Broken hearts & Coup d'etats - THE SPECTER SERIES [book three]

Chapter FIFTEEN

Ellerie Devereux

You do your best to pack everything you need in a hurry.. Luckily your pricey warbrobe and beauty products managed to survive the ransacking relatively in tact.. Well enough of it anyway.. Jackson leans patiently in the doorway, while you dig through the werckge of your bedroom to find the last few pieces of your favourite outfits...

"Can I do anything?" He offers sympathetically..

You stand in the middle of the destruction and wave your arms, gesturing around before you shurg.. The only way you know how to deal with crappy circumstances is to make light of them.. Humor has always been your coping mechanism and tonight is no exception.. "Buy me a new apartment, so I don't have to come back and clean this mess?"

He chuckles, pushing off the door frame and moving towards the bed to pick up the suitcase you just finished filling to the brim.. "Done.." He winks at you and you smile..

"Okay.. That's everything.. Let's get the heck out of here.. Tomorrow I'll have forensics go over the place.." You take one last quick glance around the bedroom..

He nods in agreement and lifts the suitcase with ease before you follow him out through the living room, turning off the lights and locking the front door behind you..

Not that it did much good last time you locked it..

He leads the way down the path to his sleek black Mustang, tossing your suitcase in the back seat before he pulls open the passenger door for you..

Your gaze flicks back over to your car then back to his.. It's like he reads your mind.. "Ellerie.. Nobody is tracking me.. We can't say the same for you.. Besides, we work at the same place.."

He's right..

Whoever did this obviously knows your movements.. You can't rule anything out..

"Yeah.. You're right.." You slide into the tan leather seat.. The door clicks shut and a few seconds later, Ford slides in to the driver seat beside you.. It dawns on you.. You have no idea where Jackson lives... "Um.. Where are we going.."

The engine roars to life and he pulls out onto the road heading north.. "Uptown.."

That surprises you.. You can't afford to live uptown..not that there's anything wrong with Midtown.. You're neighbours are friendly and until now nothing bad had happened to you in your neighbourhood.. "Oh.."

He throws you a smirk.. "What? You thought I was taking you downtown.. In this car?"

You laugh now.. He's funny when he's not all up in his own head.. Also.. He's super handsome when he smiles.. Really smiles.. There's a light in his eyes you only get to see when you're alone with him.. Just the two of you..

"Hey! I don't know your priorities..." You tease as hegrins, reaching over and taking your hand,lifting it to his lips, gently pressing a kiss to the back, his thumb gently stroking the underside of your palm.. "I'm gunna change that, Sunshine.."

Your stomach does a little back flip.. You love to see him with his defenses down, at ease.. In that moment you get a glimpse at the real Jackson Ford..

The same man who was the first to welcome you, even before there was a hint of flirtation between you..

A genuinely kind hearted guy.. Which is what had made you want to get to know him to begin with..

Underneath his rough exterior, you know he feels as deeply as you do..

You squeeze his hand, keeping a hold of him as he lowers his hand to his lap, where it stays, your fingers intertwined for the rest of the comfortably quiet drive..