by Dale Mayer
She smiled. “You really are heroes, aren’t you?”
He laughed. “Yes, heroes for hire.”
“Oh, my gosh, that’s a great name.”
He turned to look at her, his eyebrows raised, and said, “Hell, no. We don’t see ourselves as heroes. We’re just men.”
“Men with a very particular skill set,” she argued. “If you were to advertise, oh my, you would make a killing.”
His voice still teasing but with a cooler tone, he said, “Not happening.”
She’d been so engrossed in the conversation that she didn’t notice where he was taking her. She stopped in the doorway to see the rest of the men gathered around somebody seated on a chair. And she realized this was the man who’d shot at Stone.
Suddenly rage washed over her. She walked right up to him, hefted her arm back, and smacked him hard across the face. She could hear the gasps from the other men and heard Stone say, “Whoa, easy there.”
But instead of listening, she shoved her face into the stranger’s and said, “And that’s for trying to shoot one of the guys.” Then she stepped back to stand beside Stone, linking her arm with his. Under her breath she muttered, “Asshole.”
The other men took one look at the intruder in the chair, back to her, then to the shooter again—and they grinned.
*
Now she’d done it. Stone wanted to roll his eyes, but inside he was grinning too. It took a lot of gumption to stand up to somebody like that, and to think she’d done it in his defense was just great.
But he also knew the guys would never let him live this down. He glared at them, his gaze flicking from Rhodes’s big smirk to Merk’s grin to Levi’s cold and hard face though his eyes twinkled. Nobody had missed it. Even Logan and Harrison were coughing and holding their hands to their mouths.
The intruder just stared at her in shock. “I didn’t shoot at nobody, bitch.”
She gasped and stepped forward, her hand swinging behind her again. Stone quickly grabbed her and pulled her to his side. “It’s okay, honey. We’ll deal with him.”
“But he’s lying,” she said in outrage. “I saw him shoot at you. Asshole.”
This time the man just shut up and glared at her.
Stone instinctively stepped in front of her, blocking her from the man’s rage. “We already know what you did. I wanted to see if she could identify you, see if any shared history had brought you into her life.”
“I don’t give a shit about the bitch.” The man spat in the ground. “A bullet would be the best answer for her.” This time Stone’s fist came out and slammed into the man’s jaw.
Instead of snapping back as he’d done from Lissa’s slap, the man’s head lolled to the side. Stone had knocked him unconscious.
“Stone, we weren’t quite done talking to him,” Levi said in exasperation.
Splash.
Everybody swore and stepped back as a bucket of ice-cold water rained over the intruder’s face. They turned to glare at Lissa, standing, holding the empty bucket in her hand. She said, “Now Stone can go at him again.”
And sure enough the intruder shook his head as he came back to consciousness. The men just looked at Stone, back to her, then shook their heads.
“Wow, you got a live one this time,” Merk told Stone.
“This time?” She jutted her jaw out at Merk, who immediately wiped the smile off his face. “I’m the last one,” she snapped. She turned back toward Stone, who was studying her as if he didn’t know what to make of her. She grinned. “You might have a history, honey, but I’m your future. Get used to it.” She reached up and placed a kiss on his chin, which was as high up as she could reach, then turned to glare at the others and snapped, “And don’t any of you be forgetting that.”
She turned and stormed out.
Stone watched her go. He couldn’t believe what she’d done or said. But at the same time, both had made him smile. Then he laughed. Great big belly ones that rolled through the massive garage. When he finally calmed down, the others still stood in the circle, around the intruder, but stared at Stone. He grinned, his chuckles still escaping, and said, “Don’t look at me for answers. I don’t have any. She’s something I’ve never seen before.”
“You can say that again,” Levi said. “You sure you’re up for that?”
But Stone couldn’t take the grin off his face, nor did he want to squelch the joy running through his system. It seemed like he had lived such a serious and dark life for so long that she was a breath of fresh air. With Lissa being unpredictable and definitely unique, maybe he wasn’t quite sure he was up for it, but he’d be damned if he would walk away from the opportunity.
“I better be,” he said with a smile. “Otherwise she’ll eat me alive.”
At that the whole group burst into laughter.
Chapter 20
Lissa didn’t know why the hell she’d shared her expectations. It was stupid as hell. She and Stone were too far away from anything like a relationship-status declaration. What the hell did she do? It just made no sense.
She blamed the asshole in the chair. She’d seen red when she realized he’d been the one who had shot at Stone. And when he blacked out, she just wanted to hit him again. So she tossed the water on him. But all she’d really done was give the rest of the guys a laugh.
She lifted a shaky hand to her brow and wished she had some self-control. She really was a stupid, impulsive fool. Her father was right. He kept telling her, You have to stop and think about the repercussions of your actions. It seemed like that was all she’d ever heard growing up. Apparently it hadn’t done any good because here she was, still being foolish.
She walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table where she could just be alone for a moment—only to realize she wasn’t. A cup of coffee was placed in front of her. She turned to look at Alfred. “Thank you,” she said sadly. “I really don’t belong here, do I?”
His eyebrows shot up, and he walked around the table, pulled the chair out across from her, and sat down. “Why would you say that?”
“If you’d seen what I just did …” She shook her head. “I’m a fool.”
“And sometimes we all need that breath of fresh air,” Alfred said. “Just because you’re different doesn’t mean you don’t fit in.”
She looked at him blankly.
“These guys have way-too-much military training, discipline, and regimentation in their world. They need laughter, light, and some sunshine. It’s very important.”
She looked at him and wondered if he was just trying to make her feel better. “It’s been way too fast and easy. Well, okay, maybe not that last one, but definitely been the first.”
“What, you and Stone?”
She nodded. “He probably thinks I’m an idiot.”
“Stone’s always had to be strong and tough,” Alfred said quietly. “It’s expected of him. To think that you are somebody he’s attracted to, that just makes my heart warm and gives me hope for his future.”
She looked at him curiously. “Why?”
“Because it means it’s something that he really wants in his life. He wants happiness, laughter. The four men that started all this—Rhodes, Merk, Levi, and Stone—they did some of the ugliest, deepest, darkest, nastiest jobs the military could throw at them. They always came through with flying colors, except for the last mission,” he said. “It changes a person to see and do all that. Stone doesn’t have to live on that level of darkness anymore, but it’ll take somebody like you to pull him into the light.”
She drummed her fingers on her cheek as she studied Alfred’s face. “Stone seems so strong and independent. So capable of being alone. It makes me feel like there isn’t any room for me.”
This time Alfred’s smile, when it came, was slow and gentle. “It’s not that there’s no place for you. But he’s been locked in tight to keep the world out. Hard to do but they all had to, and it’ll take somebody very special to make a place for herself inside their
circle.”
“How does Ice fit into this?”
“She was the helicopter pilot who rescued them on their last SEAL mission,” Alfred admitted. “Levi and Ice have finally got their issues worked out.”
“I can’t imagine Ice ever not having a place in that circle. They respect and like her.”
“But that’s also because she knows that’s where she belongs. Imagine if one of them tried to tell her that she didn’t.”
Lissa grinned. “There’d be fireworks.”
“Exactly.” Alfred stood up from the chair and said, “Think about that.” He picked up his coffee and walked away.
She stared after him, wondering if he was right. But in order for her to have that self-confidence, to feel she was exactly where she belonged, she had to know they could do nothing to move her out. She had to acknowledge that on an inside level.
But that meant she also had to connect with Stone a whole lot more. Although he had let her in, sometimes … she didn’t know if that was something he regretted. They hadn’t had a chance to find out, all because this asshole had come into their lives.
So effectively the shooter was stopping her from having a future with Stone, and that just made her angry all over again.
And yet it wasn’t just him. It was this whole mess. She got up with her cup of coffee and sauntered to the room where the men were talking with the intruder. She didn’t let him see her, in case the flow of words stopped when he caught sight of her. He obviously didn’t like women, especially her.
And maybe she should start there.
When a lull in conversation came, she stepped around Stone, her hand automatically reaching up to clamp onto his elbow. She asked the intruder, “Why don’t you like me?”
The intruder’s face shut down, and he spat in her direction.
She felt Stone go rigid under her hand. She patted his big forearm and said gently, “It’s okay. He obviously doesn’t know me.”
The intruder snapped, “And I wouldn’t want to. You’re nothing but a rich trust-fund bitch.”
“Interesting.” She studied the other men, realized they agreed. So this guy actually knew her, or about her.
“Is that the fuel your employer used to make you do this? Learning to hate somebody who has more money and was born with a silver spoon in her mouth? Someone useless, who doesn’t understand the struggle, how you had to claw your way through life to get to where you are?”
He glared at her. “Exactly. People like you. Useless, can’t do anything, born with money, die with money. You don’t know what it’s like for the rest of us.”
She nodded. “Nothing I say will change your view of me. But it’s interesting that that was the tool used to help you target me. I’m one of many so I would still like to know, why me?”
He snorted. “That’s easy. Because even though you’re a rich bitch, you figured you could cheat the system. But when you get into bed with the bad boys, you sure as hell better do the job or pay the price.” He grinned. “In this case you didn’t do the job but you took the money. So you’re paying the price.”
“Okay, I can see that would be your take on it. By the way, what exactly is the job I was supposed to do?”
“You were supposed to bring that shit into the country and hand it over. You were well-paid for the job. Now you’ll pay for screwing them over.”
“I wasn’t paid for anything,” she protested. She could sense the attention of all the men circling the two of them. But she also knew she didn’t dare break eye contact because the shooter was finally talking.
“And what exactly was I supposed to bring over?” She kept her voice light and conversational. But it was hard because she was finally getting to the crux of the matter.
He snorted. “They didn’t tell me exactly. But I understand it was some kind of experimental drug.”
She turned to stare at Stone, then back at the intruder. “You do realize all my luggage was seized in the London airport, including that experimental drug, right?”
He frowned. “Heathrow?”
She nodded. “Yes, Heathrow. We flew back via London before we came here. All my luggage was taken, and I never had any of it to bring with me.”
The intruder stared at her in shock, and then he laughed. “Oh, that’s rich. Now there’s nothing to save your sorry white hide.” And he laughed some more. “Not while the drug companies are after you.”
*
Over brunch the topic was discussed at length. But the one conclusion they’d all confirmed was that somebody had slipped the drugs into her bags, which were then seized at Heathrow. And whoever had slipped them in was expecting delivery here in the USA. With the drugs gone, and this person waiting for them, Lissa, as well as Levi’s team, had a problem.
The intruder had given them only a little more, but had confirmed they were looking for medicine grade pharmaceuticals. With that information, Stone had a good idea what was going on, but needed proof. And he needed to get his hands on Kevin. There were more than a few questions he wanted to ask.
“It also means somebody from the refugee, or terrorist, camp, put the drugs into my bag,” she said.
Stone stared down at her plate. She was hardly eating. It had been a pretty nerve-racking morning. He nudged her gently. “Eat up.”
She nodded and lifted another bite to her mouth. She turned to Levi and asked, “Did you ever hear from Charles?”
“Just a couple messages. I have to call him back as soon as we’re finished here.” He smiled at her. “It’s been a little busy this morning.”
“Did you get an update on Kevin?”
He shook his head. “No, but I will be sure to ask Charles.”
She nodded and kept quiet but wasn’t eating again. She was toying with the food on her plate.
That worried Stone more than anything. He’d seen this girl eat. He polished off his plate and asked, “What’s bothering you?”
“I’m worried that the same person who’s behind all this may have killed Kevin … and Susan.”
Silence sat heavy in the room. Stone turned his gaze to the others. No wonder Lissa was worried. She’d worked with the two of them for months.
“I wasn’t going to bring that up,” she said quietly. “But I also have to consider they may have killed Marge.”
“Are you thinking they saw or knew who might’ve put this into your luggage? Otherwise why kill them?”
“Or because the bad guys put it into their luggage too,” she said. Tears filled her eyes. “There’s just so much death right now, it seems like a logical link to wonder if maybe they weren’t the first two deaths. Then Marge.”
Levi nodded, quickly emptied his coffee cup, and stood up. “Time for me to check in with Charles.” And he walked out.
Ice had already finished eating. She got up and walked off with him.
Lissa looked at Stone. “It’s hard to think others were killed or hurt because of this.”
“Whether they did or didn’t, it is not your fault. The fact is that sometimes assholes move people around in this world like a chess game to take out good ones. It still doesn’t mean you’re responsible. But it does mean we have to do everything we can to make sure you are not next.”
She wrapped her arms around her chest and nodded.
“And for that to happen, you have to eat.” He nodded at her half-empty plate. “Finish this up, and I’ll take you to get a nap again.”
Her tone was dry but her words were teasing as she said, “There’s the Stone I know. Always trying to get me into bed.”
Stone glanced at the guys remaining in the room. Lissa had pretty much blown any cover their relationship had had with her speech earlier. He might as well be equally honest here. “I’m pretty sure it’s the other way around.” He laughed. “There’s a lot worse things for me to do than that.”
She quickly polished off her meal and stood up. He nodded to the rest of the crew and led her from the room. Upstairs on the second floor, he took
her to his room and got her settled into bed. “Do you want me to stay here, or will you be okay?”
She smiled. “I’ll be fine. There’s a ton of people around this place.”
“That there is. That doesn’t mean they’ll be watching out for you though. We can’t always see when somebody’s in trouble.”
“Outside of this nightmare, I’ll be fine.” She curled deeper into the covers and closed her eyes.
He waited for a few minutes to make sure she actually drifted off. When he figured she was under, he walked to the door and took a last look. As a precaution he pulled out his keys and locked the door. At least she’d be locked in. She could get out if she wanted to, but it would be damn hard for anybody else to get in.
Then he headed to the office. Ice and Levi were both here. Levi was on a call to Charles.
Stone looked around and asked, “Whatever happened to Sienna?”
Ice never lifted her head from the paperwork in front of her. “She had a few things to settle up before moving here full time. She’s expected next week.”
“For real?” Stone was happy to hear that. She was a nice girl. She helped to improve the balance of the testosterone around the compound. It might also give Lissa a friend.
“Yes. Alfred drove her to the airport while we were in Afghanistan.”
“I must be really out of it, considering I didn’t notice she was gone until now. That makes me feel like an idiot.”
“Charles has news.” Levi announced putting his phone down on the desk. “Kevin and Susan were almost destitute. Medical bills to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and their house in France has a second mortgage.”
“Which is motive right there,” Stone said.
“I’ve been trying to track his phone, but it’s off or dead. Or he’s ditched it,” Ice said quietly. “There’s something not right about him.”
“Charles had another tidbit …”
Stone turned to look at Levi. “What?”
“The initial tox report on Susan said an experimental drug was used on her, and not one they’d ever seen before.”