Page 77 of The Rebel Billionaire

It shouldn't bother me. It wasn't like we were long-term anyway. What did it matter if he thought I was a spoiled little rich girl? Why did Ievencare?

I bit the inside of my lip to force back the prickle of tears in my eyes and flashed a smile at the salesman when he came back. I opened my mouth to greet him when Lucas stepped in frontofme.

With a quick look over his shoulder, he said in an undertone, "Let me, okay?Please?"

I nodded and stepped back. I didn't want to fight with Lucas anymore. While I was perfectly capable of negotiating the sale, I was sure Lucas could handle it. He definitely knew more about trucks thanIdid.

I sat back and let him take care of everything, hiding a grin of triumph as he negotiated my trade-in up and the sale price down. I ended up writing a check for my new truck, but it was a smaller one than I'dexpected.

Score.

I decided I wasn't that annoyed with Lucasanymore.

Lucas didn’t argue much when I insisted on taking the wheel on the way home, though I drove a lot slower than usual. I liked my new truck, but it was definitely bigger than my sedan, blocky and hardertoturn.

To be completely honest, I was a little bit nervous driving it. Not so much through the main roads, but once we got into the Highlands, the roads were narrower and I found myselfslowingdown.

I was so careful to avoid sideswiping the cars as I passed them that I missed it until I was parked in my driveway. Then, when I finally looked up, I was so shocked my brain couldn't registeranything.

Spray-painted graffiti was all over the front of my house. Mostly squiggly lines, but here and there, I could make out the wordsbitchandcunt. In places, bright swathes of red paint stained the siding and covered the windows, as if someone had opened a can of paint and tossed the contents at the side of the house. I stared at the pointless destruction, heart pounding in mychest.

The clink of metal sounded beside me and I jumped. Lucas swung open my door and said roughly, "Get out. I already called Brennan. He's on his way. I've got Sinclair pulling up the video feeds. Must've happened while the crew was atlunch."

Lucas pulled me from the driver seat, barely giving me time to grab my purse before he wrapped an arm around me, angling me into his chest so that I couldn't see the front of my house, and hustled me across my driveway, over the strip of lawn separating our houses, and up onto his frontporch.

He had his door unlocked and was ushering me inside before I got mybearings.

I'd finally reached the inner sanctum and I was too shocked to care. I closed my eyes, seeing the front of my house in my mind. The siding had been prepped for paint, the windowsbrandnew.

I didn't get it. Obviously, it was meant to make me angry or scared. Probably both. But why bother? I'd already turned in all of my evidence to the FBI. Threats wouldn't stop me. There was nothing to stop. My part in Hayward's prosecution was done. Why waste timeharassingme?

Lucas sat me in a chair and crouched in front of me. He slid a knuckle beneath my chin, raising my facetohis.

"Hang in there, Princess. We’re going to figure this out. Brennan and Evers are on their way. We'll take a look at the cameras and see what happened. When they get here, I'm going next door to get yourstuff."

"Why?" I asked, too heartsick tokeepup.

"You're moving inwithme."

Detective Brennan and Evers arrived within a few minutes, Aiden close behind. I sat in Lucas's big leather chair, staring blindly at the black screen of his giant television, unable to takeanythingin.

After three weeks of relative peace, the graffiti was a shock. In the big picture, it wasn't that big a deal. No one got hurt. The damage could be repaired, though it was going to costalot.

Lucas, Evers, Brennan, and Aiden shouted over my head, gesturing angrily and swearing when they pulled up the video feeds on Lucas's laptop. Brennan muttered under his breath, "Got him. It's ateenager."

"I guarantee when you pick him up, he'll say he was paid for the job,"Everssaid.

Lucas grunted in agreement. "Another dead end.Goddammit."

Aiden sent a careful look my way and said, "Sweetheart, why don't you think about coming home for a while?" He glanced at Lucas, then backatme.

Lucas sent him a dark scowl, his green eyes hot andangry.

"She's staying with me," he said. "I may not have a wall around my house, but I can goddamn guarantee you no one will get to her here. If I thought she'd be safer with you, I'd fucking deliver hermyself."

Aiden and Evers exchanged a look. Evers sent him the tiniest of nods and Aiden relaxed slightly. "Would you rather stay with Lucas?" he asked megently.

I nodded. I didn't know what was going on with Lucas, but he made me feel safe. And more than that, I had this growing fear that if I walked away, sowouldhe.