by Sheila Kell
After he ended the call, he reached out to her. “Em.”
She turned on him, slapping his hand away. “How could you?” Tears rolled down her face, obscured by rain droplets sliding down from the top of her head, yet anger laced her voice. “You weren’t supposed to knock him out! You were just supposed to help me with him. He has my daughter! She’s in the hands of a stranger, and they’ll kill her if this man doesn’t return within the hour.” She reached up and beat on his chest. “You’ve killed my daughter!”
Daughter? Shit! Was this man the father? Did he really have the little girl hidden? Why would he want the little girl dead? Jake thought he was saving Em, but it appeared that he’d royally fucked up.
Struggling to understand her words between sobs, he pulled her to him and slowly stood, stepping over the man’s unconscious body to hold her snug in his arms. “Shh. The police will be here shortly. We can tell them about your daughter.” He kissed her on the top of her head, wanting to comfort her, to find her daughter. “I’ll help you find her.”
The chilly rain stopped, and the warmth between them remained. Keeping her close, providing her comfort calmed him, his love growing, and his need for her never stronger. Due to the situation, the intimacy was wasted. She felt so perfect in his arms. He didn’t want to let her go, let her get away from him.
Shoving against his chest, she screamed, “No! He said no police!” She dropped back down beside the man, catching herself with her hand as she slipped, and shook Paul in an attempt to revive him.
Jake watched her and realized he’d lost her before he’d had a chance. Because of him, her daughter was in danger. He would help her find her daughter without the police. He’d do whatever it took.
Knowing he had only one option, he pulled out his cell phone and made another phone call. One he wished he didn’t have to make.
The line rang once before AJ answered. “We’re already on our way. What’s going on? Most of the conversation was muffled.”
Quickly in short, clipped words, Jake relayed what had happened since he’d come on the scene. While he spoke, the welcome sound of jet engines took some of the weight from his shoulders, the burden of possibly causing death to a little girl, Em’s daughter, was more to bear than expected. “I’m not sure who he is, but he might be her daughter’s father.”
“Jake,” AJ hesitated, then cleared his throat before he continued, “that’s not possible.”
A chill enveloped Jake’s bones. Who the fuck was this man, and why had he kidnapped Em’s daughter?
“HOW did you get here so fast?” Jake asked AJ as they exited the police station into the humid air left hanging oppressively over the city after the rain. He’d been brought there to “clear up a few things,” the police officer had said.
A mysterious phone call to the police chief had been the only thing preventing him from being slapped with an assault charge. Nerves knotted in his stomach because he knew if Paul didn’t survive, things could change very quickly for him.
“Em had the common sense to dial our family emergency line. We had grabbed our gear and were out the door before we even knew what exactly was happening. Jesse worked his magic, and when we arrived at the airport, a jet waited for us.” Without breaking stride, AJ handed him a black wallet. “Here’s your badge. Arthur dropped it off before Em called. Your weapon is in my bag. What the fuck is going on with your status as an agent? He seemed hesitant to give them to me. Like he wanted to say something about it.”
Rage snaked through his entire body, and Jake saw red, not at AJ, but at the situation. If he’d had his badge, he wouldn’t have had to leave Em in the first place. Then again, he’d told Arthur to take the badge and shove it up his ass for forgetting about him for so fucking long. So why had the man given it to AJ then? Pissed that he didn’t have the answer, he ground out his response, “I don’t want to fucking talk about it right now.”
They closed the doors to the rented BMW, out of earshot of eavesdropping police officers. “Did they find her?” Jake’s breath hitched, and a small hand squeezed his heart. “Did they find Em’s daughter?”
Leaving her to deal with the situation alone had torn at him. His urgency to return to her had made him impatient and argumentative with the police, nearly landing himself in a jail cell, which would’ve been no help to Em or her daughter.
She’d stood stoically, detached, refusing to say a word about the kidnapping while the police took their statements. He’d worried about her present state of mind but couldn’t do anything about it. Jake hadn’t even met the little girl, and his heart felt as if it had been ripped out of his chest and shredded knowing she was in danger, and he’d made it worse.
AJ started the car. “They’re on their way there now.”
“Let’s go! I want to be there!” He punched the dashboard, guilt eating at his belly for how he’d fucked up. If what Paul had told them was true, he should’ve returned hours ago to the other kidnapper. “I may have gotten her killed.”
“Jesse and the team have it well in hand. I need to be there for my sister.”
Jake was torn. As much as he wanted to be a part of the rescue operation, he felt the urgent need to be there for Em, to comfort and hold her in his arms again. While his cock had twitched at the feeling of her soft body, his heart wanted to be the one she leaned on, the one she needed.
The car jerked to an abrupt stop, and Jake bounced forward in the seat, the seat belt cutting across his chest. “Christ, AJ, get us there alive!”
“I hate driving in this city.” AJ scowled.
Jake snorted. “Last I remember, you drove like this in Baltimore.” He swiped a hand down his face, hoping to wipe away the nightmare affecting his sprite. “Why did this happen? Why Em and Amber?” A sudden shard of ice stabbed through him. “Shit. Do you think this had to do with me? Arthur said a few terrorists had escaped the raid, but he also said my cover was fine.” The possibility this was his fault made him want to retch.
“I’m not certain, but I do know it wasn’t because of you or terrorism so you can stop worrying about that crap. She was a bit emotional and didn’t make much sense. Dev remained at headquarters and tried to calm her over the phone while he located and tracked the vehicle he believed picked Amber up from daycare.” He looked over his shoulder and crossed two lanes of traffic, cutting off a cab. “The man is a miracle worker. I don’t know what the hell he did in the CIA, but he gains access to computers, cameras, or whatever without being caught in their systems. This time, I don’t care what it took. He followed the vehicle throughout the city to get us a location.”
“And?” Jake waved his hand, urging AJ to continue.
“The team separated at the airport. Most of the men went to rescue Amber, and the remainder went to Em’s in case something new happened. The entire team wasn’t present when she called, and we didn’t wait for those who weren’t available. I was headed to Em’s when Dad called about you, so I immediately diverted to pick you up before you did something stupid.”
“Fuck. Dad knows?” Jake grasped the door handle in time to catch himself from being tossed across the seat as they skidded around a corner significantly faster than the speed limit. “He must’ve been the mysterious caller to the police chief.”
“More than likely. I’m sure Jess called him. If everything goes right, Dad will meet us after this in Maryland. If not, he’ll be here rather quickly.” AJ slowly shook his head and sighed. “He’s torn up about this, especially since Em didn’t want the police involved. Our wives are visiting him and he’s trying to keep it from them so they won’t rush here and get in the way.”
Swallowing around the lump in his throat, he’d expected to choke on his own blame in it. “Do they think she’s still alive?” How would Em handle losing her daughter? It had to be the most painful thing for a woman. For any parent. Would she ever forgive him if that happened? Could he e
ver forgive himself? Christ. What had he done?
“Don’t even think it. She’s alive as far as we’re concerned. It does them no good otherwise. They need leverage.”
Growing up, positive thinking had been a trait Jake had most admired in AJ. Although, Jake had learned that trait had been put to a serious test when his brother met Megan, ran away from a drug lord and saved her life. Their lives.
“You’ll fall in love with Amber the moment you meet her. Don’t get me wrong, she’s precocious and says inappropriate things, but she’s a happy child. We miss having her around all of the time. We miss them both.”
“Why did you let her move away from the family especially when it’s just her and the baby?”
Shrugging, AJ glanced over his shoulder and then passed a quick look at Jake. “You know, Em. She has a mind of her own. She never said it, but we all figured it had to do with being away from the memories of you.”
A bone crushing pain lit through his body. It was his fault she’d moved away from the security of her family. He closed his eyes, knowing if only he’d contacted her before he’d disappeared undercover, things would be different. Her daughter would be home with their family in Maryland. Safe.
He wondered if that was truly the reason she had left, or if it was for someone special. She did have a daughter. Clearly, there’d been at least one important relationship in her life. He cleared his throat. He needed to ask the question he’d been holding back since they’d rescued him because a part of him didn’t believe he’d like the answer. “Is she married?”
AJ turned to look at him, his gaze solemn, almost painful before the car swerved.
“Dammit, AJ! Pay attention to the fucking road.”
Steadying the car, his brother looked forward, his knuckles tightening on the leather steering wheel. “No. She never married.”
AJ parked the car and rushed out before Jake could ask if there was someone special, who the little girl’s father was, and if that man was still in her life. Jogging to catch up, he braved it and opened his mouth to ask. He needed to know before he spoke with Em about the two of them. He really should’ve asked those questions while he was recovering.
Without breaking his long strides, AJ looked down at his phone.
“What?” Jake asked impatiently as they passed Ken and Rob, two HIS team members protecting Em’s house.
AJ blew out a heavy breath and smiled. “We have her.”
“Is she okay?” God, he was scared to know the answer. What if they’d harmed her? Fuck, in the delay to her rescue anything that happened to the little girl would be because of him.
“Jess said she’s fine.”
Elated to be the first to share the news with Em, Jake pushed into her home, searching for the petite blonde who held his heart. What he saw made his blood run cold. Dammit! I can’t catch a fucking break.
To keep from doing or saying something he’d regret, Jake turned and walked back outside. He’d seen enough of Emily wrapped in Trent McKenzie—an old family friend, ex-FBI agent, HIS team member, and “God’s gift to women’s,”—arms with a look of sheer bliss on her face.
Five
THE DAY HAD drained her, taken every ounce of strength she’d had, leaving her vulnerable and weak. In her mind’s eye, she’d been doing the right thing by reporting what she’d considered fraud, and it had put her daughter’s life in danger, terrifying Emily more than she’d thought possible, sending her mind and body spinning, falling into a place where she’d had to fight hysteria.
How could she have been so stupid to think she’d have been able to handle this alone? To help return what little money was left to her boss’s clients? Clients who had, more than likely, lost their entire life savings. This event assured her she was correct that her boss was assisting a wealth management company in running a Ponzi scheme.
It had to be a large operation for them to go to this much trouble. Would they come after her again until they had whatever it was they were seeking? Emily wouldn’t risk Amber’s life again. She’d hoped that the two of them would never need protection after the time a madman had targeted someone Jesse loved.
The knowledge of her little girl in the hands of criminals, her mind flashing images of what could be, wrenched her gut, left her teetering between fear and anger, completely distraught.
Then, to stress her even more, Jake had been perched on her doorstep when she’d arrived home. Elation had immediately filled her heart seeing him alive, and she’d wanted to rush into his arms. Then she’d quickly remembered their ending and anger invaded every cell in her body.
But, their reunion hadn’t been important; she’d needed him and could only pray he’d remembered her signal and help her, without a chance of risking her daughter. His daughter.
How could he have hurt Paul so grievously? She’d thought he’d just subdue the man so she could find out where her daughter was. Damn him. She’d needed the man conscious. Her body and mind immediately went into turmoil. One hour.
Things happened in a flash. The police arrived and questioned them while an ambulance took Paul away. Crushed, knowing she’d failed to protect Amber; she’d listened to Jake’s directive for her to stay home in case she received a phone call as the police had taken him to the station. She’d wanted, no needed, to go to the hospital in case Paul woke up, but she also knew he was right. They’d try to contact her again if they truly wanted the information.
The initial hour had passed, and she’d been alone, no phone calls, no one dropping off her daughter. Worse, the previously dialed number on Paul’s phone led to a disconnected number. Yes, her brothers had taught her a thing or two and Paul’s phone had made it to her pocket before the police arrived. What could she say? Her daughter’s life had been at stake.
Her brothers and a few members of their team had arrived less than two hours later to find her on the floor in a ball, nauseous, face and eyes red, completely cried out, fearful that her little girl was dead, and there was nothing she had done to save her. Worse, she’d caused this.
Having her brothers and the men of HIS around her, someone to help her find a way to locate her daughter, had rejuvenated her spirit and gave her new hope her daughter could be found without Paul. With this new resolve, her heart had beat only for Amber, sending her every bit of her mother’s love, making sure she knew someone was there for her, and her uncles would save her.
She’d prayed her brothers were right, and Paul had been bluffing. She needed to believe it.
After changing into jeans and a blue blouse, she’d returned to her living room, filled with the controlled chaos of men with weapons waiting for word on the rescue, ready to assist if needed, while quietly protecting her. When her twin brothers, Matt and Brad, stepped out of the room, a cell phone to Brad’s ear, she panicked and tried to follow, but Trent stepped in to hold her back and distract her. At least that was what she’d suspected he’d been doing. She couldn’t imagine that he’d be hitting on her at a time like this. Then again, Trent hit on women every moment of the day.
The shouts from the team were all she’d needed to know they’d been successful, that they had her daughter. Relief like she’d never experienced gushed through her, lightening her body and mind. She’d waited for her brothers to tell her what condition Amber had been found in. Emily couldn’t fully relax until she knew. Was her little girl hurt? Was she even alive?
Matt walked back into the room. “They’ve got her Em, and she’s perfectly fine.”
That was when her legs had collapsed, only to be caught by Trent before she hit the carpeted floor.
She recovered when she saw AJ walk toward her. “Pack a bag for both of you, Em. We’re leaving now. Amber will be waiting on the plane.” He wore a grim expression on his face, and his body looked to be strung tight as a bow. Why wasn’t he pleased they had Amber back? Something had to be wrong. Something he wasn’t tellin
g her.
It didn’t matter at this point. She needed to see her daughter, to hold her, to ensure she was truly all right, both physically and emotionally. She couldn’t believe her brothers had taken her to the airport instead of bringing Amber home first. She had to get there right now. She’d be damned if she’d take the time to pack.
“We already have stuff at Dad’s. Let’s get to Amber now!” She strode to the door, ready to depart, ready to be reunited with her daughter.
“We aren’t going there.”
“Then we’ll buy whatever we need. Now, let’s go.”
Shaking his head, AJ followed, her other visitors having departed, and waited while she set the alarm. He then moved aside, letting her walk right into Jake.
After her initial thoughts of his sitting on her doorstep, her daughter was all that held her captive. Or, maybe she’d pushed the ones with him back, not wanting to deal with him now, not wanting to unleash her rage on him.
“Em.” His pained, confused expression made her anger at him drop a little, and slowed her racing pulse at the sight of him. He was lean, too lean. His clothes hung on him. What had happened?
The man had been gone four years. Four damn years without a word. He’d left her. He hadn’t fought for the two of them. He’d just left. She’d kept up hope he’d return the first year. That he’d at least contact her.
She loved him after all. She’d known he felt something for her. It wasn’t much longer after that when she’d closed herself off, her shattered heart never repairing itself, and she blamed him for it.
Knowing she’d have something to remind her of Jake had pushed her to create a wonderful life for their child and herself. One that allowed her independence from the family who’d tiptoed around his name.
Whenever Amber had asked about her father, Emily had told her that he’d had to go away. She’d only hoped he’d one day return to meet his daughter, and give her the love only a father could. Now he was here, and she didn’t know what to say to him.