Tagged & Ashed(59)
He quickly takes the seat beside me, his arm slipping around my shoulders, and then he nods to the driver before we pull out into traffic.
“That was scary, by the way,” Billy mumbles from the backseat.
“What was? The elevator?” I ask in bemusement.
“Funny,” he grumbles under his breath.
“Seriously, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You damn near dying, that’s what I’m talking about,” he strains out in a near whisper, and Tag’s grip on my shoulder tightens.
“The doctor said there wasn’t any problem,” I say a little too casually.
“That’s not the point. If Tag hadn’t gotten there when he did-”
Billy can’t finish, and I look to see a tear hanging onto Tag’s eyelid as he looks away. Why is his arm around my shoulders when he pulled away from the kiss for no good reason?
His phone rings, and he drops his grip on me to answer it, his breath growing heavy as he pulls it to his ear.
“Detective,” he murmurs softly.
***
Tag
“Mr. Masters, you wanted to know if I had any news, and I do. We’ve just confirmed the knife used to stab Ms. Branderwood is indeed the one missing from your kitchen set, though the suspect carried it with them when they fled.”
Why would someone use my knife?
“Do most of your murder suspects break in and borrow weapons?” I ask, feeling Ash’s body tense beside me.
I slip my arm back around her shoulders, wishing I could just pull her in my lap and protect her from the world.
“No. They use the victim’s weapons when the gun they brought jams.”
“What?” I ask, again releasing my hold on Ash as I lean up to focus solely on what he said.
“We found the same gun that shot Ms. Branderwood in the street drain not far from the house. The gun hasn’t ever been cleaned, and it looks to have jammed, which most likely led to the use the kitchen knife. We believe she dumped the gun when running away from the scene.”
I shake my head in disbelief, and then my brow furrows as something he said halts my train of thought, forcing a shift in direction.
“She?”
“Yes, we found DNA at the scene suggesting the suspect is indeed a female. Right now, I need you to send me a list of any and all scorned women who might have a grudge against the two of you.”
That’s a long list just for me.
“First of all, a guy called me. He told me Ash would be dead before I got home.”
Her breath hitches beside me, and I lean back and finally unclick her seat belt and pull her onto my lap, forcing her to snuggle against me.
“We found a phone dropped with the gun. Most likely, the suspect was ditching all the evidence. It took the techs a while, but they finally repaired the phone enough to turn it back on. There’s an app that allows for voice change while talking. Furthermore, the DNA found residing in the phone’s crevices matches the DNA found at your house.”
What if this is my fault? What if some bitch I blew off is now after the woman I love as a form of revenge.
“I’ll compile a list of any girls I can remember who might have a grudge.”
Ash starts shaking her head, and then she tugs the phone from my ear so I’m forced to listen to her.
“No, this started before you—months before you. It’s pointless for you to make a list. I’ll do it. You can start with Rene.”
Shit!
“Rene?” the detective muses, obviously overhearing Ash’s declaration.
“Rene Ballinger. She’s obsessed with Ash and me, but she knew Ash before I did.”
“I’ll get right on it,” the detective adds before hanging up.
I lean back, uncertain of whether or not I should still keep Ash in my lap now that my cock has awoken. I shouldn’t be craving sex right now. I should be focused on keeping her alive, but it’s been so damn long.
“Did you hear all that?” I ask curiously, my body shifting awkwardly to try to hide the damn hard piece between my legs as her ass slides around in my lap.
“I heard enough to piece it together. At least it makes sense why the guy was so short now - since it’s no guy at all,” she murmurs while leaning into me a little more, making my damn cock ache to be inside her.
If she’ll kiss me once she isn’t under the influence of the painkillers, I’m going to spend days in the bedroom with her.
***
Ashiara
His erection is digging into me, and I want to free it and pull it inside me so badly that it hurts. I want to tell him I love him, and I want to tell him I’m sick of all this bullshit.
“I always knew that bitch was crazy,” he huffs, his breath falling down the side of my neck.