anyone would expect a competent investigator should look.
She was truly an enigma.
    “Dear Lord, it’s true.” Sean shook his
head. “She’s an honest to God investigator? I just assumed she was
a bike courier, with the way she was dressed when she stopped by
the office earlier, for the paperwork to give to the security guard
downstairs.”
    “Sorry, appearances can be
deceiving.” Jackson shrugged. Walking over to Rena, he lifted her
off the chair, allowing her body to slide down his. Desire
blindsided