Ace of Spades (Aces & Eights Book 3)

by Sandra Owens

  “Maybe, maybe not. What time did you come home?”

  “Around midnight. I was walking down the hall to my room when I heard you screaming. Your door was cracked open, and I knew that wasn’t right. Your mother was very protective of you. I . . . I . . .” Rosie covered her face with her hands. “If only I’d come home sooner.”

  Taylor put her arm around Rosie’s shoulder. “You can’t blame yourself. So, you came in to see why I was screaming?”

  “I started to, but I had a bad feeling. I hurried into my room to get the baseball bat I kept. You know, just in case. We didn’t live in such a good neighborhood, so it was best to have a weapon handy. Your mother kept one next to her door, too.”

  “I remember.” Funny that she’d forgotten that until now. “And then what happened?”

  A visible shudder passed through Rosie. “The first thing I saw . . . You don’t want to hear this. You don’t need to.”

  “Yes, I do. I know it’s hard, but you have to tell me everything.” Truthfully, she didn’t want to hear it, but she needed to know anything that would help them find their killer, no matter how close to home it hit.

  Rosie took a deep breath, her heaving chest proof of her misery. “Okay. I eased the door open. The first thing I saw was your mother. She was on the floor, not moving. I started to go to her, then I saw the back of a man. You were in bed, but you’d stopped yelling. He was leaning over you. I . . . I screamed at him and slammed the bat down on his legs. I should’ve bashed his head in.”

  Taylor rested her cheek against Rosie’s hair. “My vicious Rosie. What was he doing?” It confused her that Rosie’s story wasn’t tearing her up inside, but nothing Rosie said triggered any memories of that night. It was strangely as if they were talking about people she didn’t know.

  “He had his hands on your throat.” Rosie squeezed her eyes shut. “I thought he was trying to kill you, too.”

  How could she not remember that? Not even a flicker of a memory from that night came to mind. Had she been so traumatized that she’d blocked everything out? All Rosie had told her before now was that her mother had died. It wasn’t until she’d joined the FBI that she’d searched for information on her mother, shocked to learn that she’d been murdered. When she’d tried to question Rosie about it, her foster mother had refused to discuss it—until now.

  Taylor pressed her fingers against her throat. She should remember almost dying, if Rosie was right and the man was strangling her. “Did you see his face?”

  “No. I raised the bat to hit him again, but he ran away. I only saw the back of him. All I can tell you is that his hair was blond—dishwater blond I think they call it. I was more worried about getting you away before he came back.”

  “Was it Paul?”

  “No, I’d seen him several times. He had dark-brown hair.”

  “Please don’t cry,” she said when tears rolled down Rosie’s cheeks. “You were so brave.”

  “I had nightmares for a long time about that night.”

  “I’m sorry to make you relive it, but I needed to know. If you remember anything else, call me, okay?”

  “Of course. I called the police. After I got you to the motel and asleep, I went to a pay phone and called them, told them where to find your mother. When they asked my name, I hung up. I was afraid he’d find us.”

  Taylor’s phone buzzed. At seeing Nate’s name on the screen, her heart did a little dance. “Hey.”

  “The men are here.”

  “Okay, we’ll seen you soon.” He disconnected. She hated the tension between them. Even over the phone she could feel it.

  She stood, pulling Rosie up with her. “Thank you for telling me. Go get Annie ready while I load the suitcases in the car.”

  “Are we picking up the girls now?” Rosie asked.

  “Not yet. My boss has a friend who owns a security company, hires only former SEALs. K2 Special Services, I think is the name. Anyway, Rothmire says they’re the best there is, and his friend sent two of his men to us. They’re going to stay with you and the girls until this is over.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about going off with strange men. Why can’t that nice Josh go with us?”

  “With this case and a few others going on right now, we’re stretched thin. Rothmire trusts these men, and I trust him. It will be okay, Rosie. Besides, I understand their nicknames are Doc and Saint.” She smiled at her foster mother. “How can you not trust a man his friends call Saint?”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Nate eyed the two men from K2 Special Services. They were big and intimidating. The dudes were going to scare the hell out of the girls. After introducing Jamie Turner and Ryan O’Connor, Rothmire had left for a meeting, leaving Nate alone with them while they waited for Taylor and Rosie to arrive.

  “Did my boss tell you that you’ll be babysitting six girls, ages two to nine?”

  “Yeah. Scariest assignment ever,” the green-eyed one said.

  “You’re O’Connor?” Nate asked the man sporting a grin.

  “Yeah, but the team calls me Doc.” He pointed a thumb at his friend. “We call him Saint, and trust me when I say the moniker suits.”

  “Just try not to scare the hell out of the girls, okay?”

  The one called Saint cracked a smile. “We’re teddy bears at heart.”

  “You should know that these girls come from homes where they were either neglected or abused. They’re afraid of men.”

  Both men frowned. “Don’t like hearing that,” Doc said. “No one will hurt them under our care, I promise you.”

  “If I didn’t know that, those girls wouldn’t be going anywhere with you. Rosie, their foster mother, is a tiny little thing, but don’t let that fool you. She’s as fierce as a mother lion when it comes to her babies.”

  “Good for her. Your boss explained the situation,” Doc said. “We’ll take good care of Rosie and her babies, but I gotta tell you, we’d rather be here helping you catch your bad guy.”

  “Truth,” agreed Saint. He walked to the glass door leading out to Nate’s balcony. “Nice view you got here.”

  “Thanks.” His doorbell chimed. “That will be Taylor and Rosie.” He let the women in, following behind them as they walked to the living room. Taylor had barely nodded when he’d greeted her, and he hated how she’d avoided looking at him. Somehow, he had to find a way to repair their friendship. He missed her.

  “Where’s Annie?”

  “With Rand. He’s moving the car seat to the van and getting her buckled in,” Taylor said.

  He was going to miss the little girl. “Taylor, Rosie, this is Jamie Turner and Ryan O’Connor.”

  “I’m Jamie, but my friends call me Saint,” the blue-eyed one said. He shook hands with Rosie first, then Taylor.

  “And I’m Ryan. My friends call me Doc.”

  “Are you a doctor?” Rosie asked, staring at the men with a gleam of appreciation in her eyes.

  “No, but I am a medic. You and your girls will be in good hands.”

  Nate scowled, not liking the matching gleam of appreciation in Taylor’s eyes. Both men wore wedding rings, but he still had the urge to growl Mine! “Let’s get this show on the road.” At the odd look Taylor darted at him, he headed for the door before he made a fool of himself.

  In the underground garage, he helped Rosie into the van they’d rented. “Are our suitcases in here?” Rosie asked, peering around.

  “Rand loaded them in the back.”

  “Nae!” Annie reached for him.

  “Hey, sweet girl. You be good for Rosie, okay?”

  Taylor opened the opposite door, leaning in and giving Annie a hug. Nate slipped away while Annie’s attention was diverted. He faced the two K2 men. “Rothmire said he gave you both mine and Taylor’s numbers. You call one of us if anything—”

  “We will,” Saint said. “Here’re our cell numbers.” He handed Nate a card. “Hopefully you’ll be calling us in a few days, telling us to bring the girls home.”<
br />
  That was the plan. He nodded, then headed for his car. The van pulled out first, and a few minutes later, the car with Rand and Taylor left, Nate following behind them.

  His job was to watch for anyone following the car Rand and Taylor were in. It wouldn’t be unusual for Taylor to visit the school, and by now if their man was watching her, he had to be aware that she had someone with her wherever she went. What he wouldn’t expect was a van parked behind the school, waiting to whisk Rosie and the girls away.

  The drive to the school was uneventful, and when Rand pulled up in front, Nate kept going. At the end of the block, after making sure no one was following them, he turned around. As soon as Taylor was safely inside the school, he drove to the back.

  It would take a few minutes for Taylor to talk to the principal and then collect the girls. He parked next to the van. Rosie stayed in the back with Annie, but the K2 men exited, taking up positions behind the van, their alert eyes scanning their surroundings.

  Although no weapons were visible, Nate didn’t doubt they were armed to the teeth, which was reassuring. He walked inside the school, finding himself in what appeared to be a supply room, where he waited for Taylor and the girls. Hopefully, they’d see this as an adventure, but he was worried about their reaction to the men from K2. The girls were only now getting used to him, no longer giving him suspicious glances or shying away from his touch.

  Each one had a story that had broken his heart when Taylor had shared their histories. The only one seemingly unaffected was Annie. She was blessedly too young to remember how horribly she’d been neglected by her meth-addicted mother the first year of her life.

  Would the men sent to guard the girls appreciate how fragile these six children were without knowing their backgrounds? He strode back outside, stopping at the back of the van. “I trust that you both have the ability to guard Taylor’s girls,” he said at their raised brows. “But to understand why they fear people and places they aren’t comfortable with, you need to know each have tragic pasts. They’re especially afraid of men.”

  “We’ll do our best not to scare them,” Saint said.

  Doc gave a firm nod. “And we’ll guard them with our lives.”

  “Why don’t you come inside so I can introduce you to them? Having two strangers sitting in a van about to carry them off to parts unknown might frighten them.” And these two dudes were big and intimidating, the kind of men that Taylor’s girls wouldn’t want any part of.

  “Let’s do that in shifts,” Saint said. “One of us needs to stay out here to keep an eye on things. Doc, you go first.”

  Nate arrived back in the storeroom with Doc in tow just as Taylor and the girls walked in. At seeing the stranger, all five girls came to a stop, crowding in behind Taylor. Nate had anticipated that reaction, but it still made him sad that they expected the worst to happen at any given time.

  “Girls, I want you to meet a friend of mine.”

  Doc squatted down, putting himself at eye level to the girls peeking around Taylor. All but Bri. She’d totally disappeared behind Taylor’s back. Doc glanced up at him, his eyes filled with compassion. Robin seemed the most curious, so Nate reached for her hand as he squatted next to her.

  “His name is Doc, you know, like one of the seven dwarfs.”

  “The dwarfs are little,” she said.

  Doc smiled. “Well, that’s true. My mama made me eat my broccoli, so I grew up big and strong.”

  “My mama’s in prison.”

  “But Rosie told me on the way over here that she writes you every week, so that means she really loves you. I have a baby girl. She’s only two months old. Would you like to see a picture of her?” When Robin nodded, Doc pulled out his wallet, opening it up and handing it to her. “Her name’s Skye.”

  “That’s a funny name,” Sarrie said as she inched up to see the photo.

  “My wife is a pilot. The sky is her favorite place to be, so we named our baby Skye.”

  “She has pretty eyes. They’re just like yours,” June said, joining her sister and Robin. “I wish I had green eyes.”

  “And I wish I had beautiful brown eyes like yours.”

  At the big smile appearing on June’s face, Nate exchanged a relieved look with Taylor. It appeared that at least one of the K2 men would be able to win the girls over. Even Bri was now peeking around Taylor.

  “I want to be a pilot,” Bri said, almost whispering.

  That was news to Taylor. Bri had never hinted at such a thing. Taylor put her hand on Bri’s head. “Would you like to go for a ride in a plane someday?”

  “Can I?”

  Ryan O’Connor glanced up at her. “If you ever get to Pensacola, let me know. Charlie will be glad to take her up.”

  “Who’s Charlie?” Elle asked, edging up to the other girls.

  Well, that was interesting. Elle was shyer than a mouse and never talked to strangers. Taylor wondered who Charlie was, too.

  “Charlie’s my wife.”

  “But that’s a boy’s name,” Robin said.

  “Her real name’s Charlene, but we all call her Charlie.”

  “Do you have a picture of her?” Bri asked, moving out from behind Taylor.

  Taylor stepped away, letting her girls quiz the man squatting in front of them. She’d been worried about sending them off with strangers, men they didn’t know. Except for Annie, they were like cats. If it hadn’t happened at least three times before, they didn’t like anything new and unexpected. It seemed like that wasn’t going to be a problem where Ryan was concerned. She hoped it would be the same with Jamie Turner.

  “Have you told them yet that they’re going away?” Nate quietly asked, moving next to her. The first thing to hit her was the heat from his body, the second his scent. He smelled like soap and spices. She wanted to lick him. She already knew how delicious he tasted, but their one time together had done nothing more than leave her wanting a repeat. Lots of repeats.

  “No. I haven’t had a chance. I’m hoping they’ll be excited about spending a few days at the beach with no school.” His gaze was on the girls, and that he cared for them was obvious by the way his eyes turned soft when he looked at them. She loved that about him. Not that she had a lot of experience with men, but most would probably run fast and far from a woman responsible for six kids.

  “I have a friend I want you girls to meet,” Ryan said. “I’ll send him in. We call him Saint, and he’s a real nice guy.”

  Ryan stood, giving her a smile as he left. The K2 men were gorgeous specimens, real easy on the eyes, but in her opinion, they didn’t come close to being as hot as Nate. Right now, though, she’d give up any hope of being with him again in return for having her friend back. She missed the easy rapport they’d had with each other, hated that she was carefully measuring her words around him.

  “Does his friend have green eyes, too?” June said.

  Taylor knelt, pulling her girls close. “No, sweetie. Saint has blue eyes, but they’re just as pretty. Listen up. All of you and Rosie are going on vacation to the beach. You’re going to have so much fun playing in the sand and in the water. I bet Doc and Saint would help you build a sandcastle if you said please.”

  “Are you coming with us?” Bri asked.

  “I wish I could, but I have to work. Promise me you’ll be good for Rosie, but most of all, promise that you’ll have a really fun time, okay?”

  Bri frowned. “But we want you to come with us.” She shyly looked up at Nate. “You could come, too.”

  “I’d love to, sweetheart, but I have to work, too,” Nate said, kneeling.

  Taylor didn’t miss the flash of pleasure in Nate’s eyes at Bri’s invitation. It was the first time she’d spoken directly to him, which Taylor considered a huge step for Brianna.

  Saint walked in, crouching down a few feet from the girls. “Are we having a powwow?”

  “What’s a powwow?” Sarrie asked.

  “It’s what Native Americans call a meeting. I’m Sa
int, by the way. It’s very nice to meet you lovely ladies.”

  Elle giggled. She tugged on Taylor’s hand. “He said we’re lovely.”

  “And you are,” Saint said, smiling.

  “You have pretty eyes, too,” June said. “But I like the other man’s better. I wish I had green ones.”

  Saint laughed. “Doc’s eyes are pretty, but I’d rather have brown eyes like you. Yours remind me of chocolate, and I love chocolate.”

  Taylor stood, stepping away to let the girls get acquainted with their protector. They’d all surprised her with how easily they’d accepted the two men. Maybe they were finally starting to feel safe, ready to start trusting again.

  Nate moved next to her. “I’m kind of jealous. They’re just now starting to acknowledge my existence, yet they seem fascinated by these two strangers.”

  “Well, they both do have pretty eyes.” She almost laughed at the scowl on his face.

  “You’re noticing eyes now?”

  Was he actually jealous? A little thrill went through her, and she couldn’t resist testing this new revelation. “How could I not? I just can’t decide which are sexier. Ryan’s green ones or Jamie’s blue ones.”

  He wrapped his fingers around her arm, pulling her further away. “We have an investigation going on. You don’t have time to be noticing any dude’s eyes.”

  She gave a mental high five. He was jealous. That was good intel. “What about yours? Am I allowed to notice them?”

  “Always.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  “What?” Nate shifted his gaze to his brother.

  “Where the hell’s your mind?” Court sighed. “You haven’t heard a word I said.”

  His mind was on Taylor. Where else would it be after having her stare into his eyes, asking if she was allowed to notice them? After experiencing his first-ever streak of jealousy—an emotion he’d never expected to feel in his lifetime—because she apparently had it in her to appreciate a man, or men in this case, who wasn’t him. They were surrounded daily by men, other agents, and she’d never once indicated that she thought their eyes were sexy.