by Susan Stoker
Caite couldn’t help but grin. Her man was bloodthirsty, but she liked it. But then something else registered. “Petty Officer Edwards?” she asked.
Rocco’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know. Who’s Petty Officer Edwards?”
“He works in IT in Bahrain. Whenever we had computer issues, he’d come and help us. He’s kinda quiet, and I got the impression he was happiest when he was in the barracks playing that video game, This is War, with his buddies, but he was always really nice to me. And helpful.”
“Shit,” Rocco said, shaking his head.
“What? Was he in on this too?” Caite asked with a frown.
“Looks that way,” Rocco said. “I’ll get with Creasy and Commander Horner and let them know. But it makes sense. That’s probably why the fingerprints from that kid who tried to carjack us never showed up.”
Turning in his arms, Caite wrapped her own around his waist. Rocco looked pissed. “Is it over?” she asked.
“Yeah, you’re safe, Caite.”
Rocco tipped his head down and ran a hand over her hair. It was mostly dry now and probably sticking out in a million different directions, but Caite didn’t care about her hair at the moment.
“I love you, Blake Wise.”
She saw the anger leach out of his eyes, and tenderness replace it. “Yeah?” he asked.
Smiling, Caite nodded.
“It’s a good thing, since I love you too, ma petite fée. It’ll make you moving in a hell of a lot easier if you love me back.”
She chuckled. “You were still going to move me in if I didn’t love you?”
“Yup. I figured if I gave you enough time, you wouldn’t be able to resist me.”
Shaking her head, Caite smiled at him. “If you screw up, does that mean I can order you to carry that rock around the apartment for punishment?”
His face lit up when he smiled. “You could order me to do just about anything, Caite, and I’d move Heaven and Earth to make sure it was done.”
His words melted her heart. “Thank you for sending Gumby and Cookie out to get me.”
“I would’ve gone myself, but I had to make sure Chambers wasn’t going to be a threat to you. I had to see it done. I wasn’t going to let him continue to terrorize you.”
“I know.” And she did. She wasn’t upset that it wasn’t Rocco who was in the ocean with her. He’d sent men he trusted and respected and had stayed behind to eliminate the threat. She knew he would’ve done whatever was necessary to make sure she was safe.
“I love you, Caite. I don’t know what I’d do without you in my life,” Rocco said solemnly.
“Good thing you’ll never have to find out,” Caite returned.
He hugged her to him then, and Caite had never felt more secure. The way she felt in Rocco’s arms was so different from any man she’d ever been with. It was as if his arms were bulletproof shields, making sure nothing could get through to hurt her. She knew it was fanciful, and there was a good chance they’d fight in the future—she was too independent, and he was too bossy and protective for them not to fight—but she also knew without a doubt, at the end of the day, when they settled in bed for the night, she’d be snuggled deep in his arms, just as she was now.
“How’s the new job?” Gumby asked, leaning against edge of her desk. He smirked when Caite glared at him and shooed him off with her hands.
“It’s fine, except for you and everyone else coming by to check on me every five minutes. My boss is gonna think I’m out here socializing instead of working,” Caite protested.
“Never,” Gumby reassured her. “He knows he lucked out when he hired you.”
Caite rolled her eyes. “As if he had a choice. After Slade and Rear Admiral Creasy recommended me, there really wasn’t anything he could do but hire me.”
“Wrong,” Gumby told her. “Your past work spoke for itself. Just because that asshole in Bahrain couldn’t see what an amazing employee he had, doesn’t mean others couldn’t. Besides, you speaking French was the tipping point. You know how badly they needed someone to help transcribe the hundreds of hours of surveillance tapes they have. You’re a godsend to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.”
Caite nodded. “I guess this is what I get for complaining about being bored, huh?” she quipped.
Gumby chuckled. He knew all about how bored Caite had been, as Rocco had told them she’d cleaned his apartment from top to bottom several times.
She’d bounced back from her experience on the beach even as the ramifications of Captain Chambers’s deceit continued to reverberate throughout the navy. He’d sucked way too many good men into his schemes, including Andy Edwards, the mole Commander Horner had been searching for in Bahrain. He’d been taken into custody for his role in what had happened in Manama, and for hacking into the FBI database to erase Carter Richards’s fingerprints and hindering a federal investigation.
Gumby was thrilled for Rocco. It was obvious he and Caite were meant to be together. He wasn’t jealous, not really…but seeing how happy his buddy was just made him all the more eager to find his own soul mate.
“I just wanted to stop by and make sure you were good,” Gumby told Caite.
“I’m good,” she reassured him. “Rocco’s coming by later, and we’re going to go out and celebrate.”
“Remember, I’m expecting you to name your firstborn after me,” Gumby teased.
Caite scoffed. “Why do guys automatically think about sex when the word ‘celebrate’ is mentioned?”
“Are you denying that’s what’s going to happen tonight?” Gumby asked, grinning.
Caite laughed and held up her hands. “Fine. You win. We’re gonna have hot monkey sex tonight, but after Rocco takes me out for a nice fancy dinner.”
Gumby loved how Caite treated him like an irritating brother. He had an older brother himself, but never had a sister he could tease. “I knew it!”
“Whatever,” Caite said. “Now get out. I have work to do.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gumby said, saluting her. The second he was out of earshot, he took his phone out of his pocket and clicked on Rocco’s name. “She’s good,” he said when his friend picked up.
Rocco sighed in relief. “I figured she would be, but I appreciate you checking up on her all the same.”
“Anytime.”
“You headed out now?”
“Yeah. I’m gonna go back to my place for lunch, then I’ll meet you guys at the office so we can continue the debrief for next week’s mission.”
“Sounds good. Drive safe,” Rocco told him.
“Always. Later.”
“Bye.”
Gumby clicked off the phone and headed for his pickup. After growing up in Texas, he found it almost impossible to drive anything but a pickup truck. He pulled out of the NCIS parking lot and headed for his house. He’d bought the small beachside place for a steal when it had been foreclosed. It still needed a lot of work, and he was slowly but surely getting it fixed up in his downtime.
He was a few blocks from home when something on the side of the road caught his attention. Gumby was pulling over before he’d even thought about it. Jumping out of the truck, he raced toward the man and woman having a knock-down drag-out fight in the front yard of a dilapidated house.
The woman was petite, and the man she was fighting was at least a foot taller. And way more muscular. But, amazingly, she was holding her own.
“Stop it!” Gumby yelled as he got close.
The man looked up in surprise and swore before turning and bolting.
Gumby was about to follow to make sure the bastard was held accountable for hitting a woman, when the woman in question grabbed his arm and urgently said, “Help me!”
Gumby was well trained in first aid, as he and the rest of the team had to be ready to give life-saving aid at a moment’s notice. He turned, ready to stop some bleeding or set a broken bone—but what he saw shocked the shit out of him.
The woman had let go of his arm a
nd was kneeling on the ground next to a badly injured dog. It was a small pit bull, who was alternating growling and whimpering in fright, cowering away from its would-be rescuer.
“I’m not sure you should be that close to him,” Gumby said in a low voice, trying not to provoke the injured animal any more than it already was.
“Why not?” the woman asked, twisting to look up at him. Her lip was bleeding and her shirt was torn and hanging loosely off one shoulder. Gumby could see her pink bra strap on her nearly identically colored shoulder. She even had a black eye forming, but she didn’t seem to notice her own disarray.
“Because he could bite you. He’s hurt. Who was that guy? I need to call the cops.”
“No! No cops!” the woman said, looking nervous for the first time. “I just need help getting her into my car.”
Gumby frowned. “Do you know the guy who was hitting you?”
“No,” she said a shade too quickly, and Gumby’s bullshit meter was spiking.
“What’s going on?”
Sighing, the woman sat back on her heels and looked up at him. “Will you help me if I tell you?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. That guy is always trying to get pit bulls that people are giving away on social media or Craigslist. I got his address when he stupidly posted it in a group on Facebook, when someone was trying to get rid of a dog. He’s had this beauty in his yard for at least a week. As far as I can tell, he hasn’t fed her or given her any water. Then this morning, while I was watching, he poured something on her back. Look! Whatever it was, it burned her. It had to be caustic. I need to get her to the vet. Not only that, but check out her paws. Sometime when I wasn’t around, she was dragged. Probably behind a car or a motorcycle or something. Assholes were probably using her as a bait dog too. Look at the scars on her beautiful face!”
Gumby looked down at the shivering mess of a dog at her feet. There was a line of missing hair along her backbone that did indeed looked like it was from some sort of burn or caustic agent. And the dog’s paws were bloody, and still bleeding.
His heart melted. No dog deserved to be abused like this one had been.
Drawn to the pitiful animal as if by a string, he kneeled next to the black dog, who looked way too skinny for her size, and held out his hand tentatively. The dog whimpered and stretched her nose out to his fingers.
Then she shocked the shit out of him by crawling on her belly until she was right in front of him and resting her head on his leg.
Gumby looked up at the woman in surprise. She looked equally shocked. Then she recovered and looked around nervously. “We need to get out of here. I was in the process of stealing this dog when that guy came out of his house and tried to stop me.”
“You were stealing her?”
She sat up and put her hands on her hips. Even kneeling on the ground, she was a force. “Yeah. I was. He took exception, and we were fighting over her.”
Shaking his head, Gumby said, “I’m going to regret this.” Then he slowly stood and leaned over and easily picked up the trembling, abused dog.
“Lord, you’re big,” the woman said, looking up at him. “There’s no way I could’ve carried her like that.”
“Come on,” Gumby said. “If that guy has friends, I don’t think it’ll be a good idea if we’re standing around chatting.”
“Right,” she said, gesturing toward the street. “My name’s Sidney. Sidney Hale.”
“Decker Kincade,” Gumby told her.
“Thanks for stopping to help, Deck,” Sidney said as she ran ahead to her small Honda Accord, which had seen better days. It was at least ten years old and had several dents and scratches in the black paint.
Gumby bypassed her car and headed for his truck.
“Hey, what are you doing?” she fretted as she shuffled alongside him.
“I’m taking Hannah to the vet.”
“Hannah?” Sidney asked.
“That’s what I’m naming her,” Gumby said, not knowing why he’d thought of that name, just that it seemed to fit the small black pit bull. It was a dignified name for an animal who had been treated with anything but dignity for most of her life.
“But I’m taking her.”
“Wrong,” Gumby said, turning to face Sidney. “But you’re welcome to come with me. In fact, I insist.”
“Oh, but I… Maybe we can talk about this.” She stumbled over her words.
“No time to talk,” Gumby said as he opened his door with one hand and placed the injured dog across the front bench seat of his truck. “There’s a vet near where I live. You can follow me there.” Then, he slowly reached out and touched his fingers to the corner of her mouth and wiped away a smear of blood. “After I take care of Hannah, I can make sure you’re okay.”
Using her shoulder, she wiped at her mouth with her T-shirt. “I’m fine.” The words were said with more bravado than Gumby had seen in a while. He figured the woman to be in her early thirties, but the pain in her eyes hinted at a very hard life.
He was intrigued. Anyone who would physically fight a man obviously stronger than she was, over the life of a dog, was worth knowing in his eyes.
“Come with me,” he said gently. “Help me get Hannah settled. It’s why you were here fighting for her, right?”
“Right,” Sidney said. “Fine. But don’t think you can just take off with her. I’ll be right on your heels, Deck.” And with that, she turned and stomped back to her old car.
Gumby watched her go with a smile. She might be small, but she had curves that went on for days.
Yes, he was definitely intrigued.
He jogged around and got into the driver’s seat once he was sure Sidney was safely inside her vehicle. Hannah whined, and Gumby put a hand on her head, amazed when she immediately quieted at his touch. “Hang in there, girl. We’ll get you fixed up and get some food in your belly as soon as we can.”
As if the dog could understand, she nuzzled his hand and sighed in contentment. Looking into his rearview mirror at the vehicle following his, Gumby smiled. He had a feeling Sidney Hale wouldn’t be nearly as docile as the injured and abused dog next to him. Excitement and anticipation raced through his veins.
For the first time in a long time, Gumby had something to look forward to other than the next mission.
* * *
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Be sure to pick up Gumby’s story, Securing Sidney, coming soon!
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And as a special gift, you can listen to Securing Brenae on the Read Me Romance podcast. It’s FREE. There’s a new audio book EVERY WEEK! And if you’re wondering, Brenae is Read Admiral Creasy’s wife. She moves into the same apartment complex Caite and Rocco live in…and of course bad stuff happens! lol
It will be released in ebook on April 23, but again, you can LISTEN to it for FREE on the Read Me Romance podcast Jan 28-Feb 1, 2019!
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Listen to Securing Brenae for FREE Jan 28-Feb 1!
iTunes: https://apple.co/2LzsiyO
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RMR → https://bit.ly/2yQEaao
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Also by Susan Stoker
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SEAL of Protection: Legacy Series
Securing Caite
Securing Brenae (novella) (April 2019)
Securing Sidney (May 2019)
Securing Piper (Sept 2019)
Securing Zoey (Jan 2020)
Securing Avery (TBA)
Securing Kalee (TBA)
* * *
Delta Force Heroes Series
Rescuing Rayne
Rescuing Aimee (novella)
Rescuing Harley
Marrying Emily
Rescuing Kassie
Rescuing Bryn
Rescuing Casey
Rescuing Sadie
Rescuing Wendy
Rescuing Mary
Rescuing Macie (April 2019)
* * *
Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Series
Justice for Mackenzie
Justice for Mickie
Justice for Corrie
Justice for Laine (novella)
Shelter for Elizabeth
Justice for Boone
Shelter for Adeline
Shelter for Sophie
Justice for Erin
Justice for Milena
Shelter for Blythe
Justice for Hope
Shelter for Quinn
Shelter for Koren (June 2019)
Shelter for Penelope (Oct 2019)
* * *
Ace Security Series
Claiming Grace
Claiming Alexis
Claiming Bailey
Claiming Felicity
Claiming Sarah (Sept 2019)
* * *
Mountain Mercenaries Series
Defending Allye
Defending Chloe
Defending Morgan
Defending Harlow (July 2019)
Defending Everly (Dec 2019)
Defending Zara (TBA)
Defending Raven (TBA)
* * *
SEAL of Protection Series
Protecting Caroline
Protecting Alabama
Protecting Fiona
Marrying Caroline (novella)
Protecting Summer
Protecting Cheyenne
Protecting Jessyka
Protecting Julie (novella)
Protecting Melody
Protecting the Future
Protecting Kiera (novella)