Witness in the Dark (Love Under Fire #1)(60)

Emotions rushed through her whole body. Oh, God. She needed to tell him the whole truth. About what she was feeling.

“At one point, I felt like seeing that murder, and everything that came after, was the worst thing that could ever happen to me. I didn’t want to run for my life and hide. I didn’t want to give up my friends and my plans. To become someone different. But now I feel like I don’t want this to end. Ever. I know we agreed this thing between us is just casual, and temporary…but that’s how I feel. I don’t want to give you up.”

He kissed her forehead, and the tip of her nose, and her lips.

“I certainly wouldn’t mind if the DA took his sweet time getting his case together,” Garrett said as he moved to her neck. “I mean, a guy needs to take his job seriously.” He pulled her shirt up. “He can’t cut corners.” His hand moved up her bare back. “He needs to be thorough,” he murmured against her lips, then kissed her deeply. “I don’t want this to end, either,” he whispered. “That’s how I feel, too.”

The next morning, she woke up alone. She could hear him in the kitchen—the clink of bowls and the pouring of cereal.

She smiled as she rolled out of bed to get ready for the day. A day they would spend throwing each other around on the training mat, or watching movies, or playing a game.

Just being together.

She looked down at her ring. In a lot of ways, this felt how she thought a real honeymoon might feel. Lots of happy smiles and sex.

She dried off and came out of her bathroom wrapped only in a towel. She was, of course, carrying her gun. She was not to go anywhere without it, as per Garrett’s orders.

Her clothes were thrown on the bed. But standing between her and the bed was…

An intruder.





Chapter Forty-Six


Garrett was shocked into action at the sound of Sam’s scream. Moving on instinct, he pulled his gun from his side holster and burst into her room.

She stood there in nothing but a towel, water dripping off the ends of her hair onto her shoulders, abject fear in her big, round eyes.

A quick survey of the room came up with no danger until…he noticed where she was pointing. He moved around the bed, and spotted the biggest spider he’d ever seen outside of a zoo.

“Holy shit!” He gasped and leaped over it to stand in front of her. “Give me something to kill it with.”

He’d once asked her if she was afraid of spiders, and she’d said no. He wouldn’t judge her too harshly, though. This beast did not qualify as a normal spider. It was a freaking monster.

He shivered, thinking how it had probably been lurking under the bed while they’d slept. What if it had crawled up onto the bed? Another shiver took over as his own fears came back to haunt him.

Not many people knew he was terrified of arachnids. Yeah, it was irrational and ridiculous, considering he faced far worse dangers every day without the blink of an eye. It didn’t matter. Terror was terror.

The creature stepped toward them. He took a swift step backward, wondering how he was going to save her—and himself—from this threat.

“I have a towel and a gun, Garrett,” she said.

He took a moment to look her over, a small smile playing at his lips. “Very nice,” he said, but was distracted when the spider made another move toward them. At the speed of light. “Jesus! It’s fast.”

“Here.” She offered up her gun.

He just stared at the weapon. “I think shooting it will only piss it off.” Though if he threw the towel over it, he could possibly pistol-whip it to death.

Plus, then Sam would be naked.

Win-win.

Before he could make the suggestion, she jumped inside the bathroom and came out with a tissue.

“What’s that for?” he asked, looking at it doubtfully.

“To kill the spider with.”

Really? Was she crazy?

He almost choked. “You expect me to get that close to it? To slay the beast with only a flimsy film of paper between me and certain death?”

A scowl flitted across her face. “What, then?”

“I was thinking more along the lines of a broadsword. Or a lightsaber. At the very least, a large combat boot.”

She rolled her eyes. Her sneakers were on the floor by the side of the bed. “Get ready,” she said, and set her gun on the floor.

He didn’t see that as being a good idea, but following her lead, he holstered his own gun and awaited instructions.

She flexed her fingers into fists.

“What are you—”

In one fluid movement, she leaped over the spider and grabbed the shoe, throwing it to Garrett.

Oh, shit. He caught it midair and, without giving himself a chance to think better of it, he slammed the shoe down on the horrendous monster. About six times. Maybe eight.

“Stop. I’m pretty sure it’s dead,” she told him.

He kept an eye on it for a few more seconds. They’d been known to come back to life. A shudder ran through him.

“Or maybe it’s not really dead and only faking, so it can go into witness protection,” she joked.

“You’re hysterical,” he muttered.

“And you’re my hero.” She folded her hands in front of her, batting her eyelashes at him.