Page 6 of The Prey (The Hillers of Barratt County #6)

Gia had been determined to avoid Hudson Hanan for as much as she possibly could. But…well…today meant other plans.

Somehow, she’d ended up with Hala. She hadn't intended to drive the younger woman home, but when she had gotten a text from Hala saying her car wouldn't start, it had been just a matter of minutes for her to swing over to the elementary school and get her friend—and Ryan—after Hala’s teachers’ meeting had ended and drive her to Hudson’s house on her way.

It was on her way, after all. Ryan had been super excited about showing off his new goldfish to anyone who would look, so now here Gia was—in enemy territory.

Hudson’s castle. She hadn’t ever been there before. It really did feel like she’d walked into the lion’s den here.

Ryan was inside now, getting things ready for his tank. He was really proud of himself for designing the layout of his fish tank, and he wanted Gia and Hala to see it. But he had to get it ready first. So he could surprise them. He was beyond adorable, that kid.

That left Gia outside with the little boy’s diabolical, evil father. She’d thought she’d have another day or two of Hudson-free weekdays, but no. Not now. And there he was.

Hudson sat on his porch at a small table, case files spread out in front of him.

“Gia? I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Your sister’s car wouldn’t start and I was still at the office. I’m playing taxi. What are you doing?”

“Lawrence case. I got word that the judge wants another deposition on Monday. I’m going over what I have. It’s not…much.”

That case had been one they had argued over twice the week before. She wasn’t going to touch that wasp’s nest tonight. Maybe she could just take a look at the fish tank, distract Hudson with his sister and son, and then get out of there. Skidaddle, as her daddy would say. As fast as she could.

“I was just reviewing the Martinell case. That is applicable to this one.”

She paused at the bottom of his porch steps. “There is no Martinell case applicable to this one.”

“ Martinell v. Texas, 1946 . You may want to take a look at it again.”

“I did. It doesn’t apply.” And he was going to argue and argue, but…it really didn’t apply. He was stretching just far too much.

“We’ve been approaching the Lawrence case from the wrong angle. Want to stay for dinner? We can discuss it after Ryan’s in bed. Or better yet, I can see if he wants to spend the night with his aunt.”

She climbed the front steps despite her better judgment. She was not going to be alone with him at his lair, ever. “There’s nothing wrong with our approach.”

“I disagree. The circumstances are too similar.”

“Only if you ignore half the facts. That case was about evidence obtained during an illegal search.” She wasn’t so certain that the search in the Lawrence case had been legal.

The Barrattville City Police officer who had done it had not seemed very reliable.

Something about him set her teeth on edge and just… he didn’t feel right to her.

“Which is exactly what we’re dealing with.”

“ Hidrenson doesn’t apply because the search was conducted without proper jurisdiction.

The search was conducted without a valid warrant in Lawrence.

” She had already told him that. He had copies of her case notes right there in front of him.

She’d put that pink posty note right there in the middle of it.

“Not according to Martinell .”

“That case is from 1946. The pursuit exception wasn’t even established until 1967.”

He smirked, taunting her. When he got so close. He moved. She felt the railing behind her. “Which is why Martinell applies. It establishes the boundaries of jurisdiction that was never overturned.”

“That’s absurd.” His good arm came up, his hand rested on the railing just beside her hip. Not quite touching her, but close enough that she could feel the heat of him. Could smell him all around her.

What was he doing?

That’s when she figured it out. The man was trapping her there. He seriously was messing with her, wasn’t he?

She spun slightly and booked it back down the steps.

Of course the big beast followed her. “Are you running from me now? Did I scare you at the ranch?”

Yes. And she was just escaping the lion before she became the prey. It was as simple as that.

She just glared at him as his sister came back out on the porch to see what was taking her so long. Gia looked toward the road, toward escape —just as a car pulled into the drive. It was a long drive. And it was a familiar car. Greer .

Her sister was pulling down the drive.

Reinforcements had arrived. Hallelujah.

He just kept arguing. That was Hudson Hanan for you—the man always had to have the last word.

“If it was a legal warrant. I don’t think Lawrence was a legal warrant, you big cretin.” She actually felt his cast on the back of her waist now. When had his hand ended up there? It was actually happening. Hudson was stalking her around his own front yard. And she had let herself get caught.

“You’re going to have to do a lot to convince me that it wasn’t a valid pursuit.

More importantly, you’ve got to convince twelve jurors that it wasn’t.

” He was just smirking down at her like the arrogant asshole that he was.

He was so close she could smell the warm, spicy man-scent of him, she could feel his heat against her chest. He surrounded her. Completely.

Damn him, what was he doing? He always had that smug look on his face when they argued case law. It drove her crazy.

She just could not escape this man. He’d even been in her dreams last night. He’d just been watching her. Waiting to pounce.

A small crowd had gathered at the bottom of the porch steps—her sister, his, and their friend Ayla. They were just watching Hudson. And her. Gia ignored them. She knew better than to take her eyes off this particular foe.

She had been tangling with Hudson Hanan for years, after all.

They just kept arguing. He was taunting her, and she knew it.

Ass. The man was an utter ass.

He was enjoying pushing her buttons, just because the big lunatic could.

“You are being dense on purpose.” Her hands spread over his chest. He had an FCU: LAW T-shirt on. It was so soft beneath her palms. Unlike the man wearing it. He felt…perfect, actually. Hard and muscled and strong—he was very fit to be a paper-pushing attorney. It was almost unreal.

“Officer Bernard has a spotless record,” he said, pulling her closer.

“Officer Bernard has three complaints filed against him for excessive force in the last two years.” And she despised how Bernard had looked at her during the interviews.

Of course, Hudson hadn’t been there in the interview room at the time. If he had, that guy wouldn’t have been so slimy. She just knew it.

But Gia and Shayna—the things he had said just by his expression alone…

No. She didn’t trust Bernard to have done his job at all.

“It was all conveniently dismissed without investigation. I called a friend at the BCPD. She told me all about them. Bernard is not a credible witness. He probably needs to be investigated, too.”

Hudson was so close that she could feel his breath when he spoke, see the faint stubble across his jaw, smell him. His hand had somehow migrated to her lower back—pulling her ever so much closer.

Yikes. She was right. The man was up to something tonight.

She was the target.

The man was just toying with her.

“We keep going in circles.”

“Only because you refuse to consider that I might be right.”

“No, because you’re stuck in the past. You refuse to acknowledge that legal reasoning has changed since 1946. Welcome to modern times, Hanan.”

He laughed, a far too manly laugh. The man was an absolute frog.

“Walk away if you want, babe, but you might want to review Martinell before Monday. Just in case.”

Babe?

Not once in all the years they had worked together had he ever called her “babe.” Satan Incarnate—yes. He’d called her that before. But babe ?

She wasn’t imagining it. He knew exactly how to get a rise out of her.

She glared back at him. He was leaning against the porch railing now, arms crossed over his chest, watching her with an expression that was equal parts challenge—and something else she refused to name.

She looked at Hala, who was watching the exchange with barely concealed amusement.

“Your brother is a complete and total lunatic. The moment you want help getting him committed, just let me know. I’ll do all the paperwork for free. No…I’ll pay you to let me do it.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”