by Jill Sanders
She’d begged her father for the case the second he’d hung up the phone with an old buddy of his. Finally, after arguing with her dad that she was ready, he had agreed and had handed the case over to her.
It had taken her almost a month to find out anything about Ryan West. His brother had little information on him other than he’d disappeared shortly after they’d graduated from high school. Ryan had left everything he had owned, not even taking a change of clothes.
The best lead had come from Reece’s fiancée, Melissa. She’d been working at one of the hospitals in Houston a few years back when a man she swore was Ryan walked in with a few bullets in his stomach.
The man had been unconscious, and they hadn’t been able to get a name before he’d gone in to surgery. He had disappeared in the middle of the night without a clue as to where he’d gone. The hospital’s records confirmed Melissa’s theory. Luckily, they’d had a policy to photograph John and Jane Does as they came in.
She’d gotten a copy of the photo and had even pulled his police records. His record had come back clean—squeaky clean. The photo had been her best lead, and she still had it tucked in her purse.
Ryan West had been shot three years ago. Then he’d disappeared just like he’d done seven years ago. There was some information about him shortly after he’d left his small hometown, but she couldn’t get anything other than a copy of some old tax records. Back then, he’d worked for a private company that, to her bad luck, no longer existed. It had been another disappointing dead end.
She looked around and tried to think of a plan. Seeing the street signs, she smiled a little.
“Can we stop by my place before we head out of town?” She looked over at him, hoping she looked pathetic enough.
He glanced over and shook his head no.
“I would love a change of clothing. Besides, you said it would take them a while to find out who I was.” She tried to think quickly. “If we’re going to be gone long, I’d like to stop by and make sure my cat is safe. My place is on the way out of town.”
He looked over at her and frowned. “Where do you live?”
She gave him her address and watched as he thought about it. He really did have a sexy profile, in spite of the long hair and scruffy beard. She had enjoyed watching him when he hadn’t been aware of her.
“Fine, a quick stop. You can pack a bag while I make a few calls.” He looked over at her. “Got a cell phone in that little bag of yours?”
She nodded and tried not to smile too much. She knew this would be her only chance at escape. Once she walked into her town house, she planned on taking back the situation.
He pulled into her driveway, and as they waited for the automatic gate to open, he made a noise and she looked over at him.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing.” He glanced at her. She knew what he saw. Her town house was in the nice part of town. It was bigger and nicer than most people her age had, all thanks to her father and her business. She could afford some of the nicer things in life, and she worked hard for it, so she didn’t feel guilty.
“I’ll just be a moment.” She went to hand him her cell phone, but he took her hand instead.
“I’ll come in.” He let her go, then jumped out and walked around to her side before she had a chance to open her door. He took her wrist in his hand. When she tried to pull away, he chuckled and shook his head.
“Sorry, princess.” He used her keys to open her door and stepped in right behind her. She heard the door click behind them and then sprang into action. She could hear her alarm beep, waiting for her to input her code.
Dropping her shoes and purse, she swung out and caught him off guard. When his head bounced off her front door, she rushed towards the entryway cabinet and the gun that was tucked into its drawer.
Just as she was pulling the drawer open, she was yanked backwards and landed on the ground hard. She pushed off and swung like she’d been trained, but this time her wrists were gathered up in one of his bigger ones. She tried to kick out, but her legs were quickly tucked under his heavier body.
“Stop it,” he growled while trying to hold her still under him.
She screamed out and used every part of her body to fight him. Finally, after she realized he was no longer fighting her but just holding her until she ran out of steam, she glared up at him.
“Get off me.” She held perfectly still.
“Not until you stop all this.” He glanced up as her phone started ringing. “Damn.”
She looked up at him through the hair that had fallen in her face. He gripped both of her hands in one of his and reached down to push the strands of hair out of her eyes.
“Are you done?” he asked, smiling slightly.
She groaned and wished more than anything she’d never taken this job. Her father would have never let someone get him in this situation.
“Get off me,” she demanded again.
“Answer the phone and tell them everything is fine.”
“No.” She smiled up at him.
He frowned and then looked up as her cell phone started ringing. “Do it.” He growled at her and she could see his anger turn his green eyes darker.
She nodded, knowing it might be her only chance. He loosened his grip on her hands, and she felt the blood rush back to her fingers. His hips and legs held her down, and she could feel his heart beating where his body touched hers. She tried to ignore the feeling of desire his tight body next to hers was causing. But when she noticed that he had stilled, she looked up and realized her mistake.
She’d thought she could easily overpower him, but looking into his eyes, she realized there had never been a chance of her taking him into custody. She desperately needed to change her tactics.
He reached up and grabbed her cellphone, which he’d dropped by the door. But instead of handing it to her, he answered it and got off her quickly.
She sat up on the cold floor, not really listening to him talking to her security company. It was no use; whatever he was saying, they wouldn’t buy it. She was the only one who could call off the police. They were bound to be there in just a few minutes. Then she could explain everything and call the job a wash. At least she could give Reece information as to which prison his brother now sat in.
He stood by the front door and hung up the phone with a smile.
“Listen, why don’t we just call this a botched job. I’ll tell your brother that I couldn’t locate you and you can go on your way.” She tried to slow her breathing down.
He smiled. “Who says I didn’t want my brother to find me?”
She looked at him. “I assume you didn’t wish to...”
He chuckled. “You think this is all some sort of ruse to evade my family?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Besides, the cops will be here soon.”
He chuckled and then shocked her by holding out a hand to help her stand up. She noticed how his eyes ran over her body before she had a chance to stand up and push her dress back into place. The skirt was ripped a little from the fall onto the cement outside of the club. She’d chosen the dress because it looked like the kind that every woman in the club wore. She had needed to fit in and look like she belonged there, but to be honest, it was too tight, too short, and too low for her liking.
She pulled it up and down in the right places, making sure everything was covered. “I’ll just go change.” She started to walk into the back room, but he followed.
She turned and glared at him. “I can do this by myself.” She counted the seconds until the police would burst in.
He smiled. “I’m sure you can.” His eyes ran up and down her. “But after that little trick, I think I like it better when I can keep an eye on you.” He sat on the side of her bed. “Where’s your cat?” He looked around.
She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t have one.”
She heard him laugh then he looked at her. “They aren’t coming, you know.”
Her eyes moved
to his. “Who?”
“The police.” He chuckled. “I can read it in your face.” He nodded to her.
“How do you know?” She crossed her arms over her chest. He was lying. He had to be. She told herself.
“I have my ways.” He smiled and then he pulled her cell phone from his pocket and started dialing like he had all the time in the world.
She felt like throwing something at him. She wished she’d listened more closely to his conversation with the security company. Turning, she walked into her closet and pulled out a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. When she moved to close her closet door, his eyebrows rose as he talked on the phone, then he shook his head no. Smiling big at him, she closed the door with a quick motion and flipped the lock.
She heard him chuckle as he talked, and she held her breath to see if he would knock down the door. When he just continued to talk, she quickly changed, pulling on a pair of sneakers and grabbing her bug-out bag, which was full of clothes, money, and other items including another gun. Her father had taught her how to handle a long list of weapons at the tender age of eleven when she’d attended one of his training classes.
She pulled a spare cellphone from the outside pocket and texted her father, letting him know the situation. When she didn’t get an immediate response, she tucked the phone into her jacket pocket and tried to think of her next move.
“Okay, princess, time’s up. Open up,” Ryan said from the other side of the door.
She grabbed the door handle and pushed it open. “Stop calling me that.” She tossed the bag down and walked into her bathroom.
“We have to go.” He grabbed up her bag and followed her into the bathroom.
“Why?” She turned and looked at him.
“They found Rick in the bay.”
She looked at him. “Who is Rick?”
“The other undercover that was working this case.” He turned to leave.
“Wait!” She rushed after him. When he turned, she bumped into him. “Undercover?”
He nodded. “What is it that you think you interrupted tonight?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “A drug deal gone bad?”
He shook his head. “I thought you were hired to find me, like a PI.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned at him. “I am a PI.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Licensed?”
She let the insult show on her face.
He shook his head in mock disgust “What is it you think I do for a living?”
She shrugged her shoulders again. “I couldn’t find much information.”
He shook his head again and chuckled. “How on god’s earth did you end up finding me anyway?”
She glared at him. “I have my ways.”
He waited and when she made it clear she had no desire to answer his question, he sighed.
“I’ve been working undercover narcotics for the past four years. Rick had been working this gig for the past ten years and if they made him, and I assume they did since he’s floating in the bay, then they know I’m a cop and won’t stop until I join him.” He looked at her and she saw something shift in his eyes. “And, now that they’ve seen us together…” He let the rest fall away.
She dropped her arms and looked at him. “You’re a police officer?”
He laughed. “Princess, I’m nothing. I don’t even exist. I don’t get a paycheck or pay taxes.” He took her arm and then grabbed her bag again. “Now, if we’re done with this, we have to move.”
“Where are we going?” She thought about jerking her arm free, but his grip was too tight. Besides, what he’d just told her was sinking in. He was on the right side of the law. She’d never accounted for that twist.
“Well, you have a job to finish,” he said, looking back at her.
She stopped and when he glanced back at her again, she asked, “What?”
He laughed. “I’m letting you take me to my brother.”
Ryan gripped the wheel tighter and tried to ignore the woman sleeping next to him. They were over an hour out of Houston, and he was desperately trying to wind down.
He’d known she would live in a freaking mansion of a place. The entryway was bigger than his last hotel room. Not to mention all the expensive items she’d had filling the place. She probably had a maid come in and clean once a week, too. He shook his head and tried not to think about the differences between them.
Then his mind switched gears. Rick was dead and he was screwed. Did they torture Rick beforehand? What did they know about him? He’d been assured by Chief Zane that Rick’s family had been moved to safety. He glanced over at Nikki and frowned when he saw her looking out the window.
How long did they have? How long would it take them to track her down and find out what she did?
He shuffled and tried to get more comfortable in her little car. It had been years since he’d driven. Actually, it had been a long time since he’d led any sort of real life. Dating included. He glanced over at Nikki again.
There had been a time when he would have known the right words to sweep her off her feet. He and Reece used to bet one other who could get the attentions of a particular girl. He smiled. Reece had always been smoother with animals and Ryan had been better with women.
Of course, he hadn’t stayed a saint during the last seven years, but for the most part, his work had come first; it was hard to explain to a girlfriend why you needed to disappear constantly.
When he pulled off the highway into a gas station, Nikki sat up and looked around.
“Are we there?” He watched her stretch her legs and arms. She’d changed into a pair of tight jeans that hugged her beautiful ass and a large sweatshirt that hid the perfect breasts he’d enjoyed looking at when she was wearing the tight dress.
“No. Pit stop. Do you have cash?”
She nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. “Don’t you?”
He laughed. “Of course, but since it’s your car...” She glared at him. “Buy the gas and get me a Coke.” He got out of the car. “Use one of those fancy credit cards you have tucked in that expensive bag.”
She got out of the car and glared over at him. “I’m not stupid. If they are looking for us...”
“I know, but for now we want to leave a trail for them.”
She looked at him questioningly, but when he didn’t explain further, she nodded and walked into the small store. He could see her move around in the brightly lit place. She grabbed his Coke along with a water bottle and a bag of chips. When she walked up to the clerk to pay, he started pumping the gas.
When he turned back towards her, it looked like she was looking down at a phone. He touched his pocket and confirmed that her cell phone was still in it.
She walked back outside, and he watched her closely. The way she glided across the dirty parking lot told him that she was even more of a princess than he’d first imagined. She belonged on a runway rather than in a rundown gas station at three in the morning on some back road highway in middle-of-nowhere Texas.
She looked at him as she got back into the car. He finished filling up and got back in. “We’ll need to leave this car somewhere.” She jerked her head towards him.
“What? Leave my car?”
He chuckled. “Yeah, I’m not sure how high tech Hijo del Diablo is, but we’ll need to be careful.” Then he held out his hand and waited.
When she handed him the Coke, he shook his head and set it down, holding his hand out again.
“What?” She looked at his hand. “Do you want some chips?” She held up a large bag of chips.
He laughed. “Listen, princess, it’s time you stopped playing games. Hand the phone over.”
She frowned. “What phone? You still have mine.”
He smiled a little and looked at her, waiting.
Chapter Three
Nikki tried not to throw her emergency phone at him, but when she let it go, it hit his chest and she got a little satisfaction when he grunted.
&n
bsp; He flipped it on and silently read the text messages between her and her father.
“Your father is a PI too?”
She nodded and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Good.” He swiped the phone and to her horror, called her dad.
“Hello, Mr. Dawson?” Ryan looked over at her. “This is Detective Ryan West.” He paused. “Yes, I’m sure she has. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy.” He waited again. “Yes.” He looked over at her. “I can’t go into too many details, but I promise I’ll keep her safe until this whole thing gets worked out.” He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, listening to her father. “Yes, we’re heading there now.” She desperately wished she could hear the entire conversation. “Fine, I’ll let you know when I can.” He hung up and pocketed the phone, then reached in his pocket and took her personal phone out of his other pocket. When he started driving out of the gas station, he shocked her by throwing it out the window.
“What are you doing?” She looked out the back window. “That was my new iPhone.”
He shook his head. “Which was registered to you. This one”—he patted his pocket—“your father assures me, isn’t.”
She frowned. “You could have asked me and I would have told you that.”
He chuckled. “You’re old man is more cooperative than you are.”
“What did he say?” She reached down and opened the bag of chips she’d bought. She was starving for some reason.
“He agreed with me. You’ll be my guest until things cool off.”
She shoved a few chips into her mouth and savored the richness of them. “What do you mean? Where are we going?”
“As I said before, to see my brother. And until I hear back that it’s safe, we’ll stay there.”
“I can’t stay in Fairplay.” She thought of a million things she had to do. Of the pile of jobs her father had given her, all of her friends, her bills. She couldn’t just take off without notice. “I have a job.”
He glanced over at her. “Not according to your father. Not for a while anyway.”