Take - Page 78

I sat on the coffee table. Up close, I could see Dante’s appeal. He was handsome, with a rugged edge.

“Reath and Auclair have a history,” I said.

“They do, but that gives Reath an advantage. He knows this guy and his tactics. And Reath won’t go off half cocked. Reath doesn’t get overemotional. He’s got a cool head.”

I bit my lip. I didn’t like hearing that. Reath had warned me not to let the emotions in.

That he didn’t have a heart to give.

Shit. It was a hell of a time to realize just how much I felt for him, and that I was going to get my heart broken.

That’s when I heard the door downstairs. I shot to my feet.

A moment later, Reath stalked in, a dark cloud hovering over him. He dropped some gear on the kitchen table.

“How’d it go?” Dante leaned forward.

Reath lifted his head, and I sucked in a breath. He gave us both a searing look.

“The fucker wasn’t there.” Then he looked at me.

I felt burned. Reath really wasn’t happy.

“Thanks, Dante,” Reath said in a clipped tone. “I’ll be in my gym.” He disappeared back down the stairs.

Dante stared after him for a second. “Maybe I was wrong about the cool head. I’m out of here. You okay?”

I nodded.

After Dante had left, I chewed on the end of one nail. Clearly Reath was upset. I couldn’t just leave him stewing.

I moved to the stairs. When I reached the ground level, I skirted Reath’s vehicles and headed to his gym. The door was open, and I heard the thunk of weights.

In the doorway, I stopped to watch him.

He’d stripped off his shirt and was only wearing black cargo pants. He was lying on a bench, doing chest presses, and lifting crazy heavyweights. Every time he pushed that bar up, he huffed out a sharp breath. The muscles in his arms bulged.

I wandered in. He lifted a few more times, then stopped and set the bar in the holder.

As I reached him, he sat up on the bench.

“I’m sorry you didn’t find him,” I said.

Reath gave me a small nod.

I stepped forward, and that’s when his arms whipped out and he grabbed me. My pulse spiked. He pulled me close and pressed his face against my stomach.

I lifted a hand to his dark hair and stroked. “What happened?”

“I wanted to find him. I wanted to stop him today. Make sure that you’re safe.”

This was more than frustration. “What else?”

He was silent, and I thought he wasn’t going to answer me.

“Reath?”

“He left a photo of you.”