“Where was he when you saw him?”
Kirkland was standing in the doorway of my bedroom, a gun sitting almost casually in his hand as it rested by his side.
I reluctantly got up, leaving the pillow behind. He moved close behind me as I approached the bedroom window, pointing to the wall directly across from where I’d been sitting. There was no one there now, but the image of that guy waving at me was still so fresh in my mind that I shivered as I did.
Kirkland’s arm came around my waist, and he tugged me back against him.
“Don’t get too close.”
“Do you believe me?”
“Of course,” he said without a trace of hesitation.
A moment ago, I was creeped out. Now…he was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts. He was so much taller than I was that things didn’t quite match up properly. However, I was so very aware of every inch of his body pressed against mine. His hand on my side, the length of his arm pressed against my ribs, just under my breasts. His chest against the thin material of my t-shirt. His abs, tense and hard, against my back. And his hips, the bony protrusion, so hard against me.
Was this what it felt like to be held by a man?
I closed my eyes, wanting to remember this moment forever.
“I should go check it out,” he said, his voice low, a little uneven. “Make sure he’s really gone.”
But he didn’t move. He continued to hold me, even tugging me a little closer against him for a moment. I thought I felt a little hitch in his breathing, but I told myself it must have been my imagination. And then, slowly, he dragged his hand across my belly before letting me go.
“Lock the door behind me,” he said after he’d pulled on some pants and shoes.
I watched him go, a part of me so close to calling him back that the words actually tumbled off my tongue in a whisper after the door closed.
“Don’t go.”
I locked the door and curled up on the couch, tugging his pillow back into my arms as I waited. I glanced up at the camera that watched this room, wondering if Ricki’s fiancé was monitoring us even now. When he came back, he unlocked the door with a key I hadn’t realized he had.
The superintendent of the building, apparently, was free with spare keys when he was told lies by large, former soldiers.
“There’s no one out there now.”
He came to the couch and sat down beside me, stowing his gun in the holster he’d left on the floor. Then he sat back, taking my hand in his.
I knew how it must have looked, me sitting there with his pillow in my lap. I put it back where it belonged, carefully fluffing it up so that it would be comfortable when he lay his head back down. I could feel him watching me just as intently as I could feel his fingers pressed between mine.
“Maybe this whole situation is making me paranoid. I’m sorry I woke you.”
“I wasn’t asleep.”
I wanted to look at him; I wanted to see if he was lying to make me feel better. But I found myself struggling to look him in the eye. I didn’t want to see that weariness there again. I didn’t want to see in his eyes the way that most people saw me. I didn’t want to know that he was just like all those other people who looked down their noses at me just because of the way I dressed.
He tugged my hand, pulling me closer to him.
“I won’t let anything happen to you, Mabel.”
“I know.”
I was suddenly aware of how undressed we both were. He and his bare chest, me in my t-shirt with nothing underneath but a simple pair of cotton panties. I should have been horrified. Even my mother hadn’t seen this much skin on me since I was a babe in diapers. But it felt almost natural.
I sat back, my head falling almost perfectly under his arm. He let go of my hand and wrapped his arm around me, pulling my head down on his chest. I curled up there, trying to remember the last time I’d cuddled with anyone like this. I couldn’t.
Did he do this with all his clients?
I wanted to make that thought disappear. I wanted…
“Do you think I’m odd?”
“I think you’re brilliant.”
“But am I odd?”
“You’re unique.”
I groaned. “That’s the same thing, isn’t it?”
“Not necessarily.”
He rubbed my arm lightly. “I once knew this girl who thought she had to do things that went against everything her parents had always taught her in order to be popular. She smoked and drank even though she knew her parents would kill her when they found out. She wanted to be popular so badly that she did things she wasn’t proud of. And then, one day, she decided that it wasn’t worth it. She decided she’d rather be herself than make herself into something she didn’t like.”
“Was she happy?”
“For a while, she was.”
“What happened to her?”
Kirkland’s muscles tightened for a long moment, tension racing through him as though I’d asked a question that he disliked. I turned into him, my eyes falling on that tattoo again.
“Is she one of these?” I asked, touching it with just the tip of my finger.
He took my hand and pulled it away, laying it in my own lap. Then he carefully untangled himself from me, standing.
“You should get some sleep.”
He was dismissing me. That’s what I got when I tried to be something I wasn’t.
He said my name as I stepped through the door into my bedroom, but I didn’t respond. What was the point? He’d made himself pretty clear.
Chapter 12
Kirkland
I leaned against the back wall of the conference room and watched her strut her stuff. She may be dressed like an anime doll, but she knew what she was talking about as she negotiated with her potential investors. And that smile. She knew exactly when to pull it out, when the guy across the table from her needed his ego stroked and when he needed to feel as though they were sharing some amazing secret. But it was that smile that sealed the deal.
It was a pleasure to watch Mabel Watson at work.
I’d known a lot of women, but none of them were nearly as brilliant as she was. How many times had I stood at the back of a conference room so much like this one and watched a female CEO fall on her face, make some mistake that was easily prevented with a little concentration, a little understanding of her opponent? Most of those women never understood why things fell apart so easily around them. Mabel could give them lessons.
She wouldn’t look me in the eye, but she was never afraid to look these men in the eye. Plus, she didn’t behave the way a man would. That was a mistake most female CEOs made in the boardroom. Either they tried to use their feminine wiles to distract their opponent, or they tried to act like they thought a man would. But Mabel, she embraced who she was. She was quirky, but feminine, and over-the-top brilliant. She was always a step ahead of these guys, and she gave them what she knew they wanted.
If I ever owned a business, I’d want Mabel in the boardroom, running it for me.
“Graham,” I heard Mabel say, “I appreciate everything you’ve done for us. You won’t regret it.”
“I know I won’t. If you can sell me on Cumming’s Treasure, you could sell an Eskimo ice.”
She smiled brightly. “We’ll talk soon.”
I followed her out the door, Carrie rushing to catch up to us.
“That was amazing, Mabel,” Carrie said. “I can’t believe you talked them into twice what they originally offered.”
“It’s what we needed.”
“You could start a whole new business with that kind of money.”
Mabel glanced back at Carrie. “That’s the plan.”
I had no idea what they were talking about. We boarded the elevator, and Mabel leaned back against the wall, her eyes slipping closed. I knew she hadn’t gotten much sleep this weekend, and I felt somewhat responsible. Seeing that guy outside her bedroom window on Saturday night really rattled her, and she’d deci
ded to spend most of the day Sunday at the office. I should have encouraged her to go home a lot sooner than she did, but I knew keeping busy was the best thing for her.
It wasn’t as if I was her father. I couldn’t tell her what she could and couldn’t do. But, still, I probably should have encouraged her to rest.
“I need to talk to legal about the expansion. And we need to talk to the fiction department and see what all will be needed for the publishing house to get off the ground.”
“Publishing house?”
Mabel peeked at me from under her eyelashes. “It’s always been the plan to start our own publishing house, to offer electronic and paper versions of our erotica, but in full-length novels. We’ll do romance, too. Offer our readers more of what they buy in short bits off of the website.”
I was impressed. She’d own a piece of every part of the erotica and porno industries. This woman had a hell of a head for business.
We stepped out into the lobby and headed to the SUV that was parked at the curb.
“I’ll meet you back at the office,” Carrie said, stopping Mabel with a hand on her arm. I watched the exchange, the tension in Mabel’s face and the concern on Carrie’s. They didn’t seem to be exceedingly close, but it was pretty obvious that Carrie knew what was going on and could sense that things had changed. Hell, the whole world could probably tell something had changed. Mabel was so quiet all morning that even the receptionist on her floor to whom Mabel rarely speaks to was wondering if something was wrong.
I took Mabel’s arm, my training telling me we shouldn’t stand out in the open too long. She glanced at me, something flashing in her eyes that made it clear she wasn’t in the mood to be bossed around.
“Call Andrew,” she said to Carrie. “I need to talk to him as soon as we get back to the office.”
“I will.”
“And call that real estate guy. I want to get moving on this as quickly as possible.”
“I will.”
Carrie rushed off in one direction, and I tugged Mabel in the other. She walked ahead of me, forcing me to let go of her arm. I followed, waiting for her to trip in those delicate silver heels she was wearing with a green pair of tights that had little ducks or something printed all over them. And that under a darker green skirt and a white sweater that had blue ducks on it.
A fuzzy sweater.
The woman certainly had a sense of style.
I used the fob to unlock the doors and pulled hers open for her just as she reached it.
“Thanks,” she mumbled as she climbed in.
“Are we not talking? Is that what this is?”
She shook her head, her hands clasped in her lap as if she was a child caught doing something wrong.
“Is that, no were not talking, or no were not not talking?”
“What?”
She looked up and saw the smile I shone on her and that made her smile.
“There you go,” I said. “That’s what I’ve been missing the last day or so.”
“I’m just…I have so much to get done before the wedding stuff starts this week.”
“I’m sure you finished most of it yesterday what with how long you worked.”
“Yeah, well, there’s always more.”
I touched the back of her hand lightly. “You work too hard, Ms. CEO.”
She started to shrug, but then something behind me caught her attention. She stiffened, her whole body going rigid right there in the seat. I turned, all my instincts screaming as I scanned the sidewalk for what had frightened her. There was a man, some ten, twenty feet away, wearing a hoody, just leaning against the wall watching us. I couldn’t see his face, but I could feel his eyes on Mabel. And I knew he had to be the same guy who’d been outside her apartment Saturday night because I didn’t believe in coincidences.
“What are you doing, buddy?” I asked as I charged toward him. “Why are you staring at her?”
The guy reached into his sweater, and I was a second from pulling my gun when he held an envelope out to me.
“Someone paid me fifty bucks to bring this to you.”
“To me?”
“To you and that lady. Said you’d confront me.”
I took the envelope and shoved it into my back pocket, as I grabbed his arm, twisted him around, and shoved him up against the wall.
“Who was it? What did they say to you exactly?”
“Told me where she lived, to stand in the parking lot and watch until she came to the window. Then I was supposed to wave.”
“You were told to wave?”
“Yeah, man. That’s what the lady said.”
“Lady?”
“It was a lady who hired me to chase your friend around. She gave me that letter, said she was a friend of the woman’s and wanted to give it to her, but she couldn’t do it herself. Said they’d had a falling out.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“It’s the truth, mister!”
He smelled. It was pretty obvious that he was a homeless man. More sober than I would have expected, especially of the homeless in this part of town. But I had no reason not to believe him.
“How much did she pay you?”
“I told you. Fifty bucks.”
“For both trips?”
“She even gave me a ride to the apartment.”
“What did she drive?”
“Mercedes.”
I pushed him harder against the wall, but then I let him loose. I pulled a business card out of my pocket and handed it to him with a twenty.
“You see that woman again, you call me.”
“Yeah, man.”
“And you stay away from my friend. Tell everyone you know, they better stay away from my friend or I’ll make sure they need that fifty bucks. Understand?”
“Yeah, man,” he said again, looking up at me, fear in his dark eyes.
I gestured for him to go. He ran off much faster than he looked like he could run, his dirty, old sneakers smacking the ground hard. I waited until he was around the corner before I went back to where Mabel was watching from behind a locked door in the SUV.
She opened the door as I approached.
“What did he say?”
“Someone hired him to watch you. Even instructed him to wave at you.”
“Someone hired him? Like the bomb guy?”
“Yeah.” I glanced toward the corner where the guy had disappeared. “Whoever’s behind this is going to great lengths to hide his or her identity.”
“Why would they do that?”
“Why are they after you?” I focused on her, taking her hands carefully between mine. “I’ll call Detective Warren as soon as we have you safely back at your office.”
“You let him go.”
“He didn’t have much to tell. Besides, I can find him again if I need to.”
“How?”
I gestured to the street around us. “There are only so many places a homeless man can hide. I can find him.”
She nodded, but fear was still dancing in her eyes. I squeezed her hands, then reached behind me and took the letter the man had given me out of my pocket. I hated to do this to her, but we needed to know what was going on. I tore it open, stepping back and holding it clear of my body. You can never be too careful.
“What is that?”
“He said the person who paid him to watch you gave him this letter to deliver to both of us.”
She was quiet as I unfolded it and read the words written in heavy, dark, block letters.
“You think you can hide?” it read. “Think these Gray Wolves can keep you safe? Think again. I can get to you wherever you go. You will pay for what you’ve done.”
Mabel turned away, curling up in her seat as a shudder rushed through her.
“Hey,” I said, dropping the letter back into its envelope before sliding it into the console where she could no longer see it. I grabbed her arm, tugging her closer to me. “Don’t fall apart on me now.”
“W
hy would someone want to hurt me? I’m just a stupid girl trying to run a stupid business. I’ve never hurt a fly!”
“First of all, you aren’t stupid. Far from it. And second, I don’t know who this person is, but we aren’t going to let them hurt you.”
“But how long is this going to go on? How long are these threats going to come? And why—?”
“I don’t know,” I said, cutting her off as I heard the panic rising in her voice. I touched her face, lifted her chin, and held her jaw between both my hands. “Listen to me,” I said roughly, forcing her to look me in the eye, “it’s going to be over sooner than you know. We’ll find this person, and we’ll put an end to all this nonsense. I promise.”
She stared at me for a long moment, then she leaned forward, pressing her lips almost shyly to mine. It wasn’t a kiss, really, just a brushing of her lips on mine. Then she jerked back, her face reddening as she turned away, pulling away from me.
“I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “I shouldn’t have…”
For a second I forgot about my promise not to touch her, forgot that she was a client and I was just the guy making sure she didn’t get dead. I forgot that this was the last thing I was supposed to do. But the thing was, I’d wanted desperately to kiss her Saturday night when she curled up beside me on the couch, her head on my bare chest. Until she touched my tattoo and asked about the initials on it, I’d desperately wanted to kiss her. I still wanted to kiss her even after she touched the tattoo and I pushed her away. So…yeah, I forgot.
I touched her jaw, made her turn toward me, and then buried my fingers in her hair. This time it was a real kiss, a touch that had purpose and whose purpose was clear in the pressure applied, in the little nibble on her bottom lip, in the slightest tongue action that allowed a lovely burst of sweetness to move through my consciousness. It was one of the best first kisses I’d ever enjoyed.
I pressed my forehead to hers when it was over.
“You should never apologize for a kiss.”
I stepped back and shut the door before I did anything more because I didn’t forget that we were parked in the middle of a busy Los Angeles street.
KIRKLAND: A Standalone Romance (Gray Wolf Security) Page 8