Bound to Them by Lorna Jean Roberts Page B

answer. He kept calling me and visiting.”
    “You didn’t report this?”
    She shook her head. “I’ve known Andrew for a long time, we
went to school together. I never would’ve thought him capable of this. I live
in a small town. Everyone knows everyone else’s business. They were all so
thrilled that Andrew and I had gotten together. He’s the golden boy. Everyone
knew we’d been dating. I know they’d have thought he was sweet, that he was
simply trying to win me back. The only person who knows the truth is my friend
Trudy. She lives next door to me. She saw the real Andrew.” She swallowed hard.
Nash got up and got her a glass of water. She sent him a grateful smile.
    “We’d been dating for nearly two months when I started to
grow wary of him. He had these mood swings. One moment he’d be sweet and
lovely, the next he’d be angry, yelling, just nasty. I was getting really
scared that he would hurt me, and I decided to end things with him. About two
weeks after I broke things off, I came home to find him waiting outside.
    “I attempted to ignore him and walk past. But when I tried
to shut the door in his face, he pushed his way inside. He’s not a big guy, but
he’s larger than me and he sort of slammed me against the wall. By the time I
caught my breath, he was inside and the door was locked. I screamed at him to
get out.” She shuddered and both Nash and Quinn moved closer to her.
    Nash glanced over Crista at Quinn; tension was evident in
every hard line of his body, his gaze murderous. Good. They were in agreement.
O’Ryan would pay.
    “He grabbed my hair and punched me, then he— Then he tried
to pull me along to my bedroom. I thought he was going to rape me. I was
screaming, fighting him. Trudy heard. She’s a real badass. Black belt karate.
She came racing through the back door and pulled him off me. Soon as he saw
her, he ran.” Tears rolled down her cheeks silently.
    “It’s over now, baby, he won’t ever hurt you again,” Quinn
promised.
    “And you reported this?” the officer asked, his gaze kind.
    Crista shook her head.
    “Why the hell not?” Quinn asked. “They couldn’t ignore your
injuries. What kind of sheriff do you have there?”
    “He’s not so bad,” she said tiredly. “But he’s a bit blind
when it comes to his son.”
    “Shit,” Nash said.
    Crista looked up at him and nodded, realizing now that he
understood.
    “I made Trudy swear not to tell anyone. She agreed, but only
if I stayed with her or Doug. I didn’t want to put her in danger so I went to
Doug’s. Three days later we left for a job in Riverside and I haven’t returned
home in five months.”
    Nash heard the longing in her voice and wanted to smash O’Ryan’s
head in for terrifying her, for running her out of her home, for denying her
the sense of safety she deserved. No wonder she always looked so tired and
worn-out. He bet she barely slept.
    “Well, I don’t know this guy, so you can tell me anything that
goes on, you hear?” the deputy said sternly. Crista nodded.
    “Do you have a photo of him?”
    “Umm, no. But he has a photo on his website. He’s a real
estate agent. I can write the web address down if you like.”
    He nodded. “That would be great.” Crista rose to get some
paper and a pen, but Nash placed his hand on her shoulder.
    “I’ll get them.”
    She nodded. “Thanks.”
    “Who knows you’re staying here, miss?”
    “Call me Crista. Umm, everyone on our crew knows. And my
next-door neighbor Trudy is watching my house.”
    “Okay, so it’s possible someone told him where you were.
Especially if they didn’t know your history. My advice is to tell everyone to
keep an eye out for him. It’ll make it harder for him to sneak around. Everyone
will know what he’s doing and that you don’t want his attentions. Someone might
be trying to play matchmaker. I’d also advise you to move motels.”
    Crista shook her head. “No, the other motels are too
expensive or dirty.