Page 44 of Finding His Redemption

Shit. She’d walked right into that one.

“It’s not what you think?—”

“What I think,” Brandt interrupted, “is that you promised me you’d stay out of trouble. What I think is that you swore you’d keep your head down and your mouth shut. What I think is that you just told me you’re personally acquainted with a murder suspect. What if he has ties to Alek or his family?”

“He doesn’t.”

A pause. “How did you meet him?”

She winced. This was the part she’d been dreading. “I gave him a ride. I found him walking along the road after our last meeting.”

“Jesus Christ, Vanessa.” The exasperation in his voice made her flinch. “What were you thinking?”

“He helped me change a flat tire. I was just returning the favor.”

“By giving a ride to an ex-con you knew nothing about? With your son in the car?”

The accusation stung, mostly because it was justified. “Oliver was fine. The guy was... he was harmless.”

“You can’t possibly know that.”

“I’ve got good instincts about these things.” She knew how it sounded even as she said it—naive, foolish. But she couldn’t explain the immediate sense of recognition she’d felt looking at Jax, that bone-deep certainty that he wasn’t a threat to her.

Brandt’s sigh crackled through the phone. “The same instincts that had you married to Aleksandr Sarkisian by nineteen?”

That was a low blow, even for Brandt. “Don’t.”

“I’m not trying to hurt you, Ness. But you need to be realistic. You’ve worked too hard to build this life. Don’t risk it on some stranger with a sob story.”

“He didn’t have a sob story. He barely spoke.”

“Even worse. You don’t know anything about him.”

She pushed away from the counter and paced the length of her small kitchen. “His name is Jaxon Thorne. He’s ex-military. Navy SEAL, I think. He got out of prison recently, and he’s at Valor Ridge as part of his parole.”

“And you know what he was in for?”

She hesitated. “No.”

“But you’re convinced he’s innocent of this murder.”

“Yes.”

“Based on what evidence?”

“Based on the fact that he was walking toward the scene when I found him,” she snapped. “Based on the fact that if he’d just killed someone, he would’ve been covered in blood, not stopping to help a woman with a flat tire. Based on the fact that he was gentle with my son and didn’t want anything from me after he helped me. And, not to mention, he’d only arrived at the ranch less than six hours before it happened. How could he have had time to meet Bailee and kill her?”

Silence stretched between them, heavy with judgment.

“You sound invested,” Brandt finally said, carefully neutral.

“I’m not—” She stopped herself. “It’s not like that. I just... I know what it’s like to have no one in your corner.”

“Vanessa.” His voice softened slightly. “I’m in your corner.”

“I know. Now. But I didn’t always have someone.”

“I understand the impulse to help. But your priority has to be Oliver and your own safety. Let the local authorities handle this.”