He reached across the table and laid his hand over hers. “Brielle?” he said softy.
She kept her gaze averted from his, studying the scarred table top. She should’ve known he wouldn’t let her get away with avoiding him. Impossible to do considering they were sitting at the same table. His hand cupped her cheek and she forced her eyes upward. His brown eyes were like warm vats of milk chocolate and she wanted to sink into them. A ridiculous, romantic notion if there ever was one.
“I’ll admit I didn’t have a problem with you calling me by my nickname, but now I don’t want to think about my teammates when I’m with you,” he started softly. “That’s why I want you to call me Tim.”
His revelation surprised her. Was she the first person he’d asked to call him by his real name and not the name his friends used? Had he asked any of his previous girlfriends to call him by his first name? Did it really matter? His request made her feel special, whether intended or not. She couldn’t help but wonder how he’d been given his nickname though.
“I’ll call you Tim. But can I ask a question about your nickname?”
He rested against the back of his chair again, keeping a hold of her hand. “Sure. Depends what it is if I’ll answer it or not.”
“Well, that’s not fair.” She pouted.
He laughed. “Ask me anything, Bri. I’ll always be honest with you as much as I can. Though there will be times when I won’t be able to.”
His final statement hinted at a future for them, and she couldn’t deny she wouldn’t mind seeing more of this man. “I understand that. My question is, why are you called T-Rex? Did you ask to be called that or did the guys give it you?”
“You don’t get to choose your nickname. It kind of happens by accident. Sometimes it’s a shortening of your last name. Like a former member’s nickname is Ash because his last name is Ashland. Italy, is Italy because he’s of Italian descent. Red, because he was badly sunburned his first day of basic. Cowboy, he’s a newish member on the team, and he got his nickname because he turned up at BUDs training wearing a cowboy hat.”
“You’re really avoiding telling me how you got yours. Is it really embarrassing?” she interjected when he paused to take a slurp of his smoothie.
“I got mine because I’d been in the Navy for a while before decided I wanted to be a SEAL. I was at my sister’s the night before I left for training and my nephew, Chris, handed me one of his toys so I wouldn’t forget him. He was two at the time.”
“Let me guess, it was a T-Rex dinosaur.”
Tim laughed. A genuine, happy laugh. His eyes lit up and lines creased around his mouth. It took the edge off his stern appearance and she wanted to try and make him laugh like that more often.
“Yep.” He released his hold on her hand and rocked back on his chair. His hand disappeared, and she assumed he was reaching for something. A second later he placed a miniature plastic dinosaur on the table. “I carry it everywhere with me.”
Brielle reached out to touch it but pulled back at the last second. “Can I touch it?” She wasn’t sure if Tim liked other people touching something so precious to him.
He nudged it across the table with his finger. “Sure. My first day at training it fell out of my shirt pocket as I took it off. The guys gave me a hard time about it until I told them who’d given it to me. You can joke about anything you want, but family is off limits. So even though they called me T-Rex, they never give me a hard time when I take it with me on missions.”
Still she hesitated in picking it up. The story he told her explained to her how special the small toy was to him. Did she have a right to hold it? What if by holding it she transferred bad luck to it and the next time he went on a mission he didn’t come home?
“It’s fine, Brielle, you can pick it up,” he commented as though he could hear the indecision of her thoughts.
“No, I can’t,” she stated.
A look of surprise and confusion crossed his features, furrowing his brow. “Why not?”
Inhaling deeply, she transferred her gaze from the toy to Tim’s eyes. “This is going to sound stupid, but here goes. I don’t want to touch it because I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. I’m sure you don’t normally show the women you’ve just met the reason for your nickname. What if I jinx it, or something?”
If Tim thought her declaration was silly and over the top, he didn’t show it. Instead he nodded and picked it up and popped it back to where he kept it. “I can respect that.”
Thank God, he didn’t think her stupid. Then again, he carried it around with him, so he had to feel a little superstitious about it. “I have to ask though, aren’t you worried you’ll lose it on a mission?”
“Nope, I make sure I keep it in a safe place.”
She nodded and picked up her drink, the cream had melted making her iced coffee extra smooth.
“You still haven’t answered my earlier question,” he commented when she put her drink down.
“What question is that?” Although she knew exactly what question he was talking about. She was hoping he’d forgotten about it. She should’ve known better, Tim appeared to not forget anything.
“Why you were on base?”
Her breath whooshed out. Perhaps if she said it out loud, it wouldn’t happen. Like when she had a nightmare as a kid. She told her dad and believed she’d be safe and stop the bad things from happening to her that had happened to her in her dream. Being kidnapped was one nightmare she’d never had, maybe if she had, it wouldn’t have happened.
Then she wouldn’t have met Tim and she was beginning to think meeting him was the best thing that came out of the whole ordeal. “The man who kidnapped me has threatened to take me again. This time he says there would be no chance of me being rescued whole.” She shuddered as she recalled the cold, clinical way Commander Black had informed her of the threat.
Tim’s hands slammed down on the table, causing the plates to clatter loudly, drawing the attention of some of the other patrons in the café. “What did you say?” he demanded.
“I think you heard me.”
“Why would Commander Black tell you about a possible threat on your life?”
“Because of who my father is and who my Uncle is. Plus, I found out after I returned that there had been a threat against me before I was taken. Dad and Uncle Ronald didn’t think it was a credible threat at the time.”
Brielle may not have known Tim long, but the anger in him radiated out toward her. She reached across the table and clasped his clenched fists. “I shouldn’t have said anything to you.”
“The hell you shouldn’t. I know your uncle is a Senator, that’s how we got involved. But who is your father?”
Brielle never liked divulging who her father was. Oh, she wasn’t ashamed of him, but his name was so well known it surprised her that Tim was unaware that she was Brielle Wilson, heiress to the Wilson Diamond fortune. Once she told people who she was, they always looked at her differently. They wondered why she worked when she could be living in a fabulous penthouse apartment on Fifth Avenue in New York. Or living it up in Europe’s playgrounds like Monaco or Monte Carlo. No one believed that she liked her job as an advertising executive. She liked using her brain and the business degree she’d gotten at college. Sure, she may not need the money, but she’d made the decision years ago she wasn’t going to live off her father’s wealth. When the time came for her father to retire, then she’d discuss the future of the company with him. In the meantime, she lived her life the way she wanted.
Although that was all about to change with this new threat hanging over her head.
Realizing Tim was still waiting for an answer to his question she looked up at him. “My dad is Denis Wilson, of Wilson Diamonds.”
Tim whistled long and low. “I’ve heard of them. I didn’t connect you with him though, I should’ve.”
“Why should you have?”
“Because of who your uncle is and our involvement in your rescue. It wa
s probably mentioned in our briefing, but my focus would’ve been on the logistics of the assignment.”
“So, you think the threat is credible?” She asked, dreading his response, when she already knew the answer. Commander Black wouldn’t have called her to the base if the threat wasn’t a valid one.
“Yes.”
Chapter Five
The look of devastation in Brielle’s eyes hit him square in the gut when he confirmed what she’d been told by his Commander. He still couldn’t believe Commander Black had been so blunt with her. Then again his superior didn’t know how fragile her psyche was.
“How do you know for sure?” Her voice trembled as she asked her question.
Tim had no doubt Brielle was well aware that the information was correct, she just didn’t want to believe it. And he couldn’t blame her. Why would she want to think her life was in danger? That she’d have to look over her shoulder every single second of every day. No sane person would want that for their life. Had his Commander told her she’d need protection? More than likely her father would use his money to ensure his daughter had the best security he could buy. Yet, he’d watched everyone who’d come and gone the whole time they’d been sitting in the coffee shop and no one looked like personal bodyguard detail for her. Unless they were super stealthy, but you couldn’t get more stealthy than a Navy SEAL.
“Tim, answer me. How do you know for sure the threat is credible?”
Sometimes he hated his job. He couldn’t tell her about the mission he’d just come home from. The mission that had involved the very men who had kidnapped her. “This is one of those times when I need you to trust me.”
The color leeched out of her face. Her eyes widened and her hand that had been resting on the table began to shake. He immediately moved his chair, so he was beside instead of opposite her. Tim hooked an arm over her shoulder and hauled her close to him. He concentrated on taking in slow measured breaths, in the hope Brielle would pick up on it and calm her own erratic breathing. “You’re safe, Brielle,” he murmured in her ear like he’d done when he’d seen her in San Diego. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Only this time his calming technique didn’t work, and Brielle pulled away from him. “You can’t guarantee that. No one can.” She stood, her chair rocking violently, but he caught it before it could clatter to the floor. “I have to get out of here.”
Tim had no time to react before she was darting through the tables and out the door, as though she were a gazelle and a lion was nipping at her heels.
“Fuck,” he muttered and ran a hand through his hair. Aware that people were looking weirdly at him he sent them his best back-the-fuck-off-and-leave-me-the-hell-alone look before he followed Brielle out the door.
He couldn’t have been more than ten seconds after her, but when he got out into the street he couldn’t see her blonde hair among the people walking on the sidewalk. He swore again but headed toward his car. They were parked together, that’s probably where she was headed—he hoped.
People moved out of his way as he strode down the pavement, his eyes darting in all directions in the hope of seeing Brielle somewhere. When he reached his car, he saw that hers was still parked next to his.
“Where the hell are you?” he muttered to himself. Dread filling him at the thought that because he’d been so focused on enjoying himself in the coffee shop with her, that he’d missed seeing someone who was working for the terrorists in India.
Brielle was a big bargaining tool. Her father owned the biggest mining company in the world. Her uncle was a very influential US Senator. He couldn’t help but wonder if her father had a diamond mine in India, hence the interest from The Knight, the terrorist who ordered Brielle’s kidnapping.
What he needed was some help? Someone who could help him find Brielle. He could call his teammates but most of them had probably gone home and were sleeping. It was his plan after he’d finished the debriefing. Shower then go home and sleep for days. Only he’d seen Brielle in the hallway and everything had changed.
Tex.
The name popped in his head. Tex had helped them out on numerous occasions. Not only on missions but in helping Italy and Joker locate Erin and Suzie, respectively, when they’d been kidnapped. The guy was a former SEAL who’d been medically discharged when he’d lost half his leg in an IED attack. If anyone could locate Brielle it would be him.
Tim reached into his back pocket and grabbed his phone. He punched out a number and drummed his fingers on the hood of his car as he waited for Italy to pick up.
“T-Rex, what’s up.”
“I need Tex’s number, can you text it to me.”
A short beat of silence dropped between them. “Why?” Italy asked.
The last thing he wanted to do was go into a long conversation over the phone, time was of the essence. The more he delayed in getting the information he wanted, the further Brielle got out of reach. Plus, he didn’t want to go over it all on the phone.
“I don’t have time to explain, can you please just text me Tex’s fucking number.” Part of him felt bad from practically yelling at Italy. The other part was focused on the task at hand—locating Brielle.
“Okay, man, but when you’re in a calmer frame of mind, call me back,” Italy responded at the same time as a beep signaling an incoming message sounded in his ear.
“Thanks, man. I will.” Tim disconnected the call and pulled up his messages. Immediately he pressed the number Italy had sent him.
Two seconds later the call connected. “Who’s this?” A gruff voice asked.
“Is this Tex?” Tim asked, not entirely surprised by how his call was answered.
“Depends who’s asking.”
“This is Tim T-Rex Exeter. I’m teammates with Joker and Italy. I need your help.”
“I know who you are.” In the background he heard some tapping. “Are you currently in a carpark, standing next to a black Jeep Wrangler?”
The man’s computer skills were legendary, so it shouldn’t have shocked Tim that Tex had zeroed in on his position so quickly, yet it did. The fact he also knew what car he was standing next to had to mean there were cameras around which had to work in his favor in locating Brielle. “Yeah, I am.”
“Right, what can I help you with?”
Tim ran another hand through his hair. “I need help finding someone.”
“Who?”
“Her name is Brielle Wilson, her dad is—”
“I know who she is, and who her father is. I also know she was part of the rescue mission you worked a few months ago. And the asshole who took her is threatening her again.”
Of course, he knew everything. “I think you probably know more about her than I do.”
“Could be, but what’s your interest and why do you need help finding her?”
Tim blew out a breath. How much detail did he want to go into? He didn’t need to give Tex the whole story, just a basic outline. The more he went over everything in his mind, the more the distance between him and Brielle’s location grew. “She was on base this morning. We’d just got back from a mission and she had a meeting with Commander Black. We went for coffee afterwards. We were talking, and she asked me how credible the new threat on her life was.”
“What did you tell her?” Tex questioned. Tim heard the thread of suspicion in his voice. The other man was wondering how much information he’d given Brielle. Information that could be tortured out of her if she was captured. As part of their training they’d been put through many scenarios of being captured and tortured. It wasn’t fun, but it was a necessary part of the steps to become a SEAL.
“I told her this was one of the times she had to trust me. She didn’t take it well.” He began pacing around his car. “She still suffers from PTSD attacks from her kidnapping. Normally I can get through to her, but today, she just took off. I was a few seconds behind her, but when I got out of the coffee shop I couldn’t see her.”
Clicking of fingers
flying over a keyboard continued to sound in the background. “Did you see anyone suspicious that could’ve taken her?”
Tim kicked his car tire in frustration. “No. I was watching everyone who came in and out of the café. No one stood out as part of the cell responsible for her kidnapping.”
The loud revving of a car engine caught Tim’s attention and he saw a car speeding toward him. The vehicle screeched to a halt behind Brielle’s car. He blinked as Robot and Italy exited it and strode toward him.
“What are you guys doing here? And how the hell did you get here so fast?” he asked bewildered at seeing his teammates.
“I sent them your co-ordinates when you phoned me,” Tex said, as if that explained everything. Tim wondered if Robot and Italy had been together, and close by, hence why they were on the scene so quick. “I think I’ve located her.”
All thoughts of questioning why Tex had thought to call Robot and Italy flew out of his mind. “Where is she?”
“Put me on speaker?” Tex demanded.
Tim was beginning to learn the former SEAL was as authoritative as his Commander. He pulled the phone from his ear and pressed the speaker button. “Go ahead, Robot and Italy can hear what you’re saying.”
“Right, well she’s actually not that far from you. Looks like she ducked into a dress shop a couple of doors down from the café. I’ve got eyes on her, she’s in the corner of the store, a lady is trying to talk to her but, by the looks of things, Brielle isn’t responding.”
“Fuck, she’s in the middle of another attack. She’s probably not even hearing the lady.”
“I’m calling the store now, I’ll let them know help is on the way. The name of the store is Sassy Clothes and Accessories.”
“Thanks, Tex, I owe you one.”
“Nope, you don’t owe me anything. You’ve got my number, anytime you need help, call it. Now go get your woman, T-Rex.”
Tim disconnected the call and looked at Robot and Italy seeing the questions in their eyes. “Look I know you want to know things, but your questions will have to wait. Once I know Brielle’s safe and sound, I’ll answer anything you want to ask.”
Guarding Brielle (Special Forces: Operation Alpha) (Guardian SEALs Book 5) Page 5