Page 30 of Scent of Evil (Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue #7)

“Hey, this isn’t your fault.” Justin slipped his arm around her shoulders, understanding without being told how she was feeling. “Rowe chose a life of crime.”

“I know.” She swallowed hard, praying she wouldn’t be sick. “I still can’t believe he was a part of this the whole time.” She looked up at him. “It’s no wonder we didn’t know about Decker’s alias. For all we know, Rowe was the one who’d planted that bomb.”

“Maybe, but remember, Stone alerted on Decker’s scent. He was at the cabin, either with or without Rowe. We may never know the extent of Rowe’s involvement.” Justin urged her toward the shattered patio door. She stepped outside, taking a deep cleansing breath of fresh air.

Too bad she couldn’t clear her mind as easily.

“I plan to get to the bottom of who planted that bomb.” Griff quickly joined them. “Raine, can you start at the beginning? I mean when you arrived here at the cabin.”

With a nod, she reiterated the sequence of events that had led to the shooting.

“When Decker saw me, he fired several times, breaking the glass. I returned fire and managed to hit him high in the chest. He was still alive, but before I could go into the cabin to help him, Rowe burst through the front door.” The image of her boss scowling over Decker seconds before he point-blank shot him in the head were clear in her mind.

“Things happened fast. The moment he killed Decker without identifying himself as a cop I knew he was involved. I ordered him to drop his weapon, and he turned to fire at me. I anticipated he’d do something drastic. ” She grimaced. “I was quicker.”

Griff nodded, his gaze empathetic. “I’m sure that wasn’t easy, but you did the right thing.”

“I know.” Logically, she knew Rowe hadn’t given her a choice. But emotionally, she desperately wished she hadn’t been forced to kill him.

“I was looking into the bedroom window where Amanda was when I heard the gunfire,” Justin said, taking over his part of the story.

“I broke the glass, hauled Amanda out of there, and left her in the woods with Stone so that I could back up Raine. Unfortunately, Rowe was already in the cabin.” He frowned.

“I heard a vehicle approach but had no idea who was driving. I admit I thought it might be you, Griff, even though I knew you were too smart to drive straight up to the front door.”

“Understandable as you knew I was on my way, but I parked down the road not far from your SUV and came in on foot. I sprinted when I heard the gunfire.” Griff sighed and glanced back at the cabin.

“Okay, that should be good enough for now. I’ll need to get Amanda’s statement, too, but that can wait. ”

“You’ll need this.” Raine unholstered her weapon and handed it over butt first. “To match the slug in Rowe’s body.”

“Thanks.” Griff took the weapon. “I’ll be in touch, Raine. For now, I suggest you get some rest. It’s been a long day.”

That was the understatement of the year.

She managed a wan smile and turned toward Justin.

He reached for her hand, and even though she knew she shouldn’t lean on him, she allowed him to clasp her hand, leading her back through the woods.

Like a yellow beacon of hope, Stone bounded toward them, his tail wagging in excitement.

Justin released her hand long enough to bend and greet the dog.

“Hey there, you’re a good boy. Trevor left you here to stay with me, huh? ”

Raine knew she owed Justin and Stone a lot for helping her catch up to Decker, despite her boss’s efforts to derail their pursuit. If not for the K9’s tracking ability, they’d never have gotten this far. As she watched Justin with his dog, she silently acknowledged just how much she’d loved them.

And knew there would be a gaping hole in her heart after they’d gone their separate ways.

* * *

Justin sensed Raine was holding on by a thread and wished there was more he could do for her. He could only imagine what she’d been through. He’d never been forced into a position of killing a man in self-defense, but several of his siblings had been there.

It was never easy to take another person’s life. Even a couple of low-life scumbags like Decker and Rowe.

He caught her hand, tugging her through the woods to the location where they’d left their SUV. Good thing they’d parked on the other side of the cabin driveway, or Rowe may have noticed the vehicles when he arrived.

“God was watching over us today.” He hadn’t intended to speak his thoughts out loud but was glad he had when she answered without hesitation.

“He was,” Raine agreed. “I’m so grateful God protected Amanda so we could find her in time.”

He gently squeezed her hand. “God is good. What do you think will happen now? Who will take over as your boss in Rowe’s place?”

“No idea.” She shrugged. “Not sure it matters. I’m off duty for the foreseeable future.”

He tried to gauge her emotions. She’d sounded matter of fact, but he sensed there was more going on beneath the surface. “Are you having second thoughts? Not about shooting Rowe, but your career in general?”

“Maybe.” She blew out a breath. “I admit, watching you and Stone along with Trevor and Archie in action has given me a different perspective. I’d rather track down lost people than escaped felons.”

“Our K9s are amazing.” He kept his tone light, trying to think of a way to broach the subject of their personal lives.

Then he decided there was no point in dancing around the issue.

“Raine, I’m not sure what your plans are, but would you be willing to spend some time with me at the Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue Ranch? ”

“The ranch?” She glanced up at him in surprise. He came to a stop next to the SUV, realizing Trevor had taken the one with the horse trailer. “Why?”

He held her gaze. “I’d like to introduce you to the rest of my family. And I think you could use a break. There’s plenty of room, and you can stay in the guest cabin if you’d like. No pressure.”

She tipped her head to the side regarding him thoughtfully. “You just want to give me another riding lesson, don’t you?”

That made him laugh. “Ah, Raine. I would love nothing more, but that’s up to you.” He hesitated, then pushed forward. “We haven’t known each other long, but you need to know I’ve fallen in love with you.”

She blinked as if that was the last thing she’d expected him to say. “Um, that’s sweet, Justin, but I’m like a decade older than you. I’m sure you’d prefer someone your own age.”

He narrowed his gaze. “Don’t patronize me. If you don’t share my feelings, fine, just say that. But age has nothing to do with how much I love you. When I thought you were shot by Decker, I knew my life would never be the same without you.”

She took a step back, as if needing distance. “I—don’t know what to say.”

He searched her gaze, trying to understand. “It’s pretty simple, Raine. I’d like to spend more time with you. I’d like you to meet my family, all eight of my siblings and their spouses and significant others. Because I love you.”

“I just”—she raked both hands through her hair—“I never expected this.”

She was killing him. Slowly and surely killing him. “Expected what?”

“To fall in love with you.” She dropped her arms in a theatrical gesture. “There, I said it. Are you happy now?”

“Well yeah, if you truly mean it.” A grin bloomed on his face at her flustered expression. He stepped closer, reached for her hand, and drew her into his arms. When she didn’t offer any resistance, he pulled her in for a kiss.

This time, they were alone at the side of the road, with no Griff to interrupt them. Justin took his time kissing her, trying to tell her without words just how much she meant to him.

“Wow,” she whispered a few minutes later.

He grinned. “Wow in a good way?”

She lightly smacked his chest. “Don’t let it go to your head, stud.”

“Stud?” He threw back his head and laughed. “That’s a first.”

“I don’t know why, from what I can tell from you and Trevor the Sullivans have some amazingly handsome genes.” The smile faded from her expression. “Are you sure about this? I mean, I am a lot older than you.”

“You’re what, maybe thirty to my twenty-seven? That’s nothing.”

“Thirty-four,” she corrected. “And that is something.”

“It’s a number, Raine. That’s all.” He frowned, swallowing a flash of annoyance.

Why was she making a big deal out of nothing?

“Why would a few years between us bother you? It’s not like I’m some drifter who doesn’t have a job or a career.

Losing our parents almost six years ago caused all of us to grow up fast. When Maya and Chase wanted to turn our ranch into a search and rescue mission, the rest of us eagerly trained our K9s accordingly.

Between searching for our parents’ remains, we’ve also poured our time and efforts into serving our community doing SAR missions.

I know what I want. I’ve never felt this deeply for anyone else.

You’re the only woman I’ve ever said those three words to. ”

“Your work is admirable,” Raine said. “It’s just that I made a mistake once before and don’t want to repeat them.”

“Everyone has made mistakes. I had a girlfriend who cheated on me too. That’s something we have in common, but I can tell you that I would never do that.

And I trust you too. All that matters is how we feel about each other.

You and me, Raine.” He spread his arm wide.

“There’s nobody else here but you and me. ”

A reluctant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “You’re right, Justin. All that matters how we feel about each other. I love you. I never dared to imagine you might feel the same way about me.”

“Well, I do.” He tugged her close and gave her another long kiss. “I love you, Raine. And I know it’s fast, so I won’t pressure you. But will you please come stay at the ranch for a while? A few days would be great.”

“I’d love to meet your family.” Her smile widened. “You’ve met mine. Our mom died years ago, and our dad left when we were young. All I have is Camille and Ginny.”

“And I like them both very much.” He glanced down as Stone tried to wiggle between them, eager to be a part of their hug. “We’d better hit the road.”

Raine didn’t pull out of his embrace. Instead, she stared up at him for a long moment. “I didn’t plan on this, but I love you, Justin. More than I ever would have thought possible.”

“I didn’t plan on this either,” he admitted, remembering how he and his twin, Joel, had scoffed at their older siblings settling down and starting families.

When Joel had fallen head over heels for Trina Wallace, Justin had thought his twin had gone nuts.

Joel pointed out that when the right woman comes along, you had no choice but to grab the opportunity with both hands.

Turns out his twin was right. Now that he had Raine in his arms, he never wanted to let her go.

“I love you. And we’ll figure out the logistics of how we’ll make it work, later.” He kissed her again, hoping Raine would love the ranch as much as he did.

But if not, he knew that no matter where they ended up, when they were together, they’d be home.