Vulnerable: (McIntyre Security Bodyguard Series - Book 1)

by Wilson, April

  Shane threw Cooper a quelling glance, then picked up his plate and coffee. “I’ll be in the office. I’m going to finish eating, read the case reports from last night, and check e-mail. Then I’ll grab some shuteye. Satisfied?”

  Cooper nodded. “Just doing my job, boss,” he said, grinning.

  Shane dropped into his desk chair and booted up his PC. He was exhausted and needed sleep, but of course he’d never admit that to Cooper. Cooper was old enough to be his father, but he had the energy of ten men. As far as Shane knew, the man never slept or took a break. The hypocrite.

  As he ate, Shane read the new case reports that had come in from the field overnight. He would have to write one himself on his overnight surveillance of Beth, but he’d leave out the fact that he’d hit on her. He’d also leave out the part about his raging all-night hard-on.

  His company had about two dozen surveillance jobs underway in the city right then, but the only one he was interested in at that moment was Howard Kline. The Kline surveillance team had reported a quiet night. While Shane had been camped outside of Beth’s house, Kline had been at home with his mother watching reruns of 1980’s sitcoms until the wee hours of the morning. Kline’s inactivity worried Shane. The man hardly ever left the house, and that just wasn’t right. It was a huge fucking red flag. He made a mental note to go out on one of the surveillance runs himself, so he could get a firsthand glimpse of Kline. He could tell a lot about a man from watching him.

  He took a few minutes to write up his own report from the night before, leaving out the many ways he’d screwed up. He refrained from mentioning that he’d held her hand and whispered in her ear as he’d inhaled her tantalizing scent. Damn.

  He read the report his brother Liam had filed on Miles’ trip to the ER and subsequent hospitalization. It must’ve been one hell of a case of food poisoning, the poor guy. According to Liam, Miles was due to be released from the hospital later that afternoon, and he’d return to his shift as Beth’s overnight bodyguard that night.

  Shane picked up the desk phone and dialed Liam’s cell.

  “Jesus, Shane,” his youngest brother said with a voice that sounded like crushed gravel. “It’s six-thirty on a Saturday morning! Something had better be on fire.”

  “How’s Miles?”

  “You woke me up to ask me that?” Liam made a disgusted noise. “Miles is fine. He’ll be sprung from the hospital sometime today, and he should be able to return to work this evening.”

  “Tell him that won’t be necessary,” Shane said. “I’m taking over his night shift with Beth Jamison until further notice. Give Miles a few days off to recuperate, then assign him to another case.”

  “Why the change?” Liam said.

  “Just do it.”

  * * *

  Beth woke Saturday morning to the warm, yeasty aroma of homemade pancakes. She cracked open her eyes and blinked at Gabrielle, who sat on the side of her bed holding a wooden tray. Gabrielle was dressed in black yoga pants and a purple sports bra, and she looked gorgeous, as always.

  According to the digital clock on her nightstand, it was eight-thirty. “You’ve already been out for a run and made breakfast?”

  “Yep. Four miles,” Gabrielle said, grinning at Beth. “Now rise and shine, sleepy head.”

  Beth glared at her best friend. Gabrielle’s cheeks, which were flecked with a light dusting of cinnamon freckles, were flushed and her green eyes sparkled. She looked far too amazing for this early on a weekend morning. She was gorgeous, with a body to die for, and she cooked like a boss. She was going to make some guy very lucky one day.

  Beth groaned as she rolled over to hide her face in her pillow. “I hate you.”

  “Come on! I made pancakes,” Gabrielle said. “You love pancakes.”

  Beth rolled back and eyed the tray in Gabrielle’s lap. There was a stack of three enormous pancakes on a plate, a small pitcher of maple syrup, two forks, napkins, and a glass of what Beth knew was fresh-squeezed orange juice. Gabrielle never took short-cuts in the kitchen.

  “Thanks, Gabrielle,” Beth said as she scooted up in bed to lean against the headboard. “I really don’t deserve this.”

  Gabrielle set the tray on Beth’s lap. “Of course you do. You’re my best friend.”

  “Then I guess I don’t deserve you.” Beth picked up the knife and cut the stack of pancakes in half. “I hope you’re planning to share this with me. I couldn’t possibly eat this much. Besides, Tyler’s picking me up for lunch in a few hours.”

  Gabrielle grinned as she picked up the extra fork. “Why do you think I brought two forks?”

  Beth took a bite of the pancakes and moaned. “Oh my God, this is so good,” she said. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. So, did you have a good evening last night?”

  Beth’s face heated. “I did, actually. I sort of met someone last night at Clancy’s.”

  Gabrielle looked at her in surprise. “You ‘sort of’ met someone? Who?”

  Beth shrugged. “His name’s Shane McIntyre. He gave me his number and asked me to call him.”

  Gabrielle’s eyes narrowed. “Really.”

  Beth took another bite. “He bought me a smoothie in the café. He was really nice, but I kind of freaked out on him and bolted.”

  Gabrielle laid down her fork. “Are you going to call him?”

  Beth shook her head. “No. He’s way too far out of my league. Besides... well, you know.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably for the best,” Gabrielle said.

  * * *

  Tyler arrived at half past eleven and let himself in. Beth ran down the stairs to meet him.

  Her brother stood in the foyer dressed in his typical weekend attire – black jeans, a white collared shirt, and a pair of black running shoes. She had to admit, from a purely objective perspective, her brother was all kinds of hot, if you liked your guys tall, dark, and controlling. No wonder he couldn’t keep a girlfriend.

  Tyler ruffled the top of Beth’s head. “Ready, kiddo?”

  She ducked out from beneath his hand and smiled. “Yes.”

  Tyler had been calling her “kiddo” for as long as she could remember. She’d always been a kid to him, and probably always would be.

  Beth grabbed her purse from off the hall table. “Bye, Gabrielle! I’m leaving!”

  “Bye!” Gabrielle called from the kitchen. “Have fun!”

  Tyler steered Beth out the front door and locked the door behind him.

  She walked down to the curb and found the front passenger door of Tyler’s black pick-up truck locked. Glancing back, she spotted Tyler back at her front stoop reading something on his phone. His brow was heavily furrowed, and he was frowning. After he keyed a quick response, he slipped his phone into the holder at his waist.

  “Sorry about that,” he said, jogging down the front steps.

  Tyler unlocked her door with his key fob, and she slid into the truck cab.

  They drove a couple of miles in silence, which was unusual for them. Tyler usually grilled Beth on how her week went. But today, he seemed preoccupied.

  “Was that work?” she said. “On your phone?” Her brother never stopped working.

  “Yeah,” Tyler said. “Just something about a case I’m working on.”

  When they entered the restaurant, they were seated promptly in their favorite back corner booth. A petite brunette with short, curly hair and dimples arrived to take their order: a large, deep dish pizza with everything. Tyler ordered a Coke for Beth, and a bottle of the local Goose Island summer ale for himself. When their server returned with their drinks, her eyes lingered on Tyler.

  “Our server is crushing on you,” Beth said, once the girl had gone.

  Tyler scowled. “No, she isn’t. So, how was work?”

  “It was fine.”

  She told him all about her week, and he entertained her with a story about an extracurricular departmental game of basketball that had gone bad that week – ending with both of the
m laughing so hard they had tears in their eyes. They were still laughing when their pizza arrived.

  “Thanks,” Tyler told the girl, as she set the pizza on their table.

  “Can I get you anything else?” she said.

  “No, thank you,” Tyler said. “This should do it.”

  “Okay.” She smiled at him, showing off those dimples. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

  “I will, thanks,” Tyler said.

  Their server stood there smiling at Tyler for a few more seconds, and then she blushed and walked away.

  “See? I told you she was crushing on you,” Beth said, grinning at her brother as he placed a slice of pizza on her plate.

  Before he could reply, his phone buzzed with an incoming call. When he gazed at the screen to check the caller ID, a flicker of surprise crossed his face.

  “Excuse me,” he said as he accepted the call. “What is it?” He listened intently for half a minute. “Understood. But now’s not a good time. I’ll call you later.” And then he abruptly ended the call.

  “Work again?” Beth said.

  “Yeah. Nothing to worry about,” Tyler said, smiling at her. “How’s your pizza?”

  After they finished their meal, Tyler paid the bill and they left. When they got back to her house, he double parked and walked her up to her door.

  “Beth, do you need anything?” he said, as he unlocked her front door with his key.

  “No, thanks,” she said. “I’m good.”

  “How about money?”

  Beth smiled at her brother. She loved him dearly, but sometimes he drove her nuts. “Nope. All good.”

  He nodded. “Let me know if you need anything, okay?”

  “I will. Thank you, Tyler.”

  Tyler leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. “Call me if you need anything, kiddo.”

  “I will.”

  He started to walk away, but then he turned back and wrapped his arms around her. “Be careful, Beth,” he murmured. “Be vigilant. And always let Gabrielle know where you are and when you’ll be home.”

  “I will.”

  Tyler seemed a little shaken. He was always protective of her, but this was different. He was worried.

  “I love you, kiddo,” Tyler said, reaching out to muss her hair again.

  This time she let him do it.

  * * *

  Beth walked through the kitchen and out the French doors to the backyard where she found Gabrielle working in her herb garden. With its neat little rows of carefully marked plantings, the herb garden was Gabrielle’s pride and joy.

  Beth crouched down beside Gabrielle and began pulling weeds from between the flourishing oregano plants.

  “How was your lunch?” Gabrielle asked.

  “Good. Tyler seemed a little distracted, though.”

  “Oh?” Gabrielle said, moving over to weed around the dill plants.

  “Yeah. Something’s bothering him. And then he got weird right before he left, reminding me to ‘be vigilant.’”

  “Well, you know how protective he is of you.”

  “I know,” Beth said. “But this was different. He told me to always tell you where I am.”

  “We do that anyway, Beth. That’s nothing new.”

  “I guess,” Beth said.

  Chapter 6

  After finishing up paperwork and returning e-mails, Shane headed to his suite and crashed. He needed a few good hours of sleep if he planned to camp outside Beth’s house again that night. During his time in the Marines, he’d learned to fall asleep anywhere at any time. That skill came in handy in his civilian life, too.

  He woke at noon, hungry. He grabbed socks and running shoes and headed to the kitchen. Cooper had left him a note telling him to help himself to the leftover Chinese food in the fridge, which he did. He guzzled a bottle of water, then headed down to the gym on the 14th floor.

  The gym was crowded, which was good. Maybe he could find someone to spar with. Kicking the shit out of someone sounded like a really good idea. If he couldn’t find someone in the gym, maybe he could talk one of his brothers into going a few rounds with him.

  After a quick warm-up, he grabbed an employee to spot him and hit the bench press. The physical strain of lifting 280 pounds helped him rein in his thoughts. After he finished with the bench press, he ran three miles on the indoor track, setting a grueling pace that helped him stay focused. Otherwise, he was liable to do something stupid like check in on Beth. If there was a problem, his people would let him know.

  About the time he was done running, a text came in. He stepped off the track and checked the message. It was from the surveillance team assigned to monitor Kline. Finally, something.

  K’s on the move. On foot.

  Shane texted back: Watch and report.

  He wanted to know Kline’s every move. If the guy sneezed, Shane wanted to know. If Kline was on the move, he wanted to be sure it wasn’t in Beth’s direction.

  He texted Miguel, who was on duty watching Beth: Report Bookworm location. K on the move.

  Bookworm. Shane grinned at Beth’s nickname. It was definitely growing on him. When Miguel had first come up with the nickname, Shane hadn’t like it much.

  “The Bookworm’s home from work, safe and sound,” Miguel had reported once via a phone call to Shane.

  “Don’t call her that,” Shane had said.

  “Why not? She’s a librarian, for God’s sake, and she hangs out in bookstores. Ergo, the girl’s a bookworm.”

  Since Shane couldn’t argue with Miguel’s reasoning, the name had stuck.

  Miguel texted back: Bookworm still at lunch w/T-Rex @ Mario’s.

  Another text came in from the team shadowing Kline: K walked to public library. Using PC.

  All right! Now they would finally get somewhere. Kline surely wasn’t surfing the Internet for cookie recipes.

  Shane replied to the Kline team: I’ll alert IT. Stand by for forensics team.

  Shane called AJ Byer, head of the IT department. “I want a computer forensics team mobilized and ready. Howard Kline is using a PC at a public library. I’ll have the surveillance team send you the exact location. As soon as Kline leaves the library, I want a team on that computer. I want to know everything he did. Every search, every keystroke.”

  “No problem, Shane,” AJ said.

  Shane headed upstairs to the apartment. After a quick shower, he parked himself on one of the kitchen counter barstools and booted up his laptop.

  Another text came in from Kline’s surveillance team: K left the library on foot, heading home.

  Shane replied: Secure the PC. Forensics en route.

  The Kline surveillance team confirmed the order: Roger that.

  Shane called AJ. “Kline just left the library. Someone from the surveillance team will hang back at the library to guard the PC until your folks get there.”

  “Got it,” AJ said. “We have the location, and the forensics team has already left. Their ETA is 30 minutes.”

  An app on Shane’s phone chimed, alerting him to the fact that he was about to have company. Someone had entered the passcode to the private elevator. He checked the bank of CCTV monitors in the kitchen and saw Jake and Liam in the elevator. They were undoubtedly here to give him a hard time about his whereabouts last night, but at least they had the decency to bring food. A moment later, Shane heard a ping as the elevator doors opened in the foyer.

  “We heard there are some developments,” Liam said as he came through the foyer doors. He was carrying two large pizza boxes, which he laid on the counter.

  Jake walked in reading an incoming message on his phone. He headed for the fridge and grabbed bottles of beer, handing one to Shane and one to Liam.

  Shane opened a pizza box and pulled out a slice. “Thanks for the food. I’m starved.”

  “No problem,” Liam said. “Anything concrete yet from IT?”

  “Not yet,” Shane said. “The forensics team is en route to the library. We should be
able to get some good intel from his browser history.”

  Liam opened his beer.

  The three brothers sat on barstools at the counter, eating pizza and drinking beer.

  Forty-five minutes later, Shane’s phone chimed with an incoming call. “AJ, I’m putting you on speaker.” Shane synced his phone with the speakers in the kitchen. “Liam and Jake are here, too.”

  “We’ve got problems, Shane,” AJ said. “Our perp was a busy boy at the library. He searched for second hand computer shops and cheap Internet plans.”

  “Figures,” Shane said. It was only a matter of time until Kline got himself an Internet connection at home.

  “He searched for local employers who hire cons,” AJ said.

  “He needs an income,” Liam said, grabbing another slice of pizza. “To pay for the second-hand PC and Internet service.”

  “He tried to download some porn, but the library filters caught him,” AJ said. “But here’s the kicker, Shane. He ran a search on Beth Jamison. He accessed her home address and phone number. He searched for her on social media websites, but he didn’t find much there. She has a Facebook page, but it’s restricted to friends only. He also went to the Kingston Medical School website and viewed a map of the campus.”

  “Fuck,” Shane said. “Thanks, AJ. Send me the full report when forensics is done.”

  Shane called Tyler Jamison, whom the guys had aptly nicknamed T-Rex. He knew Tyler was with Beth, but this couldn’t wait. Tyler answered on the third ring, and it was noisy where he was – they must still be at the restaurant.

  “What is it?” Tyler said, his voice coming through loud and clear over the speaker.

  “Kline just searched the Internet for Beth’s address and telephone number on a PC at the public library,” Shane said. “Threat confirmed.”