Tempted By Her Rescuer: Brotherhood Protectors World

by Christine Glover

  “I’ll get you there if the rental company hasn’t sent a replacement.” Though he’d made sure they wouldn’t, using his agency’s vast network of connections to ensure her safety. From today on, he’d be her driver.

  “Yes. Good thing you called the road service before I drove it to my cabin,” she said, her lips chattering. “Talk about a lucky break to have you around to check it out. Glad you saw me slip and slide into the parking lot this morning.”

  “See? You need me.” He opened the passenger door, inhaled the interior’s leather scent as she stepped inside.

  “I could get a ride from Eric or any of the other show crew members.”

  “True, but I consider this a bonus to getting to know you better.”

  He closed the door, then rounded the rental to climb into the driver’s seat. After the drive back to the luxury ranch, he walked her to the cabin.

  “Well,” she said, holding his gaze. “I’ll see you tomorrow. We’ve got a show to film live at Sadie Patterson’s. Delaney Walker will be there too.”

  As would their husbands. Additional protection he’d contacted to provide backup on the set.

  They’d talked about her childhood, his, during dinner. He’d opened up a bit about his background but didn’t reveal the darker corners of his world. Then, and now, he’d survived a lot.

  But so had she.

  The cabin’s exterior walls sheltered them from the bitter blast of arctic wind while soft, plump snowflakes fell all around them, danced on her lashes and cheeks. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow at ten.” He framed her face with his gloved hands and brushed her lips with his, giving her a chaste kiss. “Good night, Reagan.”

  “Good night.” She used her keycard to let herself inside. “See you in the morning.”

  Then the light and cozy interior’s heat shut him out. He waited several beats, making sure she locked up. Then he went to his SUV, grabbed his infrared goggles out of the gear bag he’d stowed in the back along with extra fire power. Carefully, he circled the cabin, looking for any evidence of possible intruders.

  Snow covered any footprints that might have been left behind and the skeletal tree limbs revealed nothing lurking in the shadows. He checked in with his commander in California who confirmed he’d relay the info to her brother in Italy. And tonight, Brent would continue monitoring her from…

  A scream shattered the air, bringing a rush of adrenaline to his extremities. Reagan. His pulse accelerated, and dread oozed into his blood. Bracing his gun, he returned to the stairs that led to her door while glancing around the perimeter.

  Nothing but snow, trees swaying in the biting wind, and the sound of a howl in the distance. Tamping down the internal instinct to rush in, he crept up the stairs, his gun loaded and ready to fire if necessary.

  Once at the top, he pressed his back flat against the exterior wall, Reagan’s shriek piercing the air once more. Carefully, he inserted his agency’s pass key into the door’s slot, pushed the handle down and dropped low to ease his way inside.

  “Oh my god.” Reagan stared at the clothes littering her bedroom floor along with the scattered files, some of them emptied. Even worse, her side table’s drawer had been pulled out, the contents missing. Her rings gone. “Why would anyone take my wedding bands? Why? Why? Why?” She sank to her knees and pounded the floor.

  Tears burned behind her eyes and she pressed her palms against them, heat shuddering through her. “I… who…”

  Strong arms encircled her. “We’ll find out who later,” Brent said softly. “Right now, we’ve got to alert the ranch’s security department. Get them here. Don’t touch a thing.”

  “How did you get in here?”

  “I own a security company, remember?” he said. “I heard you scream. Not hard for me to break in.”

  “You heard me? How?” Confusion whirled through her brain. “Weren’t you already on your way back to your cabin?” A niggle of suspicion wormed its way into her mind, took root at the base of her skull.

  “Thought I’d take a look around the perimeter, make sure nothing unusual was around before I headed to my place.”

  Her heart thrummed a warning in her ears. Sure. She was glad he’d been around when she discovered the break-in, but his interest in her safety seemed way too convenient. “I didn’t hire you to be my security guard, but I guess I should be relieved you acted like one tonight.” She hugged herself, still unable to comprehend the mess she’d stumbled on in her bedroom.

  Brent covered her arms with his. “I wanted to make sure you were all right,” he said. “The brake line cut looked too clean to be accidental.”

  “Thanks, but why do I get the feeling you’ve been shadowing me ever since we met?” She twisted around to gaze into his whiskey-colored eyes. “Who are you really, Brent? Why are you so interested in spending time with me?”

  He pursed his lips and a muscle jumped in his jaw as he glanced to the right, then back into her eyes. “I like you. A lot.”

  His arms suddenly seemed like chains. She pushed out of them and stood on still wobbly legs. “But?” she asked, staring at him as he rose to stand in front of her.

  “But your brother called in a favor with my company, asked me to send someone out to keep an eye on you while you filmed your show.”

  “Why would he even know about your…” she clammed up, the pieces coming together in a whack-a-mole puzzle. “I always knew there was something more to my brother’s story about his move to Italy. I never had a problem believing how much he loves my sister-in-law, but I couldn’t imagine him raising grapes in Tuscany after he quit the DEA.” Something else had lured him besides the woman he loved. Her brother had been chasing adventure his entire life.

  Brent had the same aura, the same take-charge and ultra-protective personality.

  “I can’t tell you everything, but this much is true,” Brent said, shoved his fingers through his short brown hair. “I was between assignments, my commander asked me to follow up on your brother’s request as a precaution. I never meant for things to get out of control between us.”

  “So having sex with me wasn’t part of your description?”

  “No. I normally don’t fool around with clients, but I… ah… technically your brother hired me and...” He scrubbed his face. “I know I fucked up, but I like you. A lot. But I shouldn’t have screwed around with you.”

  Spots flashed in her vision and her breath bottled in her chest, making it hard to draw in air. She’d been hurt before, lost more than she’d ever anticipated early in her marriage. Brent’s confession paled in comparison, but still, his words wounded, stung like she’d been attacked by angry wasps.

  “But you had sex with me anyway. Then you pushed me away, acted like a jerk, then you chased after me, asking for another chance.” She fisted her hands, then crossed her arms. “Why? What else is going on that you and my brother and everyone else knows but me?”

  “The accident that put your show’s director out of commission wasn’t one. I found out this morning.”

  “So the only reason you’re with me now is to make sure trouble doesn’t find me.” Her female ego high fived the fact that he’d admitted to wanting her, but he’d hurt her just the same by not telling her everything from the get-go. She didn’t know what disappointed her more. His subterfuge or that she’d fallen for his dumb poinsettia and the date at the diner like a first class idiot. “Fine. Clearly, my brother made the right call to have someone come here to watch over me, but I highly doubt he’ll like hearing about your methods. I’m surprised you didn’t try to move in with me to keep an eye on me 24/7.”

  “I already had surveillance in place before you arrived.”

  “You installed cameras? You’ve been watching me all this time?” She moved around him and out of the bedroom, outrage propelling her. The invasion of her privacy, the complete lack of consideration of her feelings in the matter, floored her. “I know I should be grateful, but right now I’m just so upset I could throat
punch someone, including my brother.”

  She wanted Brent to leave but knew deep down she couldn’t reject the protection he offered. She might be hurt and angry, but her pride didn’t extend to taking dumb risks with her life.

  Now she couldn’t shake the man even if she tried. And when she went to open a bottle of wine, he took the corkscrew from her trembling hands. “We didn’t think anything would happen,” he said, deftly opening it and pouring her a glass. “Figured your brother was being over-protective, but now I’m glad he contacted our branch of the agency.”

  She drank a healthy swallow, let the ruby red liquid soothe her burning throat and calm the riot stampeding against her ribcage. “I am too.”

  “Good. Then you understand that I’m not leaving your side until the threat is neutralized,” he said.

  “Absolutely,” Reagan said, her hand steady and her mind settling into a dull pattern of thought. “What if I never found out? What if no one was after me? What would you have told me when your vacation ended? When we went our separate ways?” Though she’d been determined to focus on her career, her future, without benefit of a man as a permanent fixture in her life, she’d begun to weave possibilities of a different kind with Brent.

  All of those possibilities evaporated tonight. Fair enough. She couldn’t give him what he really wanted anyway. One day he’d hang up his holster and settle down, build a family. A life. Just like her brother had done after he’d quit the DEA.

  But she damn well wanted him to tell her himself.

  Chapter 9

  Brent stalled, searching for an answer, but he couldn’t find one Reagan deserved. One he wished he could give her, but the fire in her blue eyes, the flaring nostrils meant he’d royally blown any chance with her, real or even one forged by an ongoing lie.

  “Reagan, I can’t be the kind of man you need,” he said carefully, remembering her excellent skill in handling razor sharp knives. “Most of what I told you earlier is true, but there are aspects to my job that I’ll never be able to share with anyone, not even someone I care about a lot.”

  “You care?” She drank more wine. “I didn’t expect more from you than a nice holiday fling, but you made me believe you wanted me, wanted to get to know me, especially after what happened this morning.”

  The favor he’d done for his agency, her brother, turned rotten and his stomach curdled. He’d earned her disappointment in spades when he continued to keep the truth from her. But deep down he’d been searching for a way to salvage some part of this relationship in the future. “I don’t know what I’d have done, but I couldn’t walk away from you without trying make this, us, work in the future.”

  “You lied to me from the get-go,” she said. “If you had just told me about the threat, the issues surrounding the details about the accident, I’d have accepted the protection without question.”

  “I realize that now.”

  “Too bad you didn’t come to that conclusion this morning.” She set her empty glass on the counter beside the sink. “But even though the damage is done, I won’t stop you from doing your job. You still calling the ranch’s security people?”

  Her blue eyes had grown into cold, chips of ice. A heavy weight pressed down on his shoulders. “I can’t trust them. They could be in on this behind the scenes,” he said. “I’ve already contacted Hank Patterson with the Brotherhood Protectors. They’re my backup while I’m here.”

  “Great,” she said, moving around him to walk into the living area. “I assume you’re contacting him about what happened tonight. Are you able to process the crime scene in my bedroom now or will you wait until tomorrow?”

  “I’ve got equipment at my cabin,” he said. “We’ll lock up here, head over there. You’re staying with me until we catch the bastard who trashed your bedroom.”

  Reagan glanced at her bare fingers. “Whoever did this stole my wedding and engagement bands. I want them found and returned to me.” She tucked her hands into her jean pockets. “Am I allowed to take anything with me or is everything off limits?”

  He scrubbed his hand over his face, then tunneled his fingers through his hair. A heavy feeling pressed down on his shoulders like he’d been carrying a boulder for hours. Maybe if he’d been honest with Reagan, she’d already have been in his cabin, safe and her property, her stuff untouched. But her brother had been adamant about not playing that hand unless absolutely necessary.

  The time had arrived. And he never regretted anything more than he did right now.

  “Pack a bag with your toiletries, a change of clothes and something to sleep in,” he said after a moment of silence that hung between them as if a wall had been erected between them.

  “I’ll need my paperwork and laptop to prep for the show tomorrow too”

  “Bring everything,” he said. “I’ll run a diagnostic on your files, look for hackers.”

  “I hope no one stole my recipes.”

  “Same. But don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll use my video footage to track down who broke into your cabin. Doubt whoever did left behind prints and yours are all over the place.”

  “True. I’ll get my things,” she said, making her way back to the bedroom.

  After she returned with a small overnight bag, he guided her to his SUV, surveying the area while shielding her. Five minutes later, they arrived at his cabin. A mirror to hers, but without the homey feel she’d created while staying at the ranch.

  “Where’s the surveillance equipment?” she asked, holding her bag as she walked in.

  “Nowhere obvious.” He bolted the doors, tried to ignore the sweet, spicy scent of her filling his nostrils. Failed. He may have screwed up when he screwed her, but he still wanted her. “I’ll take a look at what’s on the tape while you get some shuteye.” Then he stepped away from her to break the connection and crossed the floor to the fireplace’s mantle.

  “First of all, I want to see who stole my rings. And second, where do you propose I sleep?”

  Reagan’s voice hitched higher and she clutched her bag tighter and he could see the whites of her knuckles. “You’re emotionally drained. Let me handle this while you take my bed.” He pointed to the small hallway leading to the room. “I’ll hunker down on the pullout sofa after I review the tapes. And you’ll see who stole your rings if I catch them in action. I promise.”

  Her mouth parted, and she covered it with a trembling hand. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to rest after what happened tonight,” she said, her lips still hidden by her shaking fingers.

  “Hold on,” he said, returning to her and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “You’re in shock.” Brent guided her to the sofa. “Sit.”

  She didn’t argue, dropping to the plush cushions.

  He draped a throw blanket over her. “Wait here while I get you some water.”

  “I couldn’t move if I wanted to,” she said, the bag she’d carried slipping onto the floor. “Do you mind if I stay here while you check the videos?”

  “Do whatever makes you feel better,” he said, meaning it.

  “What would make me feel better is forgetting this ever happened.”

  He didn’t know if she meant the break-in or having sex with him. “Everything will be okay. I promise.” At least, physically, he could protect her. Emotionally? Not so much.

  He’d once been on the receiving end of that kind of pain, suffered for his grief after losing his mother to cancer. Now another shard lanced through him for the pain he’d caused Reagan.

  He shoved down the regret. No point in going over all his missteps in that department. The only way he’d make up for hurting Reagan was to do what he’d been asked to do. Keep her sexy ass alive. Then he’d get her back to Virginia where her brother’s covert agency headquarters could continue their ongoing, undercover protection of her without her ever being the wiser.

  His chest ached, and the air bottled briefly in his lungs. He wished he could be more to her even now, especially when he could give his own
family what they deserved most: his time and attention and love. Something his stern father failed at epically after his mother passed away.

  One of the reasons he’d left the military to join CRUSH had been to create that opportunity. Too bad the opportunity had arrived in the form of a quasi-case where he’d had to hide why he’d bumped into her to begin with the first day he’d met her.

  After bringing her a glass of water and two ibuprofen pills, he went back to the mantle, crouched down to reach inside the flute. Within seconds, he’d retrieved his recording equipment. He stood and carried the equipment to a table tucked in the corner of the cabin’s kitchen area.

  Focusing on retrieving the video footage, he put on his headphones and looked at the first time -stamped video from earlier that evening. Reagan came on screen. At the same time, she sat beside him.

  He went still, sucked in a breath and stopped the recording. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to bed?” If she didn’t vacate the chair, he’d lose control over his tightly held physical desire to hold and comfort her. “If you’re too tired to host the show tomorrow, we’ll tip off the person behind the vandalism and the tampering.”

  “I don’t want to be alone,” she said softly, holding the blanket he’d given her over her shoulders and covering her upper body with the fleece. “I mean, I can’t stand the idea of even going into the bedroom when there’s someone out there after me. And I have no idea why anyone would want to hurt me.”

  “Neither do I,” he said. “But you’ve got me.” If only he hadn’t hidden behind self-denials and rationalizations before. Maybe then she’d trust him. Not just to protect him, but to be there for her no matter what happened.

  Reagan’s insides still trembled despite the water, the warmth of Brent’s body radiating heat through the blanket she gripped with icy fingers. She inhaled a deep breath, still let down and yet somehow relieved about the reason he’d first stepped into her life, but she meant her words.