Juliet rubbed at her temples. Her headache was still pounding. Her juice was all over the floor. There were shards of glass everywhere. And she was just standing here, doing nothing.
Her phone buzzed again with another text.
Unknown number:Miss Jackson? Are you home? Are you all right?
Yeah, she was home. But whether she was all right, well . . . she guessed that depended on your definition. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. She couldn’t stand here all day.
Stepping carefully around the mess, she moved to the panel up against the door. JSI had installed the system, and Kent had patiently shown her how to use it. She liked Kent. He was kind and he never rushed her.
She wished he or one of his guys could guard her. Then she wouldn’t have to put up with this Brenton Sampson, who was not only impatient with a heavy buzzer finger, but had a scowly face and was obviously a serial killer.
Well, perhaps that last part was still up for contention. He could just be a lover of grammar. But the first two were definitely true.
Unfortunately, it seemed the man scowling up at the camera at the gate was almost certainly Brenton Sampson. Or his evil twin brother.
Her phone vibrated in her hand as wolf howls filled the room.
Darn it.
She answered the call.
“Two calls in one day,” she said cheerfully. “Are you sure you’re not dying?”
There was silence on the other end. Drat.
“Let him in, Juliet.”
“So, he’s a tattletale too,” she muttered.
“Mini,” he sighed. She could feel the exhaustion in his voice and felt terrible. Here she was playing silly games and he was literally dealing with a threat to his life. If she could spank her own ass, she would.
She deserved a time-out at the very least. Or maybe writing some lines.
“I’m sorry, Reuben,” she told him. “I know I’m more trouble than I’m worth.”
“Excuse me?” he snapped coldly. He rarely used that tone with her. Only when she said something he really didn’t like.
Oh. Like right now.
Good idea to anger him when he was already exhausted, worried, and in overprotective mode. She usually handled him better than this. It was just a sign of how stressed she was.
“What did you just say?”
“Nothing.”
“Darn right. Because if you just said you’re more trouble than you’re worth, then I know I’m not talking to my sister. I know my sister must have been body-snatched. Because my sister would never say such a thing. Because my sister knows her worth, doesn’t she? What’s her worth?”
“I’m more important than anything and you’d give up everything you have for me.”
The words filled her with a self-confidence she sorely lacked most of the time. When other people failed or left her, Reuben hadn’t. He’d always had her back.
And you have to have his. Do this for him, so he doesn’t worry about you on top of everything else.
Also, so he didn’t kidnap her and take her to the island with him. Because he was also the most important person in her world, and if she killed him, then she’d be really upset with herself afterward.
“I’ll let him in now. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, Mini. I know I’m asking for a lot. But I just need to know you’re safe so I can do what I need to do to eliminate the threat. All right?”