The Rogue Warrior: Navy SEAL Romances 2.0

by Anderson, Cindy Roland

  Whoever took this picture had been at the ball, and because he’d been too busy moving in a for a kiss, he had missed him. Maybe he wasn’t the best man to protect Weslee after all. At the very least, he needed backup for the archery tournament.

  He knew Kate was on another detail that week, but he wasn’t sure about Jace or any of the other members of his team. Once he notified Detective O’Brien about the escalated threat, he would send out a text to the guys to see who might be available.

  “What do we tell Inez?” Weslee panted as they hurried across the boardwalk.

  “Everything,” Logan said, not sure if the same held true for Jon. He wouldn’t be able to do anything more if he were here. Still, he’d ask for Weslee and Inez’s input before he talked to him. “She needs to be alert.”

  “Okay.” Then Weslee stumbled and cried out in pain. Logan hadn’t let her put her shoes on and now her big toe was bleeding from where she’d stubbed it.

  “Sorry,” he said, sweeping her up into his arms. “This isn’t going to be comfortable.” He carried her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry so he didn’t lose any momentum.

  Once they were safely inside, he located a first-aid kit and doctored Weslee’s toe. She was very quiet the entire time. When he finished, she took his hand and curled her fingers tightly around it.

  “I saw that same picture on Instagram while I was on the phone today. Someone tagged me in it, so I know the post is recent.”

  Logan pressed the home button to bring up the screen of apps. He didn’t want Weslee to dwell on the photo of him or the threatening message. “Will you please find it for me?” he asked, noting her trembling fingers as she nodded her head and took the phone.

  “Here you go,” she said, handing him back the phone.

  “Do you know this person?” he asked, reading over the innocuous caption. @ShopTillYouDrop had noted what a cute couple they made and then asked where Weslee Campbell shopped for her date. Weslee had over two hundred thousand followers, so weeding through the thousands of comments would take time. He’d send it to AJ, his white-collared IT guy he’d brought in as a partner for his cybersecurity company.

  He looked over some of the other posts she’d been tagged in. One of them was a shot of her in front of one of the cancer research children’s hospitals here in San Diego. Logan recognized the dress. It was the same white dress she’d had on that day he’d run into her on the beach. He tapped on the picture and scrolled to the bottom of the comments to find the date stamped, which coincided with the day he’d first met Weslee. The caption by @CancerSurvivor was as innocent as Weslee was in all of this. “I want to grow up to be just like this amazing woman…thanks to her I’ll get that chance.”

  “Do you know this person?” he asked, showing Weslee the picture.

  She studied it for a moment. “I recognize her name, but don’t know her personally.” She leaned in close, her hair brushing against Logan’s forearm. “That picture was posted a few hours before I met you…ran into you on the beach.”

  “I know.” He let out a frustrated breath. Maybe her stalker hadn’t been to California that day after all? If the guy was a regular follower then he would’ve seen this picture. The news didn’t comfort him because it was going to take a lot of time trying to find someone who consistently followed every post Weslee was tagged in.

  After sending a message to AJ and Detective O’Brien, Logan sent out an SOS to his team. “I need someone to cover my six in a couple of weeks…any takers?”

  The replies came in one by one. If they could swing it, his guys would gladly provide backup. Now he just had to find out who wanted him dead.

  Chapter 13

  Weslee knew Logan wasn’t very happy with her right now. She’d insisted on going to the party when all he wanted to do was lock her in her room and not let her out until he found out who had sent the message. He’d grudgingly relented after receiving a report from the guards at both checkpoints that there had been no visitors today.

  The upside about all of this was Logan hadn’t left her side once. The downside was Robbie had noticed and he’d had too much to drink, which was a bad combination. He wasn’t a happy-go-lucky drunk either. The alcohol had the opposite effect on him. His brooding stares were increasing with every trip he made to the bar.

  Josh was just as brooding, but it was all directed at his father. He had only made eye contact with Weslee and Logan once, and that had been when they’d first arrived at the house.

  “Someone needs to cut that guy off,” Logan said. “He’s so loaded he can hardly stand up straight.”

  “At least he won’t be driving home tonight.”

  “Yeah, but he could still go out somewhere.” Logan put a protective hand to her lower back. Warmth spread through her as she leaned in close to him. He’d touched her frequently tonight like he needed the connection to assure him of her safety. She loved how protected she felt and couldn’t help thinking how much her parents would’ve liked Logan. “I don’t like the way he’s looking at you either,” he said in a menacing voice.

  “I think those looks are more for you,” she said, cutting a sidewise glance to Robbie. He was working on another drink, glaring at either her or Logan. She couldn’t decide. “Or maybe not.” She rubbed her lips together. “But Robbie would never hurt me.”

  At least she hoped that was the case. A memory of him a few years earlier surfaced. He’d been married at the time, but like tonight, he’d had too much to drink. He’d been waiting for her when she’d come out of the bathroom and cornered her in the darkened hallway. She still had a crush on him back then, so having him pay attention to her had been conflicting until he’d confided in her that his marriage was over and that he was just waiting for the papers to be filed. Weslee hadn’t seen his wife all evening, making her believe his claim.

  Robbie had told her how much he missed seeing her and suggested they find an empty bedroom to get reacquainted. He hadn’t been drunk enough to miss the shocked look on her face. “We won’t do anything you don’t want to do,” he’d said, reaching out to finger a strand of her hair. “But I’ve been fantasizing about running my fingers through your hair all night long, among other things.” Then he’d moved in to kiss her. Weslee had been frozen. She’d wanted Robbie for so long, but she’d learned a long time ago to never take anyone drunk seriously.

  Before his lips touched hers, she’d ducked under his arm and told him to call her when the divorce was final and he was sober. He never had contacted her. It wasn’t until the following year that she’d seen him again. By then he had a new wife.

  An uneasy feeling came over her at the memory. Robbie had liked her hair. Now that she thought about it, he had always liked her long hair. But he couldn’t be the one stalking her. They had been openly communicating for the past month. The messages from her stalker had started at least two weeks earlier and had been emailed to her. The texting didn’t start until a couple of weeks ago, forcing her to change her phone number. She’d only given the new number to those in her contacts but that was still a lot of people.

  “Drunks should never be trusted,” Logan said in an even voice.

  Weslee’s stomach felt hollow. Should she tell Logan about her memory? She glanced at Robbie. He wasn’t looking at her anymore. He was all smiles and talking to a leggy blonde she didn’t recognize.

  Her relief that Robbie had a date was short-lived when the pretty girl waved goodbye to him and then went over to Josh, kissing him on the mouth as a greeting. Josh’s response was way off for a guy who had just been kissed by a beautiful girl. He’d broken the kiss off and then led the girl over to the bar. Although he wasn’t old enough to be drinking, nobody seemed to care when he ordered him and his girlfriend a drink and then disappeared inside the house.

  “Besides, we should go soon,” Logan whispered in her ear. “I don’t think that storm is going to miss us like the weatherman predicted.”

  “That’s what Inez thinks too.” Weslee gl
anced at her watch. “We’ve been here for an acceptable amount of time. Let’s go find her to see if she’s ready to go home.”

  It took a few minutes to work their way through the crowd to where Inez sat with Mrs. Whitaker and two other women Weslee didn’t know that well. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Robbie tracking her again. She should’ve never encouraged him by responding to his texts. Now that she thought about it she had been sort of flirting with him even though she had no intention of getting tangled up with him.

  “I was just going to come find y’all,” Inez said, scooting back from the table. “That storms movin’ in and I’d like to fill all the bathtubs up with water just in case the power goes out.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Mrs. Whitaker said. “I think we should probably call it a night so y’all can get home safely.”

  “Why do they want to fill their bathtubs with water?” Logan whispered in Weslee’s ear. His warm breath sent a shiver of pleasure all the way down to her toes.

  “In case the water gets shut off.” Weslee smiled at the confused look on his face. “Inez is old school and forgets we have a basement stocked with cases of bottled water. It’s just something she’s always done.”

  The party guests were all too familiar with how wicked a storm could get and how fast it could change, so everyone quickly helped clean up, taking the dishes inside. Before heading home, Weslee went to the bathroom. It was the same one she always used when visiting, and just like before, Robbie stood outside waiting for her when she came out.

  “It’s about time I got you all to myself,” he said, his voice not nearly as slurred as she’d expected. “Your boyfriend is too possessive. He’s the type that stalks you when the relationship ends.”

  His use of the word stalk gave her that uneasy feeling again. “Who says the relationship is going to end?”

  “They always do.” He grinned. “Trust me, I’m an expert by now. I can’t tell you how many women have continued to harass me after I’ve ended things.” He looked her over, his eyes lingering on her chest. Her shirt wasn’t low cut, but it did fit her snuggly. “You’re so beautiful.” He stared at her with a hungry look that frightened her. “You have no idea how much I want you right now.”

  “Robbie, you’re drunk.” She saw Logan coming her way. “Go sleep it off before someone gets hurt.”

  “Hey,” Logan said. “What’s going on?”

  Robbie backed out of the way. “Nothing, dude,” he said, holding his hands up like he was innocent. “Just telling Weslee how pretty she looks tonight.”

  “Is that right?” Logan asked her.

  Weslee didn’t want a fight to break out…or for Robbie to get beat up. Since Robbie had told her how beautiful she was, she decided to stick with that. “Yes.” She took Logan’s hand. “Have a good night, Robbie.”

  “Me and a bottle of Jack Daniels plan to,” he said with a derisive laugh.

  “Has he had a drinking problem before?” Logan asked as he led her to the back door where Inez waited for them.

  “He’s not an alcoholic that I know of.” She wasn’t sure though. This was the south and here folks tended to sweep things like that under the rug, so to speak. “Inez has never said anything about it so I think Robbie is just having a bad night.”

  “Did he say anything else to you besides how beautiful you are?” Logan asked before they reached the back door. “I want all of the truth.”

  She couldn’t outright lie to him. Not if she hoped to have a long-term relationship with him. “Will you promise me you won’t do anything to embarrass the Whitakers?”

  Logan muttered another curse word. “What did he say to you?” he growled.

  “Promise me, Logan.” She glanced at Inez who was hugging the neighbor’s goodbye. “Please.”

  “All right. I promise,” he bit out. His eyes blazed with anger, but it wasn’t directed at her.

  She told him what Robbie had said, grateful she hadn’t divulged the things Robbie had said to her all those years ago. Every line in Logan’s face was tense, making his boyishly charming face look like granite. But he kept his promise. Other than the tightening of his jaw and clenching his fists, he didn’t say one thing. Not even a muttered curse word.

  “It’s so nice to meet you, young man,” Mrs. Whitaker said, giving Logan a hug. That was another thing about the south. They were all huggers. “Inez can’t say enough nice things about you.”

  “Thank you, ma’am.” He smiled at Inez. “Miss Inez knows how much I love her and her cookie dough.”

  That earned him a swat on the arm from Weslee’s mild-mannered nanny. “This one is trouble,” Inez said with a laugh. “It’s a good thing I like him enough to want to keep him forever.” She leaned in and whispered loud enough for everyone to hear. “I meant for Weslee to keep him forever.”

  Weslee was embarrassed and didn’t want to look at Logan. Another southern trait was no filter, especially with the older generation.

  “My goodness, Miss Weslee, it sounds like you’ve found yourself a keeper.”

  Weslee was so relieved that Mrs. Whitaker had said keeper instead of husband that she didn’t try to dispute her words. “Yes, ma’am. He’s a good man.”

  She could feel Logan’s eyes on her but she only dared to look at him when he opened the door for Inez to pass through first. His eyes smoldered—that’s the only way to describe it—with something she couldn’t define. But the look sent a bolt of lightning through her that heated every square inch of her body.

  As they stepped outside, Weslee caught sight of Josh walking toward the ocean. He turned and stared at her for a brief moment. She started to lift her hand to wave at him, but he abruptly turned and continued toward the water. She felt sorry for him. It was clear that Robbie was more of a buddy to his son than a father figure. Since the young man was alone, she figured his girlfriend must have left.

  A gust of wind whipped at her hair. The air was thick with humidity and had a chill to it that ordinarily would have left her freezing. Having Logan holding her hand and remembering the heated look in his eyes made it feel like she stood in front of a roaring fire.

  Once they were inside, Inez hurried to fill up all the bathtubs with water on the main floor. She instructed Weslee and Logan to do the same on the other floors while she gathered flashlights in case the generator didn’t work properly.

  “I’m sleeping on the couch upstairs,” Logan said as they made it to the first bathroom.

  “There’s another bedroom you can take,” Weslee said. “It’s more comfortable than the couch.”

  She expected him to argue with her but he remained quiet, staring at her with a pensive gaze. “I don’t know how good of a man I am.” The grave sound of his voice countered how off-balance his statement made her feel. “I’ve done things and seen things that would make you run right into Dallin Morrison’s arms and never look back.”

  Okay, she was starting to get used to his out-of-the-blue statements, but this one puzzled her and ticked her off too. “I don’t want to run into his arms, Logan.”

  She didn’t like the hard lines on his face, making him look like a tough soldier on a mission. She liked the sexy spy or hot-guy-next-door so much better, but she supposed if she loved him she would have to love all of him.

  Love. She did love him—so much that it physically hurt to think he might not return her feelings. “It’s your arms I want to run into.” She licked her lips, yearning to tell him she’d fallen in love with him. “And you can’t chase me away, soldier. Not when everything you’ve done was done as a soldier.” She lifted her hand and smoothed the lines on his forehead with her fingertips. “I can’t imagine the things the Navy required you to do or the lives that were lost, but have you ever stopped to consider all the lives you did save? How many women and children are alive because of you?” She dropped her hand to her side. “You’ve told me over and over that you protect people. And, the thing is, Logan, I believed you the first time you told me
that the day on the beach when I ran into you. I still believe in you.”

  His eyes burned into hers like he was trying to trust what she was saying was true. Then he looked down at the two thin bracelets he wore, rubbing his thumb across the ridge of one of them. The silence stretched, but she kept quiet even though she desperately wanted to ask him about what those bracelets meant to him.

  “A Syrian woman…a mother gave these to me after I rescued her two daughters.” He moved his thumb to the second bracelet and let out a shaky breath. “Two little girls were standing in the middle of the street, crying and frozen in fear as bullets sprayed over and around them. I couldn’t leave them there to die like that. I had some of my team cover my six while I rushed out to grab them.”

  He raised his face to look at her. “I didn’t think we’d make it out alive. I knew it was a miracle when I dove behind a wall and all three of us were alive without one single bullet wound.”

  The love she felt for this man swelled inside her. He did protect people. She sensed he protected his heart too. What would it take for him to trust her enough to give her his heart? “I can’t imagine having that much courage to run into the line of fire to save people I didn’t know, but you did.” She wanted to reach for him but wasn’t sure if he’d welcome her touch again. “I’m sure the girls’ mother felt so helpless, not knowing how to save her little girls. And then a brave American soldier swooped in and saved her daughters for her. You did that, Logan. Those girls are alive because of you. They have a future because of you.”

  His eyes softened, and the tension drained from his expression. “Thank you.” Maintaining eye contact, he reached for her hand and brought it to his mouth, placing a heated kiss to her palm. “I’m not good enough for you,” he said, still holding her gaze as if he wanted to gage her true reaction. She hoped he read how much she loved him. “But I want to try to be, Weslee.” He kissed her palm again. Then he reeled her into him and placed a lingering kiss to her mouth, bathing her in warmth, security, and love.