The bandage above her eyelid stood out against her smooth skin and bruises had formed around her neck in the shape of a man’s hand. Only the fact that she was hurt and worn down had caused her to agree to stay with him. Well, and maybe the dog. She wanted to spend time with Roscoe. She rubbed a bruise on her chin.

Angus tried to expel his anger at the sight, but his hands tightened on the steering wheel anyway. Roscoe cheerfully dug into his second burger in the back seat. “You need to eat, Nari.”

She turned to look out the window.

Amusement stirred through his anger. “It’ll be easier to work on these cases if we’re together.” Now he was trying to cajole her? He really had lost his mind.

She huffed. Actually huffed.

He coughed to hide his chuckle and sped up, keeping an eye on his rearview mirror to make sure they weren’t being followed. The rain started to fall again. The autumn had been wetter and cooler than usual, and he was almost ready for snow. At least then there’d be some blue sky in between storms. Now the entire world was just gray.

He flipped on the wipers and turned up the heat, driving toward the secluded forest and away from civilization. Nari Zhang at his crappy cabin—the two of them all alone. His body tightened, and not with pain this time. They were both injured, but the sofa wasn’t big enough for him. Hopefully he could talk her into sharing the bed if he promised not to touch her.

His groin hardened.

Oh, he really wanted to touch her again. One night together hadn’t been enough. Not even close. The idea that a killer, maybe even Lassiter, had been inside her apartment waiting for her clawed through him, leaving a sense of desperate possessiveness he needed to banish. He had to think and stay clear for this fight.

Angus cleared his throat. He couldn’t wait any longer to get the details. “We have a long drive, so tell me what happened. I have to know if it was Lassiter who attacked you.”

“I don’t know,” she whispered. “He wore a mask and was in good shape. It’s possible his height was the same as Lassiter’s, and his eyes were brown.”

“Lassiter’s eyes are blue,” Angus murmured, his chest lightening.

“He might’ve been wearing colored contacts,” Nari admitted. “I couldn’t really tell with the mask covering most of his face and even part of his eyes. They looked kind of dead. He was strong.”

Angus reached out and took her hand. “Sounds like you were stronger.” Thank God the woman knew how to fight and how to keep her head in a crisis. “You’re impressive.”

She snorted. “I was lucky. My training kicked in, and he was surprised.”