“Why are you doing this?” Her voice was quiet, almost as though she was asking herself the question, or didn’t really want to know the answer.

He stopped right there in the middle of the bustling hall and finally looked down at her face. Golden brown hair and large green eyes stared up at him. Her skin was like porcelain, but there was a smattering of freckles that crossed her nose and made him want to run his lips across her face to kiss each and every one. Why? Why did it have to be this woman?

“Because you need me.” He kept his answer short. If he didn’t, he would end up a blathering idiot.

There was a sheen of tears in her eyes that told Stef he’d fucked up. He always managed to with her. He was a Dom of the first order, known for taking care of his subs, but he fumbled the minute she batted those eyes at him. There was nothing to do about it now. He simply continued down the hall. He would fix her when they got back to Bliss.

Now that he thought about it, he should have expected this greeting. The entire plane trip here, he’d had all sorts of fantasies about being her hero. In his fantasies, she’d cried prettily and thrown herself into his arms. He’d gotten her out of this current scrape and then protected her. He’d set her up in a nice studio in Bliss, and she’d be waiting for him when she was old enough to know what she wanted.

Twenty-three . She was fucking twenty-three years old. He was a thirty-two-year-old man in love with a girl barely out of college. She had no idea who she was, and she’d proven it by running away. She was just a kid, and he’d done all sorts of nasty, dirty, glorious things to her.

Maybe he wasn’t so comfortable with his perversity.

He turned down the main hall. Nate Wright, his old friend and the current sheriff of Bliss, Colorado, stood talking to the district attorney and the chief of police. Lucky for him both men belonged to a very private BDSM club and both wanted to be in the debt of very wealthy men. They had streamlined the process of getting Jennifer out on bond, going so far as to wake a judge to do the paperwork. It wasn’t exactly procedure, but otherwise, Jen would still have hours in a cell, and he couldn’t even consider that.

“Damn, I hope I can keep the press off this.” The chief shook his head as he signed the paperwork releasing Jennifer Waters to the custody of Stef and Sheriff Wright.

The DA seemed much more comfortable. “The girl’s never been in trouble before. It’s unusual, but we’re releasing her to law enforcement. Besides, I don’t know if I buy Renard’s story. He’s a shady fellow. If she stole the painting, then where is it? We’ve searched her place.”

Jen’s head came up. “You did?”

Nate never looked up from the paperwork he was now signing.

“They didn’t find anything beyond your own work, and this afternoon the whole thing is being packed up and moved to Bliss. Stef packed your work himself this morning while we were waiting on the judge.”

“I’ll make sure all of your work gets back home,” Stef said. He hadn’t been able to get her latest work out, but it appeared she had just finished it, possibly the night before her arrest. The oil was still wet. Renard, the fucker, had refused to release it, and no amount of intimidation had worked on him. At least the work in her apartment was properly packed and readied for transit.

Her lips turned down, and she held her hands up for all to see.

“And do you intend to keep me cuffed during my stay?” He’d love to. He’d love to bind her arms and legs and keep her tied to his bed. He’d let her out to paint. It was important, and she was far too talented to ignore, but other than that, she would be constantly spread for his pleasure. He shifted uncomfortably. His cock was hard as a rock.

Nate’s eyes went straight to the handcuffs around Jen’s wrists.

“Was that really necessary, Stef?”

“She was being uncooperative.”

“And he was being an asshole,” Jen shot back.

At least she was getting her spirit back. It made Stef very happy that she was starting to fight again. He’d watched her in the interview room while she spoke to Finn Taylor, and everything about her had seemed dimmer than normal. Her eyes had been dull and downcast, her shoulders slumped. Now there was fire in them again, and it gave him hope.

“No surprise there. He’s been a complete asshole for six months now,” Nate complained. He settled his hat on his head and looked every inch the small-town sheriff he was. “He’s giving Max a run for his money. I swear if I catch the two of them pounding on each other again, I’m going to put them both in lockup.” Stef set her on her feet and hoped he didn’t have to chase her down. She immediately walked to Nate, holding out her cuffed hands in greeting.

“It’s good to see you, Sheriff. How are Callie and Zane?” Jen’s face shone as she looked up at the sheriff.

She hadn’t smiled once at him.

“They’re fine. Zane opened a bar, and now he’s got Callie hopping. I had to hire a new admin because Callie’s having so much fun learning to bartend,” Nate explained. His face went a little bit hard. “She’s looking forward to seeing you again, Jen. She missed you.”

Jen flushed. Her skin was so pale he never had trouble reading her.

“I missed her, too.”

“A letter would have been nice. It would have let her know you were alive.” Nate turned his stony face to Stef. “We should get going if we’re going to make the plane.”

Jen’s smile fell, and Stef kind of wanted to put a fist through his friend’s face. He knew how Nate felt about Jennifer. Nate had made it entirely plain to him during the plane trip to Dallas. He was angry because his wife, Callie, had been very hurt by Jen’s sudden disappearance. Callie’s other husband, Zane, was a bit more forgiving. Zane understood the need to run. If Zane would have been a lick of help, Stef would have brought him instead of Nate.

Unfortunately, Nate was the sheriff of Bliss, and there was just no substitute.

“Come on.” Stef tried to soften the gruff command by placing a hand on her back.

She stepped away. “You’re sure I can’t just stay here? My trial is going to be here. That lawyer person said I could stay with him.”

Stef’s heart plunged. She would rather stay with a complete stranger than come home. Maybe he should let her. Julian Lodge would make sure she was safe. Perhaps he should simply bow out. He never meant to come after her anyway. He should step back and allow her to live her own life.

“You’re coming with me or you can go back to jail.” So much for stepping back. He just couldn’t. And Julian lived in one of the most notorious BDSM clubs in the world. No way was he going to allow Jennifer to live there. She’d be collared in a heartbeat. She’d belong to someone else. He couldn’t handle the thought.

“See? Puppet master Stef is in the house. Fine. I’ll go back because Bliss is way better than the Dallas County Jail, but don’t think I’ll trade favors for my freedom.” She turned and walked out the door, her back regally straight as though she were a queen leaving her castle.

“I wouldn’t dream of it, love.” Stef followed her quickly. He shed his own jacket because the little queen was going to be awfully cold.

He caught up with her and settled the jacket around her shoulders. He thought briefly about uncuffing her, but decided he didn’t want to get slapped. He led her to the drive. “Wear it.” She smiled up at him, but there was no warmth in it. “Of course. I wouldn’t dream of refusing Master Stefan. Besides, I like the fact that you’re cold.”

“How could he possibly be cold?” Nate asked with a smirk. “He’s been running ever since the PI called him yesterday morning. I don’t think his heart’s settled down once since he got that call. He had everyone in Bliss on their toes five minutes later.” Stef sent Nate his best “shut the fuck up” look.

Jen turned to Nate as the limo pulled up. “Really? I wish I could have seen that. Tell me something, how is she, really? Is Callie happy? Has Rachel had her baby yet? Did Stella find someone to replace me? I mean, I know she did, but I just…I missed everyone.

More than I realized.”

The driver popped out and opened the door. Stef got in and turned back to help Jen.

Nate softened slightly as he settled into the seat across from them.

He looked slightly out of place in the elegant limo. Sometimes it was hard for Stef to remember Nate came from money. “Callie’s really doing great. She and Zane are having the time of their life driving me crazy. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Rachel is due in a couple of weeks. Stef brought in a doctor. We have a nice clinic now.”

“Well, I had to, or Max and Rye were going to drive me crazy.

Why Rachel ever let them read those What to Expect books, I have no idea. They’ve been paranoid. And Max has become quite the medical expert. He’s diagnosed Rachel with everything from GERD to preeclampsia. I expect Ebola is next on his list of things his pregnant wife is dying from. I had to bring in Dr. Burke to save poor Rachel from Max keeping her on bed rest.”

Jen laughed. It was practically music in Stef’s mind. “I can’t believe I missed that. Has Mel made sure the baby is safe from alien probes?”

“Naturally. He’s consulted with Dr. Burke about making the birth completely alien free. The doc is a tolerant man. He’s also good with electronics. He’s modified the Detector 5000 to warn us if an alien invades Rachel’s womb.”

“Excellent.”

Jen turned her face to the window as they drove toward the airport. He watched her carefully. He wondered if she was sad to leave Dallas. He’d been inside her tiny apartment on Good Latimer. It was a studio space, but it looked like an art bomb had gone off inside.