Locke and Key (Titan Book 12)
Page 32
“Yes. Mia left me a plate.” She swung her legs away from him. “I’ll—”
“So am I. You’re the best excuse I have to raid her fridge. Let’s go.”
“I don’t want to be more of a burden than I’ve already been.” She searched for the plate, but it was gone.
“Mia took it hours ago.”
“Oh.” That meant she also saw her clinging to Ryder like a needy lunatic. Classy. “I really should get going anyway.”
He laughed. “Sure thing. After you eat.”
“Why’d you laugh like that?”
“What are you going to do? Just walk out of their house and back to wherever you came from?”
She bit her lip, contemplating her options. Maybe to the closest ATM, and from there she could—no. That wouldn’t work. She could call her bank, but it wasn’t like they’d just wire her cash. She could call a friend to do that, but then she’d have to explain what happened and how she’d been rescued. There’d likely be police to deal with since she had been a missing person. So much to talk about that she didn’t want to. Ow. Her head began to spin.
“Come on,” Ryder said quietly, taking her hand. “We can deal with everything in pieces. Don’t let it overwhelm you. First, we eat.”
The overwhelming totality hit her like a landslide. Again. This time though, she didn’t cry. It wasn’t Ivan’s face that held her in place. It was the reminder that eventually she’d have to go back to Iowa and deal with the fact she was a sham. That there would be so many questions, and her face would be the centerpiece of the eleven o’clock news for the foreseeable future. None of that brought tears, but it did bring paralysis.
“I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, tugging her to the edge of the bed. “Mia’s kitchen is like Shangri-La. You want that.”
He had her on her feet, and as unsteady as she was, Victoria wasn’t sure she remembered the last time she’d been there, except, perhaps, the rare trip to the bathroom since Delta Team had dropped her off, and Mia Winters had deposited her with kind words in the guest bedroom. “I don’t know.”
“I do. Let’s go, love.”
Victoria went ramrod straight and turned to Ryder. “Why are you helping me?”
“Because you helped others.”
“That’s not a good enough reason.”
“It is for me, warrior woman.”
She gulped down the truth that he needed to hear. Ryder thought she was a warrior? No. She was a failure. She couldn’t protect herself and now look at her. “He raped me. More than once, and then I couldn’t pull the trigger. He took his time, and I couldn’t end him.”
Ryder braced a hand on her bicep as she faltered.
“They kidnapped me. Traded me. Sent me to another country. And then, when I had the chance to take Ivan’s life, I failed.” She gasped as the pathetic words ran off her tongue. “Don’t call me a warrior. If you even knew who I was, you’d know it never should’ve happened. I don’t deserve whatever misplaced attention or respect you’re giving me.” She pulled back from his hold, unable to look in the green eyes that promised he knew a different version of her truth.
“Say whatever you want to say, as often as you want to say it, love.”
“Why aren’t you listening to me?” Her throat ached. How could he say something like that, his accent thick and low in her ear? And why did he also feel like a security blanket?
“Spit the anger out when you need to. Might help,” Ryder said.
“I’ll try,” she mumbled, the swing of exhaustion’s highs and lows taking its toll. Rescue victim was more than a stigma. It was an emotional marathon.
“Did you feel better after you slept?” he asked quietly, his low voice rumbling.
“Yes.” She nodded.
“You’ll be even better with food in your system. Let’s go.” His thumb smoothed over her skin before he urged her forward. “Trust me.”
Victoria wanted to, and there was something in his voice that reminded her of sleeping in his arms.
“Off we go, love.”
Not given much of a choice, they passed an alarm clock turned away from the bed as they walked out. 1:32 a.m. Wow. She’d slept for almost twelve hours. Ryder didn’t leave her side for that long? Her bare feet padded next to his sock-covered ones, and they moved down a long hallway to the stairs. There was a child safety gate at the top of the staircase, and he took her hand as they went down in the dark. There were nightlights along the way, and at the bottom, they hooked a right, and he led them to what eventually emptied into the kitchen.
“The holy grail,” Ryder mumbled as he hit a few switches on the wall. The bright overhead lights blasted on and he cursed, slapping them off. “Too much. Hang on.” Then finally, he found the under-cabinet lighting. “Better, yeah?”
“Yes, thanks.”
“Good.” He beelined for a mammoth fridge, and gave the handle a quick tug. “All right. Let’s see what we have.” After a quick pull, he perused the side door and began to pull out Tupperware containers, occasionally pausing to read labels.
“I’m not sure how hungry I am.” She eyed all the food he was removing.
“You’re starved. I heard your stomach. And so am I.”
Her cheeks flashed hot. Well, all right then. “My stomach might not physically be able to hold as much as yours.”
“Either way, no one will accuse me of not feeding you. Mia’s cute and all, but she’s also scary deadly too. Don’t let the manners and smile fool you.”
Victoria laughed, and Ryder stopped, stared, and went back to the fridge.
“What?” she asked, self-conscious.
“Nothing.” He didn’t turn around, peeking behind the milk in case a rogue vat of leftovers had escaped his inspection. “Just hadn’t heard you laugh before. It’s a good sound.”
A warmth ran through her as she smiled. It wasn’t the same as the hot flash of embarrassment from earlier, though the fact he said that made her even more self-conscious about… everything. It was just nice. Or something. She didn’t know.
“Okay, I think that’s everything we could possibly want.” He turned with his hands full, two longnecks threaded in one hand and a gallon jug in the other. “Drinks? Beer or milk? I’m sure they’ve got pop and juice somewhere too.”
“A beer works for me.”
“Good choice.” He put the milk back and shut the fridge, then went to a drawer for a bottle opener, flicking off the tops. “Here.”
She took the bottle as he held his out. “What are we cheersing too?”
“You, love.”
“Me? Why?”
“Because, Victoria No Last Name, sometimes warriors need reminders that they’re badass.” He clinked his bottle against hers before she could protest.
DELTA: REDEMPTION IS AVAILABLE ON AMAZON NOW!
BOOK BLURB
“My name’s Victoria—No last name. Don’t ask.”
That was all that the woman would share when Delta team’s expert trigger man, an Australian named Ryder, pulled her from the pits of a human trafficking nightmare and took the gun from her hand.
He didn’t mean to steal her revenge but survival was the priority. Now that Victoria was home? She had a past he was trying to understand while keeping a secret from her that might tear her apart.
But he’s not the only one. When she goes missing, Delta team discovers that Victoria No Name was a one-woman vigilante force, taking on whoever crossed her path, from gun runners to a drug pushing motorcycle club.
She was exactly who Ryder thought she might be, and now he was coming in to help—whether she wanted backup or not.
DELTA: REDEMPTION IS AVAILABLE ON AMAZON NOW!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cristin Harber is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author. She writes sexy romantic suspense, military romance, new adult, and contemporary romance. Readers voted her onto Amazon's Top Picks for Debut Romance Authors in 2
013, and her debut Titan series was both a #1 romantic suspense and #1 military romance bestseller.
Connect with Cristin: Email | Facebook | Instagram |Twitter | Team Titan
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The Titan Series:
Book 1: Winters Heat
Book 1.5: Sweet Girl
Book 2: Garrison's Creed
Book 3: Westin's Chase
Book 4: Gambled
Book 5: Chased
Book 6: Savage Secrets
Book 7: Hart Attack
Book 7.5: Sweet One
Book 8: Black Dawn
Book 8.5: Live Wire
Book 9: Bishop’s Queen
Book 10: Locke and Key
The Delta Series:
Book 1: Delta: Retribution
Book 2: Delta: Revenge
Book 3: Delta: Redemption
The Delta Novella in Liliana Hart’s MacKenzie Family Collection:
Delta: Rescue
The Only Series:
Book 1: Only for Him
Book 2: Only for Her
Book 3: Only for Us
Book 4: Only Forever
Each Titan and Delta book can be read as a standalone (except for Sweet Girl), but readers will likely best enjoy the series in order. The Only series must be read in order.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you to Team Titan! You are always the driving force behind each novel.
A special thanks to the team of author-friends, editors, publicists, designers, and family that help behind the scenes and made this book shine: Trish Kugle, Sharon Kay, Claudia Connor, Patricia Patti, Anna Bishop Barker, Amber Addison, Jenn Wood, Hot Damn Designs, Red Adept, InkSlinger PR, and Tara Gonzalez. xoxo
COPYRIGHT
Copyright 2017 Cristin Harber
All rights reserved. This book or any portions thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author and publisher except for the use of brief quotations used in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally.
ISBN-10: 1-942236-75-1
ISBN-13: 978-1-942236-75-7
www.cristinharber.com