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.Doriana started.Josh! How much had he noticed between her and Logan? They had to be more careful.“Mom, I know I’m grounded, but can Steven come over? I want him to meet Logan and see the tree.”Doriana put a hand to her stomach.She wasn’t ready yet to introduce Logan as Josh’s father.She and Logan had too much unresolved between them.Josh looked hopefully at her.She glanced at Logan.He held himself rigid, waiting for her answer.She shifted in her seat.“Okay, Josh.But let’s keep Logan’s secret a little longer until I tell Grandpop.”“When are you going to tell Grandpop?” Josh asked with an accusatory look.“Soon.”Josh stared at her, then shrugged.“I’ll call Steve from my cell.” With a smile at Logan, he bounded out of the room and up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time.“I’m glad you’re letting his friend come over,” Logan said.“Josh has been a big help to me the last two days.He’s a great kid.You’ve done a good job with him.”Doriana sighed.“Thanks.He’s a good kid.Most of the time.”Logan closed the distance between them.Bracing his arms on the sides of her chair, he leaned over.“Hold off for a while telling your father about me.”“You surprise me,” she said.“One minute you’re railing at me because I didn’t tell my parents and now you tell me to wait.”Logan straightened.“I know what I’m doing.”“I wish I knew what you were doing,” she said.The phone rang, jarring the silence.“Damn things,” Logan said.“I’m beginning to wish Alexander Graham Bell had never been born.”Laughing, Doriana reached for the phone on the table next to her.“Hello,” she said into the receiver.“Been shopping, I see.”The evil voice sucked her breath.She gripped the receiver until her knuckles whitened.Logan pried the instrument from her hand.“Are you too much of a coward to talk to me?” Logan said into the phone.Logan held the phone close.His face paled.Doriana began to tremble, imagining what the scum on the other end was saying.“You bastard.” Logan dropped the phone into the base like a piece of vermin.When he looked at Doriana, his eyes were hollow.She jumped up from her chair and ran to him.He pulled her into his arms and held her tight.“What did he say, Logan?”“More of the same.Don’t worry about it.”She pulled back to look at him.“He said something.Tell me.I need to know.”He drew a deep breath and pulled her against him.“He said he hopes you enjoy this Christmas because it might be your last.”Her breath seemed to stop and her insides shook.Logan stroked her hair.“From now on I won’t let you out of my sight.”* * * *Monday morning Logan insisted on driving Josh to school before driving himself and Doriana to work.She’d argued that she could drop Josh off as usual and head into work by herself, but Logan was adamant.Since the phone call Saturday, Logan hadn’t allowed her to go anywhere unless he went along.To her surprise he even accompanied her and Josh to church Sunday.Doriana spotted the large envelope on Logan’s desk the minute she entered the office.“What’s this?” She grabbed the envelope.“I wasn’t expecting a priority package.”“It’s for me,” Logan said, taking it from her.Shrugging, she went into her office.She threw her briefcase on her desk and slipped out of her coat, then started the coffee.But the routine tasks couldn’t stop her mind from going round and round like one of her father’s concrete mixers.Why was Logan getting priority mail? She’d had a quick glance at the return address.Someone named Jo in Arizona.A woman? Had Logan lied when he’d said there was no woman in his life? Dread washed over her.Her office phone rang.In the outer office, she heard Logan pick it up.A few minutes later her intercom buzzed.“Russell Meecham on line one,” Logan said.Doriana groaned.Just what she needed this morning—the head of HR whining about some employee problem.“I’ll take it,” she said.* * * *When Logan was sure Doriana was deep in conversation with Meecham, he slit open the packet from Jo and quickly scanned the contents.Grove had a rap sheet longer than Logan’s leg.He stared at the grainy picture enclosed.The guy looked familiar.Where had he seen him before? The photo on Candi’s desk? Maybe.The hair on his nape stood on end.He could swear this was the guy who was watching Doriana the day they’d gone to the small deli for lunch.Logan fisted his hand around the picture, squeezing it into a ball.The stiff paper crinkled in protest.He set it down and smoothed a hand over it.He couldn’t let his anger take over.He had to remain cool.He wanted to strangle the guy with his bare hands.He flipped open his cell phone and punched in numbers.Candi didn’t know his cell number.She wouldn’t ignore this call.“Hello.” Candi’s voice came through loud and clear.“Candi, we need to talk.”“Oh, Logan.Oh.I’m really busy now.”“Do you want me to come to your office? I’m sure your co-workers would like to hear what I have to say.”Silence.“Meet me in the cafeteria,” she said at last.Logan was waiting for her when she walked into the nearly empty cafeteria.A few employees lingering over breakfast gave them curious glances.Logan ignored them.Candi took a seat across from Logan at the small table.“You look like hell,” he said.“Is this why you’ve been avoiding me? You didn’t want me to see you?”Her face, bearing the yellowed bruises of her most recent beating, paled.“You sure know how to make a girl feel good.” Defiance showed in the rigid set of her body and the tightness of her features.“I’m not here to make you feel good,” he said.“Then why are you here?”Her eyes were the saddest blue he’d ever seen.He placed a hand over hers where it rested on the table.She tried to pull away but he held onto her.He wanted to help her, but she’d used him the night she tricked him into that seedy bar.He swallowed the words that demanded she hand over Grove.He needed to go easy or he’d scare her away.His gut told him the guy beating up on Candi was the same one stalking Doriana.All Logan’s instincts screamed the same guy was also responsible for the vandalism and bid thefts.“Candi, he’s going to kill you.You need to get away.”Tears sprang to her eyes.“I can’t.I’m in too deep.He’ll kill me for sure if I leave.”“Damn it.We’ve had this conversation before.I can help you escape.”She pulled her hand from his
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