Page 41 of The Keeper and I

She buried her face in his chest. “I was so scared.”

“You’re safe, angel. I’ve got you.” She nodded. Jordan met the gaze of the officer and frowned. “Did you find him?”

“Afraid not,” the officer replied. “We did a sweep of the street, but he was long gone by the time we arrived. We’ve got her statement and a neighbor’s. The photo should be enough for a restraining order.”

“Like that’ll do any good,” Jordan snapped. “He was ready to break into her fucking house. Laws aren’t fucking stopping him.”

“It’s the best we can do for now,” the officer said.

“That so?”

“I’m sorry, but the law is set up to ensure the accused is treated fairly, not to protect victims.”

“That’s justice, is it?”

“Jordan,” Laci said, finally lifting her face to look at him. “It’s alright. They’re doing the best they can.”

“It’s not fucking good enough,” he protested. He cupped her face in his hands. “Are you alright?”

She blinked. A tear escaped her eye and slid down her cheek, which he wiped away gently with his thumb. She nodded again. “I think so.”

“D’you have anywhere else you can stay, ma’am?” the officer said. “At your boyfriend’s place, maybe?”

“No,” Jordan blurted out, mortified at the idea of Laci seeing his studio. He cleared his throat when Laci and the officer looked at him with raised eyebrows. “It’s not—clean.”

“And I don’t want to be forced out of my house,” Laci said, dropping her questioning gaze and facing the officer instead.

He glanced between her and Jordan’s scowling face. “Perhaps we can have a patrol car come by every night this week. Might scare the guy off for a time.”

“I’d appreciate that,” Laci said.

The officer nodded. “Goodnight to you both.”

“Goodnight,” Laci said.

“Fuck off,” Jordan muttered.

She elbowed him, but he ignored it. When the officer reached his car, Jordan led Laci inside, his arm still securely wrapped around her shoulders. Rubbing her arm, he realized what she had on.

“You wear my kit around the house?”

“It’s comfy,” she said.

He pressed his lips to her forehead. “I like it.”

She was so adorable that he nearly forgot the reason he was there. But with a glance at the door, that tense look on her face returned, and he was reminded all too well.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep tonight,” she said. “I—I’ll need to get blinds for those windows. D’you think they sell blinds on Amazon?”

“They’ve got most things on Amazon,” he replied. “You’ll need to measure your windows.”

She cast a nervous glance at them and shook her head before shrinking further into Jordan’s body. “I’ll wait.”

“Can I do anything for you?” he asked. “Make you a cuppa or something to eat?”

Food has always been the go-to comfort in his home growing up. If he came home from a tough day of training, his father always had a treat waiting for him, until the store went out of business. Regardless, Jordan always had a chocolate or something around to give him a pick-me-up.

“Tea would be lovely,” Laci said.