Page 26 of Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad World

That surprised her. “You don’t even know me. What on earth gives you that much faith in my decision-making process?”

“Well, there was our life-and-death situation in the panic room. Which, by the way, wasn’t much of a panic room. Those walls were like cardboard. But I digress.” His dark eyes twinkled.“You’ve also been out for a few days. I got bored, so I read your comics. You can tell a lot about a person by what they write.”

Now her cheeks burned so hot he must have felt the heat from where he stood. She shuffled uncomfortably, unsure where to look or what to do. Apart from her agent and editor, she wasn’t used to meeting anyone who read her work—at least, not in the flesh.

“Uh, um.” She cleared her throat. “You read my comics?”

“Most of us have. You’ve gained a few fans.”

“Are you one? I mean, did you like them?”

“Hell yes,” he said readily, and a wave of relief swept over her. “What’s not to like? The heroine’s smart, skilled, and sexy as hell. And the bad guys get the justice they deserve. That’s my kind of story.”

Annabelle was painfully aware that she was the antithesis of her comic book persona. Jade Justice was everything Noah described. And more. While Annabelle had no fighting skills, was terrified of stepping outside her front door, and wouldn’t know how to be sexy if she tried. Thankfully, it’d been her experience that you could learn almost everything from the internet. Somebody out there had a site called “Seduction for Dummies,” she was sure of it. What she wasn’t sure about was why on earth she was thinking like this when her life was at risk. Being sexy should be the last thing on her mind.

“Come on.” Noah placed his hand on the small of her back, making her shiver and yet again distracting her from the matter at hand—her life. “We’d better get in there before Violet shoots the assistant DA.”

“Not Rochelle?” Annabelle asked curiously. The security team was a mystery, and she found she wanted to know everything about them. Or possibly just sit in a corner and watch them for hours on end. Maybe with popcorn.

“Rochelle has too much self-control to snap. Whereas Violet’s trigger-happy and has the patience of a two-year-old.”

“Should she be armed?” Annabelle lowered her voice as they entered the room and heads turned toward them.

“You try taking her gun from her and see what happens,” Noah muttered.

Annabelle glanced at Violet’s face and silently agreed that taking her weapon wouldn’t be wise. The small Scot glared at the ADA and, as she did so, seemed to increase in size. It made Annabelle’s fingers itch to draw her. She’d make her a morphing superhero. One who doubled in size and strength when triggered. She’d embody the qualities of fierceness and determination. And perhaps be a little too eager to shoot first and ask questions later.

“Annabelle.” Margaret rushed over to her, breaking the spell of her imagination. She placed a hand on Annabelle’s arm. “How are you? I asked Ms. Davis to call me the second you woke up. We’ve all been so worried about you.”

Annabelle took a step back, the lawyer’s intensity making her nervous. “Better now, thanks. Still a bit weak, but fine.”

“Good, good.” Margaret took the hint and removed her hand before folding her arms over the jacket of her severe black skirt suit. “Then we should talk about getting you to a safe house.” She waved a hand to indicate the building. “Obviously, you can’t stay here now. Not after that attack in your apartment.”

She delivered her words with such conviction that Annabelle began to shake again. Every instinct within her told her to run. To hide. To get away from the threat embodied in the smiling persona of the assistant district attorney. She stumbled back and stepped on Noah’s foot.

He grunted.

“Sorry,” she muttered, feeling foolish.

“It’s fine,” he murmured against her ear. “Just remember what I said, okay? You’re in control here. It’s your decision as to how we proceed.”

His words gave her confidence as she addressed the ADA. “I-I can’t leave. I need to stay here.”

Margaret threw up her hands in exasperation, making Annabelle break out in a cold sweat. The ADA had all the power in this situation. At a snap of her fingers, a station full of police would do her bidding. They’d take her away.

Outside.

Where she wasn’t safe.

Where anyone could snatch her from the street and…

A hand settled on her shoulder. “That was then,” Noah said against her ear. “This is now. Be in the present. The ADA can talk, but she can’t force you to do what she wants.”

Annabelle took a deep breath and refocused on what Margaret was saying.

“There were so many bullet holes in your panic room wall that it was completely shredded,” Margaret said. “This building isn’t safe. Be reasonable about this, Annabelle. Your life is in danger, and you must allow this team to take you somewhere safe.”

Annabelle glanced at the faces of the security team as they watched her from around the room. She saw no judgment in any of their expressions. They were simply waiting to hear what she had to say.