Stronger Than You Know--A Novel

by Lori Foster

  Because you’re incredibly astute. Reyes shook his head. “That’s the pot calling the kettle black.” After all, Cade had rushed into matrimony the last time he’d found himself assisting a woman. And not just any woman, but one that brought her own store of trouble to the table. Reyes grinned, thinking about his sister-in-law. “Not all of us fall head over ass during a mission.”

  “Is that what this is?” Cade asked. “A mission?”

  “Notice you’re not denying the head-over-ass part.”

  Cade ignored that. “You and I are not the same. I don’t go off half-cocked, even when I’m falling hard. You, on the other hand, tend to stay in a perpetual state of boiling over.”

  True enough. “I got it covered. Let me know what you find out, and tell Madison not to worry.”

  “We’ll both worry if we want to.” Getting serious, Cade added, “Call if you need me. For anything.”

  “Will do.” Reyes disconnected, then glanced at Kennedy.

  “Let me guess. Your brother was warning you against any machinations on my part?” She chafed her arms. “So far your family seems far too suspicious.”

  “Here’s the thing,” he said, refusing to let her rile him. “I never take women to my house.”

  She snorted at that. “Yeah, right.”

  “Didn’t say I don’t get around. I do.”

  “Bragging? Lovely.”

  “It isn’t bragging,” he insisted, a frown forming despite his efforts to stay even-tempered. Truth was, he never lacked for female company. “Just trying to explain why my brother was...”

  “Alarmed?”

  “Cade? Ha. No, he doesn’t get alarmed.” He never missed a damned thing, either. “Big brother could be in the middle of a three-alarm fire, during a tornado, with a murderer on his heels, and he wouldn’t blink.”

  Wide-eyed, Kennedy said, “Wow.”

  Yeah, he’d just spewed way more than he meant to. “Point is,” he stressed, making a concerted effort to get back on course, “I take my pleasure elsewhere, not at my home.”

  “Is that some sort of scruple or what? No, wait,” she said, her gaze discerning. “Whatever it is you really do, you have to keep it private. Can’t manage that if you have bed partners traipsing in and out.”

  “Know what?” He couldn’t help smirking. “That sounded so old-fashioned it should be tarnished.” When she started to grumble, he spoke over her. “I’m breaking a hard rule for you, so a little appreciation would be nice.”

  Grudgingly she said, “Thank you.”

  “Just know that I’m not taking you there for any reason other than safety.” He shot her a quick glance. Having her dark past confirmed, he had to consider how unsettled she might be alone in his company—especially since she didn’t buy his front as a gym owner. “I won’t come on to you or anything.”

  She slanted him a look. “I wasn’t worried.”

  “No?” Hell, now he didn’t know if he should be insulted or not.

  “I’ve gotten good at sizing up people. Not saying I automatically trust my instincts. I still use a lot of caution. But it should be obvious I trust you overall, otherwise I wouldn’t have called you tonight.”

  That could have been a simple lack of options. “Do you have family?”

  She hesitated far too long before shrugging. “Mom and Dad. They don’t live close, though, so I couldn’t call them.”

  Wow. If what she’d described had happened to his kid, he’d never again let her out of his sight. “No one you’re dating? No close friends?”

  She shook her head. “For the longest time I stayed on the move. Ridge Trail is the first place I’ve settled down since—” she flapped a hand “—everything happened.”

  His heart gave a hard thump in sympathy. He knew only too well how it felt to be chased by your past. “My place is secure. We’ll lock down while Cade and Madison do their thing. Early tomorrow, they’ll check back with what they’ve found, and we’ll go from there.”

  She gave him another look of wonder. “So...that just opened up about a million more questions.”

  “I know, right?” Even as a part of the inner circle, the reach and ability of his family sometimes astounded him. “The important thing is that you’ll be safe tonight, you can get some rest, and tomorrow we can figure out our next step. How’s that sound?”

  “Like I’m out of my depth.”

  “Yeah, you are. But I got it covered. No more questions tonight. I’m good at prioritizing, and number one is food and then sleep. Unless you’re not hungry?” Some people couldn’t eat when they got nervous. “If not, we can go straight to sleep.”

  “I’m not sure I could sleep yet, so I’ll opt for food.”

  “You got it. Anything in particular you want? At home I can throw together a sandwich, or I have cereal. Cookies. Canned soup. Oatmeal.”

  “A sandwich would be great.”

  “Good, then we don’t need to stop.” He’d rather get her settled in, to know for a fact she was out of harm’s way. If she’d wanted a burger or something, he’d have worked it out, but this was easier.

  He was nothing if not adaptable.

  This, though? Yeah, hadn’t seen it coming. Knowing Kennedy had secrets, and having those secrets burn down an apartment building and come after her with guns—two very different things.

  His phone rang and, knowing it’d be family, he answered.

  True to form, Madison relayed information without a greeting. “No one died in the fire. Sounds like a few people were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation, and a whole lot of people lost everything, but Dad said he’ll help with that.”

  Good old Dad. Parrish McKenzie never hesitated to toss around the cash. “That was quick.”

  “Did you expect me to be slow?”

  “Nope. Just didn’t know Cade had gotten hold of you already. Figured he might wait until morning.”

  “Don’t be absurd.” Madison’s voice softened. “How is your lady friend?”

  Lady friend? Talk about old-fashioned... “Kennedy isn’t like us,” he said, and figured that covered it all.

  “If there’s anything I can do, for her personally, I mean, let me know.”

  Driving one-handed, he shrugged. “She has luggage with her, so I’m guessing her immediate needs are covered.”

  “Luggage? She’d been on a trip?”

  Feeling Kennedy’s hard stare, he said, “Texas.”

  “I need details.”

  Of course she did. Madison always wanted more details. It was a trait of her talent. “Because?”

  “Duh. It could be related.” Suddenly she demanded, “Put her on the phone.”

  “Hell, no.” The last thing he wanted was for his sister to chat up Kennedy, making his rescue into something it wasn’t.

  “I’ll locate her number and call her if you don’t, then you’ll have to explain that one.”

  A frown gathered. “How the hell would you do that?”

  “Easy peasy.” As if ticking off the high points, Madison said, “She’s registered at the gym. She likely gave her cell number there. It’d be a piece of cake to access that data—”

  Growling low, Reyes said, “Fine.” He knew his sister didn’t make idle threats. She might be beautiful, with a deceptively delicate quality about her, but like the rest of the family, she had mad skills, plus a backbone of steel and the determination of an ox.

  Lowering the phone, he said to Kennedy, “My sister wants to talk to you.”

  Without a word, her expression enigmatic, Kennedy held out her small hand.

  Damn, these two could be difficult.

  Well, they couldn’t have everything their way. As the driver of this rescue mission, he had some rights. Defiantly hitting the speaker button with his thumb, he handed it over to Kennedy.

 
Proving she knew how irked he was, Kennedy smiled and held the phone loosely against her knee. “Hello?”

  “First,” Madison said. “You’re okay?”

  “Yes, I think so. Still shaking horribly, but I guess that’s to be expected.”

  “Of course. Your voice sounds strong, though. A good thing, especially when forced into my brother’s company.” Sotto voce, Madison added, “He’s an adorable pain in the ass.”

  “I’ve noticed.”

  Reyes felt his eyebrows climb. Kennedy considered him adorable? Screw that.

  The pain-in-the-ass part he couldn’t really deny.

  Her tone brisk, Madison said, “I take it you’ve been through things like this before?”

  “Unfortunately—but I’m not going into that right now.”

  Madison had just learned something he didn’t know. “What and when?” he demanded, and was thoroughly ignored.

  “Understandable,” Madison said. “Though eventually I’ll know it all.”

  Eyes narrowing, Kennedy asked, “What is it you do?”

  “Reyes didn’t tell you? I’m the tech guru. When he or our brother need research, I pull it together.”

  “Research for...?”

  “I’m sure Reyes will explain in his own sweet time,” Madison said smoothly. “Now, short and succinct, tell me where you’ve been, if there were any mishaps or you noticed anything out of the ordinary.”

  Without hesitation, Kennedy said, “I flew into Texas on Thursday morning early. I went first to the prearranged hotel so I could unpack, get food, rest a few minutes. A couple of hours later I was picked up by a hired driver.”

  Madison jumped in. “Anything off about the driver?”

  “No. He took me straight to the meeting place. I caught a cab back to the hotel later.”

  “He didn’t talk to you? Didn’t watch you unduly?”

  “Not that I noticed,” Kennedy said. “I was busy going over my notes. For me, each talk is slightly different depending on where I give it, if it’s for high school or college age audiences. I speak on human trafficking, and each location has its own unique cautions.”

  Madison never missed a beat. “You share what you’ve learned?”

  “I try. The least I can do is tell young people what to look for, what to avoid. What to do if they’re taken.”

  Reyes could practically see his sister sorting through that information, but Kennedy pushed past any further questions Madison might have asked.

  “I had speaking engagements Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, then again on Sunday afternoon. I’d taken my luggage with me to the last location, a high school, so I could leave directly from there for the airport. Again, a hired driver picked me up.”

  “Nothing unusual?” Madison asked again.

  “No.”

  “Do you remember the name of the company?”

  Kennedy shared it without pause, proving she noted details. “It wasn’t until I got to the airport that everything went haywire. My flight was delayed by three hours so I went for a bite to eat. Right as I was finishing up, a kid accidentally dumped a cola on me. After I assured the frazzled parents that it was fine, I went to the restroom to change.”

  Reyes gave a small smile. Of course Kennedy would reassure the parents. He hadn’t known her that long, and still he’d recognized right off that she had a big heart. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have set out to save Chimera. The alley cat hadn’t been cute, but she had been hungry, and Kennedy had immediately decided to care for her.

  Yes, Kennedy could be prickly, but he figured that had something to do with her past, and her understandable wariness.

  “The line was long,” Kennedy continued, “since a flight had just let out, so it took me forever to get into the restroom. I had to take wet paper towels into the stall with me, but it was impossible to wash properly. In fact, I’m still sticky.”

  “You can shower at Reyes’s place.”

  Kennedy flashed him a lingering look. “Yes, that would be nice.”

  Real nice. Annnnd...now he had that image stuck in his brain. At the gym, he’d seen Kennedy working out in snug shorts and loose T-shirts, so he knew a little something about her body. She was short, toned, not overly endowed up top but she had a lush, well-rounded bottom that constantly snagged his attention.

  Lately, too many of his fantasies centered on that perfect ass. Didn’t matter if he’d just indulged in a sexual marathon with another woman, before the night was over, his brain focused back on Kennedy.

  “Anyway,” she said, unaware of his musings, “by the time I finished, I’d missed the next flight, too. At that point, I was ready to cry, I was so exhausted. Luckily, the flight attendants managed to get me on a connecting flight the next hour, but it turned into a long, frustrating night.”

  “And then you got home to find your apartment building burned down.” Full of sympathy, Madison asked, “Anything sketchy about the Uber driver?”

  “No. Poor guy was scared to death. I felt bad for him.” Kennedy heaved a sigh. “I knew the minute I saw the commotion something was terribly wrong.”

  “Something personal?” Madison asked.

  “Yes.” Looking out the windshield, Kennedy hesitated. “I felt the danger. I knew someone was after me, and it made me ill to realize people could have died in that fire.” She swallowed heavily. “Because of me.”

  “You’re too smart to blame yourself for that,” Madison assured her. “I agree it’s unnerving to realize someone is so determined. I’m glad you trusted your instincts.”

  “Instincts are a powerful thing. I never ignore them.” She bit her lip. “Not anymore.”

  Huh. So even if she didn’t always trust her instincts, she didn’t ignore them. Reyes considered that smart—because he was the same.

  “I’m going to let you go now,” Madison said gently. “When you get a minute, sometime in the morning, use Reyes’s account to email me all the details of your trip. The names of the schools, addresses and any descriptions you can recall about the drivers. Anything, no matter how insignificant it might seem.”

  “Thank you. I feel better knowing I’m not alone in this.”

  Reyes scowled. What was he? Invisible? He was the one who’d rescued her. He would personally see that she was kept safe.

  Here, in this moment, he didn’t even care how long it might take.

  When Kennedy’s cool hand rested on his biceps, everything inside him snapped to awareness. Weird. His body had stopped reacting like that long ago. During personal introspection, he admitted that he was a sexual glutton. Apparently, all the variety had blunted the excitement of heated sex.

  Yet here he was, all reactionary and overheated.

  Couldn’t deny it, he liked Kennedy’s touch. He wanted more of it. In more interesting places.

  But first... “Say goodbye, Madison, so Kennedy and I can talk.”

  Kennedy’s smile teased. “Again, thank you, Madison. I’ll get the info to you right away. In fact, I have my schedule in my laptop case. I always print it for quick reference. It has most of the details you want.”

  “She can take a pic with my phone,” Reyes said. “I’ll text it to you.”

  “Perfect. I know your phone isn’t compromised, but I’m not sure about hers. Maybe keep her off it?”

  “Ha!” said Kennedy. “I don’t need Reyes to keep me off it, as long as I know it’s not permanent.”

  “I’ll sort it out quickly,” Madison promised. “Be safe, you two. And if you need anything, don’t hesitate to let me know.”

  Kennedy handed him the phone. Instead of disconnecting, he took it off speaker and put it to his ear. “I need someone to cover for me tomorrow.”

  “Cade’s taking care of it. He knows your employees.”

  “Great. I’ll be in touch.”

 
“Go easy, brother. She’s strong, but some of that strength is a front.”

  Naturally, his sister knew this part of their call was private; otherwise, she never would have said such a thing. The three of them had worked together for so long it was easy to anticipate each and every move. “Got it. Thanks, hon.”

  She blew him a kiss and the call ended.

  Holding out her hand to reclaim the phone, Kennedy said, “Interesting family you have.”

  He acknowledged that with a smile. She’d only witnessed the tip of the iceberg. Long ago his dad had made a decision that affected them all and determined their fates. Cade had rebelled and joined the military instead, but he and Madison, overall, had dutifully fallen in line with the plan.

  Digging through her briefcase, Kennedy located several papers. Using Reyes’s phone, and the number Madison had just called from, she sent images of each paper to his sister.

  “That’s quite the itinerary,” he murmured.

  “Which is why I keep it all typed out for easy reference.” Once she’d put his phone in the console between them and stored her papers again, she got cozy in the corner and simply watched the dark scenery pass by.

  Twenty minutes later, he pulled down the long winding drive to his secluded cabin. Sitting straighter in her seat, Kennedy looked around. “So...you’re off the beaten path.”

  Did that worry her? Was she afraid to be isolated with him? Going for nonchalance, he said, “Easier to stay safe that way.”

  Her piercing gaze landed on him. “But we aren’t that far from your gym. However did you manage it?”

  Damn. He’d taken the long way around to his house with the sole purpose of throwing her off. Hadn’t worked. “You know Ridge Trail. Go half an hour in any direction and you’re lost in the mountains.”

  “We’re not lost. I’m not lost.” Looking at the towering trees that lined the drive, she mused, “I knew you were taking the long way, but I didn’t realize we’d end up here.”

  “Here?”

  “In a place like this.” Hands on the dash, she leaned forward. “Oh, a rustic cabin.”

  In the distance, yellow lights showed through the tinted windows and outside each corner of the house. It looked warm and welcoming. “Rustic on the outside, comfortable on the inside.” With every security amenity a dude like him could need.