Protecting Piper

by Cynthia Eden

  Her lips parted. She started to look at Ben—

  Eric moved to the side, blocking her gaze. Forcing her to stare straight at him instead. “We’re going to break that habit.”

  He’d lost her. “What are you even talking about?”

  Eric smiled. A slow, lip-stretching smile that let her see the slash in his cheek.

  A secret about his lip-stretching smile…it usually made her toes curl. And despite everything, her toes curled in her sneakers.

  “Will you please get a bag ready, Piper?” Eric asked her.

  Holy shit, he’d just said please.

  “I’ll do it,” Ben announced helpfully. “And you can come home with me, Piper. I told you that already. Not like you haven’t slept over at my place plenty of times. I don’t know why you wouldn’t stay last night.” His feet padded over the floor as he headed toward her bedroom.

  Eric seemed to have turned to stone. He stared at her. Just stared.

  “Uh, Eric?” She almost waved her hand in front of his face.

  He swallowed. His nostrils flared. Then he gave a nod. “You can stay with me. I’ve got plenty of room.”

  “I-I stayed in a motel last night.”

  “A no-tell-motel,” Ben called out cheerfully—probably from her bedroom. “That place was creepy as hell. No way are you staying there again! I told you that already.”

  At Ben’s shout, Eric turned on his heel and stalked down the hallway. Piper scrambled to keep up with him. As soon as they entered her bedroom, he stopped cold.

  It was even more of a nightmare in there. Her mattress had been cut over and over, slashed. Her underwear was on the floor. Her jewelry box had been broken. Her clothes taken out of the closet. Some had been sliced, some thrown across the room.

  “Sonofabitch.” Eric’s voice was a hard snarl of fury.

  “The cops just left it this way.” Ben shook his head as he bent to grab a pair of yoga pants from the floor. “Can you believe that?”

  “They don’t do clean-up.” Each word from Eric seemed gritted out. “Just leave that stuff. We’ll get her new things.” He glanced toward Piper. “Those clothes are ruined.”

  Some of them could be saved, she was sure of it.

  “I will take care of it,” Eric promised her. “Consider it done already. You don’t need to worry.”

  Weariness pulled at her. “It’s so weird when you’re nice. It creeps me out.”

  His lips twitched.

  But then he looked around at her bedroom, and the faint amusement vanished instantly. “We’re going home.” He took her hand in his.

  She tried not to jerk or flinch or give any sign that an electric current of heat had just shot through her fingers. That usually happened when he touched her. She got a bolt of sensual awareness. A bolt that made her heart quicken and her breath pant and her whole body tingle.

  “Hey, wait! She can stay with me!” Ben bounded toward them, frowning. “I called you for your security expertise, but you don’t need to take Piper home with you. I’ve got her.”

  “Not this time.”

  A furrow appeared between Ben’s brows.

  “Piper.” Eric nodded toward her. “Can I speak with my brother for a moment? Alone?”

  Seriously? “You want me to walk out of my bedroom so that you two can talk?” He wanted to kick her out of her own room?

  “That would be great. Thank you,” Eric added, as if he were trying to remember his manners.

  She gaped for a moment. Unbelievable. Piper spun on her heel. Marched out.

  The door clicked shut behind her.

  ***

  The scent of lavender lingered in the air even after Piper left. Eric stood there a moment, every muscle in his body rock hard with tension. Rage surged inside of him, struggling to get out. When he thought about what had happened to Piper, to what the bastard had done to her things, about what the bastard could have done to Piper if she’d been there when he’d broken into her house—

  Ben’s hand clamped around his shoulder. “She isn’t going home with you. Thanks for the help, I know you can get her the best security system, but I’ll take her back with me. I’ll—ow!”

  Eric had grabbed his brother’s hand. Grabbed his brother. And shoved Ben back against the door.

  A sharp knock sounded. “Hey!” Piper’s voice. “Everything okay in there?”

  Ben stared at him with wide eyes.

  “Fine!” Eric called back. “Just straightening a few things out.” Some shit that should have been straightened out long ago.

  “Are you crazy?” Ben whispered. “Like, I swear, I feared this day would come. All that work and no playtime routine that you have is not the way a human should live. Knew you were burning out your fuse.”

  “I thought you were fucking going to marry her.”

  Ben’s eyes widened even more, nearly doubling in size. “Who?”

  Don’t kill your little brother. Don’t kill him. “Piper.” Eric’s voice was low, meant only for Ben.

  Shock flashed on Ben’s face. “Why the hell would you think that?”

  “Because you two have been inseparable for years. Because she sleeps over at your house ‘all the time.’ Because you know practically every secret that she has, and she knows yours.” He was clenching his back teeth. “I kept waiting for the day when you broke the news. Then you gave me the mystery call today. Told me I had to get to Piper’s, ASAP. That you had something you needed to tell me.” He’d heard all of that, and he’d nearly gone insane.

  Why? Why?

  Because I want Piper. He always had, dammit. Only he hadn’t realized how completely, totally lost he was…until the moment came when he thought his brother was claiming her, forever.

  “Uh, yeah, we’re not getting married.” Ben looked down at the hand Eric had slammed into his chest. “And you can get your hand off me, too.”

  “You just going to keep screwing around with her?” Hell, no. Eric shook his head. With his free hand, he flipped the lock on the door. “Fuck, no. The rules are changing.”

  Ben’s mouth opened. Closed. Opened. The guy looked like a fish who’d been yanked out of the water. Then he finally mumbled, “I…haven’t.”

  The words were so low that Eric almost missed them. “Come again?”

  “I…I don’t know where you got the idea, but Piper and I…we’ve never screwed around. She’s my best friend.”

  The thunder of Eric’s heartbeat seemed very, very loud. Too loud. “She was your first.”

  “What in the fuck?” Ben’s voice wasn’t low now. It was a yell.

  Piper’s footsteps rushed toward the closed door. “What is happening in there?”

  “My brother is being crazy! And delusional!” Ben shouted. “That’s what’s happening.”

  No, he wasn’t crazy. But Eric was tired of sitting back and not taking what he wanted. He’d had a serious wake-up call. If he didn’t act, he would lose Piper.

  “She’s in danger,” Eric snapped. “You know it or you wouldn’t have called me. I can protect her in ways you never can. If some asshole is following her, if she’s got a stalker, I will eliminate the threat. She needs me now.” Me, not you.

  It was Eric’s turn. And he wasn’t going to screw this up. Ben couldn’t fix this problem for Piper, but Eric could. He would.

  Ben’s face showed his frustration. “She doesn’t even like you.”

  An unfortunate situation he’d fix, hopefully. “I can keep her safe. My place is freaking Fort Knox, and you know it. Until we see exactly what we’re dealing with, I need her with me.”

  Ben searched his gaze.

  The door rattled behind him. “Did you lock the door?” Piper demanded. “Did you lock me out of my own bedroom?”

  “Don’t you hurt her,” Ben rasped.

  “I never would.”

  Ben held his gaze a moment longer, then, finally, nodded.

  Eric dropped his hand and stepped back. Ben began to move forward, but at the same
instant, the door flew open. He stumbled when the door hit him in the back.

  “I unlocked it from the outside!” Piper announced triumphantly. “Now what in the hell is going on?”

  Ben raked a hand through his hair. “I want you to stay at Eric’s tonight.”

  She bit her lower lip. “I have a motel room, and it’s not really about what you want.”

  No, it wasn’t. This was all about Piper. Hell, it had always been about Piper. “I don’t want to scare you anymore than you already are,” Eric began carefully.

  Her long lashes flickered. She glanced at him, hitting him with the direct impact of her amazing eyes. Gold and gorgeous. Golden eyes, golden skin, and silky, golden hair that fell just below her chin.

  “The cops are overworked and understaffed.” A sad truth. “And if there wasn’t evidence left behind, if this guy covered his tracks and didn’t leave prints, but still left a wake of destruction, you know that’s bad news.”

  She tugged on her left ear. Ever since she’d been a kid, she’d done that exact move whenever she was afraid. The first time he’d seen her do it, she’d been nine. Some asshole punk had been standing over her, yelling at Piper that he wanted her lunch money.

  So Eric had tackled the kid.

  Piper had gone skipping away with Ben. But later, she’d used her lunch money to buy Eric a thank you ice cream. Chocolate, his favorite. Because Piper always seemed to know what he liked.

  Except when it came to one area in particular…

  “I have four freaking guest rooms,” he growled when she tugged on her ear again. “Not like I’m asking you to share my bed.”

  She gave him a look of such utter horror…

  Eric’s back teeth clenched.

  “It’s a good idea, Piper,” Ben said, voice grudging.

  Her full lips parted.

  “Not the sharing his bed part,” Ben rushed to add. “Dear God, never that. Hell, no.”

  He should punch the bastard. Blood relation or not.

  “But he does have plenty of room and the best security.” Ben raked a hand through his hair. “And I’m worried or I never would have called him in the first place. You’re worried, too. If some freak is out there, watching you, do you really want to be alone in some cheap motel with a flimsy lock?”

  Piper shook her head. “No, no, I don’t.” She squared her delicate shoulders as her gaze lingered on Eric. “But how long are we talking here? I don’t want to inconvenience you.”

  She would never be an inconvenience.

  “And what would your girlfriend think about me staying at your place?”

  Girlfriend?

  “What girlfriend?” Ben burst out with a laugh before Eric could respond. “You know he’s a flavor-of-the-week kind of guy. He has sex with them, then he moves on.”

  Eric was going to kill his brother. Murder him and hide the body so well that no one would ever find the remains. “That’s not what I fucking do.” Was that what Piper thought he was like? Well, shit, what kind of trash had his kid brother told her over the years?

  “I-I don’t want to know about your sex life.” Piper’s cheeks turned a soft pink. “No need to overshare.”

  She did need to know about it. Just as he sure as hell wanted to know about hers. “Is there a lover who is going to come looking for you?”

  If she looked at Ben…

  But Piper kept her gaze on Eric. “I’m not involved with anyone right now.”

  Hell, yes. “Perfect.” He didn’t need to kick anyone’s ass. Because a lover should sure as shit be there keeping her safe.

  But Piper frowned at his response.

  Oh, wait, had he spoken with too much satisfaction? He’d have to be more careful. Eric sauntered forward and took her hand. “I’ll have a crew over here first thing in the morning. For now, come with me and get some rest. You’re dead on your feet.”

  And, wonder of wonders, Piper gave a nod. “Okay. Thank you.”

  He realized just how terrified she must be. Because Piper never gave in on anything.

  Ben’s hand clamped around his shoulder. “I’ll lock up here.”

  Eric glanced at his brother.

  Ben’s bright gaze was suspicious. “And you will take care of her? You’ll be on your best behavior?”

  What was he? Six? Best behavior, his ass. “I’ve got her.” A brisk nod. Eric tightened his hold on Piper and led her out of the house. Darkness reigned outside. No stars glittered overhead because heavy clouds had moved in. A dank cold settled around them, and when Piper shivered, he immediately shouldered off his coat and put it around her shoulders.

  She started to head for her car.

  “Let me take you.”

  Frowning, she peered at him. “I need my own wheels.”

  He was being far too cautious, he knew it, but…this was Piper. “I want a member of my team to go over your ride.” He cast a quick glance at the red convertible. “Do a sweep on it, make sure everything is okay.” He was trying not to scare her, but he also didn’t want to take any chances.

  “What is it that you think is wrong with my car?” She bit her lower lip as she waited for his response.

  Such a delectable lip.

  “If you feel like you’ve been followed, maybe someone is keeping tabs on you. Wouldn’t be hard to hide a device on your vehicle, one that would transmit GPS coordinates back to the SOB who put it there. Everywhere you went, he’d know about it.” A pause. “You said you were out of town when both break-ins occurred.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you drive out of town? Or fly?”

  “Drove. Both times.”

  “So maybe he knew you were out of town because he’d been watching your house.” His gaze darted down the dark street. “Or because he was tracking your car. Either way, I’d feel better leaving it here. No sense taking chances.”

  “Dammit, I hate this.”

  His body brushed against hers. “I will protect you. I swear it.” God, he wanted to kiss her. To drop his mouth to hers and taste her. But he was trying to show her that she needed him. He had to play this right. Step back.

  His car waited in front of her driveway, and he opened the passenger side door for her. Her body slid against his, the scent of lavender teased him, and Eric pulled in a deep breath.

  When she was settled into the seat, Piper glanced up at him. The interior light from the vehicle shone down on her, giving him a perfect view of her. High cheekbones. Slightly pointed chin—the stubborn chin that always notched up when she got angry with him. Her full, red lips. Her incredible eyes. Eyes that appeared…worried.

  “Eric, you don’t think someone is watching me right now, do you?”

  He stiffened. Then he forced a smile. “You’re safe with me, Piper. Just remember that.” He shut her door and walked around the car, and as he did, his gaze cut toward the darkness.

  Was someone watching Piper?

  Was someone planning to hurt her?

  If so…Eric would fucking destroy the bastard.

  Chapter Two

  A woman didn’t normally expect the villain of her childhood and teenage years to suddenly start playing the hero of the story, so Piper couldn’t quite make herself relax as Eric drove them back to his home. He lived in a fancy Atlanta suburb, one of those high-end, way-behind-a-gate places. His house definitely qualified as a mansion. His family had always possessed money, but Eric had exploded with his security corporation. After he’d graduated from MIT, the guy had created some sort of new security tech that had taken the world by storm. In the blink of an eye, he’d suddenly had the rich and famous banging at his door. And things had only been getting started for him.

  “I can’t believe you live in this place all alone.” She leaned forward and peered up at the sprawling estate. Tuxedo Park. Talk about old money and too much power. The circular driveway led toward the English-style manor. An actual manor. Lights shone from within, providing a soft glow as tall, swaying pines surrounded the home.<
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  “I’m not always alone.”

  Even though heat poured from the vents in the car, she still shivered. Probably because of his deep, dark voice. Or maybe because she was running on fumes. Either way, she was not really up to her normal snark level with Eric.

  And, of course, the guy wasn’t always alone. He had his flavors of the week, didn’t he? Ben had certainly told her enough stories about them over the years.

  But maybe she should just leave all of the bullshit behind. Maybe… “For once, can we just be normal people?”

  He braked. Turned off the Benz. She felt his stare on her.

  “I thought we were normal.”

  “I mean…can you stop hating me and I’ll stop baiting you, and we can just get through this night without any trouble? I’m truly grateful for your help, and I just…” Her words floundered because she didn’t know what to say.

  “You’re dead wrong.”

  Her head jerked toward him.

  “I don’t hate you. Never have.” A pause. “Why would you think that?”

  Was he serious? “Because you avoid me! You have for years! If I come into a room, you leave it. You stare at me and a muscle jerks in your jaw. When I was a sixteen, I heard you telling Ben that I shouldn’t come over to swim anymore, that you didn’t want me there.” Okay, she needed to pull back. She’d just gotten a wee bit out of control. All that pent-up hostility. When it came to Eric, she certainly felt pent-up. “Look, I’m trying not to fight.” Their fights typically just happened. She never tried to start them. “Can we just go inside and I’ll head into a guest room? You won’t see me for the rest of the night. Promise.”

  He opened his car door. She shoved open the passenger door, not waiting for him to come around and open it. He’d do that, she knew he would. She’d always seen him open doors for his dates over the years. He could be so gentlemanly one moment, but then be a total jerk to her and Ben the next.

  Mood swings. He had them.

  He met her on the stone steps that led to the manor. “You’re not sixteen anymore.”

  No, she wasn’t.

  “And for the record, hate is the last thing I feel for you. I rather thought you would have figured that out by now.”