“Fine,” he growled, swiveling toward his computer. He’d been putting it off. He wanted her to tell him and then when she’d started avoiding him, he’d kept it off his mind the best he could, thinking up ways to get her ass by his side permanently.

Two hours later he felt sick. All the pictures, all the news coverage, the media circus of the trial. No wonder she’d returned to Seattle. No wonder she’d worried about losing anyone else she let into her life. No one should have to endure what she had.

“That’s just f**ked up. Your woman is even more awesome in my eyes now. Go talk to her. She’s afraid, dude.” Cope moved back over to his desk from the chair where he’d sat next to Todd as they surfed the Internet.

Todd stood, gut still roiling, and headed out. “I’m gone for a while.”

“Take the time you need, man. I’ve got things covered here.” Cope waved at him as he left.

It was still early, earlier than his normal lunchtime visit, but the café was dark and her purple sparkly car wasn’t anywhere near the area; he’d driven around to look. So he decided to go into the tattoo parlor.

Brody Brown was a big man. Where Adrian was lively and a bit smaller, not quite six feet tall, Brody was watchful, menacing even. His black hair was close-cropped, and his eyes had clapped onto Todd the moment he’d walked into the shop.

“I was wondering when you’d come around.”

The two men had only met briefly ten years before. Brody had been in Erin’s café several times in the last two weeks when Todd had stopped in for lunch. They’d achieved a somewhat civil relationship and Todd liked how Brody seemed to take care of his sister.

“Come around back,” Brody said before grabbing his bottle of soda and leading the way out the back door.

“I tried to respect her space. I care about Erin. I love her. But she’s holding herself back and I hate it. She won’t tell me about what happened in LA.”

Brody stiffened.

“Yeah. Two weeks ago she told me I could guess the details. She wouldn’t give me specifics. I’ve tried to be patient. I tried to let her come to me with the story, but I looked. Okay? I looked and now I know. And I’m sick at heart for her. More sick at heart than I was before I knew the details.”

“You love her? What’s different now than before? When you broke her f**king heart? You tell me now, and I better like your answer.” Brody crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles bulging. Todd and Brody were roughly the same size, but Brody had the righteous indignation of a big brother to a little sister done wrong. Those odds were not in Todd’s favor.

“I was young before. Stupid. And so very wrong. Not ready to face what I was, who I was. She was smart, knew it and didn’t want to apologize for what she liked.” He shrugged, really not wanting to be much more specific than that. “But I am not that confused boy anymore. I know what I want, I like it, and I’m pretty sure I’ve been in love with Erin all these years anyway. I can stand here and shout that I love her. I want to marry her. I want to have kids with her, but I know it may not ever happen because of Adele and I am okay with that. I want Erin and I want her to be happy and safe.”

Brody remained silent for a while before speaking again. “She’s broken inside. Not as much as she thinks, but what happened to her, the months of terror at being stalked, the kidnapping, the attack, Adele’s death, her near death, the trial, god, it was unbelievable. She drank too much just to get through the day, took pills. She was a mess and we were too. She was just . . . not there. But we managed to get through the trial. Thank god that f**king bastard got twenty-seven years, although he should have been killed for what he did to my sister and niece. Her relationship with Jeremy was over, that was obvious. We packed her clothes, her guitars, her awards and stuff and we brought it back here. She’s slowly been coming back to life ever since.”

Brody began to pace, lighting a cigarette as he did.

“Don’t tell Erin I was smoking or she’ll kick my ass. I’m supposed to be quitting.” Brody flashed a guilty smile. “I haven’t seen her so happy in years. Because I f**ked up my share of times with a woman I love, I’m going to cut you a break right now. You tell me, one last time, are you in this? For real? I need to know, because if you’re not, if you have any doubts, just get out now.”

“Where is she? Why isn’t she here today?” Todd finally remembered to ask. Jesus, his f**king adrenaline was riding him now.

“Are you in or not?”

“Yes! I’d die for your sister. I love her. I’ve said that to one woman in my whole life and that’s Erin. It’s the only time, other than my mother of course, that I’ve meant it enough to say it.” He hadn’t even said it to Sheila, he’d just done the you too thing. Another reason she’d left and another reason he hadn’t blamed her.

“She’s not here. She won’t be here tomorrow either. Probably not Friday. Tomorrow is June sixteenth, the anniversary of the attack, of Adele’s death. She goes into lockdown every year for a few days. She wasn’t too bad yesterday. I’d begun to think it wasn’t going to be bad this year, but Ella, her assistant manager, got a call saying Erin wouldn’t be in for a few days and could she just open for two hours in the mornings for the coffee rush.”

“Why are you here? Is Adrian with her?”

“She’s alone. Holed up in her fortress of solitude. I can get into the building, even past the doorman who knows me. But I can’t get in her front door. I tried.” Brody held up a key ring attached to the chain at his waist. “It didn’t work. She gets new locks a few times a year.” He exhaled, pinching off the end of his cigarette and tossing it into the trash. “Adrian tried, same deal. We went to the doorman, but he shined us on.”