He raised his head to consider Tyler a moment, and finally said, “Mac thinks a lot of you; he might be happy to know his sister will have someone who can take good care of her. And, seems to me, since you’re both job hunting, you might see if you can find jobs in the same city.”
Viv couldn’t believe her ears. Was her dad actually giving his blessing to this? He’d never liked anyone she’d dated. Ever.
“Gee Dad, maybe we should get you to talk to David for us.”
“Speaking of David, have we heard from him to find out how things are going?”
“No Sir.” Tyler answered. “I’ll check the box at nightfall. In the meantime, I’ll take a nap when we finish eating since I’ll be staying up all night.”
He turned to Viv. “While I’m down for my nap I’ll need you to step across the hall to my room and wake me if anything seems out of the ordinary. I’ll give you a button to keep in your pocket; it’ll vibrate if someone tries to get into a door or window. I’ll have one too, and if it goes off I’ll get to the two of you as quickly as possible.”
Tyler rotated back to Evan. “I’ll want you both to camp out in your room, Sir, while I sleep. There are chairs in there as well as the bed; you can watch TV or play games or something, but only leave to go to the restroom. Also, to both of you, don’t close the door all the way when you’re in the bathroom, leave it cracked a half inch or so, please. I’ll turn a TV on in several rooms so it won’t be obvious which is occupied. Please move around as little as possible.”
Viv was starting to get a bit worried with the way he was talking. “But, we don’t think he knows we’re here, right? He didn’t follow us. There should be no way to find us. Right?”
“Never underestimate your opponent. I don’t believe he’ll find us, but we don’t know for sure. I have to be on guard for him to show up at any moment. My guess is the biggest danger will start at nightfall, which is why I’ll get a nap this afternoon. If nothing gives by tomorrow, Mac will likely have to call in some help, so we can sleep in shifts.”
Viv had assumed Mac would’ve told Tyler she was good with a gun, but she was beginning to think perhaps he hadn’t. “You know I have a gun, right?”
“No, I wasn’t aware. How much training have you had?”
“Between Dad and Mac, quite a bit.”
She looked to her dad and he nodded at Tyler. “She’s shot since she was about eight, and she’s a damned good aim. I made sure she has the muscle memory to draw and shoot accurately, and David’s worked with her, too. She mostly carries a three-eighty these days, I believe.”
Tyler looked back to Viv and she nodded. “My Bodyguard is in a belly band under my clothes, with two clips in the band and another in my purse.”
Tyler gave her a scrutinizing look for several long seconds, and finally said, “I’d wondered why you weren’t scared. You aren’t depending on someone else to save you; you’re prepared to save yourself, if necessary.”
His look made Viv uncomfortable, but she didn’t think he was upset. She’d been a little worried he’d be turned off by a woman who could handle a gun. So many men wanted to be the rescuer to the damsel in distress, and she’d worried Tyler might be one of them.
She wasn’t sure exactly how to answer, so she shrugged and said, “You’ve been trained to know what to do, and I don’t mind following your lead. To be honest, if someone has to die, I’d just as soon it not be me pulling the trigger, but if it works out so either I kill him or someone I care about dies, I’ll do what I have to.”
Tyler smiled. “I’ll feel better going to sleep knowing you’re armed. Do you have a round in the chamber?”
Viv nodded. “One in the chamber, six in the clip, safety on. Hollow point zombie loads, but only because they were cheaper than the regular hollow points.”
“You have your carry license?”
Viv rolled her eyes. “Yes, for both New Hampshire and Florida, actually.”
Tyler nodded. “Okay then. If you need to shoot, please keep in mind where I am before pulling the trigger. I’ve situated myself so I can see into your dad’s room while I nap, so if you target someone in the doorway you’ll run the risk of hitting me. Try to position yourself at an angle so I’m not in the trajectory. Also, if we’re in the same room I’ll assign you an entry point, while I cover another. Please move to wherever I tell you, as I’ll take into consideration your shooting angle as well as how best to keep you out of my target trajectory.”
Viv couldn’t help herself, and gave him a, “Yes, Sir.”
Chapter Six
Tyler settled Viv and her dad in the master suite and went across the hall to take a nap. He was capable of waking and taking action quickly, so it was a good plan. He’d sit in Viv’s room tonight while she slept, and keep an eye on her. Nothing would happen to her on his watch.
He could’ve daydreamed about Viv all day, but he worked through the breathing technique designed to put him to sleep, and was out in minutes.
When his watch vibrated to wake him, Viv was curled up in a chair reading a book while her dad watched baseball from bed. Tyler carried his laptop into the room, booted it, and checked the box.
Boring here. Pete and my sister just arrived.
Go if better.
Behave.
“Nothing’s happened there yet,” Tyler told them. “He’s brought in help, both of them in our line of work, and one’s a female with a similar build to Viv. Mac says to move somewhere else if we need to, and to behave.”
“I thought you said you had to keep it short and not give details?”
“He did. I gave you the translation.”
He told her what it actually said and she rolled her eyes. “I’m glad you can get that much out of it. I couldn’t have.”
“Stay put. I made sandwiches earlier and put them in the fridge. I’ll get them and some drinks and chips — bottled water okay with everyone?”
As they ate Tyler said, “If nothing happens tonight I’ll move us tomorrow. We’ll head across to Naples, put the truck into long-term parking at the airport, and take a cab to a hotel. I have a credit card under another name that can’t be traced back to me.”
He took a bite and swallowed. “This house isn’t ideal for security, a fancy hotel room high up off the ground and facing the ocean would be much better. Evan, do you have any doctor’s appointments coming up?”
“His next one is in two weeks,” Viv answered.
“I’ll go online and make reservations then, for three nights.”
The three talked comfortably for a while, and when the ballgame was over Viv made sure her dad was settled for the night before going to her room. She pulled loose shorts and a tee from her bag and looked up to Tyler, leaning on the doorframe. “I need to change.”
Tyler stepped into the room, sat in the chair, and smiled. “Don’t let me stop you.”
“I thought we weren’t doing this yet?”
She looked genuinely distressed, so Tyler tried to assure her. “I’m not going to start anything. I’ll sit right here and keep my hands to myself. Besides, I’ve seen you naked before, there’s no need to be bashful.”
Vivian’s glare told him she didn’t agree, so he quickly added, “But if you’re uncomfortable changing in front of me I can step into the hallway.”
“I’m not doing a strip tease for you.”
As much as he’d fallen for the ultra submissive Katrina, he was falling even harder for the Vivian who seemed more than capable of taking care of herself. He stood and walked to her, touched her cheek gently, and quietly said, “I can’t wait until I have you on your knees. You’ll do a strip tease for me then, if I want.”
He kissed her forehead and turned to leave the room before she had a chance to respond, pulling the door two-thirds closed as he said, “Step out of my sight to change, and let me know when I can come back.”
When she opened the door she was holding her toothbrush, toothpaste, and a bar of soap. “I need to do a few thi
ngs in the bathroom and I’d just as soon you not watch. Or listen. It’s creepy.”
Tyler worked to suppress a smile. This was always the part where civilians began to resent being watched.
“I placed a blackout sheet over the window earlier. It’s kind of like a sticky note, so it seals around the wall and doesn’t let any light out.” He stepped closer, into her personal space, and ran a finger down her nose before bending to lightly kiss the tip. She had the cutest nose.
“Take your gun, and close the door but don’t lock it. I’ll do a walk-through of the house and will talk to you through the door when I come back. If you answer, I’ll walk to the end of the hallway and wait for you; however, if you don’t respond, I’ll come in. If there’s a problem you can’t tell me about, use your safeword in a sentence. Stay in the bathroom until I return, please.”
She didn’t respond for a few seconds and Tyler tilted his head. Her eyes had lost focus, and she seemed to come back to herself all at once. She took a step away from him and glared. “You said we weren’t going to start anything yet.”
He released her as she stepped away, though he wanted to hold onto her. Aware he had a tendency to sound gruff at times, he worked to sound comforting as he answered, “Nothing sexual, and no power exchange. I want to sweep you into my arms and kiss you breathless, but I made do with the barest of contact. Can you help me understand why you’re upset?”
Her eyes closed and she shook her head. “It’d be so easy to fall under your spell. I’m not really upset, I guess my response to you just caught me off guard.” She motioned down the hallway. “I switched from my belly band to a pocket holster when I changed. Go do your thing and give me some privacy.”
When Viv finally crawled into bed, Tyler had to keep himself from tucking her in with a kiss. He could see his Kitten in her now, but he also saw the strong, intelligent, self-sufficient woman behind Vivian. His cock stirred when he watched her walk; he couldn’t imagine how hard he’d get when she was naked and doing his bidding.
He sat in a chair, situated so he could see into the hallway with a view of her dad’s doorway, and could keep an eye on the window, as well. He pulled his tablet out so he’d have something to do besides stare at Viv while she tried to go to sleep, and looked through some documents, since he didn’t think it wise to go online.
Once he was sure Viv was asleep, he laid the tablet aside and watched the girl of his dreams sleep. He was used to staying awake at night for surveillance, listening for the smallest sound that might signal danger, and his training kept track of their surroundings as he watched her and remembered their time together in New Hampshire.
He’d known exactly how far he could take her, exactly how much she could take, and he’d driven her right to the edge — and she’d loved it. She’d not only absorbed every bit of pain he gave her, but had orgasmed from it, over and over. When they’d finally had sex on the second night, after almost two hours of the giving and receiving of pain and pleasure, it was more like making love than it’d ever been for him; even though she was tied up and in pain, and he was quite literally fucking her, it still felt like making love. Later that night they’d had totally vanilla sex and made love again, and his heart became hers. Well, sort of vanilla sex — he was still in control, but she wasn’t tied up, and he let all of the rules go. He hadn’t enjoyed vanilla sex since high school, or maybe his first year of college, but it’d been wonderful with her because it wasn’t just sex, they were connected, somehow.
His cell phone rang a little after three in the morning, jolting him out of his memories.
“Yeah.”
“It’s over,” Mac said. “We took him out.”
“He alone?”
“Yeah.”
“You injured?”
“Couple cuts, nothing major. How’s my sister?”
Tyler knew he was asking about more than her health. “Viv and I’ve just talked, so far. I told her we couldn’t figure out where to go with things until the situation was resolved, because I needed to concentrate on our surroundings in order to keep them alive. But, if the threat’s over...” He thought fast, considering options as he talked. “I’d planned to take them to Naples tomorrow,” he looked at his watch and corrected himself, “well, today, I guess. It would’ve been easier to protect them in a high-rise suite pointing at the ocean than in this rambling rental house. I’ve already made the reservations, and with your blessing I’d like to bring your dad back to you and then take Viv to Naples for the three days I’ve booked the room.”
“Why didn’t you recognize her at the house? How’d you figure out it was her?”
“She recognized me from the get-go, apparently. I didn’t recognize her because she wore a disguise in the clubs so her students wouldn’t spot her. I told her yesterday when we got here the discussion of us going out was closed, but she told me she wanted to tell me a story of where she was three years ago. She said if I’d listen to her story she’d drop it and wouldn’t bring it up again, and I agreed to her deal. Turns out I only needed to hear the very beginning of the story, since I knew how it ended.”
“So, the two of you hooked up without knowing you had me in common.” Mac’s voice sounded defeated, and Tyler felt bad for him.
“Yeah. And now…I’m sorry Mac, but she’s the girl of my dreams. You’ve heard me talk about her, and bitch and moan because I lost her. I have to see where this goes. It may not go anywhere, we may not be able to make those three days translate into real life, but I have to try. I hope you understand.”
“This’d be easier if I didn’t know what you do to your girlfriends, Hastings.” Ah, now he sounded pissed, which was better than defeated. Tyler could handle pissed.
“Mac, it’s the way she’s wired. If it’s not me doing it to her it’ll be someone else. You’ve heard the stories of what happened between us in New Hampshire, she’s way past experimenting with the lifestyle.”
“Bastard.”
“Yeah.”
After a pause long enough to make Tyler wonder if one of the phones had dropped out, Mac finally sighed and said, “Okay, I won’t fight you on this. You don’t exactly have my blessing, but I won’t try to stop you. You may as well get some sleep since the threat’s over. When everyone wakes up, have breakfast and bring dad home. And I guess then you and Viv can go off and figure out…” His voice trailed off, as if he couldn’t bear to voice whatever they might need to figure out, and he briskly changed the subject. “By the time you eat breakfast and get here, we should have the mess cleaned up. Actually, it’d be helpful if you could stop and buy a sheet of plywood and have it cut. I’ll text you the measurements; the big window in the living room was shot out.”
“Will do. See you tomorrow morning. And, thanks.”
Viv’s eyes were watching him when he disconnected. “You heard that?”
“Yes, David got him?”
“Yeah, you’re safe now, and I have permission to take you to Naples, so you and I can figure out where we go from here. That is, if you’d like to go with me.”
“You don’t have to sit in that chair anymore?”
Tyler smiled. “No, but I’ve kind of enjoyed watching you sleep.”
“Do you think you could get in bed with me? Not to fool around — not with my dad in the other room, even if he can’t hear anything without his hearing aid — but maybe you can just hold me?”
“If you don’t mind me holding you while sporting a hard-on, sure.”
“Oh come on, we’re both wearing shorts and a t-shirt, just take your shoes off and crawl into bed so we can snuggle. I want to touch you.”
Tyler couldn’t argue with wanting to touch, and he bent to unfasten the holster from one ankle and knife sheath from the other as he removed his boots and socks. He stood and placed the weapons on the nightstand, followed by cellphone and keys, and finally pulled his primary gun from the hip holster before removing the holster. Next came the knife from the sheath inside his pants, and final
ly the gun in his under-the-arm-holster. He kept his pocketknife and the button that would vibrate if there were problems — just in case — and he finally slid into bed and drew her into his arms.
“I had no idea you were wearing all those weapons. I thought you just had the one gun I could see. If you can conceal all that under shorts and a t-shirt, what can you hide under a bunch of clothes?”
He smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead. “Get some sleep. You have a big day coming up tomorrow.”
“Tyler, I–”
He interrupted her. “That was an order, Viv. No more talking. Close your eyes and get some sleep. You’ll need your rest for tomorrow.”
She sighed as she tucked up against him and closed her eyes, and they drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
A few hours later, Evan’s bed creaked as he sat up, and Tyler extricated himself from Viv and walked in to talk to him. “Good morning, Sir. Mac called a couple hours ago. The threat’s been neutralized. I’ll take you home after we eat breakfast.” He offered a hand to help him stand, as Evan looked a little shaky.
“Thank you, Son,” Evan said as he accepted the help. “Glad to hear it. Did you talk to David about you and Viv?” Evan’s body may not have been at one hundred percent, but there was nothing wrong with his mind.
“Yes. After I take you home, Viv and I will drive to Naples to make use of the room I reserved, and we’ll see where we go from here. I don’t think we completely have Mac’s blessing, but he won’t stand in our way.”
“I certainly won’t stand in your way. You’re both adults and either you’ll make it work or you won’t. The two of you must’ve had quite some fling for you to risk your friendship with my David.” He released Tyler’s hand, took a few seconds to make sure he had his balance, and started towards the bathroom.
Safeword: Rainbow (2013 extended edition) (Safeword Series) Page 8