Tank

by Erin Bevan

  Was he going to do this?

  He felt his body leaning closer.

  He was going to do this.

  The tease of her red toenails and that freckle near her breast had him dreaming of X-rated things all night. The caress of her tongue, the softness of her lips, he’d wanted to taste it all. Had since he was a child. He leaned in, and eased her good cheek in his hand, her hair prickling his fingertips. His lips ready to caress hers, she let out a slight moan, and reached closer. He took his hands and gently guided her body closer, flush with his.

  Boom. Boom. Boom.

  The pounding rocked through his chest, just as it did the front door. Annie pulled back and threw her hands to her mouth as she let out a gasp. Her eyes refilled with fear as Alfred let out a wail of barks.

  Damn it.

  He placed one finger over his lips in a silent motion to tell her to be quiet and glanced around for a weapon, anything. Only thing of any use would be a lamp. His fist would work better. Inching over to the living room window, he placed his back against the wall and peeked out of the curtain.

  Father, JoJo, and Steele stood on his front porch. The kid. They were supposed to go see a child today. Exhaling, he let go of the window covering, and stared back at Annie. Tears filled her eyes, her hand still to her mouth.

  “You don’t have anything to worry about,” he assured her, and reached for the door handle. “Help has arrived.”

  Annie moved her hands from her mouth to her chest and stared at the three people standing on the other side of the threshold. Her fear of who stood outside nearly paralyzed her, while her heart tried to pulverize her chest cavity with its breakneck beating. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she sucked in a sniffle and let out a deep breath. There had to be a better way to live.

  She stared back at Tyler, and a look of care filled his eyes. Too much care. She had to be more cautious. She’d almost kissed the big delicious muscle right there in his kitchen. So what, she’d had a crush on him when she was a girl or even now for that matter? Her situation wasn’t child’s play, and the way he stared at her said he wasn’t playing either. Her bruises were in full pain, and her body ached from the gentle movements of trying to reach up to Tyler. She wanted to end a relationship, not start one.

  Thank God the Guardians came when they had despite the fact she didn’t want them there. Now not only did she have to worry about these emotions surging, more like raging through her, she had to worry about three new people knowing where she hid out.

  Alfred stepped back from the doorframe and barked another round.

  “Hush, Al. Go outside,” Tyler demanded.

  The dog stopped his barking, and the crew parted to the side to let Alfred pass.

  “Holy shit, what the hell happened to you?” JoJo asked as she crossed the threshold.

  Her hair popped out of a red bandana and fell in a dark braid down the side of her neck. Big hoop earrings adorned her ears, and her composure looked as stiff as her leather jacket. A blue angel hugged her arm sleeve. The other two men must be Guardians, too.

  “Annie, you remember JoJo?”

  “Yeah.” Annie held a hand to her eye.

  JoJo’s stare was a little too intense and too personal for their second time meeting. Then again, Annie had almost gotten real personal with a man she barely knew a few minutes ago.

  She moved her hand and decided to let them stare. If their job was to protect women and children from abuse, then her bruises were nothing they hadn’t already seen.

  “Wow, that’s horrible,” the older man she recognized as her boss’ boyfriend said, while the younger guy just stood there, doing his best not to stare.

  “Annie this is Father and that’s Steele.” Tyler pointed to the two men.

  “Nice to meet you.” Steele said, still trying not to stare at her eye.

  Uncomfortable with everyone being uncomfortable, she decided to do what she did best. Disappear.

  “Why don’t you all sit down, and I’ll make you some breakfast.” She pointed to the kitchen table.

  “No way.” Steele shook his head. “Not happening. No way are you cooking for us.” He led her to a chair at the table and helped her ease into it. “You sit. I’ll cook.” The Guardian gave her a subtle wink.

  Her stomach gave a little flip at the man’s attention.

  Tyler nudged in next to Steele, his broad shoulders pushing the man two steps to the left. Tyler reached for his breakfast plate and moved it and himself. Right next to her.

  The flips in her stomach had turned into full-blown somersaults.

  “You cook, man?” Tyler asked.

  Steele slapped him on the shoulder then eased into the kitchen. “I’ve been known to make a mean omelet every once in a while at the firehouse.”

  A firefighter. This man held the looks and the occupation most girls would swoon over. Yet, she still sat upright, and, instead, stared at the beefcake beside her.

  “Firehouse?” Tyler asked. “That explains the smoke smell from last night. I thought you were a perpetual chain smoker.”

  “No, man.” Steele’s back stiffened. “I never touch the stuff.” His tone didn’t leave room for question. He avoided everyone’s gaze as he began opening drawers.

  Weird.

  And now that Tyler mentioned it, Steele did have a subtle hint of smoke to his skin.

  “Need me to show you where things are?” Tyler broke the tension in the room.

  “Nope. I got it. You and the lady sit and eat before your breakfast gets cold. I’ll get Father, JoJo, and myself something whipped up in no time.”

  “I’m going to grab a cup of coffee. I haven’t had enough caffeine for what I’ve just walked into.” Father grabbed a clean coffee mug out of the dish drainer.

  “I was just about to call you.” Tyler glanced at JoJo. “How did you find me?”

  “Your background check had your address on it,” she said in an everyone-in-the-world-is-a-moron cadence.

  The woman was turning out to be a little ball of delightfulness.

  “Oh, yeah. That’s right,” he said as if JoJo’s tone didn’t faze him.

  “You mentioned wanting to meet Nathaniel, the boy we discussed at our meeting last night.” Father poured coffee into the mug. “JoJo tried to call the number you gave us, but it wouldn’t go through. She remembered you mentioning you lived out this way, figured you might not have good cell service, so we all decided we would enjoy the morning breeze on our bikes and see if we could find you. I must say, without the address, it would have been easy to get lost out here.”

  Annie sat back and listened. Tyler had just discussed needing to call the Guardians. For a moment, she’d thought he’d done so behind her back before he okayed it with her, but listening in, that wasn’t the case. He hadn’t done anything so far she hadn’t agreed to. The tension in her shoulders eased.

  “Well, you found me.” Tyler picked up a piece of bacon, and his arm grazed hers with his movement.

  Annie found the closeness to him comforting, a feeling she hadn't felt in a long time. She should scoot over. Give him some space, but that would put her closer to JoJo. She stayed put.

  “I’d love to go meet Nathaniel with you,” he continued, “but I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave Annie here by herself.”

  A metallic clang, then the crunch of shells cracking sounded behind her. She swiveled her head.

  Steele whisked the yolks with a fork then slid the eggs into a frying pan. “I agree, man. Annie, until you can file a restraining order, you shouldn’t be alone.”

  “No!” She whipped her gaze to Tyler. He and his friends needed to understand she was serious. “No cops, okay? My fiancé, Duke, is the Chief.”

  “Yeah, well, some Chief of Police we’ve got then.” Father sat. “Annie, you need help. You need protection.”

  “I know, but what good is a restraining order going to do me? Duke is the police. And when he gets in one of his rages, nothing will stop him. Not the poli
ce, and certainly not a useless piece of paper.”

  “She’s right,” JoJo piped in.

  Finally, someone began to take her seriously, and it was the moody female of all people. Annie flipped her gaze to the woman. JoJo’s hard stare screamed no nonsense. A quality Annie could appreciate right now.

  “I hate to say this, sweetheart, but you only have yourself to rely on.”

  Anxiety, as heavy as a brick, sank in her gut. The words were true, and the exact reason why she hadn’t done anything in the past. She wasn’t strong enough.

  “No, she doesn’t.” Tyler leaned back and snaked his arm around the back of her chair.

  He stared at her. His gaze held the same intensity it had by the front door, and the brick in her stomach wanted to leap up into her throat. Or maybe that was her heart, with its erratic beating again. Her knees knocked and her hands trembled, for entirely different reasons than minutes before.

  In a voice loud enough for everyone in the room to hear, he said, “She’s got me.”

  Oh, snap. Her heart pounded faster, while her head grew lighter.

  “And me.”

  Thankful for the distraction, she broke their intense stare and watched as Steele waved a spatula in the air from behind the stovetop.

  “And the rest of the Guardians.” Father’s voice had her turn her head toward him. “But Annie, you need a plan.”

  A plan. The same thing Tyler mentioned earlier, and it was the absolute one thing she did not have. Along with anywhere else to go or much money.

  Shit, my job.

  And if she didn’t talk to her boss, she wouldn’t even have that.

  “Oh, no. What time is it?” She darted her gaze around the room for a clock.

  “It’s a little after eight, why?” Tyler asked.

  “I’m supposed to be at work in fifteen minutes. I forgot to call Sandi to tell her I can’t come in.”

  “Don’t worry about Sandi.” Father leaned back in his chair. “I’ll talk to her.”

  “Talk to her?” She turned to the man. “What do you mean talk to her? Nobody can know what’s going on. If they do, and it gets back to Duke, he’ll be so angry and embarrassed. He might…well I don’t know what he might do.”

  The fear she tried to bottle all morning surged through her. If she publically embarrassed Duke, she might not just have a gun barrel pointed to her head—he could actually pull the trigger next time.

  “Relax, sweetheart.” Father reached across the table for her hand. “Sandi already knew what was going on.”

  “She did?” She and Tyler asked at the same time.

  “How long has she known?” she asked.

  “A while. Sandi didn’t know what to say, that’s why she dropped the hint that she was dating me. She’d hoped you would come and seek help.”

  It all made sense now. Duke keeping her away from the Guardians, and Sandi talking about Father. Only, anytime the Guardians were mentioned, she’d turn away from the conversation or purposely change the subject. All because she was afraid of what Duke would do or say if he found out she even entertained a conversation about the motorcycle thugs.

  The bastard.

  “Why do you think she agreed to you working all those hours?” Father asked. “She’s been worried about you since you started dating Duke, but she didn’t want to do anything or say anything that might put you in harm’s way more than you already were. The woman’s been begging me to talk to you, but every time I came around the diner, Duke was there. Also, it’s a Guardian rule. Abused adults have to come to us and ask for help. Still, I didn’t realize it was this bad. I’m sorry, Annie. I truly am.” Father squeezed her hand. “But you have the Guardians help if you want it.”

  She glanced around the table and into the kitchen. Steele had placed three perfect omelets on three plates, and offered her a smile. JoJo sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. A fierce look of determination thwarted her features, and the little lady looked like she was ready to start kicking ass and taking names.

  When Annie glanced back at Tyler, her body tingled. He was big and strong, and sitting next to him made her feel safe. For the first time in months, she didn’t feel scared. With his arm still wrapped around the back of her chair, he stared at her with such a fierce loyalty. She felt an odd connection, almost as if he spoke to her soul through his eyes. With him by her side, she was strong enough. Strong enough to leave Duke.

  Fight for a better life.

  “What do you say, Miss Annie?” Steele asked. “You want us to help you?”

  She cocked a glance to the chef and his friends before staring back at the blue irises that made a strange warmth flow through her. A warmth she could get used to, and a feeling worth fighting for.

  “Yeah.” She nodded. “I do.”

  Chapter Eight

  Duke parked his cruiser on the street and grabbed the flower arrangement sitting on the passenger seat. He’d wanted to come home in the middle of the night, check on Annie, but some damn mom called about her son being abused. So what if the father knocked the kid around a bit? Hell, the little shit probably deserved it. Kids these days lacked respect and needed a firm hand.

  Still, in order to be considered for Sherriff, he had to dot all of his I’s and cross his T’s when people were watching. And because of the event, he’d been stuck trying to catch up on paperwork all night long.

  Damn campaign.

  Damn dad.

  He rolled his shoulders and marched to the door.

  The space from Annie actually did him some good. Made him realize he may have been a little harsh with her. She wasn’t used to being submissive, but she would learn. He would just have to teach her how a good wife should act before they got married.

  He keyed in through the front door and punched in the alarm. The usual aroma of morning coffee didn’t hang in the air. “Annie? I’m home, babe.”

  Silence echoed through the house.

  “Where are you, honey?” He walked into the bedroom. The bed lay perfectly made. “Damn it.” Racing to the window, he looked for her car in the carport. Missing.

  “Bitch.”

  She’d gone into work after he had told her not to. How was she going to hide the cut on her face? Say she fell? No one would believe her. Her lapse of judgment would ruin his image.

  He pulled out his cellphone. His heart pounded as her phone went straight to voicemail. She never turned her cell off. Thumbing through his contacts, he clicked on the diner’s number.

  “Sandi’s,” the owner’s voice greeted over the receiver.

  “Hey, Sandi, this is Chief Fields.” He kept his voice smooth and low. The same voice he wooed Annie with to get her into bed. “I’m trying to get a hold of Annie. Is she there yet?”

  “Just got off the phone with her. She called in sick today, Chief. Surely, you would know that.” The older woman’s voice oozed with condemnation.

  What the hell did she know? Annie might be stupid at times, but she wouldn’t tell anyone about their relationship. She would destroy everything he’d worked so hard for if she opened her fat mouth.

  Taking in a deep breath, he warned himself to play it cool. “Oh, I hate to hear that. I haven’t made it home from work yet, so when I get there, I’ll be sure to take extra care of her.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure you will.” The woman hung up.

  He clicked his phone off and glanced around the room. Nothing looked out of place. Stomping into the closet, he checked her clothes. Her overnight bag still hung on the hook. From the evidence, it looked like Annie had just went somewhere and forgot to charge her phone, but a nagging feeling sat in the pit of his stomach.

  He stomped back through the living room. Her locket lay on the floor where she had fallen. She never left without her locket. He raced into the kitchen, the hook on the wall sat empty. Her purse—missing. He pulled the pig head off the cookie jar. Her tip money—gone.

  “Fuck!” he screamed as he tossed the top of the jar. Glass shar
ds scattered over the floor.

  Not able to track her because she had her phone off, he pushed some buttons on his own phone to alert him when she came back on radar. She could run, but she couldn’t hide. He would find her, and when he did, he would be sure to teach her how a wife of his was supposed to behave.

  First things first, he had to get to the bank and get all of her money. Assuming she hadn’t done that already. A few hundred dollars in tips wouldn’t take her far, and with no family and nowhere to go, she would come back. She’d have to.

  And when she did, he would be waiting.

  Chapter Nine

  Tank straddled his bike and grabbed his bandana out of the saddlebag. As much as he didn’t want to leave Annie, helping an abused child was important, too. This was what he moved to Black Widow to do.

  “Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” He tied the Batman symbol around his head. “I know JoJo doesn’t come off as the friendliest, but deep down, she seems good.”

  “Yeah, of course. I’ll be fine.” Annie offered him a small smile and shrugged her shoulder—the bare shoulder that he so desperately wanted to kiss—as she stood beside him.

  Mercy. He placed his hands on his handles and squeezed. Hard.

  “Besides, I’ve got my guard dog right here.” She patted Al on the top of his head.

  His dog had his tongue sticking out and his eyes rolling to the back of his head from her affection. Tank couldn’t blame the pup. His eyes would probably roll to the back of his head from her affection, too.

  “I think JoJo is a good person to have on my side,” she added, breaking his thoughts.

  While his Guardian friend was doing him a favor sitting with Annie, he still wanted to be the man for the job. The tension in his hands shot through his body. “Listen, Annie, I won’t be long, okay? I’ll bring us back some lunch, and we can talk some more.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

  “Your keys are on the counter top if you decide you want to leave. I don’t want to make you feel trapped or stranded, but please, Annie…” He stared at the mouth he longed to kiss and brought his voice to a whisper. “Please, don’t leave. At least until we can make sure you are safe.”