Rules of Protection (Tangled in Texas #1)(11)

I dug my heels into the floor. “I want to see your badge.”

“What?” He wheeled around, anger flashing in his eyes.

“You heard me. How do I know you are who you say you are?”

Jake never shifted his piercing eyes off mine as he reached into his shirt and pulled out a badge dangling from a chain around his neck. He held it up for me to get a closer look.

“Could be a fake,” I told him with a shrug.

The other officers in the room grinned with amusement, but a vein popped out of Jake’s temple. He was pissed. He pulled me into the interrogation room and pushed me roughly into the chair. Then he slammed the door on the laughter outside.

I crossed my arms and shook my head. “Has anyone ever hauled off and hit you?”

“You did…with a chair.”

“Well, you deserved it. Maybe you should’ve identified yourself as an agent.”

“It’s not like you gave me much of a chance.”

“Maybe you should’ve done that instead of shoving your tongue down my throat. Both times.”

Jake’s hard mouth turned up in a shameless grin. “So that’s why you’re being a pain in the ass? You’re pissed about me using you as my cover.”

“You’re a bastard, you know that?”

His smile broadened. “I goofed and needed to do some damage control. If I would’ve known Sergio was the guy you were talking to, I wouldn’t have interfered. I wasn’t supposed to make contact with anyone in Felts’s organization. But he saw me come out of the bathroom, and you probably would’ve stopped me if I walked past. So I kissed you to avoid talking to him.”

“Oh, gee thanks.” What an insulting thing to say to a woman. I was forced to kiss you. He might as well have thrown scalding water on me. “Jerk.”

He was genuinely confused. “Hold on, I’m lost…”

“I could tell you where to go.”

“What’s your problem? I thought you’d want an explanation.”

“I’m not a puppet, and I don’t appreciate someone showing such disregard for my feelings.”

“Feelings?” he asked. “There were no feelings involved. I was doing my job.”

“Yeah, I could feel how hard your job was when it rubbed against my ass on the dance floor.”

“Jesus,” he said, exasperated. “When we leave here, I’m stopping to buy you a self-help book.”

“Won’t it defeat the purpose?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “Besides, I already told you. I’m not going into your stupid program.”

“That’s still to be determined,” he argued. “You don’t seem to understand the full scope of the problem.”

Oh, I understand all right. I’m about to be murdered, and it’s freaking me the hell out. I just want to go home. I breathed out hard, crossed my arms, and tried a more promising tactic. “I’m done answering questions. If you’re going to keep me here, then I want a lawyer.”

“You’re pushing my buttons. Why do you have to be impossible?”

“I’m not talking anymore until I get a lawyer.”

“Don’t be stupid. There’s a fine line between dumb and ignorant, and you’re about to cross it. Do you even know how to protect yourself?”

“I know enough,” I said. “I can’t complain.”

“But you still do.” He shook his head in disbelief, then tried to scare me into compliance. “Worst case scenario is they’ll use you for target practice.”

I refused to show him any weakness, though. “Better than being used by the King of Deception.”

“Well, honey, I guess that makes you the Queen of Denial. But don’t let me monopolize any more of your time, Your Majesty. By all means, go home and have a terrific life…what’s left of it, anyway.”

His words left me antsy, but it was too late to change my mind. The whole absurdity of the situation boggled me. When he wouldn’t let me leave, the imagined dangers were surreal. Now that one of my get-out-the-door strategies actually worked, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go. Not that I’d tell him that.

“You still here?” Jake asked in a snarky tone. “Thought you wanted to go home?”

“On a roll, aren’t you?”

“Just making a point,” he answered.

“No need. I got your point. You don’t like me, and I don’t like you. We’ll never be Facebook friends. Good. But here’s something for you… I don’t care. You can go to hell.” I threw open the door and marched out with Jake on my heels. “Officer Stevens, can I get that ride home now?”

Stevens tossed Jake a wide grin. “Do I have to shoot her?”

“No. Get her out of my sight.”

The officer got up from his chair. “I’ll pull a squad car around front for you, ma’am.” Then he strode out a side exit.

“I’ll wait outside.” I walked out the lobby doors.

Two seconds later, Jake stepped out beside me. “You really should stay inside. It’s not safe for you to be out here alone.”

“I’m not alone,” I replied curtly. “Officer Stevens is out here somewhere pulling a car around.”