In the Line of Duty by Donna Alward

Author:Donna Alward [Alward, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Romance
ISBN: 9781619210813
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 15719662
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
Published: 2012-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

She clung to him as the tears she’d been holding in came rushing out, wetting his shirt front. She cried for the girl in the car, for the devastated parents, for the loss of an innocent, young life, and even for herself. She hated feeling helpless, powerless. She’d become a cop for that very reason. But tonight she’d been cruelly reminded that she was indeed helpless and powerless. That bad things happened to good people who were just driving home from work. No one had been talking on a phone or driving under the influence or speeding. All they were guilty of was getting caught in a thundershower and hydroplaning on the highway.

It was humbling to realize that ten minutes of bad weather could cause that much death and destruction.

Weak and weary, she pushed out of Jake’s arms. “I think I need to sit down,” she murmured. He held her hand as they went to the sofa, an unexpected point of connection that felt good, comfortable. She looked up at him sheepishly. “I went off the rails there, didn’t I?”

“A bit. Sounds like you’ve had a trying night though. Sometimes it helps to get it out.”

“I threw up in the ditch.”

The confession made him smile, and that fed the tiniest bit of warmth into her heart.

“I’m sorry for before. For yelling at you. For demanding…well, you know.”

He squeezed her fingers. “Demanding a drink? Yeah, well, it was pretty obvious something was very wrong. I couldn’t do it. Not knowing what I do, you know?”

She shivered, afraid of what she’d done, disturbed by the realization that she’d totally lost perspective. Afraid of why she’d done it—because she’d felt like she needed it to get through another hour. “Do you think I could be addicted like my mom? That…if I’d started I wouldn’t have stopped?”

His gentle smile faded as he looked her fully in the face. “I don’t know a lot about addiction. But I do know that you reached your limit tonight. That something about that girl tipped the balance for you. Extreme things drive people to extreme actions. Doesn’t mean you’re somehow predisposed to be an alcoholic, Kendra.”

She wasn’t convinced. “Doesn’t mean I’m not, either.” It would be the worst thing for her, and she was lucky it had been Jake on the bar tonight. Lucky he’d stopped her from self-destructing. A lot of bartenders wouldn’t have. “If I’d gone through with it, I could have lost my career. Everything.”

“I told you once before that I know when to stop serving.” He smiled again and leaned back against the cushions. It looked so inviting that she sank into them too, resting her head against the soft top of the sofa, curling one leg underneath her.

“Maybe,” he suggested, “what you went looking for wasn’t a drink after all. Maybe it was me.”

That idea was nearly as dangerous as the other as far as she was concerned. She wasn’t looking for a romantic connection. Wasn’t interested in dating. She didn’t want anything serious, and the day on the beach had shown her she didn’t really want a fling either.

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