His To Protect

by Patricia Werner

  Andrew scraped his chair back and stood up, as well. “Maybe we should ask Jennifer.”

  Tracy squared off with him. The logic of what he said warred with her protective instincts. In her mind, this man had become a monster out to tear her fragile family fabric apart. But some small trace of emotion parted the curtain of his obstinacy. She suddenly realized that he was desperate himself. Andrew Leigh was lonely. Her puffed-up anger deflated. Jennifer was family and he wanted her. It was as simple as that.

  Her words were choked off as she realized the selfishness of her own arguments. Some of what he’d said was true. And at the moment, Jennifer was being kept in a fortress because she was in danger. Andrew Leigh had the money and power to keep her safe.

  Tracy reached behind her for the counter beside the sink for support. It would make sense to hand Jennifer over to her grandfather until she resolved the threats that were putting both their lives in danger. If it made so much sense, why couldn’t she do it? Why couldn’t she say the words?

  Instead, all she could do was numbly nod and follow him as he turned and headed toward the hallway. When he reached the staircase, he peered upward. Tracy summoned what strength she had left and spoke with dignity.

  “If you’ll wait in the living room, I’ll bring Jennifer down.”

  She found Jennifer with Rene, occupied over a scrapbook of photographs. As she went in to join them, Rene exchanged looks with her.

  “Jennifer,” said Tracy, sitting down next to her on the floral-print bedspread on Rene’s queen-size bed. “How would you like to spend the day with Grandfather Leigh?” She tried to ignore the lead weight dragging at her heart.

  Jennifer shrugged, then turned her round eyes and chubby cheeks up to her. “What will we do?”

  “Um, I’m not sure. What would you like to do?”

  Jennifer swung her legs, bouncing her tennis-shoed feet off the edge of the bed. “We could go to the zoo. Will you come?”

  Tracy pressed her lips together. Of all the awkward moments, why did Andrew Leigh have to show up today? Matt needed her to help him. There wasn’t a minute to waste in getting to the bottom of the deadly threats that surrounded them. In all fairness, she would have to warn Andrew Leigh in case someone saw an opportunity to abduct Jennifer out from under his hands. The bizarre possibility even crossed her mind that the threats had come from Andrew himself in some crazy attempt to intimidate her. But she pushed that thought aside. He didn’t strike her as an unbalanced or violent man. On the other hand, admitting that she was frightened for their lives only strengthened his position as the best guardian for Jennifer.

  Rene watched her over Jennifer’s head and seemed to sense some of the battle going on inside Tracy’s mind. She gave them both a friendly smile.

  “Tell you what. Maybe your grandfather would let me go along to the zoo,” said Rene. “I’m off work for the holiday weekend. We could pack a lunch.”

  Thank you, Tracy wanted to cry out. Instead, she smiled down at Jennifer. “Do you like that idea? I know Rene makes very healthy lunches.”

  Jennifer nodded excitedly. “Yes. If you can’t go with us, that is,” she said loyally to Tracy.

  “Well, Matt needed me to help him with something today.”

  “Oh.” Jennifer’s gray-eyed gaze took on some endearing coyness. “If he needs you, then you’d better help him. We’ll be fine by ourselves. We can meet you back here this evening.” Her last words sounded so grown-up that it made both Rene and Tracy laugh.

  Satisfied with this plan, she got up. When they all trooped into the living room, Tracy announced the suggestion. Andrew nodded politely, though she could see in his eyes that he preferred to be alone to get to know Jennifer better. But there was also a flash of relief, and Tracy saw the awkwardness that he must have felt at having to communicate with a young girl all by himself.

  Her mixed emotions became suffused with compassion. He was nothing but a lonely man. His wealth and power had failed to bring him family. She had no idea what his wife had been like. Remembering that he had said Jennifer was all he had left confused her. She remembered that Scott had told her that Jennifer’s mother had had a sister. And Andrew had just said that he hadn’t had time for his daughters. But now wasn’t the moment to ask.

  While Rene went to make the lunch and Jennifer went upstairs to put on play clothes, Tracy instructed Andrew on what to do should Jennifer have an asthma attack. They would carry an inhaler to use in the event of emergency. Then Tracy interrogated him on how close he would watch her.

  “I’d like to reassure myself that you won’t let her out of your sight,” she began. “You know the dangers of having children in public places. I don’t want to sound paranoid, but there have been occasional kidnappings in this city. Will you make sure nothing happens to her?”

  He met her gaze soberly. “You needn’t worry on that account. My driver and bodyguard will be with us. I completely trust Domenico.”

  “Oh, I didn’t know.” She knew Andrew Leigh considered himself important. She didn’t know he traveled with a bodyguard.

  While the idea should have been reassuring, it gave her a shiver. What kind of dangers did a man like Andrew Leigh fear? She tried to reassure herself that his stature in the business community must warrant a bodyguard. Many prominent citizens had to guard against threats. It was the same reason that key executives in large corporations were heavily insured for their lives.

  “What time will you bring Jennifer back?”

  Andrew glowered at her, but she no longer felt him such a formidable enemy. Perhaps that moment when she’d seen through his gruff exterior to his own inner losses and needs had softened her. But she still couldn’t let down her guard until matters were resolved.

  “I thought I might take Jennifer and your friend to the Brown Palace for tea at four.” Then, grudgingly, he added, “Would you care to join us?”

  “Thank you, no. But Jennifer will need a nap if she’s tired.”

  “I’ll see to it she gets one either in my suite or back here, whichever she prefers.”

  “Thank you.”

  Tracy told herself she shouldn’t worry. Jennifer’s own flesh and blood would never harm her. And Rene knew the score. She would keep her eyes peeled for trouble. Then there was this bodyguard Domenico. Where was he? Deciding to risk Andrew’s wrath by trying his patience, she stuck her nose further into his business by asking to meet Domenico. After all, if a man she’d never heard of was to be entrusted with Jennifer’s security, she would be less than responsible not to meet him.

  “Domenico is outside. I’ll introduce you.”

  They found the bodyguard in the backyard tossing a ball to Paolo. Seeing his employer, the dark-haired, bronze-complected bodyguard called to the dog, who brought the ball and meekly dropped it at Domenico’s feet.

  Bright white teeth flashed in a smile when he was introduced to Tracy.

  She reacted warily to him, but he looked her in the eye and bowed slightly while shaking her hand. Then he stood respectfully, waiting for orders. She noticed out of the corner of her eye that the lean, black-and-fawn-colored dog thumped his tail once and sat down beside the man he had obviously befriended.

  “Well,” she said to all of them, “if Paolo is willing to trust you gentlemen, I’m pretty sure I can.”

  Andrew pulled his mouth sideways in an ironic smirk. “If you would feel safer, the dog may accompany us.”

  She actually considered it for a moment. But in the end, she decided an army with canine-attack support might be overkill for a visit to the zoo and a picnic. She faced Andrew, strangely feeling less afraid of him and more on an equal footing now. She realized with a sudden swell of pride that in spite of his money, she had her own resources.

  “That won’t be necessary,” she told him. “But I’ll send the Doberman after both of you if you don’t have Jennifer back in time for dinner.”

  As they drove away in the rented black limo, she prayed she had done the right t
hing.

  Chapter Ten

  Friday morning, Matt’s squad met their physical-fitness training requirements. On the obstacle course, he clambered over the six-foot chain-link fence, jumped the ditch, crawled through sand, hoisted himself over a seven-foot wall, used a battering ram to knock down fifty-gallon drums, dragged a two-hundred-pound dummy carrying forty pounds of gear twenty-five feet and then ran a quarter mile in under three minutes.

  When he crossed the finish line, Commander Udal was leaning in the shade beside the concrete-block building that contained showers, locker room and small office. Matt huffed and puffed as he jogged over, catching his breath from the workout. The sergeant clocking him marked his time on a clipboard. Then he handed Matt a towel to wipe down with.

  The commander pushed himself away from the wall and strolled over to meet him.

  “Good job, Matt,” said Udal.

  He waited for the sergeant to disappear around the corner before placing a hand on Matt’s sweaty shoulder. He steered him away from the building to where they could talk near some trees that shaded cars in a gravel driveway.

  As Matt’s heart rate returned to normal, he tried to assess the familiar lines in his commander’s placid face. But Udal spoke before Matt had time to prepare for what he had to say.

  “How’s your personal life going, Matt?” asked Udal in his easy, nonthreatening way.

  “Fine, sir.” He still drew deep breaths as he toweled some of the sweat off from the extreme workout.

  “You know I don’t interfere in my men’s personal lives unless I think it has an effect on the job.”

  “Yes, sir. That’s been my experience.”

  Udal’s penetrating blue eyes bored into Matt as he spoke. “You’re seeing Tracy Meyer—that right?”

  Resentment flared in Matt, then he swallowed, trying not to appear defensive. He was beginning to see where this was headed.

  “Yes, sir, I am. Is that a problem?”

  “Not to me, personally. It’s you I’m worried about.”

  Matt looked away at the junipers and pines climbing up a low rise toward the hogback ridge west of Denver. He inhaled a deep breath and returned his gaze to Udal, waiting for what he had to say.

  Udal glanced away, too. “You’re a little on the edge, Matt. Ever since Scott Meyer’s death. I worried that I should have taken you off the team for a while then. But you’re one of my best men. There’s no question about your abilities. You know the rules. If you’re emotionally involved in something too close to home, you’re likely to get jumpy on the job.”

  He looked back into Matt’s eyes. “I should have offered you time off then. I’m doing so now.”

  Suspicion slithered up Matt’s spine, but he kept his face from betraying any thoughts. “Will this go on my record?”

  A hint of a smile curved Udal’s lips. “You’re due for vacation, in case you haven’t noticed. No need for anything on the record. You’ve just been working too hard and need some time off.”

  Udal puffed up his chest and then let out the air. Hands on hips, he gave his orders. “Starting now, you’re on vacation for two weeks. Does that work for you?”

  Matt began to relax. “Why yes, it does, sir. I don’t mind taking some time off, to be honest with you.”

  “Good.” Udal seemed as though he wanted to say more, but they started walking back toward the showers. Before they reached the corner of the concrete-block building, Udal halted.

  “And, Matt.”

  “Yes, sir?”

  The commander didn’t quite meet Matt’s eyes as he gave his final warning. Instead, he shoved himself off by pushing a hand against the concrete wall. “Don’t do anything illegal.”

  He didn’t look back as he left Matt staring after him. Matt watched him go, then tossed the sweaty towel over his shoulder. He grunted. The man was smart. He knew Matt needed some time to look into things. If he was doing it on his own time, then the SWAT team wouldn’t be held responsible for any rules Matt might break. Matt nodded to himself. Good man, Commander Udal. He could read his men like a book.

  After his shower, he called the Baker residence, but no one answered. When he tried Tracy at home, she picked up. She explained that Jennifer’s grandfather had shown up and taken the little group out for the day.

  “I’m in the den,” she told him over the phone. He realized she didn’t want to say too much over the open airwaves of his cell phone.

  “I’ll be right over.” He shut the cell phone and sped back to town.

  Pulling up at her curb forty-five minutes later, he scanned the neighborhood for potential danger. What he found instead was a quiet, sunny afternoon with very few people and cars in sight. A woman across the street in shorts and a wide-brimmed hat pulled weeds in her flower beds. The few cars parked curbside had no occupants. Birds twittered in the trees, and the hot afternoon sun baked the grass. In Tracy’s yard, shade from an old, overhanging silver maple offered relief from the blinding sun.

  When Tracy let him in, it took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the cool interior of the brick house. He let his vision focus on her luscious figure clad in a lime-green, cropped T-shirt and denim cutoffs. His pulse lurched at the sight of her bare midriff and her tanned legs, and he had to fill his lungs with air in order not to give away the lust he felt.

  Her brown eyes wore a slightly worried expression, and he wanted to take her in his arms and soothe her worries away. Her full lips half parted as she drew in a breath, and he felt the spark leap between them.

  In the shadowy house, cooled by a fan in the window, he almost thought she might walk into his arms. He was ready to plant a kiss on her mouth, taste and feel of her as much as he pleased.

  They were alone, and he sensed that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. With more self-control than he would have credited himself as having, he didn’t move a muscle, but let Tracy brush past him and lead him through the house.

  He stared at the gentle sway of her hips, the inviting crop-top T-shirt and the cascade of curling auburn hair. In the kitchen, she held out the desk blotter from upstairs, and he forced his mind to business. He was more determined than ever to resolve matters surrounding them. For when he did, he wanted to have a serious talk with Tracy about how he felt about her. Would she be ready for another man in her life? He realized now that he wanted to be in her life for a very long time.

  She carried the desk blotter out to the screened porch where the sun poured in. He took it out of her hands and held it at an angle so he could see the indentations made from writing on sheets of paper on top of the blotter. From the look on Tracy’s face, he could tell she’d found something she wanted him to see. He frowned at the squiggles and marks indented in the soft fibers of the surface.

  “Help me out,” he said. “What’ve you found?”

  She pointed a long, graceful finger at several tilted lines in the middle of the blotter. “Look at this.”

  He shifted the blotter to get a better look, then opened his eyes wider. “Bingo. It looks like a list of names. Get a piece of paper.”

  “I’ve already written them down, at least what I could make out. Maybe you know some of the names better than I do.”

  Realizing they might be onto something, he shoved his physical desires to the back of his mind and squinted at the impressions that came into focus as names. He whistled softly through his teeth.

  “What’ve you got?” he asked Tracy as she brought the white pad of paper from the kitchen.

  As she read her interpretation of the list, he nodded. Though he didn’t know them all personally, he recognized the last names of officers of the Denver Police Department. He corrected some of her spelling and filled in where she hadn’t been able to read them. When they were finished, he looked over the names and then met Tracy’s anxious look.

  “Good work,” he told her. “Now all we have to do is find the connection between these men and why Scott wrote their names down.” Another chilling thought occurred to h
im. “Any idea what happened to the original list?”

  She shook her head. “I just started looking through the desk again. But so far, I haven’t found it.”

  But someone did. He didn’t want to say it out loud. Someone must have laid hands on the list and knew what it meant. Matt shook his head, feeling a deep sense of regret creep into his gut. Once Scott had made his list, for whatever reason, he should have destroyed it. He sighed, not wanting to depress Tracy any further.

  “Come on. Let’s go look.”

  They tore the desk apart and then looked through the closet in the den. “Did you keep any of his clothes?”

  She shook her head. “No. I gave those away as soon as I could. If the list was in one of his pockets, it’s gone.”

  Matt felt grim. “I doubt it. Whoever got the list had it before they killed him.”

  He got up off his knees and then offered her a hand to pull her up from where they’d been crawling around on the carpet looking under the desk. He didn’t want to let go of her hand. She stood still for a minute, very close to him, and he felt the warmth of her body. If there’d been time...

  He swallowed and satisfied himself with laying a hand on the silky skin of her arm. “There’s something I need to do downtown. I’d better keep you with me. I don’t like the idea of you being alone in this house.”

  She lifted her face to his, but her eyelids remained half-lowered. “It’s the middle of the afternoon,” she said.

  Did he imagine it? Or was she slightly breathless?

  “Nothing’s going to happen.”

  He gritted his teeth, cursing his luck. If they didn’t have such urgent business, he’d like very much to make something happen while they were alone this afternoon. The rush of desire was almost too much.

  “Tracy,” he said in a husky voice. He slid his hands around to her back.

  “Mmm?”

  “I—” He didn’t know how to phrase it. “Damn,” he finally muttered.

  A wicked grin formed on her lips, and she raised her eyelids, meeting his gaze with a teasing one of her own. Then with pretended innocence, she repeated, “Damn?”