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EIGHTEEN

Bella leanedon the counter at her cottage, watching Falcon as he stalked around the living room, checking out the windows, inspecting the ocean like he expected Jaws to rise up out of it, and being entirely uncommunicative.

She sighed as she watched him.

One kiss, and she’d fallen hard for him.

The kiss had been magical, everything she’d always dreamed she deserved.

And then everything had gotten all twisted.

He’d become cranky and withdrawn. Restless. Tense.

Shutting her out.

He’d been like that ever since he’d told her about the healing gift, and it had gotten worse since the incident with Gordy.

When she’d asked, he’d said he was focusing on keeping her safe.

Which was silly because she could keep herself safe. She’d hired him to keep Brody from abducting her, but having Falcon keep her locked in her cottage might be even less fun than being trapped on the ranch.

She deserved more than this.

She hadn’t stayed single for this long to fall for a man who gave her the opposite of her freedom and a feeling of connection. “Falcon?”

He was currently peering out the side window, toward the house next door. “Yeah?”

“Could you tell what was wrong with Gordy?” One last attempt. She was giving him one last chance to be the guy she wanted.

He was silent.

She ground her jaw in frustration. “Damn you, Falcon.”

He looked over at her, surprise on his face. “What?”

“What?You have toaskwhat?”

His brow furrowed. “Apparently. What’s wrong?”

“You.” She stalked over to him and poked him in the chest. “You give me this amazing kiss that makes me want to fall for you, and then you immediately start on this spiraling descent into silence, distance, and shutting me out. For your information, any chance you had with me is officially over, and you proved to me why I’m going to go get some cats to sleep with because men just aren’t worth it.”

Pain flickered across his face, pain so raw and stark she caught her breath. “Makes sense,” he said. “Probably a smart choice. I’m going to check out back.”

Then he walked past her.

He literally dismissed her.

“Are you kidding?” She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. It hit him in the back of the head, and he spun around to face her, looking startled. “Yes, I still remember how to throw things at you, you big jerk.”

He stared at her, then tossed the pillow on the couch and started walking toward the back door.

What the heck was wrong with him?

He was back to being the silent shadow that had drifted in and out of her life for so many years, only this time, he didn’t have the excuse of being on some obsessive quest. “No!” She shouted at him. “You don’t get to treat me like that!”

He spun around to face her. “Like what?”

“Like I don’t matter.” She put her hands on her hips. “I was there the night you literally crawled into our encampment, covered in blood. Blood, Falcon.Blood!I heard you and Brody arguing about taking you to the hospital. You weredyingand you were so worried about being caught by the cops that you were willing to die first.”